A Summerland basketball player has been chosen as an alternate on the U15 Team BC.

Mateo Ducheck of Summerland and Liam Reid of Penticton attended the U15 Team BC camp from April 12 to 14, at Collingwood Secondary School in West Vancouver. Both are members of Lake City Basketball鈥檚 U15 team, based in Penticton.

鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible that Mateo was selected as an alternate,鈥� said Lake City director Chris Terris. 鈥淣inety-five players attended the camp, and for a player from outside the bubble of the Lower Mainland or Victoria to get chosen as one of the top 12 is pretty remarkable.鈥�

Another Summerland player, Dezi Ducheck, attended the U17 camp from April 5 to 7. He is the brother of Mateo Ducheck and a member of the Lake City Elite 17 team for the past two years.

鈥淎ll three boys came home confident that they were among the best players in the province,鈥� said Lake City Elite 17 coach Spencer McKay. 鈥淣ot only does that give them more confidence, but that confidence filters down in our program. Their teammates gain confidence. Younger players in our program start to dream bigger. It鈥檚 fabulous.鈥�

McKay played for the B.C. provincial and Canadian national team programs in the past.

Lake City Basketball was established in 2016 by Dustin Hyde and Terris, with the hopes of fostering the development and popularity of basketball in the South Okanagan.

This spring, the club is operating 10 teams, including three girls鈥檚 teams 鈥� the first female teams since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2023, a total of 118 players tried out for the opportunity to play on one of the clubs鈥� basketball teams. In 2024, the number was 180 athletes.

The organization also has three youth leagues in Penticton for players from Grade 2 to Grade 10, and two skills academies operating in Oliver.

鈥淒ustin and I always hoped that if we were able to create more opportunities for more kids, then ultimately, the players and teams in our communities would thrive, which we鈥檙e starting to see again,鈥� Terris said.