In the quarterfinals of the Saskatoon city playoffs: …………………………………………………… The Holy Cross Crusaders defeated the Mount Royal Mustangs 89-54. The Mustangs (coached by Bryan Craig) included Cale Fentiman, Stephen Koladino, Brendan Cooper, Mitch Thomson, Bryce Seto, Michael Waldron, Evan Millions, Tyler Thiessen, Adam Bell, Jeremy Bowering, Zane Fentiman, Eric Oosthoek. …………………………………………………… The Marion Graham Falcons dumped the St. Joseph Guardians 71-59. The Guardians (coached by Gord Desjarlais) included Ryan Boyko, Caleb Carter, Doug Herrick, David Klein, Aaron Manson, Kyle Michnik, Kevin Ostafie, Tyson Stare, James Taylor, Samuel Wabugwe, James Wagner, Brendan Wandzura. …………………………………………………… The Aden Bowman Bears defeated Saskatoon Bedford 75-59. Bedford Road (coached by Scott Hawley) included Dez Hoza, Brian Evanochko, Kevin Nykiforuk, Calvin Brabant, Mark McDonald, Sheldon Brabant, Kyle Stangby, Kash Didur, Dennis Vongkhamchamh, Benn Hart, Michael Prebble, Mitchell Goertzen, James Bright, Justin Wiebe. …………………………………………………… The Bishop J. Mahoney Saints whipped the E.D. Feehan Trojans 97-43. The Trojans (coached by Brett Handy) included Lucas Owchar, Leslie Churko, Jared Pidskalny, Spencer Knowles, Nathan Sanchez, Scott Wurtz, Katlin Larlham, Benjamin Bourgeois, Dustin Roth, Rob Parkinson, Oneil Sanchez, Sonny Weesweekase. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Bishop J. Mahoney Saints defeated the Aden Bowman Bears 88-69 as Stefen Dodig scored 30 and Nils Sundby 18. The Saints led 43-27 at the half. Jordan Dolgopol led the Bears with 19. Mitch Stephens added 15. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Holy Cross Crusaders defeated the Marion Graham Falcons 84-55 as Mabor Mapiour scored 20 and Brennan Jarrett 17. The Crusaders led 46-26 at the half. Brandon Panasiuk led the Falcons with 11. . …………………………………………………… In the bronze medal match, the Aden Bowman Bears clipped the Marion Graham Falcons 78-69 as Jordan Dolgolpol scored 31 and Mike Patola 13. Logan Foth led the Falcons with 23. Ryan Pauls added 19. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Holy Cross Crusaders defeated the Bishop J. Mahoney Saints 61-55 as Mabor Mapiour scored 11 of his 13 points in the fourth quarter, while make several key steals and a game-saving rebound with 40 seconds to play. “It feels good,” Mapiour told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. “We’ve played BJM since we were in Grade 9 and it was a hard time beating them. We came out hard and when we needed to at the end, stepped it up. The Grade 12s did it. It feels real good.” The Saints broke to a 13-3 lead and led 17-9 after one quarter. The Crusaders rallied to a 30-24 lead at the half. Saints reserve Thomas Seto hit four treys to give Mahoney a 45-42 lead after three quarters but the Saints went cold from the perimeter down the stretch. “It was just tough to lose, seeing that we’ve lost to them in both frosh and junior (city championships),” said Seto. “With the chance we had today and lose is just tough.” Brennan Jarrett led the Crusaders with 22. John Rochon added 14. Crusaders coach Barry Rawlyk said Mapiour “started slow in the game — we all started slow. He picked it up in the fourth quarter. … It was a good team win. A lot of people stepped up at various points of the game. I’m really satisfied for the guys. These guys had sort of been in the shadows the year before. It was their chance to step up and shine. That they did.” Mapiour said “I didn’t do good in the first half. I knew I had to step up. That’s four years in a row (winning cities), but this year, for sure, is the best — our Grade 12 year.” Stefan Dodig led the Saints with 17. Seto added 12. Saints coach Brian Carduner said “it was a real defensive struggle. We pride ourselves in being a defensive team and you know that Cross does as well. A game in the 50s or 60s, every possession counts. Unfortunately, there were a number of times where they got second shots on offence. In a game with as few touches as they were, those come back to haunt you. For the last five minutes, you could flip a coin. There were a couple of travels and they got a couple of second shots — that was the difference.”
