Saints shocking Ottawa's basketball community

Posted Feb 16, 2012 By Brier Dodge

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EMC sports - The Life Christian Academy Saints arrived to St. Matthew High School in Orleans at the start of the basketball season to only a couple fans.

The LCA Saints are from a high school of only 30 students, who had never entered a sports team in any athletic competition - ever.

St. Matthew High School has 1,400 students, and a reputation for winning basketball titles, snatching up the provincial championship several years ago.

So the Saints arrived with no one really knowing what to expect from the tiny, Christian school, which doesn't even have a gym, or basketball net.

The Saints won.

It's no wonder that the team, stocked with players from the Bahamas who came to Canada this year with a clear dream, drew a packed gym the second time they beat the St. Matthew's Tigers.

They've been making waves in the high school basketball world, a place usually dominated by the same powerhouse schools year after year.

The fact that the Saints even had a basketball team this year was all based on a mistake.

Ray Evans was coaching basketball in the Bahamas, and had a former student attend a Life Christian Academy in North Carolina.

"He said 'just Google the number, it'll be the first school that comes up'," Evans said. "So I just dialed 1, 6, 1, 3..."

Principal Mike Karpishka answered the call, and Evans told him he had several basketball players he wanted to try and place so they could have opportunities to get university basketball scholarships.

"I'm thinking, I don't have a court, I don't have a gym, I don't have sports teams," Karpishka said.

But it didn't stop him from getting back in touch with Evans and offering the basketball-coaching, PhD educated pastor a job at the school as the athletic director.

"But I purposely didn't tell him that we didn't have a gym," Karpishka said.

Last April, Evans held a team meeting, telling parents he had a plan to get their sons a chance to play in North America and have their best shot at getting a university education.

Different school systems in Barbados make it difficult for high school students to go directly into university or college in North America.

Justin Smith played for Evans' club team and went to a large high school of about 700 students, but wasn't going to have the right pre-requisite courses or exposure to scouts to be able to achieve his goal of playing in college.

"It's kind of hard coming straight from the Bahamas, most have to be filtered in through high school courses," said Evans.

Despite the fact that most of the players had never even seen snow before in their lives, they found themselves packing up to come with Evans to the little school in Orleans.

Alex Delaney is one of the players who decided to follow Evans, who coached his club team's rival in Barbados.

"I couldn't make it at the little island that I was from," he said. "My mom didn't want me to leave, but she had to let me loose."

In total, Evans brought eight players, including Delany and Smith, and a female athlete who will be running track for LCA come the spring.

Hurricane Irene was ripping through the islands as the players were set to leave, leaving some in their new home unable to get in touch with their families, and Smith unable to leave his home when scheduled.

They eventually made it, half moving in with Evans and his wife in a townhome close to the school, and the other half with assistant coach Lea Marte and her family in Plantagenet, Ont.

"It hasn't been without its challenges," said Karpishka. "But they've learned you can let the feet sink in, or stand-up and dust yourself off."

SUCCCESS STORY

After being invited back to play St. Matthew and posting another win, the Saints have beat Louis Riel, who have a special sports study program, and top AA schools from Toronto.

They weren't able to join the Ottawa high school league this year, but are aiming to play next year - with their eye on the OFSSA A level title.

"I've seen other A teams, and maybe only one that can compete with us," Evans said.

They've had to learn the different style of play in North America - Delaney and Smith said that the players inBahamas are shorter but faster, and more aggressive.

They play an aggressive style game, with four players fouling out when they played against Ottawa's top ranked AAAA St. Patrick's.

"But we're not going to change what we do," said Evans.

They lost the game, but not after taking a strong lead in the first half of the game at the Ridgemont Invitational Tournament on Feb. 2.

Playing top-ranked teams is giving them exposure, with scouts interested, and college scholarship offers already coming in.

Smith has been offered scholarships to several division two schools, and is just waiting on his American university entrance testing results to sort out where he'll go. He's also had interest from a smaller Div. 1 school, and plans to study business.

Delaney has another year to go, returning for a fifth year of high school, and wants to study kinesiology at university - though he wouldn't be opposed to staying in Canada.

"I like the snow," he said. "I don't care where I go as long as I'm playing basketball, and getting an education."

Karpishka said it's been a great year for the accidental pilot project, and he plans to go to the Bahamas with Evans in the spring to talk to parents of future players.

While LCA is a private school, they've offered subsidized tuition or scholarships to some of the players to give them the opportunity to play.

Working around daily 6 a.m. and after-school practices at the Orleans YMCA, players help fundraise to offset tournament costs.

They film the games for parents back home and scouts, and plan to take the game to the next level this summer, touring through Western Canada with the goal of playing at the 100th anniversary of the Calgary Stampede.

"Giving these young men the opportunity will help people behind them," Evans said. "They'll get to pay it forward."

They've also been invited to play at the United Games in Germany next year - and of course have their eyes on winning their own provincial title after they're officially entered in the National Capital athletic league.

"We've got big dreams and big plans," Karpishka said.




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