Basketball
18 March, 2026
Hornets abuzz at country champs
Three Horsham Hornets teams produced stellar performances at the 2026 Basketball Victoria under 16 and 18 division 3 and 4 junior country championships, held at Shepparton on March 14-15.
The under 18 girls, under 18 boys and under 16 boys all progressed to division 3 after finishing in the top two in their respective pools.
Hornets coaching director and coach of the under 18 boys side, Matt Lovel, said having all teams make the division 3 finals was a great result.
“I think we’re pretty happy to have all three sides finish in division 3,” Lovel said.
“Some of these other teams play VJBL (Victorian Junior Basketball League), a predominant level of basketball every week, which we don’t have, so it takes a little while to get adjusted to.
“I was able to watch most of the games and was really happy with how everyone went.”
The under 18 girls' side had an incredible weekend, reaching the division 3 grand final, where they were defeated by Warragul in a 40-36 thriller to finish runners-up.
Ilze Van Zyl was a standout in the decider, scoring with a game-high 18 points, while Indy Webb had 10 points.
Van Zyl also finished as the third-highest scorer in division 3, totalling 78 points in six games across the championships.
Lovel said the team was disappointed to lose the final but should be proud of how they performed.
“I don’t doubt that they were disappointed; I think they knew they could have won that game,” Lovel said.
“To only lose by four points to a very good team in the final, they should be really happy with themselves and the way they played over the weekend.”
The under 16 boys won all three pool games and won their quarter-final 38-35 over Macedon Ranges before going down 51-33 to eventual champions Surfcoast Chargers in the semi-final.
Charlie Hobbs impressed all tournament, scoring 83 points in five games to finish second overall in scoring for the division, and led the team with 16 points in their semi-final loss.
After suffering a loss in their first game, the under 18 boys bounced back and won their next two pool games to make the division 3 quarter-finals, where they were defeated 61-43 by Swan Hill.
Anderson Brown led the Hornets in scoring, amassing 48 points in four games, including a 16-point performance in the quarter-final.
With the side having lost Aiden Reinheimer and Tyler Roach to injury and illness in the lead-up to the championships, Lovel said he was happy with the team’s resilience.
‘I wouldn’t have been disappointed if we made division 4,” Lovel said.
“They had a rough first game but I was super-happy with how they came back and were able to win the next couple of games, which pushed us into division 3.