West Adelaide Basketball Club

Junior Presentations Edition.

Congrats to all our award winners! 🌟

Congratulations to Maia Freemantle who took out the Dora Mudge award for 2026 at our Junior Presentations on Friday.

A fantastic example of a dual sport athlete, Maia has had a huge year across both basketball and football. For basketball:

🌟 U18 State Team Representation
🌟 NBL1 Pathway Program
🌟 Adelaide Lightning Academy
🌟 Classics Representation

And a SANFL premiership yesterday to add just one more thing!!

Known for her lockdown defence and insane athletic ability, one of Maia’s biggest skills is her coach-ability. We often talk to our junior athletes about the way listening to and implementing feedback and instructions is a separator at the next level. This is displayed by no one better than Maia.

A stellar person, a high achiever and a Bearcat for all of it. We are so very proud of you Maia.

We are pleased to announce Josh Louis as our Keith Miller award winner for 2026.

Josh has had an outstanding year:

🌟 SA Metro U18 State Team
🌟 South Sudan Afrobasket Qualifiers Team
🌟 U18 Afrobasket All Star Five
🌟 Classics representation
🌟 U18 Championship Season Premiership

We have loved being part of Josh’s junior journey. He is not only an outstanding young athlete, but an outstanding young person. You’d be hard pressed to find a coach or athlete who doesn’t appreciate how deliberate Josh is in his interactions with others. Not always is a great player a great person. When you have someone that is both, you know you’ve found something special.

We are so proud of you Josh and we cannot wait to have your back as you take the first steps in your senior career.

We are incredibly proud to announce our inaugural NBL1 Pathway Program Male Athlete of the Year - Cohen Mortimer.

Cohen has been part of both years of our Pathway Program and, every time an opportunity has come his way, he has taken it with both hands.

From earning extra playing opportunities with our Youth League Men to consistently making himself available for Development League games, Cohen has shown exactly what it means to make the most of every opportunity presented to you.

We’ve been fortunate enough to watch Cohen grow from a junior Bearcat into the athlete and person he is today. From state representation at U16 to competing at the first and only Basketball Australia U18 Club Championships as a double bottom-ager, Cohen has always embraced opportunities that challenge him to learn, develop and grow.

On the court, Cohen plays with poise, an exceptional basketball IQ and an ability to shoot the ball at an incredible clip. But beyond his talent, it’s his willingness to work, learn and embrace every challenge that makes this recognition so deserving.

We’re incredibly proud to have played a small part in Cohen’s journey and to have watched him develop into the athlete and person he is today.

Well done, Cohen. We are so very proud of you, and we will always be in your corner for every step of whatever is next.

A huge congratulations to Leila Grieger, who last night was named the inaugural NBL1 Pathway Program Female Athlete of the Year.

This year, we’ve had the privilege of watching Leila grow and develop - not only as an athlete, but as a young, determined and resilient person.

We’ve also been reminded of the incredible impact our community can have in shaping and supporting young people, both on the court and beyond the practice reps.

From post-game balcony chats with some of our NBL1 mentors, to tough conversations with her coaches, and plenty of love, support and advice from family and friends - Leila has embraced every challenge that has come her way.

And what a way she has responded.

After what is fair to call a tough year, Leila has come out the other side absolutely thriving. The additional level of challenge, competition and development within our Pathway Program has helped her take another step forward and firmly cement herself as one of the top guards in the state.

Leila, we couldn’t be prouder of you. Congratulations on an incredible achievement and a thoroughly deserved recognition of the year you’ve had.

The 80th Gala Silent Auction is officially live.

Bid early, bid often, and help us raise funds ahead of our biggest celebration in club history.

A live auction will also take place on the night, so whether you’re bidding now or planning your moment under the lights, there’s plenty up for grabs.

Thank you to all the local businesses who have supported with donations!

Our 80th Gin and Gala Tickets are still available via the links in bio.

Congrats to Tim (U18 Boys Age Group Lead) and Morgan (JDO) on their appointments as head coaches of the U20 Men’s and Women’s State Teams. Well done also to Lachlan Coppick (YL Women’s Age Group Lead) who has been appointed as lead assistant of the U20 Women.

Good news just keeps on rolling in! Congratulations to Mila Craddock and Liliyana Medhurst on their selection in the 2026 12 and Under School Sport South Australia State team.

The girls will head to Newcastle in late October to compete at the School Sport Australia Championships. Best of luck girls! 🌟🌟

We are proud to announce that we have had 7x WABC athletes selected to the 2026 Adelaide Lightning Academy program. This program is for identified South Australian female athletes who have the potential to represent Adelaide on the WNBL stage in the future.

The program runs for six weeks at Pulteney Grammar School with potential Development Player and Training Player contracts on the line for high level performance.

These ladies will get the opportunity to work with the Lightning coaching staff to get a first hand taste of what it takes to compete at the WNBL level.

Well done:

🌟 Frankie Fielke
🌟 Maia Freemantle
🌟 Lara Jolly
🌟 Sienna Lehmann
🌟 Georgina Salandra
🌟 Krystal Thompson
🌟 Chelsea Truslove

Our NBL1 Reserve Women are Championship Season Champions! 🏆