Vikings basketball team takes part in ‘pink game’

This year, the Nelson family was the recipient, as they lost a wife and mother, Rena Best, who passed away on Jan. 25 after battling stage four colon cancer.

The pink game between Swift Current Comprehensive High School and North Battleford Comprehensive High School raised over $13,000.

“We ended up raising $1,200, which we thought was a pretty decent amount until we saw the final total and they blew it out of the water,” Vikings senior girls basketball head coach Bryan Cottini said. “I think the gate at the pink game we were at probably raised a good portion of it. There had to be probably almost 1,000 people there.

“It was packed. They had a silent action and they had a canteen and they had tailgating. They had a wide variety of activities to help raise that amount of money.”

The exciting thing for the Vikings is that the initiative is a ‘pay-it-forward’ one, which means the Vikings are hosting next year’s game.

“If you host the game, the next year you buy the jerseys for the team you hosted and then they host a game,” Cottini said. ”So we’re the 19th team to be invited into the pink movement here.”

Next year, Prince Albert St. Mary’s will travel to NBCHS to for the pink game, although a date has not yet been set. The plan is to have it in late February or early March.

Although Thursday’s game took a backseat to the fundraising, there was still drama that took place on the court, with Swift Current edging out the Vikings by a single point.

“It was an awesome game,” Cottini said. “I think the fans that came and paid their money got their money’s worth for sure.”

The Vikings will now quickly switch gears from participation in the large fundraiser to a do-or-die playoff game with a Hoopla berth on the line.

This Saturday they will play the winner of Humboldt and Moose Jaw Central in a 4A matchup with the winner advancing to the provincial tournament the following weekend.

“We’re in a smaller regional so we only have two teams coming, Humboldt and Moose Jaw Central,” Cottini said. “They moved a bunch of our 4A comrades up to 5A a couple years ago so some of our classic rivalries like Swift Current and the Prince Albert teams, they’ve all moved up to 5A so our category is a little smaller now.

“We ended up being second place in 4A girls, so the top few teams got a Friday night bye.”

Tip-off for the Vikings game is noon on Saturday at the comp.

Nathan.kanter@jpbg.ca

@NathanKanter11

by Nathan Kanter

Vikings basketball team takes part in ‘pink game’

What's Trending