In the interzone playoffs: …………………………………………………… The Sanford Sabres defeated the Winnipeg St. James Jimmies 69-59. …………………………………………………… The Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans clubbed the Virden Golden Bears 72-22 as Dominique Bouche scored 17 and Britta Albrecht 17. …………………………………………………… The zone 1 champ Beausejour Edward Schreyer Barons thrashed the zone 13 champ Winnipeg Churchill Bulldogs 59-33.
In the wildcard games: …………………………………………………… The Winnipeg St. James Jimmies defeated the Winnipeg Linden Christian Wings 61-53. …………………………………………………… The Winnipeg College Beliveau Barracudas edged the Dauphin Clippers 34-29.
In the opening round, the 9th-seeded Beausejour Edward Schreyer Barons dispatched the 8th-seeded Winnipeg St. James Jimmies 52-40. …………………………………………………… The 10th-seeded Winnipeg Windsor Park Royals clipped the 7th-seeded Winnipeg Gray Academy of Jewish Education Raiders 65-52.
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded St. Norbert Celtics clubbed the 9th-seeded Beausejour Edward Schreyer Barons 65-40. The Barons (coached by Jamie Lavallee and Emilene Pierce) included Carleen Kruschel, Sam Vallee, Becky Schwark, Vicki Proutt, Mallory Black, Jazzy Ottenson, Katie Selch, Marissa Gaegi, Jessica Wilgosh, Lauren Greschuk, Lindsey Mineault, Jenn Long and Amber Winnicki.
The 5th-seeded Swan River Swan Valley Tigers edged the 4th-seeded Thompson R.D. Parker Trojans 55-54 as Nicole Vestby scored 16, Amanda Hagglund 12 and Ariel Kern 9. “It was good for us, playing a team that we’re familiar with – it was a good match up. It ended up being a very good game, back and forth the whole way. We got down seven or eight in the last four or five minutes and were able to squeak out a one-point victory in the end,” Tigers coach Kevin Carter told the Swan Valley Star and Times.
The 2nd-seeded Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans whipped the 10th-seeded Winnipeg Windsor Park Royals 74-42.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Sanford Sabres clocked the 6th-seeded Winnipeg College Beliveau Barracudas 67-45.
In the semis, the 3rd-seeded Sanford Sabres nipped the 2nd-seeded Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans 47-45. The Spartans led 32-23 at the half. In the second half, “we only scored 13 points, so we didn’t shoot the ball all that well,” Spartans coach Dwight Kearns told the Brandon Sun. “We also got into some foul trouble and Sanford defended us well.” Still, the Spartans had their last shot play set up. “We got a three-point shot off with 12-14 seconds left and had really good look at the basket,” Kearns said. “We missed that shot, got the rebound and had another good look at the basket and the shot didn’t go.” Britta Albrecht led the Spartans with 20, along with 9 boards. Dominique Bouche scored 12.
In the other semi, the top-seeded St. Norbert Celtics stomped the 5th-seeded Swan River Swan Valley Tigers 70-36. Nicole Vestby led the Tigers with 10. Ariel Kern added 5 and Jessica Bobick 5. “They proved to be a much better team than we were,” Tigers coach Kevin Carter told the Swan Valley Star and times. “We were in a position to work hard, go out there and see what happens and maybe things would go our way. We were able to hang with them in the first half but they pulled away in the second half.”
In the bronze medal match, the 2nd-seeded Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans dusted the 5th-seeded Swan River Swan Valley Tigers 67-49 as Britta Albrecht scored 16 and nabbed 12 boards. Dominique Bouche also earned a double-double, scoring 13 and grabbing 12 rebounds. Kristy Hugill led the Tigers with 12. Amanda Hagglund added 11, Nicole Vestby 8, Kristjana Schure 8 and Jackie Gosselin 8. “We started off really well, got out to an early lead,” coach Kevin Carter told the Swan Valley Star and times. “They made some adjustments and climbed back into the game. It was a close game all the way – a two-point game at the half and a four-point game after the third quarter. It was 45- 41 after the third quarter, they scored a couple buckets early and stretched it out to eight or 10 and we ended up losing by 12.” The Tigers (coached by Kevin Carter) also included Ariel Kern, Jessica Bobick, Kendal Hart, Breanna Senchuk.
In the final, the top-seeded St. Norbert Celtics crushed the 3rd-seeded Sanford Sabres 66-44. Sanford coach Kelli Sinnock said she was proud of the team’s silver medal performance. “We had a great group of girls and it was nice to see them get rewarded. They worked extremely hard and stuck to their game. We expected going in, to be in the top four. But when you get to the top four, the teams are almost interchangeable and any of them could have won.”
The bronze medalist Brandon T.A. Neelin Spartans: Dani Zalusky; Meghan Bouvier; Laura Popplestone; Raine Kearns; Jessica Jonasson; Chelsea Easter; Kaitlin Mallet; Dominique Bouche; Britta Albrecht; Mal Vodon; Syd Carter-Squire; Nikki Albrecht; coach Dwight Kearns; coach Alise Gaiser
The silver medalist Sanford Sabres: Chloe Reimer; Michelle Brenner; Bethany Lyttle; Holly Jones; Sarah McFarlane; Tessa Hobson; Jenessa Karlowsky; Serena Lippenstein; Robyn Fossay; Jennifer Bell; Lauren Morse; Alex Warburton; Erin Pouteau; coach Kelli Sinnock; coach Lynne Babiuk; manager Kaitlyn Watts
The gold medalist St. Norbert Celtics: Paige Bevan; Heather Marshall; Sawyer Marshall-Stanchuck; Jill Marshall; Ella Greer; Kiera McCharles; Sherri Backlund; Codi Semchuck; Breanne Nichol; Paige Stollard; Kaytlin Waddell; Amreet Dhaliwal; Dallas Buhr; Madison Pinder; coach Denis Marinelli; coach Colin Ritchie; manager Michelle Stone; manager Teresa McMullan