On Friday March 11th, the boys and girls representing the Chestermere Lake Middle School Lakers pulled off a 57-56 win, handing Ben D’Aguilar, Deron Mayo, Bo Levi Mitchell, Rene Paredes, Quinn Smith, Adam Thibault, Spencer Wilson and defensive backs coach Kahlil Carter their first loss of the young season.
The young Lakers were the first on the scoreboard, but it didn’t take long for the mighty Stamps to catch up and take the lead. A steady and intense game had the whole gymnasium cheering!
The crowd was made up of the entire student body, staff and volunteers while Ralph the Dog and two members of the Calgary Stampeders Outriders were also in attendance to cheer on the Red and White. With music pumping, both the Lakers and Stampeders had a great time and even stopped after the game to pose for some photos.
The male player of the game received a Stamps team-signed jersey and a Fitbit was awarded to the outstanding female player. In addition, Selfie Sticks were distributed to four spirited students courtesy of TELUS.
The Stampeders Basketball 2016 season kicked off March 8th at St. Josephs school in NW Calgary and Chestermere Lake Middle School was their second stop. For nearly twenty five years, the Stampeders have been visiting school gymnasiums in and around Calgary, giving students the chance to go head-to-head with professional athletes.
“We’re looking forward to playing some hoops,” said Stampeders quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell, a frequent participant in the basketball program. “It’s always a great time and my teammates and I always have just as much fun as the kids.”
This great initiative is a partnership with the Calgary Stampeders and Telus with the goal of empowering youth. “Health and wellness is very important to us,” said Shadi Sakr, TELUS sports sponsorship manager. “By partnering with the Calgary Stampeders Off-season Basketball program, we are encouraging youth to play and exercise while getting a chance to meet their favourite football stars.”
Each visit is for 90 minutes including change time, game(s) and a post-game autograph session. Schools have the option of staging multiple games (vs boys, girls, senior team, junior team, etc.) or holding a single game during the allotted period. With the number of students at CLMS, an autograph session was not possible. However, following the game, the Stampeders took the time to pose with all students from each grade in order to have photos for the yearbook and as a cherished memory for all students.