In the quarterfinals of the Regina city playoffs: …………………………………………………… The Sheldon-Williams Spartans whipped the Luther Lions 92-65. The Lions included Jack Etienne, Mat Jones, Lukas Hansen, Kyndle Rice, Austin Gaura, Derrick Emsley. …………………………………………………… The Campbell Tartans dumped the Winston Knoll Wolverines 76-61. The Wolverines (coached by Steve Burrows, assisted by Kelly Adams) included Reid Quest, Mike Silvius. …………………………………………………… The Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns crushed the Riffel Royals 89-51. The Royals included Joshua Barrett, Harris Stalburg. …………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the Regina Balfour Redmen dumped the Regina Archbishop M.C. O’Neill Titans 84-54. The Titans included Robert Gareau, Adam Waldal, Derrick Zatylny, Dustin Obrigewitsch. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Sheldon-Williams Spartans dumped the Campbell Tartans 87-78 as Austin Bates scored 32, including four treys. “It was definitely a lesson learned,” Bates told the Regina Leader-Post. “Just being in the final last year — not even the undefeated season — was pretty nerve-racking. I was much more calm and collected going into this year’s game.” The Spartans led 57-39 after draining seven treys. “When they shoot the ball like that — and I’m not saying our defence was world-class — there’s not much you can do,” said Balfour coach Glen Fekula. “Pick your poison. If you’re spread out while covering their shooters, they’ll beat you on the dribble or in the post-up game. … I’m proud of our guys for continuing to play until the buzzer.” …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Balfour Redmen clipped the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns 85-69 as Lance Aldcorn scored 21, Scott Trowell 18 and Kyle Donsberger 12. Kolton Solomon led the Spartans with 20. Will Tillman added 10. …………………………………………………… In the bronze medal match, the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns dumped the Campbell Tartans 76-68 as Dylan Puscus scored 16. J.P. Willner led the Tartans with 16. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Sheldon-Williams Spartans defeated the Balfour Redmen 88-66 as Austin Bates scored 32, Kolten Solomon 20 and Will Tallman 10. Lance Aldcorn paced the Redmen with 21. Scott Trowell added 18 and Kyle Donsberger 12.
In the provincial quarterfinals, the Regina Sheldon-Williams Spartans stomped the Saskatoon Marion Graham Falcons 102-42 as Brock Raddatz and Austin Bates each scored 16. The Spartans broke to a 20-4 lead and coasted to the easy win. “We’ve had pressure on us since the start of the year,” Spartans guard Jason Price told the Regina Leader-Post. “It didn’t seem to work out in tournaments but coming off the city championships we’re on a high. Everything seems to be working out well for us.” Falcons coach Dan Dewar told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix that “we lost quite substantially. They’re a good team. Individually, they’re as good of a team I’ve seen in a decade. It’s a question how well they will play as a team. Sometimes they’re a little suspect there. They’re very good athletes. You’ve got to take away what they do well. We kind of came out timid. Second quarter, we played very well. We played hard. If we would have closed the first quarter and second quarter, it would have been a 12-point game instead of 20. We turned it over and gave them transition going the other way. We needed to be more disciplined. We played one solid quarter, the second, but we played three dismal quarters. When you play a talented team and play three dismal quarters, you get what you deserve.” Logan Foth led Marion Graham with 14. Brandon Panasiuk added 10. The Falcons (coached by Dan Dewar, assisted by Alvin Korol) also included Brayden Enns, Jordan Graham, Dan Story, Ryan Pauls, Travis Braun, Carter Emde, Adam Hyland, David Kopperud, Evan Neufeld, Randy Pauls.
The Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Suns dumped Saskatoon Bishop J. Mahoney Saints 97-82. Jordan Puscus led the Suns with 14. Dylan Puscus added 13. Lane Reid paced the Saints with 19. The Saints (coached by Brian Carduner) also included Stefen Dodig, Nolan Brudehl, Brendan Gryha, Nils Sundby, Thomas Seto, Scott Trainor, Brett Kjargaard, Matt Braidenbach, Mitch Kemmer, Sean Blazic, Kevin Buchholz, Lane Taylor, Kevin Perpeluk, Mike McLean.
