Longtime Homecoming

By Davie Wong

It was an emotional weekend for both Royals squads as they both took time to celebrate their seniors. For the Women, they were saying goodbye to long-time captain and teammate, Adelia Paul, long-time friend and life-long Royal, Garaline Tom, and a team favorite in Jettie McLaughlin.

The weekend started out at Quest, where the Royals took on the Kermodes. The Quest squad, fighting for playoff positioning, managed to overwhelm the Royals early. And the Royals could never really catch up despite their efforts to. They handed the Royals their last away loss on the season, and sent them home to the Langara Falcons.

Now on their home court for the last time, it really hit the seniors. A small presentation was done before the game, where Coach Steve Beauchamp gave a heartfelt speech to each one of the graduating seniors before presenting them with a gift and flowers.

As heartwarming as the ceremony was, the team still had a game to win. The Langara Falcons definitely did not hold back. They were fighting for playoff position, and needed a win against the Royals. Lead by their seniors, the Royals gave the Falcons all they had.

Although they fell behind after the first quarter, the Douglas squad was quick to bounce back and snag it back. Before long they had tied the game and taken the lead. Now it was the Falcons trailing. And they trailed for the rest of the game, as the Royals found a way to put it away on a night that the seniors will probably remember for the rest of their lives. They finished the game, 71-61, with the Royals on the up.

On the men's side, it was a different kind of emotional. The men took time to honor their captain, Malcolm Mensah, who after five years of service to the Royals, would be playing his last home game on the weekend. Like the women, the men had to deal with a hungry Quest Kermodes team first.

However, the Royals proved just as hungry. It was a tight game throughout, and the Royals only managed to barely grab the lead in the fourth quarter for the win. But a win is a win, and the team went home happy with their performance.

Waiting for them was the Langara Falcons, looking to solidify their playoff seeding as well. Before the game, a small ceremony was conducted to congratulate Malcolm on his time at Douglas as a Royal. Coach Enevoldson gave a humorous speech, gifts were given, and then it was right back to business. Little did they know, they were in for the game of their season.

Right from the start, you could tell it was going to be a tight one. Both sides rarely gave up the lead for long. Going into the fourth quarter, the Royals trailed the Falcons by a single point. That lead blew up early for the Falcons, but the Royals weren't done there. They stunned the Falcons at the end of the fourth with consecutive point scoring drives while playing some solid defense of their own.

With less than 10 seconds left on the clock, the Royals managed to tie the game and force overtime for the first time this season. From there, it was all Royals. They dominated the overtime quarter, and won the game handily, 96-88. At the end of the night, it was clear, the night was all about the seniors. Malcolm Mensah dropped a massive 30 points in his last home game of his career. Reese Morris was close behind with 29 points and 11 rebounds for the double-double. Grant Campbell coordinated the offense and still managed to pick up 21 points, and played nearly the entire game at 43 minutes. All in all, a very good finish to the season for the men. They now look to prep for playoffs which begin in just a week.