‘Felt great to have fans in attendance’

The U15 finals between the Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Sparks in the 2021 NMI Rollers Summer Bash last July 25 was historic cause it marked the first time an all-girls squad advanced to the championship. (Mark Rabago)

One of the benefits of being on Level Green in the Community Vulnerability chart is spectator sports is back and this development was welcomed with open arms by 2021 NMI Rollers Summer Bash tournament director Ethan Kwon.

“As the tournament director, it felt great to have fans in attendance. One of our goals for this tournament was to give the parents, who haven’t been able to attend either of our last two tournaments, a chance to come out and watch their kids play,” he said.

Kwon said aside from successfully holding the 2021 NMI Rollers Summer Bash last July 23-25, the biggest takeaway is that after more than a year of no spectators sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the crowd was back at the Koblerville Gymnasium.

“It was great to see the parents come out and watch, especially since they are the ones who are committed to making sure their kids come to practices and have fun. Overall it was a great turnout and we hope to keep it going.”

The recent tournament was historic in a away after it marked the first time an all-girls teams advanced to the championship on the U15 division. This, after the Los Angeles Sparks upset the Utah Jazz, 14-13, in the semifinals that arranged a championship matchup against the unscathed Miami Heat. The Sparks eventually lost to the Heat, 9-30, in the finals but second place couldn’t have been sweeter for coach Marlene Lumabi’s girls.

NMI Rollers Club coordinator Dave Apatang said he was just happy to have witnessed how the Sparks made a first not only in Rollers basketball history but even perhaps CNMI history.

“From my recollection the girls haven’t had any opportunities to make it to the championships. This is actually the first time the Roller girls are in the championship. I’m very proud because these girls don’t back down. They’re not afraid of the boys,” he said.

Apatang said the Sparks morphing into a championship contender didn’t come overnight and he was there first hand to see it from Day 1.

“What it was is just strong defense, great teamwork with the passes, and just superior basketball IQ. These girls worked hard! Coach Joe [Diaz], coach Marlene, and I we all came together and worked on their shooting and basketball IQ and it’s really showing in the tournament we had,” he said.

Aside from the Heat winning the U15 championship in the 2021 NMI Rollers Summer Bash, the Warriors nipped the Phoenix Suns in a two-game finals for the U12 also last July 25. The Suns managed to force a winner-take-all Game 2 after upsetting the Warriors in the first game, 17-13, earlier in the day. The U9 Golden State Warriors then duplicated their older brothers’ championship in the U12 by taking home the title in their division after defeating the Phoenix Suns, 24-18.