Giant killers Kaya Tiwi bask in glory of regional success

Giant killers Kaya Tiwi  secondary wrote history when they became the only school to win two national titles in one season this year and went ahead to win the basketball title as the schools sports calendar concluded  with the East African championships in Eldoret last week.

The hitherto unknown school from  Kwale County which holds the national basketball and netball  trophies which they won April and June, finished the schools sports season in style, beating former champions Lycee de Tanganyika of Burundi 54-51 in the final of East Africa secondary school games in Eldoret early this month.

They reclaimed the regional basketball title that Kenya’s Shimba Hills lost to Uganda’s St Mary’s Kitende last year in Huye, Rwanda.

Kaya Tiwi’s basketball team also won the national title on their debut in Bungoma in April after dominating the games right from the zonals, winning all their matches.

Kaya Tiwi’s netball team also had a splendid season and won the national title but fell short of finishing within the medal brackets at the East Africa games in Eldoret.

The team beat Gachihi from Rwanda 52-28 to finish fifth in Eldoret, becoming  the best placed team outside Uganda.

The basketball competitions at this year’s regional games were particularly tough,  with all the Kenyan teams (Buru Buru Girls, Bar Chando Secondary, Alliance Boys and Kapenguria High - failing to reach the final. Only Kaya Tiwi Girls and Upper Hill Boys reached the semis.

Kaya Tiwi started the games on a high, beating Bar Chando 94-30 but went down 38-37  to Lycee de Tanganyika in the second game.

Led by the championship’s Most Valuable Player  Lilian Adera, diminutive point guard Naomi Bosibori, towering Christine Akinyi, Beryl Aoko, Carolyne Njeri, Agneta Kambua, Winny Asadhi and Maria Komba, Kaya Tiwi  regrouped  to beat Buddo from Uganda  68-47 and As Rwanda  74-51 to finish top in Group B  and set a semi final date with LD KIigali whom they beat 67-52 enroute to the final.

Kaya Tiwi principal Robert Aran Maima attributes the team’s success to teamwork, dedication and hard work. He singles out the Government for special praise for organising a week’s training camp for Kenyan teams which he says helped the teams.

GOOD PERFORMANCE

“I have  a very dedicated coach in Philip Onyango whom I have teamed up with yet again this year after I was transferred from Shimba Hills in 2013,” he says.

“Apart from being one of the best coaches in Kenya, Onyango has a niche of tapping talent and knows how to motivate his players, making him unbeatable.”

Onyango has also won the East Africa secondary schools title with Mombasa High school  (1991   to 2007), five  East Africa schools basketball titles with Shimba Hills (2008 - 2015). Aran poached  Onyango from Mombasa High in 2007 when he was appointed Shimba Hills principal.

Aran says Kaya Tiwi has marched their good performance in sports with success in academics and singles out the school’s board of governors for special praise.

He is also full, of praise of his school board of management under the chairmanship of George Mokaya for being supportive.

“The schools basketball team is currently playing in the national basketball league, sponsored by the school which is not a mean achievement as they have to travel for league matches as far as Eldoret and Kisumu which involves a lot of expenses”, Aran said.

And as the saying goes, work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, Aran says success in sports has improved the school's academics performance, making it the most improved institution in academics since 2013.

“We have made a lot of strides in academics, we are now among the top schools in Kwale, a performance we want to double now that the students are motivated by their prowess in sports”, Aran said predicting a big rise in the schools mean score which has been on a steady rise.