E.W. Pratt Charger player Dustin Chalifoux, left, charges to the basket against a Slave Lake St. Francis Falcons player in the tournament final.

Richard Freose
South Peace News
The E.W. Pratt Chargers fell just short as they lost 63-62 to the Slave Lake St. Francis Falcons in the final at the fifth annual Tonesha Walker Memorial Basketball Tournament on Dec. 2-3.

All-star Dustin Chalifoux led the Chargers with 27 points in the thrilling and intense men’s final. Michael Ablog added 11 points and Terence Nahachick 10.

The Chargers nearly capped off a big comeback as they outscored the Falcons 21-10 in the final quarter.

Pratt coaches were pleased with the Chargers.

“It’s a heartbreaker, that’s a type of game where you learn,” says co-coach Len Larson.
“One thing about the close games is that they are real character builders.”

Pratt came back from 12 points down in the final and 18 in the semi-final when they beat the Donnelly G.P. Vanier Vipers 58-56.

“They improved each game in the tournament,” says co-coach Tim Gordey.

The Chargers beat Kinuso 59-17 in the opening round of the 12-team tournament and edged the St. Andrew’s Saints of High Prairie 53-49.

“Competition has really improved in the last couple of years and you can see it at the junior high level,” Larson says.

John Walen of St. Francis won the Tonesha Walker Memorial Trophy in the men’s side for his outstanding play, leadership, and teamwork.

Other teams included Hillside, Worsley, Grimshaw, Paul Rowe of Manning, Peace High of Peace River, Ridgevalley and Spirit River.

Pratt teams will play in tournaments in the next few months before they host the women’s and men’s 2A Northwest Zone Finals on March 10-11.