Year 12 Tuakau College student Bethany Mahoney has been selected by Basketball Pacific to referee at the Australian Country Junior Basketball Cup in Albury-Wodonga.

The 16-year-old is a referee for Counties Manukau and has followed up a terrific year that saw her awarded the bronze medal match at the AON 15U Basketball National Championships to travel to Australia with selection to referee in a competition that hosts over 700 athletes and officials, with over 60 teams of Australia’s elite junior country basketballers.

Only seven New Zealand referees were selected to attend.

Mahoney has just returned from Australia were she received coaching from some of Australia’s best referee educators.

She was awarded the Women’s 14U Grand Final match as crew chief and was only the third New Zealander in history to be awarded a gold medal match.