In the Saskatoon regional and city quarterfinals: …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Holy Cross Crusaders thrashed the 8th-seeded Centennial Chargers 102-44. The Crusaders scored 34 in the first quarter and romped. Megan Lindquist scored 24 for Cross, while Megan Keen had 20 for the Chargers. …………………………………………………… The 4th-seeded Aden Bowman Bears dumped the 5th-seeded Walter Murray Marauders 67-52 as Maddy Humbert scored 33. She also shined defensively, shrugging off two early fouls to help hold the league’s leading scorer, Alyssa Vant Hof, to 11 points, well below her 27-point average. “(Maddy) takes pride in her defence as much as her offence,” Bowman coach Paul Humbert said. “She really doesn’t take any plays off.” Katie Farmer hit back-to-back-to-back three-pointers late in the third and early in the fourth that turned a tied game into a comfortable lead for the Bears. “Katie really gave us a spark off the bench,” Humbert said. Kassidy Konkin had 24 for the Marauders. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded St. Joseph Guardians clocked the 6th-seeded Bishop J. Mahoney Saints 79-55 as Kylie Dirham scored 19. Sarah Grummett led the Saints with 10. The Saints (coached by Dave Chockey, assisted by Adam Kowaluk and Aaron Carter) also included Madison Pylypow, Alexa Kowalluk, Kristen Clark, Katherine Schner, Jennifer Clark, Briana Shockey, Kennedy Schlo, Cortney Nyseen, Paula Barrack, Jocelyn Carter and Kelsey Carter. ………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the 2nd-seeded Evan Hardy Souls dumped the 7th-seeded Bethlehem Stars 58-42. Bethlehem used unorthodox looks against Evan Hardy and the league’s second-leading scorer, Leesa Eggum. The Stars alternated between a box-and-one, a triangle-and two, straight man and regular zone. The box-and-one, in particular, saw Eggum’s defender face-guarding her and ignoring anything else. Eggum struggled at times with the different looks, but still scored 22. The Stars stayed within 30-27 at half. But as the Souls shook off any jitters and found their range, they pushed a 33-31 to 46-36 by the end of the third quarter and gradually built it through the fourth. “We made the adjustments at half and figured out how to get it done,” said Eggum. “In the first half, we were really timid. We were just shooting the outside shots. In the second half, we really got the ball inside and were more aggressive.” …………………………………………………… In the semis, the top-seeded Holy Cross Crusaders stomped the 4th-seeded Aden Bowman Bears 73-36 as Megan Lindquist scored 22. Maddy Humbert led the Bears with 22. The Crusaders effectively put the game away in the first quarter, jumping out to a 24-7 lead. Sarah Keene was hitting three-pointers and diving on the floor, Lauren Hundseth was keeping a close eye on Bowman gunner Maddy Humbert, Lindsey Knibbs was gritting through an ankle injury and Megan Lindquist was a consistent presence inside. “We had a good game plan today,” said Hundseth. “We really wanted to come out hard.” Bowman pulled to within 34-20 late in the first half, but the margin of error was so thin by that point that even a tiny Cross spurt pushed the score to 41-21. The Crusaders never let it get any closer. “We started to focus just on each other and get back pumped up again, get back in it and focus on getting it back,” said Hundseth. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the 3rd-seeded St. Joseph Guardians clipped the 2nd-seeded Evan Hardy Souls 70-62. The Guardians withstood a second-quarter comeback by the Souls, putting together a decisive 18-5 run, with turnovers forced by the length of Sascha Lichtenwald in the full court press, during an eight-minute stretch late in the third quarter and early in the fourth to earn their first appearance in the gold-medal game since 2009. “That’s kind of how we’ve played this year … I think we like the excitement of close games,” said St. Joes veteran Kyle Dirham, who along with fellow senior Natasha Weninger, played a minor role in the Guardian’s 2009 championship unit. Thanks to constant pressure on the ball, the Guardians led big in the first quarter. That advantage quickly evaporated in the second, as the Souls settled down and got consistent looks offensively. From there, the game remained as close as would be expected from teams that split their two regular-season contests. St. Joes was up three, Hardy was up four, the Guardians went up two. “We stayed confident. We knew we could win this game,” said Dirham. Their faith paid off, as St. Joes forced a string of turnovers and generated easy buckets, holding Hardy to just four points in the first five minutes of the final frame. They pushed the lead from 52-49 late in the third to 70-54, silencing the Hardy faithful. “It was a game of runs,” said Guardians coach Tyler Sharp. “We were fortunate to make the last big run.” Dirham led the Guardians with 21 points. Leesa Eggum topped the Souls with 19 points. …………………………………………………… In the bronze medal match, the Aden Bowman Bears defeated the Evan Hardy Souls 69-63. …………………………………………………… In the final, the top-seeded Holy Cross Crusaders dusted the 3rd-seeded St. Joseph Guardians 82-54 to three-peat as city champs, the fourth time the feat had been accomplished. The Crusaders exploded to a 17-0 lead and romped. “I’m very excited … We were really motivated coming in and we really wanted this win. Our key was to get a good defensive start, and we just run. Once we got that going, the score took care of itself,” said star forward Megan Lindquist, who scored 25 of her game-high 35 points in the first half.
