Final regular season standings (8): Durham (13-1); Humber (13-1); Seneca (9-5); Fanshawe (8-6); George Brown (6-8); Mohawk (3-11); Niagara (2-12); Redeemer (2-12)
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Niagara Knights: Manie Roy, Andrea Flindall, Stephanie Lawson, Stephanie Kranjec, Michelle Pring, Ingrid Wells, Trinity Smith, Amanda Duncan, Kim Sherwood, Amanda Legedza, Elsa Herzberg and Penni Toneguzzo.
Redeemer Royals: Crystle Hielema, Michelle Schouten, Marisa Vanderveen, Leona Vanderwier, Winona Strikwerda, Becky Shain, Melissa Gerritson, Amalie Cowan, Jennifer Lise, Rachel Pippel, Tanya Devries, Korrie Silver, Susanne Zantingh and Geraldine Zietsma.
In the quarterfinals, the Seneca Scouts defeated the Mohawk Mountaineers 96-35. The Mountaineers included Kathy Knox, Jennifer McNaughton, Amy Pacey, Dianne Sampogna, Nancy Ganovsky, Kristan Shrider, Jade Dibattista, Katherine Perrino, Marguerite Banich, Melissa Spracklin, Davina Anderson, Jennifer Schiean and Shaunda Murray.
In the other quarterfinal, the George Brown Huskies dispatched the Fanshawe Falcons 56-53. The Falcons included Crystal Greig, Michelle Hall, Michelle Martin, Jen Renaud, Carrie Magee, Cheryl Swain, Carrie Ramsay, Jen Purdy, Annette Rice, Katherina Kakoyianni, Anne Millsap, Cheri Heslop and Dawn Kaplinski.
In the semis, the Humber Hawks defeated the host Seneca Scouts 72-67 as Aman Hasebenebi scored 17, player of the game Melissa McCutcheon 16, Tanya Sadler 15, Heather Curran 11, Amy Lewis 8, Lisa Hogan 3 and Shane Ross 2. The Hawks led 36-31 at the half. Anita Robinson led the Scouts with 16. Kim Pepper added 13, Ann Marie Darlington 11, Krissy MacDonald 7, Sharon Jones 6, Liesa Ratz 4, Vikki Ruth 3, Jayne Currie 3, Fiona Letang 2 and Kim Friedrich 2. Hawks coach Jim Henderson told The Coven “the game went a lot like we expected. We knew it would be close and come down
to the last five minutes … I was confident we could do the job in the second half.” Guard Aman Hasebenebi said “we knew we had to do the little things. We really wanted it bad.”
In the other semi, the top-seeded Durham Lords crushed the 4th-seeded George Brown Huskies 50-48 as Marcy Skribe scored 18, Shantell Marsh 10, Julie Goedhuis 8, Stephanie Kassian 6, Tara Tripney 3, Heidi Wayne 3 and Ernestine Dunkley 2. Karen McGavin paced the Huskies with 19. Treisha Hylton added 10, Marife Villagonzalo 6, Tricia Warwick 5, Henri Velha 4 and Ayebea Ashong 4. The Lords prevailed though several of their starters, included Julie Goedhuis and Stephanie Kassian, fouled out down the stretch. “We all kept our heads up,” Kassian told the Durham Chronicle. “When myself and Julie fouled out, we weren’t going to let it get to us. The rest of the team needed us. Shantell did the same thing. We all kept our heads high.” Assistant Gord Wallace said “we don’t have a big bench, so we were living pretty dangerously
there. … Mike (Duggan) and I were so stressed. We were trying to keep the team energy up. We’re emotional people. When we’re looking up at the clock and we’re up by eight with 45 seconds and then 30 seconds to go, you think: what can
they do? We’re done coaching.”
