Here We Come!

The Claiborne Sparks 13 under Girls AAU team will compete in the upcoming nationals for Girls taking place in Norman, Oklahoma.

We will be competing in a field of more than 54 teams, including being one of four teams representing the state of Louisiana.

The team recently won the 2008 Governor's Games for Girls 13 and under division and placed second in the 14 and under division.

Congratulations Tiffany, Annelise, Monique, Kaylan, Cierra, Maya, Jaelyn, N'Kendra, Jasmine, Kascity, Breonna and Aaliyah on all of your hard work!

We depart Opelousas on Thursday, July 10, 2008, to begin its journey to Norman, Oklahoma. The tournament play starts on Saturday, July 12, 2008, through Saturday, July 19, 2008.

Nationals is also a great opportunity for the team to compete and receive exposure outside the state. It is also an opportunity to promote the town of Opelousas to the rest of the world.

Stay up to date on our progress at wwwaaugirlsbasketball.org.  

Congratulations from the Claiborne Sparks to the Winners of the 2008 Governor's Games for Girls Basketball.

Many thanks to everyone who competed in the tournament.  

Special congrats to all of the top scorers for their hard work and effort.  We sincerely appreciate you all!

The 2009 Governor's Games will be held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

We look forward to seeing you all return to compete!

A compilation of all winners and top scorers with photos is in the handout attached to this article.  Just click on handout and download!

If I left someone out, just call and I will add.

Thanks.

Ms. Lavergne 

The tournament will be held on Saturday, June 21, 2008, only.

 The gym sites used will be Northwest High School, Sunset and Westminster Christian Academy.

We are looking forward to a very competitive tournament!

Please be on time.

See you on Saturday.

The schedule is attached below.

The Claiborne Sparks 13s coached by Jarvis Claiborne and William Joseph Davis defeated the South Mississippi Elite, coached by Burnell Wesco for the gold in this year's Governor's Games.

The Sparks 13s filled in for the N. La. Lady Stars of Monroe.  They won their pool play by defeating the Lady Lakers 13s and the Baton Rouge Tigers (blue).  They then went into the pool in fifth place and won all of their games defeating the Atchafalaya Hoopsters, the Lady Mystics and the Kenner Angels.

South Mississippi Elite is the 13 under state AAU champions for Mississippi and had been undefeated until meeting the Claiborne Sparks. The Baton Rouge Tigers were coached by Bonita Johnson and Cathy Miles.

The top scorer in the Gold Medal game for the 13s was Cierra Fruge of the Claiborne Sparks.

The top scorer in the Bronze Medal game for the 13s was #3 of the Baton Rouge Tigers.

Team members for the 13 and under Sparks are Tiffany Augustine, Annelise Bonvillain, Monique Claiborne, Kaylan Demouchet, Cierra Fruge, Maya Guilbeau, Jaelyn Hall, N'Kendra Kimble, Jasmine King, Kascity Martin, Breonna O'Conner and Aaliyah Pickney.

The Claiborne Sparks 10s took the silver in the 10s division.  They were defeated by the Louisiana Lightning of Abbeville. 

Members of the 10 and under Sparks are Eman Boyd, Andrea Bradley, Myjha Bush, Aaliyah Doucet, Kennedee Evans, Shamira Frank, Alexis Harris, BriAna Jones, Hydi Kennerson, LaKaylia Alexis Milton, Shankque Sam and Helena Tibbs.

Congratulations Claiborne Sparks

Nationals in Norman.. Here We Come!

Congratulations to the winners in the 9s-13s divisions of the 2008 Governor's Games for Girls Basketball Tournament.

9-10s Division

Louisiana Lighting - Gold

Claiborne Sparks - Silver

Louisiana Lady Lakers - Bronze

The Louisiana Lightning of Abbeville took the gold in the 10s division by defeating the Claiborne Sparks 10s.

The Louisiana Lightning was coached by Tim Briggs and Donald Levy. The Claiborne Sparks were coached by Kevin Milton. Speedy Butler coached the Louisiana Lady Lakers of Bogalusa over the Livingston Lightning for the bronze medal.

The top scorer in the Gold Medal game was Simone Pillette of the Louisiana Lightning.

The top scorer in the Bronze Medal game was Courtney Antie of the Livingston Lightning.

11s Division

Baton Rouge Tigers - Gold

Lady Mystics - Silver

Kenner Angels - Bronze

The Baton Rouge Tigers were coached by Harold Boudreaux while the Lady Mystics were coached by Erica Newman and Lori Singleton. The Kenner Angels were coached by Mike Bonura and Jude Clark.

The top scorer in the Gold Medal Game was Jalen Boater of the Baton Rouge Tigers.

The top scorer in the Bronze Medal Game was Ilyasha Turner of the Kenner Angels.

