Prior to the tournament, the Edmonton Public School Board pulled its teams out in a dispute over eligibility. The ASAA prohibited athletes from playing on teams outside the school within the same sporting season. In the Edmonton city final, the M.E. Lazerte Voyageurs edged the Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds 42-41 as Leanne Lennon hit two free throws with no time on the clock. Charlene Schneider paced the Voyageurs with 14. Lennon added 9. Bonnie Grosland led the Thunderbirds with 12. Nancy Matheson added 8 and Corinne Leach 8. The Thunderbirds also included Val Hampton.
In the quarterfinals, held in Lethbridge, the host Winston Churchill Griffins pounded the Edmonton St. Francis Xavier Rams 68-37 after leading 14-13, 33-21 and 54-28 at the quarters. “I felt we came out a little slow, a little, tense, like most teams in the tourney did,” said Churchill coach Cliff Walters. “They were taking the boards away from us in the first quarter. Then we went back to boxing out. I think in the second quarter, we took the boards away from them because we wouldn’t let them penetrate any more. I think that’s the key to success for any small team, the ability to box out. If you allow a team to get second and third chances, it doesn’t matter who they are, they’re going to hurt you.” I really felt Cheryl Theodore playing tough defence against their big girl, Sharon Bliss, was what really turned it around for us. Cheryl did a super job to shut her down and prevent her from doing any real damage against us. Cheryl’s only 5’7”, but she plays big. Shari Frier did a lot for us tonight. She plays her heart out there. She operates the offence, she boards well, and she shot well tonight. She was taking the shots she should be taking. “The girls shot well. We had them down for 42 per cent from the field, and they shot 55 per cent from the foul line, so you can’t ask much more than that.” Susan Tokariuk led the Griffins with 18 points and 12 boards. Shari Frier added 12, along with 10 boards, Diane Colwill 9 and Cheryl Theodore 9 boards. Sharon Bliss led the Rams with 11. Lorna Patterson and Joan Hamlett each added 6. The Rams also included Jill Hergot.
The Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens dusted the Edmonton Archbishop MacDonald Marauders 47-31 after leading 10-5, 20-11 and 35-21 at the quarters. The Marauders rallied within eight in the final frame before the Clipper Queens regained their focus. Melanie Johnson led the Clipper Queens with 18. Jackie Thompson added 8, Sharon May 7, Melinda Hamilton 6 and Jenny Webking 6. Annette Sanregret led the Marauders with 14. Janet Bradshaw added 11. The Marauders (coached by Ron Kutney) also included Nancy Smith, Darcy Goodwin.
The Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers dumped the Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Kittens 52-39. The Kittens led 12-10 after one quarter. The Lancers led 27-20 at the half and 46-26 after three quarters. Scarlett coach Tom Sorenson told the Calgary Herald that “we started slow but got moving in the second quarter. We were fighting the big ball (Calgary schools use a smaller ball) but once we got going, we were okay.” Sandy Fowler paced the Lancers with 11. Jeannie Woods added 10. Cheryl Walls led the Kittens with 11. Dea Miyauchi added 6 and Susan Woitt 6. The Kittens also included Barb Lalor, Cheryl Walls, Dea Miyauchi.
In the last quarterfinal, the Calgary St. Francis Browns survived the Grande Prairie St. Joseph’s Ceinahs 50-45 in overtime. The Browns led 31-15 at the half and 42-28 after three quarters but the Ceinahs exploded with a 17-3 run to force overtime. The Browns held the Ceinahs scoreless in the extra session. Rosie Steiert paced the Browns with 18. Rita Steiert added 14. Coleen Blimke led the Ceinahs with 12, including 9 in the final quarter to essentially force overtime. Dianne Boulet added 11. Browns coach Roy West told the Calgary Herald that “we really should have put it away by the half but the girls tenses up. But it was a real barnburner. Grande Prairie just kept coming at us.” The Ceinahs (coached by Patrick McDonald) also included Maureen Arabsky, Irene Modlyk, Paula Gorman, Tina Abbot-Brown, Arlene Hesse and Suzanne Switzer.
In the semis, the Lethbridge Winston Churchill Griffins stunned the Calgary St. Francis Browns 45-34 as Susan Tokariuk scored 31. The Griffins led 21-19 at the half and took command when the Browns got in foul trouble. Rita Steiert paced the Browns with 10. Julie Hendrix added 10. Browns coach Roy West told the Calgary Herald that “they’re a physical team and we got into foul trouble and had to use substitutes for a third of the game. There were all sorts of reasons why we lost.”
