Esface Basketball Tournament Develops Young Athletes

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Forty-eight teams participated in the inaugural Hustle Up Invitational Basketball Tournament, organized by Team Esface Athletics' basketball division, at Sequoia High School in Redwood City during the weekend of Apr. 14-15.

Divided into 10 divisions of teams comprised of boys grades 4th to 12th and girls grades 7th and 8th, each team played a minimum of three games over the two-day tournament, until champions were crowned in each division. The Olympic Club Elite teams won four of the 10 divisions, 4th grade, 7th grade Gold, Boys grades 8th and 9th, and Boys Varsity divisions. They finished second in the Boys JV Gold division. Team Esface's 6th grade Red and 5th grade Black teams swept their division,  while the 6th grade Red took home first place and the 5th Grade Black earning second place.

The winner of each division received a team trophy, gold medallions and custom championship t-shirts.

"It was a phenomenal event," said Dele Sobomehin, director and co-founder of Esface Athletics. "It was very successful in terms of how many teams came out and the level of competition. It was quality and healthy competition."

Founded in 2002, Esface specializes in fashion, particularly designing apparel, and creating a community with a common culture. But in 2005 they added a basketball athletics program.

"We aim to teach life skills through sports, such as hard work, and build solid individuals," Sobomehin said.

Mountain View resident Kaiden Pilkenton, who played on the 7th grade Red team, shared that the organization and the level of competitiveness was great, and also felt the tournament was an invaluable learning experience.

"I learned the skill level of other teams and what it takes to get to that level," Pilkenton said.

Another Mountain View resident, Phillip Williams who played on Team Esface's Varsity team, felt it was a fun tournament and he got to see his team improve over a short period of time.

"This was the first game we were all together," Williams said. "It was erratic at first, but we got better. The competition was really great."

Sobomehin had wanted to host his team's own tournament since the moment the team started playing two years ago, as he believed organizing an event like the Hustle Up Invitational gives the team pride and also helps them to grow, which goes back to the program's mission to build life skills through athletics.

While Sobomehin is very happy with the way the tournament went, a lot of time and effort went into making sure it would be a success and run smoothly.

"It was a logistical nightmare," Sobomehin said. "It required a lot of late nights, but nothing of quality comes without sacrifice."

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