Noah Charles and Jesse Van Wingerden made history at the Vancouver Island Seniors Classic all-star games at the University of Victoria last Saturday.
Charles became the first male athlete from Cowichan Secondary to be named Most Outstanding Player of a Seniors Classic game, while Van Wingerden became the first athlete, period, from Duncan Christian School to receive that honour.
Charles scored 21 points, one off the team lead, to pace the North to an 80-68 win over the South in the Boys A game. Van Wingerden, meanwhile, led the North to an 82-64 win over the South in the Boys B game.
“I just went out there and tried my hardest and played the best I could play,” Charles said. “A couple of other guys played pretty well, but I kind of led us to beat the South.”
Charles, who will play alongside his two older brothers for UVic next year, was joined on the North Boys A roster by Litha Ncanisa of Shawnigan Lake School. He has been selected to play in the B.C. Boys Seniors All-Star Game at the Langley Events Centre on April 16.
“I’m hoping to go out and have some fun in my last high school game ever, with all the guys I’ve been playing against my whole high school career, and hopefully the results will come,” he said.
The last Cowichan Secondary athletes to be named Most Outstanding Player of Seniors Classic both came in the girls game: Lisa Craig in 1990 and Cathy Richardson in 1991.
Van Wingerden got off to an excellent start in the Boys B game, scoring off a steal on his first play of the game. Also playing for the North in that game were Ozgur Tarim and Peter Ehrlich of Brentwood College, and Humza Khan of Cowichan Secondary.
Juliet King of Duncan Christian and Kelsey McGaw of Shawnigan Lake School helped the North Girls team to an 81-61 win over the South.