Five local refs in action at Snake Pit this weekend

By Sean Rooney on October 20, 2018.

When the Medicine Hat College Rattlers host the Briercrest Clippers in men’s and women’s basketball Saturday at 6 and 8 p.m. at the Snake Pit, there will be plenty of local talent on the floor.

The Rattlers women always boast lots of home-grown players, and this year is no different as they’ve got eight. The men have second-year guard Nick Murschell.

Oh, and then there’s the five referees who call the Gas City home.

“I’m pretty proud of the work the officials have put in to get themselves to this level,” said Brian Kannekens, who’s been donning the whistle ever since he stopped coaching the Rattlers women some 14 years ago. “When I started I don’t know that we had any local officials doing college.”

Kannekens will officiate the women’s matchup alongside locals Andy Lawson and Katelyn Westerlund. Lee Sprunger and Zach Doan are part of the crew for the men’s game.

It’s never been easy to retain officials in any sport, so having this many at a high level on the hoops scene begs the question: What have they been doing right?

“The training is definitely better, and that’s attributable in Alberta to our provincial executive,” said Kannekens, who does scheduling and education for the Medicine Hat Basketball Officials Association. “The number of Alberta officials who consistently referee in the finals at national tournaments is disproportionate to the rest of the country.”

Typically, problems like verbal abuse from coaches, fans and players can deter even the thickest-skinned person from wanting to continue being a referee. But that can be mitigated a bit in a smaller centre like Medicine Hat.

“One of the things that happens here is you go to the grocery store and you see the coaches, you see the kids,” said Kannekens. “That makes it more of a human element, they realize you’re people too. It makes it that much of a better relationship when you step on the court.”

The hope is that younger officials seeing their peers rise through the ranks can be a source of motivation, much in the same way seeing the hometown Rattlers players can inspire kids to want to get better, too.

“It shows them it can be done, it isn’t political, it is about ability and moving up when you’re ready,” said Kannekens.

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