Phoenix on the Rise: Chiang Mai Basketball Tournament Champions

Yui K. ('23)

The Seisen Varsity basketball team headed off to Thailand on the evening of January 27 for five days of service and culture to compete in the Chiang Mai basketball tournament. 

 

Upon their arrival at Chiang Mai, Thailand, they headed to their hotel to spend some time relaxing, enjoyed Thai food together and spent time souvenir shopping to wrap up the day. 

 

On the second day, the varsity team visited the Mae Sa Waterfall in the morning where they took in beautiful scenery and bonded as a team by playing cards. In the afternoon, they headed to Agape Home Orphanage to spend the rest of the day volunteering. They created fun-filled and inspiring memories while spending time with kids from primary school students up to high school students. Many of the kids at Agape Home remembered the Seisen students from the previous trips and were overjoyed to interact with the Seisen students through games and activities once again. Before departure, the team presented the Agape Home coordinator with the donation money worth almost 50,000 yen that they raised from the two bake sales in which they gratefully received. 

 

Day three was the first day of the Chiang Mai Basketball Invitational. The team headed to CMIS and played their first game against Chiang Rai International Christian School. The girls led most of the game until the last couple of minutes when it was back and forth. Unfortunately, CRICS put up at the last second shot and Phoenix lost 22-23. In their second game against Morrison Academy Kaohsiung, the girls came out strong and never looked back, ending up winning 31-19. After the successful first day of the tournament, the team headed to a Thai cooking class in the evening to enjoy the local Thai dish. 

 

The first game of the fourth day of their trip was against CMIS, the tournament host. Though the team had a slow start and were only up by 5 at half-time, they pushed the score to a 32-13 win. In their second game against Ekamai International School, they had a clean sweep winning 44-6. As Morrison Academy beat Chiang Rai International Christian School, the only team they lost to, the varsity team ended up first in their pool. After the game, they headed back to their hotel and had an another Thai dinner at a local restaurant in preparation for the last day of the tournament. 

 

On the last day of their trip, the team went through a tough semi-final match that was tight the whole game. They finished strong and were able to clinch the win over the International Community School of Bangkok 25-22. In their championship game, Phoenix jumped out an early lead. However, their opponentwas able to close the gap and therefore, a tight game that came down to the final seconds. In the end, the Phoneix came out on top, 35-34. The girls were full of excitement, relief, joy and of course, Phoneix pride. “I was so happy that I was able to fight my way through this competition and win with the best team I could ever ask for!” Lisa P. (9) said.

 

At the awards ceremony, Sarah A. (12) stepped up to the line in the Free throw contest and Lauren W. (12) represented Seisen in the 3-point contest. Sarah, Momone I. (12),  and Lisa were named to the all-tournament team and Sarah was also voted the Most Valuable Player of the whole tournament. Afterwards, they headed back to their hotel to pack up and to catch their flight back home with the trophy in their hands, finishing off the five days of service, culture and a championship. 

 

 

Once again, congratulations to the Phoneix varsity basketball team!

 

  • HS
  • basketball
  • sports
  • varsity

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