Many Eagles 1 (our name for the Eagles middle school "A team") opponents have had the same question after first seeing Will Avery, a former Duke University and NBA standout, coaching GAIS: "How did you get him to coach the team?!" And months into Avery's tenure as an Eagles coach, the experience he has already provided the youngest Eagles players has been truly extraordinary.
While many middle school programs are cutting back, playing ten or fewer games and skipping postseason tournaments, Avery has gone the extra mile to place his squad in every imaginable competitive position. His Eagles began the season with a championship run at the National Homeschool Basketball Championship (NCHBC) Tip-Off tournament in Missouri. And while compiling a 10-6 regular season record against junior varsity teams, the Eagles participated in three invitational tournaments organized by Avery. During these tournaments, the Eagles won three games and lost three games against Augusta’s best public school teams.
Other season highlights include a trip to Nashville, TN, to face the defending national champion (middle school and JV) NCC Warriors. Playing back to back, Eagles 1 split the games with the Warriors, losing the middle school game and winning the junior varsity contest. And four Eagles 1 players were selected to play in “Augusta Metros All Star Sunday,” a middle school all star game organized by (you guessed it) Avery himself.
The 30+ game season will culminate at this weekend’s Southeast Sub Regional tournament in Augusta, GA. Avery’s Eagles 1 squad has earned the middle school division’s top seed. After playing junior varsity, middle school, public, private, and homeschool teams from six states, Avery aims to conclude this extraordinary season the way he started it… with a tournament championship.
No comments:
Post a Comment