In the Regina regional quarterfinals and city quarterfinals: …………………………………………………… The Riffel Royals clocked the Balfour Redmen 62-42. The Redmen (coached by Karin Wilde, assisted by Lisa Nickler and Randie Gibson) included Janessa Fox, Lexis Watson, Kylee Howard, Tessa Kuz, Regan Salberg, Shenace Weasel, Jennifer Tonita, Maegan Mackay, Brittney Visvanathan, Moriah Andrews, Ellen Kirkness and Carmen Hughes. …………………………………………………… The Campbell Trojans throttled the Thom Trojans 74-35. …………………………………………………… The Winston Knoll Wolverines whipped the Sheldon Williams Spartans 88-67. The Spartans (coached by Lance Ford, assisted by Karen Thull and Anna Hipperson) included Emma Tallman, Amy Spelliscy, Brooke Cooper, Alyssa Put, Jessica Knaus, Lilah Drozda, Molly Wade-Cummings, Hannah Shalley, Caeley Put, Brooke Lister, Ella Grzeda and Alyssa Bird-Dieter). …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns dumped the Riffel Royals 89-70. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Campbell Tartans dispatched the Winston Knoll Wolverines 70-62. …………………………………………………… In the bronze medal match, the Winston Knoll Wolverines defeated the Riffel Royals 71-64. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns throttled the Campbell Tartans 78-42 to win the 5A city title for the second successive year. “This is almost exactly the same team as last year,” said Charlotte Kot, who scored 26. “We lost only two players (to graduation). To do it twice in a row with pretty much the same team, it means that much more.” Kot and Golden Sun teammates Danae Suchan, Sara Hubenig, Julia Folk and Quinn Dornstauder had been together since grade four. “My dad coached our club team and our elementary team, and we’ve played together in grades 9, 10 and 11,” said Kot. “The key is knowing who you’re playing with and being comfortable with who you’re playing with. We have so much team unity. Everybody gets along and nobody fights. We all have an eye on the goal and we don’t let anything get in the way of that.” Quinn Dornstauder added 14 as the Golden Suns won their school’s sixth senior girls city title. Melody Wong led the Tartans with 16 points. Kristina Sawatzky and Koryn Davies each added 9.
In the provincial quarterfinals, the Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns (Regina-top-seed) thrashed the Saskatoon Evan Hardy Souls (Saskatoon-4th) 84-43 as Charlotte Kot scored 27. Leesa Eggum led the Souls with 13.
The Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines nipped the Saskatoon St. Joseph Guardians 66-64 as Desarae Hogberg blocked a shot with seconds to play to pull out the win. Trailing 30-10 in the first half, the Guardians rallied to lead by one with six minutes to play but the Wolverines regained the momentum to go up 10 and then held on by their fingertips. The Guardians missed three shots on their last possession – including the block by Desarae Hogberg. “I’m disappointed with the loss but we played so hard, so tough, I’m so proud of the girls,” St. Joes coach Tyler Sharp said. “I couldn’t ask for anything more from them.” The Guardians included Kylie Dirham, Bailey Zemlak, Natasha Weninger, Rachel Hoffos, Danielle Bertsch, Sernea Reimer, Sasha Lichtenwald, Nicole Sheetka, Brooklyn Hackl, Jenna Swidrovich, Sierra Bronkhorst, Taylor Pocha, Taryn Rowland and Brodie Hnatiuk.
The Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders (Saskatoon-1st) dispatched the Regina Michael A. Riffel Royals (Regina-4th) 67-60 as Sarah Keene scored 15. “I’m glad it’s over,” Cross forward Megan Lindquist said. “We had to work hard for that.” The Crusaders set the tone in the first quarter, flying out to a 23-11 lead. Unlike many teams, Riffel didn’t let Cross run away, though. In the third quarter, the Royals outscored Cross 15-5, getting as close as three points. In the final frame, Lindquist found her touch; scoring seven early points to give her team a 59-49 lead and some needed breathing room. “They weren’t going away. We had no choice except to step up,” Lindquist said. “This was good for us to get through because we know how physical and tough we’re going to have to be. We’ll be ready for it against whoever we play the rest of the weekend.” Caitlin Zacharius led the Royals with 15. The Royals (coached by Cymone Bernauer, assisted by Garth Walker) also included Jenna Magnusson, Kelsey Sinnett, Ali Grywul, Tiffany Stachan, Natasha Knobel, Cilene Schubert-Sebastian, Jane Rapley and Rebecca Burns.
In the last quarterfinal, the Regina Campbell Tartans (Regina-2nd) thumped the Saskatoon Aden Bowman Bears (Saskatoon-3rd) 76-41 as Melody Wong scored 17. Maddy Humbert led the Bears with 17. The Bears also included Katie Farmer and Kendall Krawchuk.
In the semis, the Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns stomped the Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines 90-56.
“We knew coming in if we weren’t mentally strong, there was no way we’d match up against Knoll,” said coach Becky Schmidt. “We’re glad that we ended up on top today.” Charlotte Kot led LeBoldus, with 31. Ambrea McDonald-Okoro had 25 for Knoll.
In the other semi, the Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders edged the Regina Campbell Tartans 51-48 after leading 24-22 at the half. Megan Lindquist led the Crusaders with 17. Rachel Hundseth added 11. Kaylee Halvorson led the Tartans with 14. Melody Wong added 10. “It was definitely a tough game but I’m so glad we pulled through,” said Rachel Hundseth. Cross came into the game short-handed, after Lauren Hundseth suffered a severe ankle sprain in the Crusaders’ quarter-final. Sarah Keene was also watched closely following that game after taking a hard blow to the head. Throw in a nagging ankle injury to Lindsey Knibbs, a left-hand injury suffered against Campbell by leading scorer Megan Lindquist, and Keene missing most of the semifinal thanks to fouls, and it was a fight to the finish. Cross’s bench – Janaya Bundgaard, Brett Maerz, Alex Eyolfson and Hayley Unrau, especially – played key minutes to hold off Campbell. “It’s important for players to step up and they definitely did their job this game,” said Hundseth. “I’m so proud of all our players, not only starters who came to play but when some of our players are out, it’s a big deal. They definitely did this game.” Lindquist exploded off the start, scoring nine points in the opening quarter, as Cross went up 18-10. In the second, two three-pointers by Kristina Sawatzky plus one from national teamer Kaylee Halvorson pulled the Tartans within 24-22 at the break. Lindquist got on another roll in the third quarter, scoring another 10 points before heading to the bench in tears after injuring her left (non-shooting) hand. Despite Keene picking up her fourth foul in the first two minutes of the quarter, Cross went into the final frame up 41-36. The lead got as big as 47-36 before Campbell surged back. With less than one minute left, Sawatzky hit one of two free throws to pull her team within 49-48, but a layup by Bundgaard provided Cross with just enough to stay ahead. Campbell had multiple chances in the dying moments, thanks largely to two Cross turnovers, but the Tartans couldn’t hit the tying three-pointer. “Defence wins championships. That’s what our coaches always tell us,” said Hundseth. “That’s what we go by. Tonight, we did it.”
In the bronze medal match, the Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines clubbed the Regina Campbell Tartans 85-56 as Erika Desrosiers scored 18. Kristina Sawatzky and Koryn Davies each scored 9 to pace the Tartans.
