On April 13, Elm Creek School’s Avery Hartmann participated in the A, AA, AAA Girls Manitoba Graduating High School All-Star Game at the Sport Manitoba Courts in Winnipeg.
It marked a fantastic end to her high school career as Hartmann has played basketball since she was 11 years old when she was in Grade 6.
“I got into basketball because I admired the older students at Elm Creek School after attending a pep rally who played basketball, and I wanted to be just like them,” said Avery Hartmann.
This season, Hartmann played a key role in the success of Elm Creek School’s Varsity Girls basketball program. She continually had high expectations for herself, leading her teammates to do the same.
At the ‘A’ Provincial Championships in Glenboro, Hartmann was honoured with the Players Choice Award. This award is given to one female player from the tournament who demonstrates leadership and sportsmanship and is voted on by players from other competing teams.
“This past season was great with our team as we really bonded over the games and time we shared,” said Hartmann. “We won the Treherne Basketball tournament and were ranked third in the Province. We’ve even beaten an AAA school during a tournament and had many tight games throughout the season that built up our skills as a team. At Provincials, we gave it all we got; however, we came in seventh place after losing to a strong team in the first game of Provincials.”
Recently, Hartmann was selected as a Graduating All-Star for the 2023-24 basketball season. She got to play at the All Star Game on April 13 in Winnipeg, along with fellow players from A-AAA schools from all over the Province who a selection committee had chosen.
“I was very excited when I heard I was selected for the All-Star Game and the chance to play with the best in all of Manitoba. When I went there, I recognized a few girls from league games, provincials, and many I hadn’t seen before. The talent was incredible, and I was happy I got to be a part of it. The All Star Game went well I thought as I had a few rebounds, but I didn’t score many points because it was a much faster pace game than I’m used to, so I blocked some shots and played the post position.”
Now that she has wrapped up her Grade 12 basketball season at Elm Creek School, Hartmann plans to put basketball on the backburner next year as she will be focusing on her studies at the University of Manitoba.
“Basketball is the sport I’ve enjoyed most growing up, and the one I’ve invested all my energy into,” said Hartmann. “I don’t want to continue basketball competitively because I’d like to focus on my university studies at the University of Manitoba. I’ve applied to the Bachelor of Science and have been accepted and I hope to continue my studies at the Faculty of Dentistry. However, I’d like to play on recreation basketball teams if given the chance.”
