North Cambridge Academy, part of Meridian Trust, are celebrating after their Under 16s Basketball team were crowned undefeated champions at the Basketball County Championships.
The team achieved an incredible feat, remaining undefeated for the entire season. They have now been named 2023-24 champions after winning the finals at Long Road Sixth Form College. This success is a real testament to the hard work and commitment of the team, and their Coaches, Mr Campbell and Mr Pestell.
The team was made up of Year 11 students; Shem, Yusaf, Kyrone, Ardil, Leo, Philip, John, Raf, Leon, Wesley and Vincent, who all played a key role in this remarkable achievement.
Vincent, part of the Under 16s Basketball team, said: “I felt so happy winning the County Championship with my team because we’ve been trying to win the finals for three years. This year we’ve put in a lot of work. We’ve been training hard every Thursday after school and it’s nice to know that its paid off.”
Philip, also part of the team, added: “It was a good experience playing with our team for three years and it feels amazing to win before I leave secondary school. We put in a lot of hard work, learning the foundation of both defence and offence which allowed for players to improve their personal performance and their confidence in games.
“We also had a lot of support from our coaches which was a huge benefit, knowing how much they believed in us and how much time they were willing to put in to help us improve was a big confidence boost.”
Marcus Pestell and Connor Campbell, PE Teachers at North Cambridge Academy and Coaches of the team, said: “It was so good to see all the work the team had put into Basketball this year coming into fruition. They were very committed and determined to give it their all this year after missing out narrowly in previous years and we are incredibly proud of their achievements. We hope this has inspired some of the younger years to follow in their footsteps and has laid the foundation for future success here at North Cambridge Academy.”
North Cambridge Academy will be hoping that this success acts as inspiration to encourage pupils to engage in sporting activities at the school.
For more information about North Cambridge Academy, visit: https://northcambridgeacademy.org/
