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The Airdrie Minor Basketball Association's Bantam Boys 2 team won a city championship silver medal to close out the association's fall and winter season.

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Local sporting clubs preparing for spring, summer seasons

The snow has yet to melt, but local sports leagues have already opened up registration for their spring and summer seasons.

Among them is the Airdrie Minor Basketball Association’s (AMBA) spring 3-on-3 league.

The spring league, which was started by the association last year, is currently taking registration for players from the ages of nine to 19 years old. Last year, between 65 to 70 players signed up to play in the league and another 20 utilized the league’s Friday drop-in evenings.

“Last year, was great,” said AMBA president Dave Maffitt. “The teams had to play other age groups, so the players had to adapt to their competition.”

Maffitt was able to create 16 teams during the 2012 spring season and is aiming for 36 teams and between 140 to 180 players. Given the success of last season, Maffitt also said there will be a few modifications to the league this year, including a ladder-style tournament.

Ladder-style tournaments are commonly found in squash and raquetball. If a lower seed defeats a higher seeded team, the two teams switch places in the standings. The association is also looking into bringing in teams from Cochrane and Nose Creek Community in Calgary to play against the local Airdrie teams.

The 3-on-3 season runs in April and May and, as the name states, pits teams of three against each other. Maffitt said the 3-on-3 games are a faster pace than full-squad basketball games and helps the players develop their individual skills.

“It’s becoming very popular around the world because it’s a more affordable way to play basketball,” Maffitt said. “It provides the players with more touches on the ball and gets all of them involved in different positions.”

To register or for more information on the 3-on-3 league, visit the AMBA website www.airdriebasketball.ca or contact Maffitt at president@airdriebasketball.ca

The association will be holding a 3-on-3 tournament at Genesis Place May 4 and the top teams will advance to the Basketball Alberta Provincials, which will be held in Edmonton June 8 and 9.

AMBA fall season

The association’s fall season is drawing to a close. Several AMBA teams ended the year with medals and captured city championship titles.

It was also the first year of Maffitt’s tenure with the club that it had a mini boys team made up of 10-year-old players. The travelling team played mostly in Calgary and played against community teams from around the city.

“We were quite pleased with how it worked out,” Maffitt said. “By moving up to the bantam division, it was a great way for them to get that experience of playing in Calgary.”

See below for further AMBA team results:

Fall season

Jr. boys 1 – bronze medal in ‘A’ division Jr. girls 1 – fourth in ‘A’ division Juvenile boys 1 – gold medal in ‘B1’ division Juvenile girls 1 – gold medal in ‘B1’ division

Fall/winter season

Jr. boys 1 – gold medal in ‘B1’ division Midget boys 2 – fourth in ‘B5’ division Midget boys 3 – bronze medal in ‘C1’ division Bantam boys 1 – fifth in ‘B1’ division Bantam boys 2 – silver medal in ‘B4’ division Bantam boys 3 – bronze medal in ‘C3’ division Bantam girls 1 – fourth in ‘B2’ division Mini boys 1 – bronze medal in ‘B2’ division

Spring hockey

Airdrie 3-on-3 hockey is returning to the ice for the sixth year this spring.

The league is open to Bantam and Midget players born from 1996 to 1999 and Peewee and Bantam players born from 2000 to 2002.

The 60-minute, twice weekly games, are broken down into a 10-minute warm-up and 50 minutes of playing time with the teams consisting of nine skaters and a goalie.

For more information on the league, visit www.airdrie3on3.webs.com or contact Knapp at 403-948-3692.