12s Division

Ponchatoula Hurricanes - Gold

Mardi Gras Gator - Silver

Kenner Angels - Bronze

The Ponchatoula Hurricanes were coached by Eddie Fisher while the Mardi Gras Gators were coached by Jason LaBorde. The Kenner Angels were coached by Roma Coleman, Michelle Delaney and Amanda Perkins.

The top scorer in the Gold Medal game was Robin of the Ponchatoula Hurricanes.

The top scorers in the Bronze Medal game were Carly Keller and Kali Koening of the Kenner Angels as both scored nine points.

13s Division

Claiborne Sparks - Gold

South Mississippi Elite - Silver

Baton Rouge Tigers - Bronze

The Claiborne Sparks, coached by Jarvis Claiborne and William Joseph Davis, defeated the South Mississippi Elite, coached by Burnell Wesco. South Mississippi Elite is the 13 under state AAU champions for Mississippi and had been undefeated until meeting the Claiborne Sparks. The Baton Rouge Tigers were coached by Bonita Johnson and Cathy Miles.

The top scorer in the Gold Medal game for the 13s was Cierra Fruge of the Claiborne Sparks.

The top scorer in the Bronze Medal game for the 13s was #3 of the Baton Rouge Tigers.

Many thanks to all of the Claiborne Sparks who helped to make the weekend a success!

Thank you Mr. Macklin and the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports. 

The schedule is ready for this weekend.  We tried to accommodate all special requests because of distance and conflict. 

Please download the schedule which is attched below.

Directions to all gyms are located in the locations folder to your left on the menu. 

If you encounter any problems, please do not hesitate to call Coach Claiborne at 337-351-1592.

Please be on time and arrive 30 minutes before your first scheduled game.

The 2008 Governor's Games will be held on two consecutive weekends in June.  The tournament is held in collaboration and cooperation with the Governor's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports under the direction of Mr. Rudy Macklin.  

This will be one of the most comeptitive tournaments for girls in the state.  There will be pool and bracket play. 

Divisons for 9-13s will be held June 13-14, 2008.

Divisions for 14s through Seniors will be held June 20-21, 2008.

Every participant will receive a free t-shirt!

Awards of Gold, Silver and Bronze will be given to the top teams in each division.  Also the top scorer in each championship game will receive individual recognition and separate photo, which will be placed on this website. 

Local media will cover the tournaments.  So be sure to check the Daily World of Opelousas for news articles on the tournament. 

All games will be played in gyms in the Opelousas, Louisiana, area.

Please print out the entry form in the handout below and send in as soon as possible.

Thank you.

The Claiborne Sparks 13s competed in the state tournament this past weekend.

We started on Thursday, and our players defeated the Thibodaux Select in their first game and then played the Dominos.

The Dominos were tough opponents outmanning our girls with two players over 6 feet 2.  However, the Sparks were not intimidated, and Coach Davis came up with some plays that kept the Dominos frustrated and  confused for the first three quarters and most of the fourth. 

Near the end of the fourth quarter, we were behind, and couldn't quite catch up. 

Aaliyah played an all star game rebounding, scoring and stealing.  She was the high scorer for the first two games.  We then entered the lower bracket and had to play our way back up!  What a long weekend.

On Friday, we played the North Louisiana Lady Stars and defeated them by a score of 32-29.  We next played the Hornets and defeated them as well.  We also played the Kenner  Angels and won that one too!  We then faced the Dominos again!  Same outcome, but still a win for us!  We claimed third for a share of the top in the state in 13 and under.  The players received bronze medals and a plaque.  We head to Norman, Oklahoma July 10-19, 2008.  More info on Nationals to follow later. 

Congratulations to Aaliyah, Breonna, Cierra, Jaelyn, Kascity, Kaylan, Jaelyn, Jasmine, Monique, Kaylan, Kascity, N'Kendra and Tiffany.   Each of you are our All-Stars!  We missed you Annelise.  Welcome back!

Coach Davis, you are awesome!  Thank you for all of your hard work and dedication.  You have made us a better team.  You made us WINNERS!  You are very much appreciated.

Coach Claiborne, thank you for leading us and having faith.  Thank you for all of your encouragement and patience!

Parents, none of this could have been done without you!  You are our MVPs (Most Valuable Parents) 

Now, let's raise some funding for Nationals!

The Claiborne Sparks competed in the Dominos Invitational this past weekend.

We once again were victorious and went undefeated.

The girls competed against the Baton Rouge Tigers (white) and the Baton Rouge Tigers (blue) and were winners.

