Games We Play: Shiraliga expands with more tourneys, camp

The culmination of the league’s fourth season last week saw nearly 50 teams compete as part of Shiraliga.

By JERUSALEM POST SPORTS STAFF
Shiraliga 311 (photo credit: NO)
Shiraliga 311
(photo credit: NO)
While the sports world focuses this week on Naama Shafir and her battle with FIBA to wear modest clothes while playing on the European stage on behalf of Israel, the rules of Shiraliga, a basketball league for women and girls, already includes T-shirts under uniforms not only as an option, but a requirement for all its players.
The culmination of the league’s fourth season last week saw nearly 50 teams compete as part of Shiraliga and the action will continue into the summer with a new and expanded sports camp.
Last Thursday, a new component of competition within Shiraliga began: Streetball.
A total of 30 teams competed in a three-on- three half-court tournament, comprised of several levels: elementary school, middle school and high school. In each age group, ten-minute bracket-format games were played, with winning teams moving on until two teams played for their respective division’s championship.
“This was the first time we put on an event of this nature,” said Shira Amsel, founder and operator of Shiraliga. “Just to see how much fun everyone had playing three-on-three in this format already makes me excited for staging more and more tournaments like this in the future.”
Also last week, twenty-four of the ongoing Shiraliga teams gathered at Malha arena for the Shiraliga playoffs.
The teams were made of players representing various girls schools in the Jerusalem area.
The first three places in each of the three divisions received trophies and medals, reflecting the intense devotion and hard work of the players to their teams throughout the year. In the elementary division, Efrata led throughout the year, but Makor Chaim, with its intensity and adept coaching, fought its way to a well-deserved victory.
In both the middle school and high school divisions, Hartman placed second while Ohr Torah emerged as the champions, to the delight of the 150 or so boisterous Ohr Torah spectators in attendance to urge their teams on.
The final component of the Shiraliga year will take place from July 3-21, with Liga Camp. Unlike the rest of the year, which is women-only, this Orthodox sports camp will have three separate boys division, in addition to the girls divisions (divided by age group).
As well, many other sports besides basketball will be taught by professionally trained coaches in: soccer, volleyball, baseball, football, table tennis, martial arts and swimming.
The camp will also include cooking and arts and crafts for girls and special events for boys and girls.
For further information about Shiraliga and Liga Camp, please check the website: www.ligacamp.com