In the other semi, the Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens dusted the Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers 44-34 as Melanie Johnson scored 23. Jenny Woods led the Lancers with 9.
In the bronze medal match, the Calgary St. Francis Browns dumped the Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers 53-45. The game was played using so-called “action rules,” a reference to a decision by several parts of the province, including Calgary, to outlaw zone defences and use a smaller, lighter women’s ball. Browns coach Roy West told the Calgary Herald that “since we were both Calgary teams, we decided to use the smaller ball allowed in our league because there were a number of coaches who wanted to see how the game went with it. We played well defensively and there was some satisfaction, anyway, to beat Scarlett.” Rita Steiert paced the Browns with 16. Julie Hendrix added 15. Connie Roadhouse led the Lancers with 14. Sandy Fowler added 12. The Browns led 31-22 at the half. The Lancers (coached by Tom Sorenson) also included Melanie McDonald, Sue Anderson, Melinda Davidson, Jenny Woods, Glennis Such.
In the final, the Lethbridge Sir Winston Churchill Griffins defeated the Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens 40-38 to capture their second consecutive provincial title. A year earlier, they won the 3A crown. The win also avenged four losses to the Clipper Queens during the regular season. “I felt we were the underdog,” said Griffins coach Clifton Walters. “I felt, going into the tournament, that we had a good chance of making the final, and I was positive LCI would make the final. When you play a team in the final that has beaten you four times during the year, that’s a pretty difficult task. In order to beat LCI, our girls had to come up big, and they did. Their heart was in the game.” The perimeter shooting of Susan Tokariuk and Marg Kemeri gave the Griffins leads of 12-6, 22-14 and 30-23 at the quarters. The Clipper Queens chipped away and knotted the score at 34 with five minutes remaining. A free throw by Jenny Webking gave the Queens a 38-36 edge with 35 seconds on the clock. But Tokariuk stole the ball for a runout layup and on the ensuing inbounds play, Shari Frier stole the ball for a layup to give the Griffins the lead. Clipper Queen Jackie Thompson was fouled but missed the front end of the one-and-one, and Kemeri pulled down the rebound as the Griffins pulled out the win. Tokariuk paced the Griffins with 21 points and 14 boards. Kemeri added 12. Webking led the Clipper Queens with 16. Melanie Johnson added 8. “I’d like to compliment Irene Karia (Clipper Queen coach) and LCI,” Walters said. “I think they’re a fantastic team, and I mean that sincerely. They’re so difficult to play against because they do everything well. I think Irene is a super coach and she always does a fantastic job. She’s tough to coach against.” Walters added that the defensive play of Cheryl Theodore on Melanie Johnson was critical to the win. “Cheryl is only 5’7”, so that’s quite a task. She plays probably the best defence of anyone on our squad. To hold Melanie to eight, that’s a fantastic feat. … Susan is without a doubt one of the best players I’ve ever coached. She’s got so much heart. Diane Colwill really puts her heart into the game. She does everything she can to set up the offence, and she just did a tremendous job tonight.” He also lauded the efforts of Shari Frier, Marg Kemeri, Sharon Bodnaruk and Wendy Marsden, calling the latter “a real sparkplug for us. I’ve really been pleased with the overall progress the team has made this year. They’ve really been a nice group of kids to work with. They’re hard-working and coachable.” The Griffins shot 47% from the floor.
The bronze medalist Calgary St. Francis Browns: Rita Steiert; Julie Hendrix; Rosie Steiert; Rochelle Goldade; Sharon Gusdal; Michelle Park; Rhonda Bergi; Veda Kenda; coach Roy West
The silver medalist Lethbridge College Institute Clipper Queens: Jenny Webking; Jackie Thompson; Melanie Johnson; Malinda Hamilton; Sharon May; Jodi Gibson; Angela Orr; Susan Gellany; Glenna Cumming; Shelley Hironaka; Wendy Watson; Cathy Sharpe; Lillian Wong; coach Irene Karia; manager Mary Hewitt
The gold medalist Lethbridge Sir Winston Churchill Griffins: Wendy Marsden; Margo Dzuren; Susan Tokariuk; Karen Christie; Cheryl Theodore; Sharon Bodnaruk; Shari Frier; Margaret Kemeri; Diane Colwill; Patti Clifford; Denise Houghton; Margaret Tokariuk; coach Clifton Walters; manager Shelly Tweter