In the quarterfinals, the Riverview Royals dumped Fredericton Leo Hayes Lions 71-35 after leading 35-16 at the half. Stephanie Clarke led the Royals with 22. Alexandria McDonald added 17 and Rebecca Nuttall 11. Michaela Allaby led the Lions with 8. The Lions also included Katie MacTavish, Ashley Phillips, Jessica Johnson, Amanda McMullin.
The Sussex Regional Sonics clipped the Moncton Harrison Trimble Trojans 63-50 after leading 28-26 at the half. Kelly DeBow led the Sonics with 14. Carla Norrad added 13 and Sam Nixon 13. The Sonics led 28-26 at the half. Stephanie LeBlanc led Trimble with 22. Kenda Wood added 13. The Trojans also included Renee LeBlanc, Melissa Foster, Courtney McPhee.
The Miramichi Valley Pulamoo defeated the Fredericton Black Kats 64-43 as Brooke Sullivan and Megan Stymiest each scored 20. Meghan Dickie added 12. Meg Plummer paced the Black Kats with 13. Robbi Daley added 8 and Rebecca Sheehan 8. “They were strong but we felt we could play with them,” Sullivan told the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal. “I tried not to look at the clock in the second half, especially when they would make a run and cut the deficit. We just had to keep calm.” Miramichi Valley raced to a 40-23 lead the half and never looked back. “We didn’t want to be rude on the court,” said Sullivan. “We were smiling but when we got to the locker room, everyone was pretty excited.” Pulamoo guard Brooke Sullivan told the Fredericton Daily Gleaner that “it just seems extremely weird not to see Fredericton going to the final. It’s a pretty huge upset. … Usually we don’t handle pressure very well, but today we handled it really well. When Fredericton got a few points, we just calmed down and said ‘we can do this’. I think we just peaked at the right time. We’ve improved a lot over the season.” Miramichi Valley co-coaches Richard Stewart and Jim Watters received the New Brunswick girl’s high school coach of the year award. The Black Kats also included Emily Corey, Catherine Nicholson.
In the last quarterfinal, the Moncton Bernice MacNaughton Highlanders whipped the Quispamsis Kennebecasis Valley Crusaders 88-38 after leading 45-19 at the half. Laura Fowler led the Highlanders with 15. Stephanie Gillcash and Lia St. Pierre each added 13. Lyndsay Roy led the Crusaders with 13. Melanie MacGillvary added 10. The Crusaders (coached Maegan George, assisted by Bill Mayberry) also included Ann Conrod, Ashley Bawn, Erica Gagnon, Keri Kent, Joanna Wilkin, Erica Forward, Louise Chiasson.
In the semis, the Riverview Royals defeated the Sussex Regional Sonics 55-47 as Alexandra McDonald scored 15, Christine Ryan 13 and Rebecca Nuttall 10. Kelly DeBow paced Sussex with 21. Sam Dixon added 9 and Carla Norrad 8. The score was knotted at 26 at the half.
In the other semi, the Moncton Bernice MacNaughton Highlanders dumped the Miramichi Valley Pulamoo 66-59 as Lia St. Pierre scored 25, Laura Fowler 18 and Alex Dellaire 12. Brooke Sullivan led the Pulamoo with 16. Meghan Dickie added 14 and Megan Stymiest 13.
In the final, the Moncton Bernice MacNaughton Highlanders defeated the Riverview Royals 56-41 as Lia St. Pierre scored 13, nabbed 12 boards, dished 2 assists and pilfered 2 balls. Alexandra Dallaire added 14 points and Jodie Tatlock 13. “It feels amazing,” St. Pierre told the New Brunswick Telegraph-Journal. “It’s been a goal since the beginning of the year. We came here to complete our journey and we did. Most of us have been together since mini ball and we’re very close. There have never been any little fights on our team. The chemistry is unreal.” Riverview game MVP Stephanie Clarke countered with 11 points, 11 boards and two steals while Patricia Hines and Alexandria McDonald both scored seven. Christine Ryan added 6. The Royals trailed 21-18 with eight minutes left in the first half, but the Highlanders went on a 10-0 run over the next three minutes and led 39-25 at the half. During that span, St. Pierre had three straight baskets and Laura Fowler a trey as the Highlanders build a 31-18 lead. The Royals never got within single digits again. “They’re a very good team,” Riverview coach Greg Gould said, “and we let them get out in transition and get a bit of a lead on us. When they’ve got a lead, they’re hard to battle with because their confidence level goes up and they start making shots from the perimeter.” St. Pierre said the Royals have “come such a long way since the beginning of the year. I have a lot of friends on that team. There’s a little bit of a rivalry out there but we still get along off the court.” The Highlanders finished (33-4) on the season and avenged their only loss to a New Brunswick team (57-48 to the Royals). “I don’t think they did anything differently, I think they just played better,” Gould said. “I was pleased with the way my kids were able to battle back and at least hang in there. We got it down to 10 a couple times the second half, but they wouldn’t let us get closer.”
The co-bronze medalist Sussex Regional Sonics: Kelly DeBow; Samantha Dixon; Carla Norrad; Karen Creighton; Kelly Bekan; Janelle Jarvis; Cory Meehan; coach Mike Marshall
The co-bronze medalist Miramichi Valley Pulamoo: Brooke Sullivan; Meghan Dickie; Megan Stymiest; Meghan Keoughan; Nicole McGee; coach Richard Stewart; coach Jim Watters
The silver medalist Riverview Royals: Rebecca Nuttall; Christine Ryan; Stephanie Clark; Patricia Hines; Alexandria McDonald; Julie Hatcher; Cheyanne Brown; Jennica Burbar; Rebecca Canning; Katie Donahoe; Gabriella Johnson-Edfast; Maggie Fowler; Laura Harris; Jenna Jones; Emily LeBlanc; Alyssia Olsen; Vanessa Pickard; Michelle Plante; Christina Ryan; Kaleigh Wilson; coach Greg Gould
The gold medalist Moncton Bernice MacNaughton Highlanders: Lia St. Pierre; Laura Fowler; Jana Reddy; Laura Chapman; Laura Boby; Jessica Inglis; Jodie Tatlock; Ali Manship; Amanda Crossman; Stephanie Gillcash; Alexandra Dallaire; coach Steve Chapman; assistant Jeff Burns; manager Holli Vaters