Hawkesbury Jets U12 Girls catch the Eye in Melbourne
The Hawkesbury Jets U12 girls are celebrating their first silver medal at the prestigious Nunawading Basketball Tournament in Melbourne.
Coach Arosha ‘AJ’ Jayasinghe said this is a huge achievement for the Hawkesbury & District Basketball Association because the Victorian event is one of the biggest in Australia.
“It was a huge milestone and a proud moment for the club, the players, and their families,” said Jayasinghe.
“This group worked incredibly hard not just during the tournament, but in the weeks and months leading up to it. They played with heart, supported each other, and represented our club with real pride.”
In the final, Border Sports Academy defeated Hawkesbury 30-42. In earlier rounds, Hawkesbury beat Kellor Thunder 28-21, Waverley Falcons 23-13, Chelsea Gulls 26-19, Darebin Phoenix 29-16, and Blackburn Vikings 23-14.
Last year, the Hawkesbury Jets boys U14 side also finished runnersup in the same championships. Both teams were coached by Jayasinghe, who also runs the Lions Basketball Academy in Western Sydney.
“It’s been incredibly rewarding to see our local talent stepping up and making an impact on such a big stage,” AJ said.
HDBA sent more than 10 teams for the Nunawading event which was also attended by the Hills Hornets and other local clubs.
AJ has been coaching at Hawkesbury for five years now, with his three children, Lebron, Savannah and Tyrone all playing for the Jets. He has built a solid coaching background which helped him to launch the Lions Basketball Academy three years ago.
“The academy has grown quite a lot since the early days when we had only couple of teams that my kids played in. Now there are about 230 kids and we have 17 active teams playing at Hills Hornets, eight at Hawkesbury Jets and two at Blacktown.
“(My) long term vision is to become one of the best junior basketball training academies in Sydney. I want to build it around great people and kids.”
The U12 girls squad: Sienna O’Bryan, Jasmine Hietanen, Svannah Jayasinghe, Madeleine Davidson, Indi Scruse, Olivia Eldering, Medha Thota, Ruby Zohu and Indigo Grant. Head Coach: Arosha Jayasinghe; Assistant Coach: Anthony Scruse. Team Manager: Michelle Hietanen