In the final, the Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders dusted the Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns 69-55 after leading 27-21 at the half. Sarah Keene paced the Crusaders with 20. Charlotte Kot led the Golden Suns with 22. Sydnee Picton added 18. The Crusaders captured their third consecutive provincial crown and their 65th consecutive win over three seasons. “I’m so happy and I’m so proud of the girls I played with, every single one of them,” said Crusaders guard Lindsey Knibbs. “We came out 14 strong and we finished 14 strong from the start of the season to the very end. I could not have wished for a better team.” Lindsey Knibbs said “there’s no better feeling in the world. Winning is always a great feeling, but to win three straight provincial championships, and to win it with this group of girls, I’m just ecstatic. All 14 girls got in this game and all 14 girls played a part in us winning this game. … I knew we were going to come out as hard as we could. There was no way that we were leaving without a championship. We dreamt about this. This was our goal from the very beginning of the season. … “I think it’s going to take a while for it to set in, how much was accomplished tonight by this team and the teams that came before us in the previous two years.” LeBoldus, after falling behind by 10 midway through the third quarter, went on an 8-0 run and was within 47-44 after three quarters. Crow trailed only twice, by two points in the first quarter. On both ends of the floor, the Crusaders were led by Sarah Keene, who saved her best for the last quarter, hitting back-to-back three-pointers to push a 53-48 lead to 59-48. On the other end of the floor, the 5-6 Keene shadowed 6-1 Charlotte Kot. With LeBoldus desperate to stay in the game, Keene blocked a Kot three-pointer and then stripped her of the ball on the Golden Suns’ next possession. “She was average,” joked coach Scott Hundseth. “I just had to focus on (Kot), defence first and I think my offence came out of that,” said Keene. “I wasn’t even focusing on my shot. I was just doing it as I felt it so I kept shooting.” Sydnee Picton said “obviously, things didn’t go the way we wanted. For the Grade 12 girls, this really hurts. We really wanted this one. But there’s nothing we can do about it now. We still had a pretty good season even though we lost our last game.” LeBoldus coach Becky Schmidt said “we didn’t come up with our ultimate goal. But one game doesn’t make a season. These girls had a phenomenal season. They improved as individuals, they improved as a team, the team chemistry was amazing and I don’t want one loss to be a black mark on an otherwise awesome season.” The Golden Suns could never find a rhythm, she added. “They took it right to us right from the very start. They played well defensively and really held some of our big scorers in check, they rebounded very well and they shot the lights out from outside. When you can do those things, you’re usually going to have success.” Lauren Hundseth, who missed the semifinal with a badly sprained ankle, was one of nine Crusaders to score in the final. There was no way she was missing the gold-medal game, she said. “This makes it feel a lot better,” she noted with a smile. Lindquist tried to soak up every moment at the end of the game. “I was trying to stay composed,” she said. “I didn’t want to show too much emotion too soon, but when it gets down to 10 seconds, I just shut everything out and focused on the team and the win. It was so exciting.”
The bronze medalist Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines: Desarae Hogberg; Erika Desrosiers; Madison Kowalchuk; Kelsi Kowalchuk; Erin Sthamann; Sarah Eckert; Tasha Fiacco; Taylor Fiacco; Mackenzie Williams; Carly Powell; Rachel Anderson; Ambrea Macdonald-Okoro; coach Jeremy Gaboury; assistant Gord Selinger; assistant Caitlin Brock; trainer Kelsey Barber
The silver medalist Regina Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns: Charlotte Kot; Haley Belyk; Danae Suchan; Sara Hubenig; Julia Folk; Quinn Dornstauder; Lauren Nemann; Kendall Pon; Sydnee Picton; Andrea Ward; Valeri Snider; coach Becky Schmidt; coach K Ottenbreit
The gold medalist Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders: Rachel Hundseth; Lindsey Kniggs; Megan Lindquist; Sarah Keene; Lauren Hundseth; Kim Bloski; Kathryn Bloski; Hayley Unrau; Janaya Bundgaard; Brett Maerz; Alex Eyolfson; Kathryn Spehar; Teagen Harbidge; Kelsey Trulsrud; Jenna Kobelia; Jennine Redl; Amanda Hundseth; coach Scott Hundseth