Image Credit: UFV Athletics/Jordie Arthur

By Adam Donnelly

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Kamloops hooper Gobiel plays critical role for 8th-ranked UFV Cascades

Jan 8, 2024 | 1:00 PM

KAMLOOPS – A little over four years ago, Maddy Gobiel was playing in the Fulton Cup at the Tournament Capital Centre. It’s a new floor at the TCC, but for Gobeil, playing in Kamloops is a familiar experience.

“It’s always good,” Gobiel tells CFJC Today. “It’s nice to get to play in front of a home crowd, some friends and family.”

Gobiel may go down as one of the top basketball players to come out of a South Kam program that has produced some exceptional players. She helped guide SKSS to back-to-back provincial titles in 2018 and 2019, and was named tournament MVP both of those years.

“We’re really fortunate to have Maddy in our program. She’s a great kid and a really good basketball player,” UFV head coach Al Tuchscherer says. “She’s competitive and she sets the standard on work ethic and getting in the gym. She’s really a key component of our success.”

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That work ethic has made Gobiel an elite defender at the CanadaWest level. After her UFV Cascades — ranked 8th in Canada heading into the weekend — nabbed a pair of wins against the WolfPack at the TCC, Gobiel sits second in the conference in steals with 38 through 10 games. She’s also a threat on offence, averaging 18.9 points per game.

“As I’ve gotten older, I feel I’ve matured a lot in the game,” Gobiel says. “Especially on the mental side of the game, just seeing the floor a lot better. That’s helped me conserve my energy a little bit more and know when to use it, and all that. Maturing in that aspect of the game has allowed me to be successful.”

“I think what really is the separator for her is that when the game is on the line, you want the ball in her hands because you know she’s going to deliver,” Coach Tuchsherer says. “She wants the ball in those tight situations, she wants to take that last shot, she wants to be at the free throw line. She’s just a winner; she was in high school, and she has been here, as well. We’re just really fortunate she’s in our program.”

As part of that maturity, Gobiel is hesitant to speak about her successes on the basketball court and is trying her best to not look too far down the road. However, as the second half of the Canada West season gets underway, she and the Cascades have a goal they hope to achieve after the final buzzer sounds.

“It’s always been the goal to win a Canada West banner, so that’s something our team has been striving for since I first got here in my first year,” Gobiel explains. “We’ve had a couple of runs at it, in playoffs and stuff, so this year is hopefully one of those. We’re hoping to make a run in the playoffs. That’s something we’re definitely looking forward to.