In the quarterfinals, held in Red Deer, the top-seeded Medicine Hat Kwahommies clipped the 8th-seeded Red Deer Hunting Hills Lightning 86-52 as Theresa Jantzen scored 17, Natalie Hudec 14, Nicole Heidinger 14, Cori Dixon 12 and Erin Lawson 11. “It was nice to have an easy first game,” coach Boris Grisonich told the Medicine Hat News. “We were a little nervous with the opening ceremonies and all. It looked like we had a few jitters at first but they settled down and picked up a win.” Courtney Fraser paced the Lightning with 16. Dana Somerville added 12 and Jill Potts 12. Lightning coach Sandre Goheen told the Red Deer Advocate that the Kwahommies “have a lot of balance, both inside and outside. We just don’t have the depth they have.” Grisonich said “we were a little flat early. … We do have a real balanced attack.” The Lightning (coached by Sandre Goheen) also included Kiley Reis, Lisa Nerland.
The 5th-seeded Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers nipped the 4th-seeded Edmonton McNally Tigers 54-52 as Jessica Gaudette scored 15. Krista Knapp led the Tigers with 26. The Tigers also included Heather McKenzie.
The 2nd-seeded St. Albert Paul Kane Blues clubbed the 7th-seeded Red Deer Lindsay Thurber Raiders 74-49 after leading 39-23 at the half. Danielle Peers paced the Blues with 24. Abbey Rogers added 13 and Johanna Stauffer 12. Wendy Johanson led the Raiders with 19. Cory Naidoo added 10. Raiders coach Kathy Lalor told the Red Deer Advocate “we worked hard … extremely hard, but it was the same old story for us. We just didn’t shoot well enough.” Paul Kane coach Jamie Peers said “(we) were a little tight early. But we had a lot of enthusiasm and were hitting our long shots later, which was key.” The Raiders (coached by Kathy Lalor) also included Kriston Surkan, Kim House, Jennifer Delane, Karee Zollinger, Shauna Wilkins, Laurie Kellough, Jack Gowans, Tiffany Moran.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens defeated the 6th-seeded Calgary Winston Churchill Bulldogs 72-58 as Shelomith Wagner, Erin Sandusky and Tonya Francis each scored 16. “It was a very strong team effort,” Clipper Queens coach Cliff Walters told the Lethbridge Herald. “Every player played and contributed. Defence was the order of the day. Our 3-2 zone defence put a stop to the Calgary offence.” Chelsea McCorquindale paced the Bulldogs with 20.
In the semis, the 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens dispatched the 2nd-seeded St. Albert Paul Kane Blues 66-64 as Landree Lambert drove the length of the court in seven seconds for the winning layup. Erin Sandusky paced the Clipper Queens with 14 points and 14 boards. Dawn Berry added 14, Tonya Francis 13, Shelo Wagner 13 and Lambert 10. Danielle Peers paced Paul Kane with 24. Brandy Speers added 16.“It was a hard-fought ballgame and the girls showed a lot of heart coming back from a 12-point deficit with five minutes to go,” Clipper Queen coach Cliff Waters told the Lethbridge Herald. “This was a very good team we beat, they’ve beaten Medicine Hat this year and been ranked near the top of the rankings all season long.”
In the other semi, the top-seeded Medicine Hat Kwahommies defeated the 5th-seeded Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers 69-42 as Theresa Janzen scored 20, Erin Lawson 16, Natalie Hudec 13 and Nicole Heidinger 13. Crystal Ausmus paced the Lancers with 16. “It wasn’t as easy as it looked,” coach Boris Grisonich told the Medicine Hat News. “They play a full-court press the full game. But we shot the ball well.” Grisonich led the Red Deer Advocate that “they’re a very good team. They put pressure on us the whole game.” Scarlett coach Bryce Tolley said “our strength is our shooting. We just came out flat.”
In the bronze medal match, the Calgary E.P. Scarlett Lancers dispatched the 2nd-seeded St. Albert Paul Kane Blues 80-74 as Crystal Ausmus scored 25. The Blues also included Danielle Peers, Brandy Speers Abbey Rogers, Johanna Stauffer.
In the final, the top-seeded Medicine Hat Kwahommies defeated the 3rd-seeded Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens 74-57 as 6-2 grade 10 post Theresa Jantzen dominated the boards and scored 18. Natalie Hudec led the Kwahommies with 22 on 5-6 from the arc. Erin Lawson added 18. Lethbridge was led by Erin Sandusky, who scored 13. Tonya Francis added 12. The Kwahommies finished (36-3) on the season. “I had the ball in my hands when the buzzer went,” senior point guard Natalie Hudec told the Medicine Hat News. “I just held it up and I did what every other team does and tossed it in the air. And then I went and hugged my players and my coach.” Coach Boris Grisonich said “they were running and jumping and hugging. I can’t believe it. I’m flying right now.” After Kwahommie star Theresa Jantzen picked up three quick fouls in the first half, “I was really worried, but the rest of the girls picked up a 13-point lead at the half,” said Grisonich. “I figured if we can get a 13-point lead without Theresa we’re doing pretty good. I was still nervous right until about two minutes left. Then I figured it was ours.” Hudec said “we really knew what to expect and the right people to guard. The last time we played them we beat them by 34 points. I’m sure they were a little intimidated.” Grisonich said “I told people at the beginning of this year that we have a good chance of winning a provincial championship within the next three years and we did it in the first of the three. It looks like we have another good chance of doing it against last year.” The game was tied at 22 early but the Kwahommies built a 41-28 lead at the half and quickly stretched the margin to 51-29. The Clipper Queens rallied no closer than 11, though Jantzen was in foul trouble. “I’m just happy we were able to play so well without Theresa,” said Medicine Hat coach Boris Grisonich. “She’s great, but a lot of our kids think they don’t get the respect they deserve.” Clipper Queens coach Cliff Walters said “it took great effort for us to get into this game. We were focused and motivated, but today the better team won. We played them four limes this year and they won all four. We scaled the mountain and came up a little bit short.” Grisonich told the Red Deer Advocate that “the girls stayed focused from the outset. We didn’t want to go into this game overconfident after seeing what happened to many of the number one teams this season. I think we were confident yet played with a little fear, which may have been good.”
The bronze medalist Calgary Dr. E.P. Scarlett Lancers: Jessica Gaudette; Crystal Ausmus; coach Bryce Tolley
The silver medalist Lethbridge Collegiate Institute Clipper Queens: Erin Sandusky; Jill Leavitt; Joni Scott; Tiffany Walters; Landree Lybbert, Natalie Michelson; Shelomyth Wagner; Dawn Berry; Alanna Beauchesne; Brianne Zaugg; Tonya Francis; Allison Dobek; coach Shannon Mackintosh; coach Cliff Walters; manager Dallas Wiebe; statistician Theresa Peake
The gold medalist Medicine Hat Kwahommies: Theresa Jantzen; Natalie Hudec; Julie George; Erin Lawson; Nicole Heidinger; Brin Lawson; Amanda George; Corinna Dixon; Jill Davis; Jill Cleland; Rene Smid; coach Boris Grisonich