By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — It was a crushing loss, but it came with a bittersweet touch.

As Davidson’s senior boys lined up to shake hands following a 96-84 loss to Buffalo Narrows in the 1A regional basketball final, coach Kim Rettger said he witnessed something he hadn’t seen in decades of coaching.

One of the Buffalo Narrows players approached Grade 12 player Andrew Read, who’d just ended his high school basketball career with a loss.

They shook hands, and then the winner reached out and embraced Read. Another player did the same for Rettger’s son Mark.

“It was a touching moment,” said the coach, adding that it was a sign of “great respect for what each of them could do.”

“I’m not a very emotional guy, but that made me kind of weepy-eyed.”

The loss to Buffalo Narrows brought an end to another outstanding season for the senior boys from Davidson, who won the school’s first-ever provincial title at Hoopla last year.

After winning at conference play the weekend before, the Raiders hosted 1A regionals on the weekend of March 17 and 18, welcoming teams from Kerrobert, Buffalo Narrows and Poundmaker to Davidson.

After a 79-35 win over Poundmaker in their opening game on Friday night, Rettger said the boys were feeling confident heading into the final on Saturday.

Buffalo Narrows earned their way to the final with an 82-51 win over Kerrobert the day before.

For the full story, please see the March 27 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.