In the opening round, held in Hamilton: …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders stomped the Scarborough David & Mary Thomson CI Titans, coached by Bryan Pardo, 53-22 as Devyn Cuncic scored 11, Sandra Cers 8, Rebecca Rewi 7, Lauren Mazzuca 6 and Kelly Moulden 6. Rebecca Rewi told the Hamilton Spectator that “it was nice to see everybody play with intensity.” The Crusaders led 21-4 after one quarter and 36-12 at the half. Aleia Gland paced the Knights with 12. Klara Eastmond and Quielle Barriffe each added 3. The Crusaders led 21-4 after one quarter and 36-12 at the half. …………………………………………………… The 2nd-seeded Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints, coached by Andy Kiss, defeated the Etobicoke Michael Power-St. Joseph Trojans, coached by Paul McGrath, 44-31 as Laura Mullins scored 13, Brittany Hedderson 9, Lauren Renaud 6 and Georgia Billing 6. Emma Nosella paced Michael Power-St. Joseph with 17. Joanna Medri added 10 and Hanna Koposhynska 4. …………………………………………………… The 3rd-seeded Mississauga Father Goetz Gators, coached by David Maxin and Mike Lawson, defeated the Barrie Eastview Wildcats, coached by Patti Grace, 49-32. The Gators led 29-13 at the half. …………………………………………………… The 4th-seeded Hamilton Westdale Warriors stomped the unseeded Richmond Hill St. Theresa of Lisieux Lions 45-27 as Lauren Wheeler scored 22, Emma Currie 8 and Amber Hillis 7. Warriors Nadia Flynn told the Hamilton Spectator that the squad suffered from lapses. “I’m not really happy with the way we played.” The Warriors led 31-24 after three quarters. Lisa Curti paced the Lions (coached by Sean Hypopen) with 18. Nicole Cecchini added 9. …………………………………………………… The 6th-seeded Hamilton Cathedral Gaels, coach by Michelle Vesprini, registered a 50-42 win over the Brampton St. Marguerite D’Youville Catholic Gators. Christine Ladniak led the Gaels with 13. Shamira Kerlew and Brittany Jamieson each added 12. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Waterloo CI Vikings, coached by Doug Ranton and Lindsay Kurt, whipped the 10th-seeded Ottawa Merivale Marauders, coached by Ali Johnson, 70-49 as Kaila Montgomery scored 21, Megan Fowler 18 and Shelby Kurt 13. Jenna Gilbert paced Merivale with 23. Jody Duncan added 21 and Kelsey Long 5. Merivale coach Ali Johnson lamented a raft of defensive lapses. “We played with them in the first half (after which Waterloo led 37-33) but they just wore us down in the second half and defensively, we had more than just a few holes,” she told the Ottawa Citizen. …………………………………………………… The unseeded Kitchener-Waterloo CI Raiders, coached by Nick White, upset the 8th-seeded Toronto Northern Secondary Red Knights 44-32. …………………………………………………… The unseeded London Catholic Central Crusaders (coached by Adriana Pompa) upset the 7th-seeded Whitby Sinclair Secondary Celtics, coached by Roxanne Curtis, 48-35 as Melitza Fonseca scored 13, Katrina Bobanovic 12 and Jocelyn Baker 9. The score was knotted at 16 at the half. Stephanie Parfitt paced Sinclair with 19. Katie Fitzgerald added 8 and Katelyn McConnell 6.