In the bronze medal match, the Seneca Scouts dispatched the George Brown Huskies 62-56 as Anita Robinson scored 18, Krissy MacDonald 12, Kim Pepper 8, Fiona Letang 5, Vikki Ruth 5, Sharon Jones 4, Liesa Ratz 4, Jayne Currie 4 and Kim Friedrich 2. Treisha Hylton led the Huskies with 16. Karen McGavin added 15, Tricia Warwick 10, Henri Velha 8 and Marife Villagonzalo 7. The Huskies also included Kimberly Lewis, Ayebea Ashong, Lekisha Anderson, Lydia Abankwah, Caryl Allen, Annette Dugas, Rebeckha Pryce, Casey Lloyd, Nicolene Thompson, La-Toya Schoburgh and Francis Antoine.
In the final, the Durham Lords defeated the Humber Hawks 58-50 to win its first OCAA women’s title. With the win, the Lords also capped a gender double for the school, only the second time in league history that had occurred. Humber had accomplished the feat in 1977 and in 1993. “The whole school is thrilled and we’ve got a big community fan base, so it’s a pretty exciting thing,” says athletic department head Ken Babcock. “In 1992-93, Humber won both men’s and women’s championships and in 1976-77, Seneca won both so it’s a rare feat for one college to win both titles. It’s happened three times in 27 years.” Durham player Marcy Skribe of Pickering, in her final year of college eligibility, was named MVP of the tournament. Pickering native Shantelle Marsh, a first-year guard who averaged 18 points a game and 10 assists, was tournament all-star. “We’re pretty excited to have local talents come through,” says Babcock. Skribe paced the Lords with 18. Ernestine Dunkley added 13, Julie Goedhuis 9, Stephanie Kassian 7, Marsh 5, Heidi Wayne 4 and Tara Tripney 2. Tanya Sadler paced the Hawks with 12. Amy Lewis added 10, Shane Ross 8, Heather Curran 8, Melissa McCutcheon 5, Aman Hasebenebi 4, Tina Botterill 2 and Lisa Hogan 1. Lords guard Stephanie Kassian told the Durham Chronicle that “for a lot of us it’s our last year. We came into this game wanting it so bad. We wanted to make Durham known in women’s basketball.” Tara Tripney said “it’s the greatest feeling I have ever felt. Especially winning with everybody. We’re so close it’s unbelievable.” Assistant Gord Wallace noted “this year has just been full of firsts. It’s the first time that we’ve won a divisional title. It’s the first time that we’ve won a gold. It’s the first time we’ve been nationally ranked.” Coach Mike Duggan said “no words can describe this. We had a goal at the start of the year to win this thing and it took everybody to do it. They wanted it. It’s an unbelievable feeling. … As a player, I’ve been the bridesmaid three times. It’s nice to be on the other end.” Guard Shantell Marsh said “we have a lot of great girls on this team with a lot of heart. We had a goal, to win OCs, and we did everything we could to do it.” Hawks coach Jim Henderson told The Coven “we played fine. We just didn’t shoot well.”
The bronze medalist Seneca Scouts: Kim Pepper; Vicki Ruth; Liesa Ratz; Fiona Letnag; Krissy MacDonald; Anita Robinson; Clair Nolan; Jayne Currie; Sharon Jones; Kim Friedrich; Ann Marie Darlington; Sally Crowther; Carolina Carty; Michelle Ambrose; Christina Peever; Tasha Owen; coach Dwight Jonker
The silver medalist Humber Hawks: Tanya Sadler; Heather Curran; Aman Hasebenebi; Melissa McCutcheon; Tina Botterill; Shane Ross; Amanda Lewis; Tina D’Antonio; Wendy Aldebert; Lisa Hogan; Autumn Withrow; Kyla Mandley; coach Jim Henderson; assistant Denise Perrier
The gold medalist Durham Lords: Marcy Skribe; Shantelle Marsh; Julie Goedhuis; Stephanie Kassian; Melanie Raeside; Ernestine Dunkley; Heather Smith; Nadine Wilson; Andrea Gladu; Heidi Wayne; Kelly Morrison; Sarah John; Tara Tripmey; Natalie Goring; Jennifer Robinson; Candice Eskins; coach Mike Duggan; athletic director Ken Babcock