Basketball team savors tournament championship

Following a two week layoff because of exposure to COVID-19, the boys’ basketball team brought home a Winter Tournament victory with a 69-41 victory over host Edgewood following a 49-35 triumph over Space Coast on Dec. 28-29.

“This year I feel like we kind of have a chip on our shoulder to prove to everyone that we are serious,” junior C.J. Coyle said. “We went into the tournament and got the job done, and it felt great to be the first team in West Shore history to win this event.”

The tournament also helped other aspects of the team, according to senior Kyle Peters.

“Our chemistry and teamwork has improved significantly from last year and winning this game really showcased that,” Peters said. 

Junior Jesse Bratman said playing in the tournament during Winter Break served as motivation.

“It definitely helped us because we realized that we’re a really good team and can compete with anyone and gave us the confidence boost we needed to play teams with more skill,” he said.

Junior Luca Sullivan touted many positive takeaways from the games.

“I think my team had improved but for the most part, we were just honestly happy to win,” Sullivan said. “I think there was some stuff that we need to work on, but overall we played pretty good. We kept our composure through the games and we didn’t let small runs affect how we played. We were able to win both nights and come out on top. The championship win gave us tons of momentum going into the rest of the season. 

By Garrett Martin