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Basketball frenemies unite with UFV Cascades

Former rivals Deanna Tuchscherer and Maddy Gobeil will both play for UFV next season.
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The player who took a provincial championship away from Deanna Tuchscherer last spring will be her teammate at UFV next fall.

UFV women’s basketball coach Al Tuchscherer has rounded out a star-studded recruiting class, signing blue-chip point guard Maddy Gobeil out of South Kamloops Secondary.

Gobeil was named MVP of last season’s B.C. AA provincial championship after leading her South Kam Titans past Deanna Tuchscherer’s GW Graham Grizzlies in a 73-67 overtime thriller. In addition to her tournament MVP award, she was named to the B.C. Top 15 Dream Team after averaging 29 points, eight rebounds and four assists per game last season.

“Number one, she’s a guard that can score and can facilitate,” Al Tuchscherer said, breaking down Gobeil’s on-court skillset. “She can run things in the half-court, or she can push in transition.

“But more than anything, she’s a flat-out competitor. She hates to lose, and has always elevated her teams to higher levels. We’re trying to evolve our team culture, and we’re liking where that’s headed with our current team. I think she’s really going to add to that with how hard she plays, and what a great team player she is.”

It was her positive relationship with Al and Deanna Tuchscherer that sealed Gobeil’s decision to commit to the Cascades. She’s played with Deanna for the past three summers – in 2016 on the U-15 provincial team, 2017 with B.C. United Basketball Club, and 2018 with the U-17 provincial team.

Al Tuchscherer coached Gobeil for two summers, serving as an assistant coach with the U-15 provincial team and with B.C. United.

“I wanted to play for Al again,” explained Gobeil, who plans to enrol in kinesiology at UFV. “I like the Cascades’ style of play, and the way they were doing things here. I like the team’s tenacity and grit, and there’s a good culture around the program. I wanted to be a part of that.

“Also, when I heard Deanna was signing that was also a really big factor, because we have really good chemistry on the court and a really good friendship. It’s close to home, and the academics are good here.”

The Cascades women’s basketball team takes a 7-5 record (sixth in Canada West) into the Christmas break, and they return to game action Jan. 4-5 at home vs. the Brandon Bobcats.



Eric Welsh

About the Author: Eric Welsh

I joined the Chilliwack Progress in 2007, originally hired as a sports reporter.
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