8th Grade – Best in the West 9th Grade Champions

The 8th Grade Hoop Dreams Black girl’s team has had success in a variety of tournaments, but the one that had always eluded them was “The Best in the West” tournament in Yakima, WA.  That is no longer the case.  The girls came home with the championship, even with playing up in the 9th grade division.

HD girls started the tournament facing the “Lady Invasion”.  The ladies came out strong, scoring the first 7 points of the game.  Their opponents fought back, but the Dreamers held on to take the 59-51 victory.  Raquel Jardine led the scoring with 17 points, while Ebony Norman went 5 for 6 from the line to put in 9 points.  Dominique Williams played great defense, racking up 5 steals.

Sham and his Dreamers then faced the North West Blazers.  This was a big, athletic looking team that couldn’t keep up with the hustle of the 8th grade HD team.  Riley Helmick shot 2 for 4 from the 3 point line, while Destiny Slocum went 2 for 3 from behind the arc.  Cora Ianniciello lead the team with 5 assists, while Tori Williams, Riley Helmick, Raquel Jardine and Ebony Norman were all perfect from behind the charity stripe leading to the 64-33 win.  The ladies followed that win up with another victory over the Lady Style Elite Gray, winning 53 -35.  Danielle Jardine put up 20 points and Olivia Haney pulled down 7 rebounds.

Championship Sunday began with the ladies facing Tukwila Reign.  The HD girls showed class and composure on the court against a very volatile team, coach and fan base.  Scoring was spread evenly amongst the team, with Tori Williams leading with 13 points.  Molly Adcox put in 6 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists to help in the 56-35 victory.  Offense is always important, but defense won this game with 23 team steals (5 from Dominique Williams) and 17 defensive rebounds.

The final game put Sham and his Dreamers up against the Sandpipers of Spokane.  Many of the folks in the gym were star struck with John Stockton in the stands watching his daughter play against the Dreamers, but not this team.  HD jumped out to an early lead, and survived a late comeback effort to take the trophy in a 45-42 victory.  Raquel and Danielle Jardine lead the scoring with 14 and 8 points, with assists coming from Ebony Norman, Destiny Slocum, Tori Williams and Cora Ianniciello.  Sham, David and the parents were very proud of the effort and class the ladies showed while earning this Championship.