The Regina Campbell Tartans whipped the Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders 73-46 as Preston O’Brien scored 15, Logan Brooks 12 and Robbie Findlay 10. The Tartans dominated from the start, leading 21-7 after one quarter and 40-16 at the half. The Crusaders rallied within 17 in the fourth quarter but the Tartans responded with a 14-0 run to put the outcome well out of Holy Cross’ reach. “How could you not call that an upset?” Campbell guard Robbie Findlay told the Regina Leader-Post. “They were the best team in Saskatoon and we haven’t played very well. It’s always nice to beat the top team from Saskatoon.” Regina squads swept all four quarterfinals on both the boys and girls’ side. “We were all a little angry about the way we played this season,” Findlay said. “We had a good run but we played like crap for the last three games of the season. It’s nice to play one of our best games of the season and lay a licking on Holy Cross. They are a good team. We came out pumped to play them and we played with a little chip on our shoulder. We knew that we wanted to show Balfour, LeBoldus and all of those Saskatoon teams that we weren’t out of it yet.” Tartans coach Doug Bolander told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix that “our biggest problem was we were playing really, really well and they played 10 games in 14 days (down the stretch) so we were exhausted physically and mentally. “That’s why we lost three games (at the end of the season, in the Regina city playoffs). Since that time, though, our practices have been cut down, so were basically ready to play. “He (Rawlyk) has done a tremendous job with those kids. He’s not as strong as he has been in the past, but I already said to him, ‘I’m already scared for next year’.” Jarrett said “they came out with energy and we didn’t,” Jarrett said. “We didn’t have the energy we’ve had in the city finals or semifinals. They took us over on the rebounds. We didn’t do that good of a job on the glass. That’s basically where they got all their points.” Crusaders coach Barry Rawlyk said “they played pretty well and we didn’t. If we knew exactly (what went wrong), if there was just one thing we needed to work at, we would have fixed it. There were just a whole bunch of little things that all add up pretty big. The war on the boards was decisively won by them and that was a huge part of the game. We’re disappointed with the way we played — I thought we could have showed better — but, again, you’ve got to congratulate Campbell on their effort tonight.” Brennan Jarrett led the Crusaders with 10. Matthew Harbidge added 8. The Crusaders (coached by Rawlyk) also included Mabor Mapiour, Ted Harbidge, John Rochon, J.J. Tekeste, Patrick Burns, Eric Noyes, Steven Boryski, Agarwol Degal, Michael McLean, Thomas Schneider, Bruno Sebastio.
In the last quarterfinal, the Regina Balfour Redmen defeated the Saskatoon Aden Bowman Bears 81-46 as Scott Trowell scored 21 and Kyle Donsberger 17. “That makes me feel so good that we completely swept Saskatoon,” Redmen post Scott Trowell told the Regina Leader-Post. “Each team in the boys really brought it to them. There really wasn’t a close game. … Regina teams are tougher than the Saskatoon teams. We battle harder and we get into the paint more than they do. They try to win their games with more skill.” Mitch Stevens led the Bears with 14. Zak Baker added 13. The Bears (coached by Rod Friesen, assisted by Al Loewen) also included Jordan Dolgopol, Mike Patola, Geoff Warrington, Matt Manion, Jeff Moore, Tanner Peberdy, Shawn Dempsey, Mitchell Hauer, Paul MacDonald, Keenan MacDougall, Jon Utley.
In the semis, the Regina Sheldon-Williams Spartans defeated the Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns 104-79 as Kolten Solomon scored 28 and Austin Bates 20. Jerad Kozey led the Suns with 17. Keith Yelowega added 13 and Mark Schweiger 13.
