The DIS basketball elementary rookies gathered at the Jetnasium for the SKAC Divisionals on May 4. They looked to challenge their limits against other athletes from across the country. Four teams attended the tournament: DIS, International School of Busan (ISB), Busan Foreign School (BFS), and Handong International School (HIS).

The boys ruled as the kings of the court, and all their games led to a blowout by at least double digits. The tournament went like a walk in the park for the youngsters, and just like that, varsity secured three wins in their bag.

“It was kind of easy because we were too good. We beat all the other teams like 28:4, and I wanted it to be more competitive. We can win SKAC easily,” said varsity starter Joseph Cho in fourth grade.

Unlike the boys’, the girls’ competition told a different story. They got off to a rocky start. The oversaturation of DIS teams caused the girls to duel their own classmates. They faced heated games that came down to small margins. Unfortunately, they failed to prevail in clutch moments. 

Simple mistakes piled up and morale lowered. Their coach Ms. Loutsch brought them back together as she called time-out. With her motivation in their hearts, they gelled and focused on teamwork. They started to score more even though they still lost.

“Compared to the beginning of the year, we learned not only to shoot but also to pass and dribble. It was a really good opportunity to showcase our skills because our school isn’t that good at basketball, but this season, I think we worked really hard, and I think our coach Ms. Loutsch taught us a lot of things,” said a varsity player Tracy Kim in fifth grade. 

Both elementary squads acknowledged their talents. With the chances of conquering SKAC greater than ever for the boys and a speedy development from the girls, they strive to take home both trophies from HIS on Saturday, Jun. 1.