Arya in dream start as they eye nationals spot

Parklands Arya intensified their Westlands Sub-County Secondary Schools girls’ basketball title defence at this year’s games at State House Girls.

Arya won all their Group A matches to secure their place in the semi-finals set for next month.

Having failed to make it past Nairobi Region in the past three years, Arya are hoping that 2019 will see them outshine city rivals Buruburu Girls, who have locked them out of the national games since 2016.

They last featured at the national extravaganza in 2015 after winning the now defunct Metropolitan Region title.

From 2016, Arya have played second fiddle to their Makadara Sub-County counterparts.

Even so, Arya coach Barrack Amamo said his charges are yearning to follow in the footsteps of their predecessors.

“The girls are eager to perform well because they feel challenged by past achievements of the school. They have been working very hard and are determined to perform better than they did last year,” Amamo said.

Arya were too good for St George's, Kenya High and Makini School.

They topped the group with 12 points. St George's also made it to the semis after finishing second with 10 points while Kenya High and Makini finished third and fourth tied on seven points.

Wenn Akinyi starred for Arya against St George's, scoring an impressive 23 points for their 35-18 win.

The first quarter was evenly contested with Arya taking it 8-5, before fizzling out in the second quarter allowing St George's to win 8-1 for a 13-9 half-time lead.

Not ready to suffer their first defeat, Arya were more rejuvenated in the second half, which they won 14-2 before completing the job 12-3 in the final fourth quarter.

In Group B, State House Girls remain unbeaten after victories over Kianda School, Aga Khan and Loreto Convent Valley Road.

State House and Kianda School booked their semis spots after finishing first and second with 12 and 10 points respectively.

In the boys' contest, defending champions Nairobi School made their intentions to retain their title known after maintaining a 100 percent win record. They beat Makini School, Aga Khan and Kangemi High School to lead Group A with 12 points.

Makini School also advanced to the knockout stage after finishing second with 10 points while Kangemi and Aga Khan finished third and fourth with eight and five points.

Hospital Hill, Strathmore School and St Mary’s School are in Group B.