In the other semi, the Regina Campbell Tartans edged the Regina Balfour Redmen 69-66 as Logan Brooks scored 19 and Preston O’Brien 12. Lance Aldcorn led Balfour with 25. Scott Trowell added 18. The Tartans garnered the win with a 9-0 run down the stretch. Redmen Lance Aldcorn deep trey from the corner at the buzzer rimmed out. “We never doubted ourselves,” Tartan guard Preston O’Brien told the Regina Leader-Post. “You can’t afford to. You just have to keep playing hard.” The day before the game, a member of the student body at Balfour was stabbed at the school. “There’s no doubt there was some level of distraction,” Redmen coach Glen Fekula told the Regina Leader-Post. “It would have been a nice story if we would have been able to get the job done this week and have some positive media coverage. Not that we don’t get positive coverage but it would have been nice to have it bounce back the other way.” Fekula said he talked to his boys’ team about the assault but avoided blowing it out of proportion. “That was an isolated incident. Kids make mistakes and that was a huge one. The big thing is we work hard to make good things happen at our school and that incident becomes a reflection of it on its own. I hope they look at our basketball team and see how hard they work and not dwell on events like that.”
In the bronze medal match, the Regina Balfour Redmen defeated the Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Suns 81-65 as Lance Aldcorn scored 43. Jerad Kozey led LeBoldus with 24. Mark Schweiger added 11. The Suns (coached by Wade Bartlett, assisted by Brian Larrivee and Glen Kozey) also included Keith Yelowega, Mark Larrivee, Jordan Bissonette, Adam Graham, Jordan McGillis, Brendan Sirup, Dylan Puscus, Sean Tulloch, Jordan Puscus, Logan Fisher and Nick Felsing.
In the final, the Regina Sheldon-Williams Spartans defeated the Regina Campbell Tartans 83-64 as Kolton Solomon scored 30 and John Tallman added 16. J.P. Willner led Campbell with 18. Preston O’Brien added 13. The title was the sixth provincial crown for the Spartans. The championship also provided the Spartans with an opportunity to honour Wilma Downing, a long-time teacher and coach at Sheldon-Williams. Downing died on Feb. 5 after a short battle with cancer. The senior boys dedicated the season to Downing’s memory and had the initials W.D. embroidered on the left side of their game jerseys. “I was very close to Wilma and I loved her,” Kolton Solomon told the Regina Leader-Post. “She made the best cookies in the world. She was very nice and we wanted to come out on top for her.” Jason Price and Kolton Solomon also wanted to leave their mark on the final basketball games of their high-school careers with the Spartans. They accomplished that as they helped the Spartans race into 42-30 halftime lead. “I wanted to finish off with the best game that I ever had,” said Price. “I somehow feel that I did it. Kolten has been consistent throughout the year and for some reason we had a great game on the same night. It’s fun to do that.” Campbell’s J.P. Willner said “everyone expected Sheldon to win and we were expected to come second but gold is better than silver. They are stacked with all of the provincial players. Last year I knew they were going to be the team that we had to beat. I knew they were the best.” The Spartans led 42-30 at the half. Most of the Spartans were also members of the provincial football champs. “To win two provincial championships in my senior year is the best thing in my life. I dreamed about it but I didn’t think that it would ever come true.”
The bronze medalist Regina Balfour Redmen: Scott Trowell; Kyle Donsberger; Lance Aldcorn; Bryce Patryluk; Alan Pantazoglou; Lyle Peter; Yarann Uy; Lucas Zahorski; Regan Pawliw; Thomas Alport; Graham McMurtry; Jesse Kullman; coach Glen Fekula; coach Scott Babcock
The silver medalist Regina Campbell Tartans: Preston O’Brien; Logan Brooks; J.P. Wilner; Danny Omoigui; Adam Lanigan; Kyle Miller; Eddy Nkongolo; Billy Vancise; Nolan Janssen; Riley Burns; Robbie Findlay; Layne Peterson; Nick Barnes; coach Doug Bolander; coach Duncan Findlay; coach Kevin Burns
The gold medalist Regina Sheldon-Williams Spartans: Kolten Solomon; Brock Raddatz; Austin Bates; John Tallman; Justis Pederson; Addison Docherty; Adam Swift; Morgan Foote; Riley Anderson; Jason Price; Max Amyotte; Marc Mueller; Will Tallman; Jamir Walker; Ryan Wellman; coach Ray Jacoby; assistant Jason Nicurity; assistant Tim Pon