March 2009
ISST BASKETBALL CHAMPIONS
Annie Constantinides, Athletic Director
A GREAT YEAR FOR THE ACS ATHENS BASKETBALLERS!! Boys and Girls Varsity teams crowned SCIS Champions and ISST Division 1 Champions for the second year in a row!! What a year for the ACS Athens boys and girls varsity basketball teams! The winter season started in mid-November and the goal for both teams was one – to defend their championship titles. Off to a slow start (mainly due to injuries), both the girls and boys teams struggled to gain a rhythm at the beginning of the competitive season. After Christmas and particularly after the January exam period, both teams started to gain momentum as they knew that their major tournament was only six weeks away. The first major tournament for both teams was the SCIS event over the last week-end of January. The girls team travelled to Zurich while the boys team went off to Vienna. Both teams were dominant with the girls team beating the American International School of Vienna in the final with a score of 76-34;. The boys team reached the final as well, and won the first place trophy by beating the American School of Budapest 62-27. The ISST tournament was the ultimate challenge for the ACS Athens athletes. From March 13th -15th the girls travelled to Vienna and the boys to St. John’s to defend their titles. Both teams played 5 games in two and a half days, and both teams earned the gold with 50 records! The girls team faced the American School of the Hague, the American School of Paris, the International School of Geneva, and Cairo American College; and in the final game they beat TASIS with the score of 55-34. Four of our athletes were named to the All Star Team: Vasiliki Makou, Manto Peppa-Niniou, Zenta Melnika and Marialena Grispou. The boys team had a more difficult mission against schools like the British School of Netherlands, Cairo American College, Vienna International School, and the American School of London. In the final, ACS Athens beat the host school, St. John’s by only a four point margin! John Stoukas was named to the All Star Tournament Team. The basketball season is over, but one thing for sure: the returning players are ready for the next season! 55