In the opening round, held in Pelham and Welland: …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Windsor John L. Forster Spartans defeated the Ottawa J.S. Woodsworth Warriors 48-45. “We’ve been AAA the last three years and maybe we took AA a little too lightly,” Spartans guard Annie Marcarian told the Windsor Star. “You see the 22-0 record, but you don’t know who they are. Then you look at their lineup and they aren’t very tall and they only have seven people, so you don’t figure them to be too tough.” Woodsworth opened with a 6-1 run as Tracey Carey and Laurie Pinkney established their provincial team credentials. Spartan centre Melinda Pierce and guard Roni-Ann Baechler were in early foul trouble. “With Roni-Ann and Melinda in foul trouble, it cut off our scoring,” Marcarian said. Still, Forster rallied to a six-point lead at the half. Woodsworth rallied back as Carey kept gunning, finishing with 37 points despite having Spartans draped all over her. “We’re basically a two-girl team and the rest of the girls feed off them,” Warriors’ coach Eric Tiessen said. Pinkney was a handful, Forster coach Tom Halliwell noted. “We never got a chance to press because she handled the ball so well.” When Pinkney fouled out early in the third quarter, Tracey Carey assumed the point guard duties. “I’ve never played guard before, but I’m used to having to score,” Carey said. “I had two girls on her and she’s still firing them up and just eating us alive,” Halliwill said. The Warriors twice rallied to within one in the second half. Trailing by three with just seconds left, Carey was fouled on a three-point attempt. She intended to hit the first and miss the second to set up a chance to tie, but she missed both and Pierce grabbed the rebound and waited as the clock expired. Melinda Pierce had 14 points and 19 rebounds to lead Forster. Baechler and Marcarian each added 11. Sue Holmes added 2 for the Warriors. Woodsworth coach Eric Tiessen said his troops were inspired by not receiving a top-8 seed. “Forget the 22-0 record. I thought we’d at least get a break and be in the top eight because we’re in a major centre.” Tracey Carey led the Warriors with 22. …………………………………………………… The 4th-seeded Chatham John McGregor Panthers defeated the Elliott Lake Atoms 46-39 as Stephanie Robinson scored 11. Leonarda Altieri led the Atoms with 25. …………………………………………………… The 7th-seeded Guelph Bishop Macdonnell Celtics edged Thunder Bay Fort William Blue Bears 45-38 as Jenny Maclean scored 17. Dava Anderson led the Blue Bears with 18. …………………………………………………… Petrolia Lambton-Central defeated the 8th-seeded Cannington Brock Bulldogs 51-47 in overtime as Theresa Chan scored 15. Heidi Pedersen led the Bulldogs with 15. …………………………………………………… The 2nd-seeded host Fonthill E.L. Crossley Cyclones crushed the Belleville Moira Trojans 62-35 as Katya Mason scored 16. Leanne Gelsthorpe led the Trojans with 13. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Timmins HVS Blues clipped the Owen Sound West Hill Raiders 38-25 as Shannon McKinnon scored 15. Laurel Johnson led the Raiders with 13. Lori Lipske added 8. The Raiders had been asked to fill in the draw as a result of a last-minute withdrawal. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Smith Falls Red Hawks stomped the St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats 73-30 as Julie Goedhuis scored 21. Adrienne Orsborn led the Redcoats with 13. …………………………………………………… The 6th-seeded Midland Marauders dusted the Etobicoke Monsignor Johnson Jaguars 51-20 as Aya Utahara scored 16. Janet Henry led the Jaguars with 7.
In the second round: …………………………………………………… The Windsor John L. Forster Spartans defeated the Etobicoke Monsignor Johnson Jaguars 63-47. Forster led 8-0 and 25-6 after one quarter. Melinda Pierce led the Spartans with 15 points and 8 boards. Tara Elliott added 10, Roni-Ann Baechler 9, Cranker 6, Sarros 6, Rodgers 5, Manchulenko 4, Marentette 3, Marcarian 2, O’Neill 2 and Allen 1. Zibert led the Jaguars with 10. Mohan added 9, Portelli 8, Pears 8, Henry 6, Tatalias 2, Carbone 2 and Logue 2. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Timmins HVS Blues defeated the 8th-seeded Cannington Brock Bulldogs 49-36. …………………………………………………… The unseeded Elliott Lake Atoms defeated the 7th-seeded Guelph Bishop MacDonnell Celtics 58-44. The Celtics included Laurie Lassaline, Kelly Behman, Sebrina Geremia, Kari Wheeler. …………………………………………………… The Owen Sound West Hill Raiders edged Petrolia Lambton-Central 36-33. …………………………………………………… The Chatham John McGregor Panthers torched the Thunder Bay Fort William Blue Bears 60-24. …………………………………………………… The Smith Falls Red Hawks whipped the Belleville Moira Trojans 66-40. …………………………………………………… The Midland Marauders dispatched the Ottawa J.S. Woodsworth Warriors 70-64. …………………………………………………… The Fonthill EL. Crossley Cyclones stomped the St. Catharines Governor Simcoe Redcoats 75-16 as Stephanie Repar scored 20. Adrienne Orsborn led the Redcoats with 7. The Redcoats also included Erinn Sheppard.
