In the semis, the St. John’s Holy Heart of Mary Highlanders defeated the St. John’s Booth Memorial Braves 61-48 as Andrea Dinn scored 23 and Charlotte Clarke 18. Susan McKinnon led Booth with 22.
In the other semi, the defending champ Placentia Laval Cavaliers defeated the Trepassey Stella Maris Mermaids 72-43 as Shawna Leonard scored 14, Shannon Sweeney 11 and Rhonda Carroll 11. Heather Pennell led Stella Maris with 12. Connie Finlay added 12.
In the final, the St. John’s Holy Heart of Mary Highlanders nipped the Placentia Laval Cavaliers 46-42. Holy Heart took a 32-22 lead at the half and then held on for the victory to hand Laval only its third loss in 40 games on the season. Laval had beaten Holy Heart four times during the regular season but Holy Heart pulled the upset as Andrea Dinn pitched in 16 points. “We were kind of nervous at the start of the game. When we took a 10-point lead after the first half, we were pretty optimistic but we knew they would try hard to come back,” said Dinn. Holy Heart coach Don Ash, a former assistant to Br. Martin Cull at Placentia, added that “we were the underdogs going in and everybody prepares for the top team. Laval has a well-balance team and more depth than our team but our defence was superb. We concentrated on defence the last three weeks prior to the tournament.” Ash added that Cull “taught me a lot about the game and I guess one of his pupils came back to him haunt him today.” Cull said Holy Heart’s 2-3 zone was the difference in the contest. Denise Whitten added 11 for Holy Heart, while Charlotte Clarke pitched in 10. Lori Greene led Laval with 15. Shawna Leonard added 8.
The co-bronze medalist St. John’s Booth Memorial Braves: Susan McKinnon;
The co-bronze medalist Trepassey Stella Maris Mermaids: Heather Pennell; Connie Finlay;
The silver medalist Placentia Laval Cavaliers: Lori Greene; Shawna Leonard; Shannon Sweeney; Rhonda Carroll; coach Brother Martin Cull
The gold medalist St. John’s Holy Heart of Mary Highlanders: Andrea Dinn; Charlotte Clarke; Denise Whitten; Susan Hann; Jennifer Warren; Andrea Wright; Katie Sullivan; Heather Power; Kim Barry; coach Don Ash