In the second round: …………………………………………………… The top-seeded Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders whipped the Barrie Eastview Wildcats 59-30 as Rebecca Rewi scored 15, Taylor Chiarot 8 and Sandra Cers 6. Sarah Wheatcroft paced Eastview with 6. Britney Hess and Stacey Pigden each added 4. St. Mary’s led 27-9 at the half. “It’s nice to see everybody playing with intensity,” Crusaders’ guard Rebecca Rewi told the Hamilton Spectator. “We did keep up the intensity.” The Wildcats (coached by Patti Grace) also included Chelsea Sheff, Courtney Peters, Kendra Johnson, Mackenzie Carl, Laura McAlear, Brookelyn Cumberland, Rachel Jennings, Lauren MacKenzie, Victoria Hart and Danielle Horvat. …………………………………………………… The 2nd-seeded Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints crushed the Richmond Hill St. Theresa of Lisieux Lions 64-39 as Laura Mullins scored 23 and Brittany Hedderson 14. Lisa Curti paced St. Theresa with 16. Nicole Cerchini added 15. The Lions (coached by Sean Hypopen) also included Cristina Sureda, Laura McMillan, Melyssa McPherson, Danielle Curti, Natasha Bussoli, Pamela Boampong, Amna Zletni, Christina Nestor, Alexis Vogelzang and Simone Ramkissoon. …………………………………………………… The 4th-seeded Hamilton Westdale Warriors dumped the Etobicoke Michael Power-St. Joseph Trojans 45-29 as Amber Hillis scored 17 and Natalie Djurdjevic 13. “We had lapses. … A 30 second lapse you can accept but we had six-minute lapses and you don’t like to see that,” Warriors coach Nadia Flynn told the Hamilton Spectator. “I’m not really happy with the way we’ve played, but I am happy knowing we can play much better.” The Trojans (coached by Paul McGrath) included Nicola Wyslobicky, Lauren Spitznagel, Emma Nosella, Lisa Holland, Joanna Medri, Bridget Samuel, Laura Upenieks, Kelly Corkum, Hanna Koposhynska, Jordan White and Jeannine Wyslobjcky. …………………………………………………… The unseeded Scarborough David & Mary Thomson Titans stunned the 3rd-seeded Mississauga Father Michael Goetz Gators 56-55 as Lateisha Thompson scored 17, Renelle Richmond 11 and Reachel Thelnell-Brown 11. Chenel Harris paced the Gators with 18. Ryann Fletcher added 17 and Cyndi Affary 16. “We’ve had great games all year and in others we went stone cold,” Gators coach David Maxin told the Toronto Star. “At halftime, I looked at my co-coach and said something like, ‘Oh-oh … we’re in trouble.’ I could see we weren’t sharp and picked a bad time to go cold.” Thomson led 15-14, 31-21 and 44-36 at the quarters. The Gators (coached by David Maxin and Mike Lawson) also included Ronalyn Tiglao, Emiline Evangelista, Alejandra Velarde, Jessica Alino, Angela Lecce, Caroline Pasion, Kristina Wachholz, Tamarra Sandiford, Carrie Jaing and Janine Duluinas. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Waterloo CI Vikings dumped the 7th-seeded Whitby Sinclair Celtics 44-37 as Kaila Montgomery scored 22. Stefanie Parfitt paced the Celtics with 17. The Celtics (coached by Roxanne Curtis) also included Kelsey Hare, Courtney London, Alana Gattinger, Jenny Robertson, Kelly Blea, Merissa Daley, Katelyn McConnell, Michelle Crompton, Kisha Brown and Katie Fitzgerald. …………………………………………………… The 8th-seeded Toronto Northern Red Knights clipped the 6th-seeded Hamilton Cathedral Gaels 45-41 as Brittany MacDonald scored 17, Ali Cherniak 10 and Brittany Rose 7. Brittany Jamieson paced Cathedral with 16. Christine Ladniak added 12 and Natasha Thomson 6. “We started too late,” Gaels’ coach Michele Vesprini told the Hamilton Spectator. The Red Knights led 15-10, 26-13 and 36-23 at the quarters. “We had a tough time getting it down from 13 to 11. I told the girls if we could get it down to nine, we could win,” Vesprini said. “They showed a lot of heart coming back to make it 44-41.” The Gaels (coached by Michelle Vesprini, assisted by Anne Marie Ssemanda) also included Priscilla Jarvis, Ashley Marques, Keisha Kelly, Shara Peart, Caroline Ssemanda, Shamira Kerlew, Lauri Kelly, Amber Willett and Veronica Azevedo. …………………………………………………… The 10th-seeded Ottawa Merivale Marauders dumped the unseeded London Catholic Central Crusaders 50-32 as Jenna Gilbert scored 22 and Jody Duncan 10. Gilbert said the Marauders were determined to earn the school’s “first berth in an OFSAA quarterfinal. We came out strong and we played great defence. We were really rotating and get the third rotation and pressuring them. We weren’t just letting them catch the ball and do whatever they wanted.” The Crusaders (coached by Adriana Pompa) included Katrina Bobanovic, Melitza Fonseca, Jocelyn Baker, Kelsey Bates, Catalina Belalcazar, Kelsey Kendellen, Rachel Kelley, Brittany Sheahan, Margaret Conlon, Rebecca Curcio, Angel Abbado, Theresia Scholtes and Ally Quirk. …………………………………………………… The unseeded Kitchener-Waterloo CI Raiders clipped the 9th-seeded Brampton St. Marguerite D’Youville Catholic Gators 46-39. The Gators (coached by Gigi DiSanto) included Crystal Brown, Cherise McDowall, Michelle MacEachern, Tiffany Taylor, Symone Murray, Laurenne Samuel, Reneisha Nembhard, Samantha Lewis, Mame-Yaa Ankoma-Mensa, Vivian Essuon, Janice Bartley, Melissa Gardner and Avneet Bhullar.
