This past Monday, the Central Alberta Christian High School Knights defeated the Delburne Trojans by a large margin of 64 – 42.
Coach Veronica Den Oudsten said she has been impressed with the work ethic of her team recently and their ability to be aggressive. She said these are keys to the Knights having positive outcomes to their games.
“That’s when we are successful, when we are dictating the style of play.”
Den Oudsten went on to say the Knights are strongest when able to work together and find their advantage over opposing teams. She said the style of play will change depending on what that advantage is. The most important things are effort and teamwork.
“I think the success of any team is based on all your players being able to contribute,” said Den Oudsten.
Showing their dominance early in the game on Monday, the Knights established a strong lead even in the first quarter. Throughout the first half, CACHS dictated the style of play and controlled the court to keep the ball in their hands.
When the Knights did lose control of the ball, a high-pressure defense was quick to get it back and prevent the Trojans from shooting. Even when Delburne did manage to get shots off, CACHS did its best to prevent them from making it to the net.
In the second half, the Knights continued to use short passes and movement to control the game and stay ahead of Delburne and even extend their lead.
Even in the final quarter, where the Trojans started to put stronger pressure on the Knights and began to catch up to CACHS, the strong insurance policy the Knights had earned earlier in the game allowed them to easily stay ahead of the Trojans. Although Delburne scored more often than CACHS in the final quarter, the score gap was too big for them to close it in time and the Knights won the game 64 – 42.
Den Oudsten said the Knights’ hard work, particularly in the first half of the game, is what led them to victory. She said that the team has bought into the idea that hard work equals success and as such she has seen improvement in CACHS’ game.
While Den Oudsten was a little disappointed that the team did not perform as well in the second half of the game, she said that part of the reason for that may have been the different lineups she was trying because of the strong lead. She added that she was never concerned about losing the lead. “I felt we had control of the game the whole way.”
Den Oudsten said she knows it is difficult to keep up a high calibre of play when winning, especially by large margins. However, she added that gaining an ability to maintain consistency will serve the Knights well in the future.
“To me, that is the key of becoming successful later on in the season.”
For the most part, Den Oudsten said she was pleased with the Knights’ progress. She said they still have some things to work on but the players are showing an effort.