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Windsor John L. Forster Spartans defeated the Owen Sound West Hill Raiders 44-28 but lost guard Anne Marcarian to a knee injury. Roni-Ann Baechler led the Spartans with 24. Marcarian’s loss forced Forster to ease off on their full-court pressure, said coach Tom Halliwill. But Melinda Pierce and Dana Cranker shut down Raiders center Laurel Johnson. “The coach just wanted me to front her and not worry about anything else,” Pierce told the Windsor Star. With Johnson out of the equation, the Raiders had no one to fill the middle against the pressure and it forced 26 turnovers. Forster broke to a 6-0 lead and extended it to 16-4 after one quarter. Johnson said the Raiders had a tough time containing Baechler, who drove the paint at will. “It’s tough when the other team’s best player is a point guard because she’ll always have the ball and make things happen.” Forster extended their lead to as many as 23 in the second half. Pierce added 9 for Forster, Rodgers 6, Elliot 3, Shelley O’Neil 2, Heidi Allan 1, Cranker 1 and Manchulenko 1. Johnson led the Raiders with 12. Lipskie added 7, Kennedy 5, Barrie 2 and Graham 2.
The 4th-seeded Chatham John McGregor Panthers clipped the Smith Falls Collegiate Red Hawks 65-50.
The 2nd-seeded Fonthill E.L. Crossley Cyclones crushed the Elliott Lake Atoms 55-20 as Katya Masun scored 18.
In the last quarterfinal, the Timmins HVS Blues nipped the Midland Marauders 32-29. The Marauders (coached by John Faragher and Chester Graham) included Lorrie Ingram, Meegan Strachan, Aya Utahara, Jen Balabuck, Janet Lewis, Tina Juneau, Brenda Hounsome, Dawn Stephens, Sharon Graham, Denise George, Julie Perrault and Cheryl Kettle.
In the semis, the Windsor John L. Forster Spartans defeated the 4th-seeded Chatham John McGregor Panthers 44-41. The Panthers led early but the Spartans rallied to take the lead at the half and stretched their margin to nine in the third quarter. A pair of treys pulled the Panthers to within two with a minute to play but the Spartans ran out the clock. Roni-Ann Baechler led Forster with 24. Melinda Pierce added 9 and Rochelle Rodgers 9. Pierce also grabbed 16 boards. Stephanie Robinson led the Panthers with 19.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Fonthill E.L. Crossley Cyclones defeated the 3rd-seeded Timmins HVS Blues 45-36 as Katya Masun scored 17. Berta Verbeek led the Blues with 18.
In the bronze medal match, the 4th-seeded Chatham John McGregor Panthers defeated the 3rd-seeded Timmins HVS Blues 54-45 as Michelle Dehann scored 26. Natasha Meredith led the Blues with 17.
In the final, the Windsor John L. Forster Spartans, who’d captured silver a year earlier at the AAA level, defeated the 2nd-seeded Fonthill E.L. Crossley Cyclones (then the Chiefs) 60-57. “This is a dream come true. I could cry,” forward Tara Elliott told the Windsor Star. Guard Roni-Ann Baechler said that after finishing second at the AAA level a year earlier, after being seeded first, “that was really bad, so winning this is a big relief.” Elliott added that the Cyclones were a challenge. “They were quick and fast and that surprised us because they were the only team we’ve really played this year that could do that and keep up with us all game.” Forster built an eight-point lead early in the first quarter. Cyclones coach Steve Holman said the Spartans were tough to defend. “We kind of thought if we could shut down one person (Baechler) we could stop them. But they had four or five guys scoring early and that opened it up for them.” That balanced scoring eventually created opening for Baechler, who drilled a pair of treys as Forster moved ahead by double digits. But the Cyclones depth rallied them back in the second quarter as the Spartans got in foul trouble. “We weren’t getting the rebounds, which caused us to foul on the second and third shots,” said Baechler. When center Melinda Pierce was forced to the bench with three fouls, Crossley rallied to a 30-29 lead at the half. “When Melinda goes out, it’s a big hole and we need her out there,” said Eliott. Pierce took command in the second half when Forster switched to a 1-3-1 zone to protect her, scoring 14 points in the second frame. Forster soon moved ahead 42-34. “We thought we could lay them out but they hung in,” said Holman. “They made shots at the right time.” Foul problems again began to plague the Spartans as the Cyclones rallied to a 54-53 lead with roughly three minutes to play. But the Spartans composure proved the difference down the stretch. “I think having been there helped us a lot because we knew what to look for and that we had to keep our heads in the game,” said Elliott. The Spartans were perfect from the line down the stretch, including four by Eliott. Crossley, by contrast was plagued by turnovers, including a traveling call and an overthrown pass. “We’ve never played a game as important as this and we got a little nervous and tried too hard,” said center Katya Masu. “We had some stupid mistakes and that hurt us.” The Cyclones committed 24 turnovers to Forster’s 11 and outrebounded the Spartans 30-20. “Everything fell for us in this game,” said Baechler. “Tar’s shooting. Rochelle’s shooting, everything fell for us.” Baechler led the Spartans with 24. Pierce added 18 and Elliott 10. Sherri Durst led Cyclones with 17.
The bronze medalist Chatham John McGregor Panthers: Michelle Dehann; Joni Milligan; Patti Schram; coach Frank Henry
The silver medalist Fonthill E.L. Crossley Cyclones: Sherri Durst; Katya Masun; Stephanie Repar; Julie White; coach Steve Holman
The gold medalist Windsor John L. Forster Spartans: Tara Eliott; Roni-Ann Baechler; Anne Marcarian; Melinda Pierce; Dana Cranker; Rochelle Rodgers; Shelley O’Neil; Holly Manchulenko; Angela Sarras; Heidi Allen; coach Tom Halliwill; assistant Bob Turner