Our last game was against a very very scrappy 11-under Dominos.  Those young ladies played tough basketball on the court.  Nipping and  harassing on defense!  They never gave an inch.  We thought we were going to have to play with four players before the game was over, but managed to keep five players on the floor -- barely.    Our girls were taken off guard, but pulled it together and pulled out a victory overthose persistent Dominos.

Whew! 

Way to go girls!

The Sparks went undefeated at the 2008 Strawberry Classic in Hammond.

The players just did everything right! Though it was one of the later games that night, our players just did everything right. They clicked on all cylinders. Our players have really stepped up their game.

The Sparks defeated the Livingston Ladies, the Louisiana Magic and the Toledo Panthers.

Tiffany took a hard fall against the Toledo Panthers suffering a deep bruise to her arm. She will be out for a week recovering and should be ready for the Domino Invitational. Get well soon Tiff and we will see you back on the court!

Annelise was out sick but cheered from the bench!

Check out game pictures against the Toledo Panthers.

The Sparks participated in the Baton Rouge Tigers Invitational this past weekend.

The first team up was the Dominos of New Orleans. This formidable team had the Sparks down by a score of 18-2. The Sparks fought back to a score of 22-16 by the half. Maya had a beautiful block in this game stepping out of the shadows this weekend. Kascity came into her own this weekend with a fierceness bringing it with her offensive play! She hit a crucial three at the right time to bring us out of a slump and pull us even closer to victory. Victory? Yes, there was victory! The Claiborne Sparks made a comback and defeated the Dominos.

Alas, the next game we took on in the tournament was the host team, the Baton Rouge Tigers. These tigers were down by double digits to us and clawed their way back into overtime and snatched a victory out of our grasp. Our players played with so much heart and determination, but the fouls on our big girls took us out near the end. Tiffany fouled out in regulation while Aaliyah was taken out at the beginning of the overtime play. We were then outmatched at the post and outrebounded. We learned that we have players never quit and play through to the end! Cierra, our champ really played a great game as did Jasmine who led us through it all including leg cramps! Kaylan, what defense! Tiffany has just improved every game while Aaliyah just leaps, rebounds, and scores for the team. Sydney, Annelise and Monique were all strong competitors this weekend too!

Many thanks to Coach Davis for his assistance this weekend!

Tournament photos are attached.

The Sparks were shining the whole tournament! Nothing but Victories!

The first game we competed against the Lady Cats of East St. John with only six players. Aaliyah, Annelise, Cierra, Jasmine, Monique and N'Kendra. Talk about working and getting the job done! We took to the floor and never looked back against the Cats! Our defense was stifling as we made the Cats turn over the ball time and time again! Not one of our players got in foul trouble. Annelise broke out this game and showed that she could really move on the court! Jasmine was the usual effective leader on the court pivoting, turning, spinning and scoring! Cierra just continues to do what it takes to get the job done! They were the top scorers for the game. Aaliyah and N'Kendra's rebounding kept us running up and down the court to score on the other end! Monique filled in on defense with her long arms flailing up and down, no easy passes were made by any player she defended!

Then along came the Baton Rouge Tigers, and it was payback time from the Easter Classic. They didn't know what hit them. It's amazing what a little practice will do for a team, huh girls?

We tormented the Tigers with our defense! Tiffany, Kaylan and Kascity had joined us by then. Tiffany's soft touch and that Kaylan's defense was amazing! We were up by over fourteen at one time. The Tigers tried to make a run, but to no avail. The Sparks were spanking them on the court! Victory was so sweet!

Our last game was against the Red Stick Ballers of Baton Rouge. Once again, our defense shut down our opponents' offense. Anytime they tried to make a run, it was over when our defense stepped it up!

Thank you Coach Claiborne for your leadership! Way to go Sparks!

Our first tournament of the season was held last weekend with our new players. The girls played competitively and successfully! Every player contributed in their own way to our team's efforts. Kaylan showed her offensive skills while Sydney let everyone know that she has "hops"! N'Kendra played her usual confident way! Annelise, Monique, Kascity and Maya added their special touch! Cierra returned to the team and had an immediate impact. Tiffany rebounded like crazy!

Many thanks to our parents who were such a big part of the team's success. Your efforts and contributions are so appreciated.

A special thanks to Yvette Mason for taking pictures which are attached to this article. Aaliyah, we hope you feel better and we will see you back on the court!

On Friday, February 29, 2008, Acadiana Prep Eagles of Opelousas, Louisiana took on the Southern Lab Kittens of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Our own Cierra played in this hard fought game. Her team was down by 10 points and fought its way out of it to a tie with just 3.9 seconds left.  Cierra's teammate Keke took the inbounds pass and broke through two defenders for a layup and Acadiana Prep was 2008 Class 1A State Champions.

Cierra contributed throughout the whole season to her team's victories.  Quite an accomplishment for our girl!

Cierra, you are our Champion!