In the quarterfinals, held in Stirling, the host Lakettes defeated the Paradise Valley Trojans 55-28. The Lakettes zone defence completely befuddled the Trojans. Stirling led 33-8 at the half. “Our defence has been the strong point of our team all season,” said Lakettes’ coach Ingeborg Pot. “Paradise Valley had the height advantage on us and we compensated by boxing them up in our zone. It was defence by the book.” Kristi Nelson led the Lakettes with 17. Leanne Peterson added 16. Deanna Deaville paced the Trojans with 9. “I was fairly happy with our performance considering this was a new experience for our team,” said Dean Lindquist, Paradise Valley’s coach. “We have five Grade 10s, two 11s and one Grade 12 player this year, and this is great experience for our team.” It’s the first time in six years Paradise Valley, representing the North East zone in the province, has offered a basketball program. Although they finished second in their zone, the top team, Vegreville St. Mary’s, didn’t meet the deadline with their entry for provincials, opening the door for Paradise Valley. “We never dreamed we would be at the provincials this year, and it’s a bonus coming here,” Lindquist said. “We will learn a lot from this tournament and hopefully be back here next year.”
The Bentley Panthers defeated the Fairview St. Thomas More Kodiaks 84-68 despite trailing 37-31 at the half. Kim Foley led the Panthers with 33. Cindy Helle paced the Kodiaks with 25.
The Calgary Christian Cougars dumped the Carbon Raiders 50-39 as Ann Reitsma scored 21. Sheri Horn led the Raiders with 19. The Raiders (coached by Dave Stewart, statistician Ruth Stewart) also included Valerie Berdahl, Kimberley Sommerville, Sherry Tetz, Kim Stanvick, Erin Reed, Susan Clement, Danielle Stewart, Jennifer Cameron.
In the last quarterfinal, the Foremost Forettes dispatched the Westlock St. Mary’s Sharks 70-46 as Kim Strain scored 22 and Roxanne Unger 17. Monique Bourque led the Sharks with 12.
In the semis, the Stirling Lakettes defeated the Bentley Panthers 61-42 as Heather Nilsson scored 19. Kim Foley paced the Panthers with 18.
In the other semi, the Calgary Christian Cougars defeated the Foremost Forettes 64-57 as Ann Reitsma scored 20. Roxanne Unser led the Forettes with 20.
In the bronze medal match, the Bentley Panthers nipped the Foremost Forettes 69-67 as Kim Foley scored 41. Kim Strain paced the Forettes with 30. The Forettes also included Micena Wells.
In the final, the Stirling Lakettes defeated the Calgary Christian Cougars 55-48. Although Calgary Christian fielded a pair of 6-1 posts, the smaller Lakettes handled the size difference easily. “We’ve had to deal with that all year long because our tallest player is 5-8 and we go down pretty quick from there,” said Stirling coach Inge Pot. Solid team defence and good boardwork neutralized the difference, she added. “Our defence won us the game,” said Pot. “It was five people working together on the floor. The bench was fantastic as well. … Every other team from the big girls and they lost.” Calgary opened in a zone but the Lakettes shot over it as they built a 31-18 lead and forced the Cougars into man-to-man defence. “I was pretty confident they would come out in a zone and we were prepared for that,” said Pot. “I knew when we started to hit from outside, they would eventually have to go to man-to-man.” Stirling led 35-22 at the half and romped. Kristi Nelson paced the Lakettes with 19. Leanne Peterson added 18 and Heather Nilsson 14. Ann Reitsma led the Cougars with 23. Erin Bakker added 10.
The bronze medalist Bentley Panthers: Kim Foley; Janice Stephenson; Sara Bryant;
The silver medalist Calgary Christian Cougars: Ann Reitsma; Erin Bakker;
The gold medalist Stirling Lakers: Kristi Nelson; Leanne Peterson; Heather Nilsson; coach Ingeborg Pot