LED by an outstanding performance of Kennesha Leacock, who was named the Most Valuable Player, the Kwakwani Untouchables ‘A’ team emerged victorious in the first-ever Guyana Basketball Federation (GBF) National Women’s 3×3 Championships, last Saturday, maintaining an undefeated record throughout the tournament.
Participating teams included two teams from Kwakwani Untouchables, two teams from President’s College, the UG Trojans, and the Linden Raiders. The winner was determined using a round-robin format.
Former national women’s team captain Karen Abrams donated trophies for the teams to compete for, and local transportation, lifting, and logistic services provider W. Rambaran Services Inc. offered support.
The one-day tournament also served as a platform for team selection and preparation, as Guyana’s women’s team qualified to compete in the Central American and Caribbean (CAC) Games in El Salvador from June 23 to July 8.
Kwakwani Untouchables (A) team, in addition to Leacock, consisted of Shania Sears, Natalya Clarke, and Malia Samuels, and only struggled against the Linden Raiders team, with the game going into overtime.
Kassidy Woolford of Linden, who hit a two-point shot at the buzzer to tie the score at nine points, sent the game into overtime. Nonetheless, Leacock, who represented Guyana at last year’s FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup in Miami, demonstrated her superiority by scoring the two points required to secure Kwakwani Untouchables’ victory.
In the meantime, the second team from the Upper Berbice River community in Region 10 suffered only one loss, which came against the tournament’s ultimate winners. The quartet that made up Kwakwani Untouchables’ second unit – Sherel Leacock, Rihanna Archer, Brianna Benjamin, and Lenasha Mohamed – also had a strong showing in the tournament, finishing second overall.
Kirsty Thomas, a national football player from Bartica, joined Woolford, Demelza Nicholas, and Rehaicia Romain in suiting up for the Linden Raiders.
The University of Guyana Trojans, composed of Jamaicy Ogle, Norissa King, Shanill James, and Keisha Copperfield, won two of their five games, losing to both teams from Kwakwani and Linden but earning victories against President College.
GBF president Michael Singh expressed his gratitude to the players for a thrilling day of 3×3 basketball, pledging on behalf of the Federation to place greater emphasis on female participation in the sport locally.
