It has been a while since Sudbury basketball has assembled a team of young female talent capable of matching up with many of the elite programs in the province.
The 2014-2015 edition of the Sudbury U15 Jam might well be that squad.
The local crew breezed through the competition a couple of weeks back, securing gold at the 7th Annual Guelph Phoenix Tournament. The dominance started early, with Sudbury disposing of the Huron Lakers 55-33 in their opening game, with Arianne Saumure (18), Kaylee Trepanier (14) and Hannah O'Reilly (10) showing the way offensively.
The Jam took no more mercy on the host Phoenix in Game 2, administering a 75-23 drubbing. Maria Best stepped up her game, big time, as did Taylin Legault, with rookie Steffi Leers helping out on the boards and in the lanes.
The Northern Ontario girls kept right on rolling through the semifinals, posting an 88-30 triumph as Melanie Cloutier, Clara Yanchuk and Samantha Martin took turns creating open looks for a red hot three-point barrage from the midget dynamos.
Pitted against a 2014 playoff challenger, Valhalla of Sarnia, the Jam made perhaps their biggest statement of the weekend, riding an intensive defensive effort, and an amazing transition game, stopping their opponents 78-34 for the win.
Saumure topped the scoring parade for Sudbury, netting 19 points, with Trepanier, Leers and Best chipping in with 15, 14 and 12 respectively. The Jam will tackle their next challenge this weekend, part of the eight-team field attending the Caledon Cougar Classic.
The team will face Newman Youth, Barrie Royals and Oakville Vytis, looking to secure a spot in the Sunday semifinals. The local squad are being guided this year by the coaching tandem of Dan Trepanier and John Desormeaux.