In the quarterfinals, the 2nd-seeded Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints stomped the Ottawa Merivale Marauders 64-18 as Lauren Benoud scored 15 and Brittany Hedderson 15. Jenna Gilbert paced Merivale with 7. “We couldn’t have hit the side of a barn today if we’d tried,” Merivale coach Ali Johnson told the Ottawa Citizen. “We were in serious foul trouble at the end, with all five starters fouling out and sitting on the bench.” The Marauders (coached by Johnson, assisted by Nancy Coke and Jon Leboutillier) also included Melissa Baynes, Eva Comeau, Jody Duncan, Lacei Lane, Kelsey Long, Meagan Tibbo, Kim Tuor, Cindy Wang and Katie Whitton.
The top-seeded Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders dumped the Kitchener-Waterloo CI Raiders 49-33 as Rebecca Rewi scored 12, Kelly Moulden 11 and Taylor Chiarot 8. Rachel Urosevic paced the Raiders with 13. Darcy Berry added 6. “No one really said that we would get anywhere,” Raiders coach Nick White told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record. “To make it to a quarter-final at OFSAA . . . I don’t know if it’s ever been done before at KCI on the girls’ side. The team was far, far better than I had ever hoped.” The score was knotted at 9 after one quarter. The Crusaders led 28-14 at the half and 41-22 after three quarters. The Raiders (coached by Nick White) also included Brooke Schlumberger, Barbara Robertson, Michel Haberlin, Kate Holbrook-Smith, Clair Lockhart, Diana Sandru, Sadie Kaufman, Ali Urosevic, Erica Horner, Shannon Holder, Sarah Madter, Sasha Warminton and Annie McCutcheon.
The 8th-seeded Toronto Northern Red Knights defeated the Scarborough David & Mary Thomson Titans 49-39 as Ali Cherniak scored 16 and Brittany MacDonald 12. Aleia Gland paced David & Mary Thomson with 17. Renelle Richmon added 7. The Titans (coached by Bryan Pardo) also included Quichelle Barriffe, Jennifer Khoury, Kayla Grossett, Kiana Eastmond, Shanice Brown, Reachel Thelwell-Brown, Kenita Tully, Latuisha Tappin and Sheetal Raj.
In the last quarterfinal, the 4th-seeded Hamilton Westdale Warriors defeated 5th-seeded Waterloo CI Vikings 40-33 as Amber Hillis scored 11, Emma Currie 8, Lauren Wheeler 6, Natalie Djurdjevic 6 and Blair Kelly 6. Kaila Montgomery paced Waterloo with 10. Shelby Kurt added 9 and Megan Fowler 6. “It’s disappointing now but looking back and realizing that our nucleus is Grade 10 and 11s, I think it was an impressive run for us to get to this point,” said coach Doug Ranton told the Kitchener-Waterloo Record. The Warriors led 8-7, 20-17 and 30-24 at the quarters. The Vikings (coached by Doug Ranton and Lindsay Kurt) also included Nicole DeGeef, Christine Brophy, Nicole Roeder, Rebecca Dietrich, Candice Bowman, Rachel Young, Heather Doering and Abbey Gingerich.
In the semis, the Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints stomped the 8th-seeded Toronto Northern Red Knights 67-38 as Laura Mullins scored 24 and Brittany Hedderson 17. Ali Cherniak paced Northern with 14. Brittany Macdonald added 13. St. Anne led 17-14, 39-22 and 60-26 at the quarters.
In the other semi, the top-seeded Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders defeated the 4th-seeded Hamilton Westdale Warriors 37-27 as Devyn Cuncic scored 10, Sandra Cers 8, Colleen Quinlan 3, V. Bonomo 2, Taylor Chiarot 2, Micayla Drysdale 6 and Rebecca Rewi 5. Natalie Djurdjevic paced Westdale with 11. Amber Hillis added 6, Julia Vidic 5, Lauren Wheeler 5, Ailind Syrotuik 2. Westdale led 12-9 after one quarter. St. Mary’s led 20-18 at the half and 33-21 after three quarters. “I’m smiling from relief, not from the way we played,” Crusaders coach Rich Wesolowski told the Hamilton Spectator. “This was a tough one to get through because once you’re in the final it will take care of itself.” Devyn Cuncic said “we came out and played good defence in the second half to pull it out.”
In the bronze medal match, the Hamilton Westdale Warriors dumped the 8th-seeded Toronto Northern Red Knights 47-33 as Ailind Syrotuik scored 11, Lauren Wheeler 9, Amber Hillis 9 and Natalie Djurdjevic 8. Ali Cherniak paced Northern with 7. Sari Fried and Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe each added 5. “We’re thrilled, it’s the best our school has ever done and we did better than some people predicted,” Red Knights guard Brittany MacDonald told the Toronto Star. “Our team has only been playing as unit for a few months, brought in three junior-age players, while many of the other (teams) have benefitted from rep teams and club programs. We worked so hard for this and can leave with our heads up high – a great season … This finish was not only fantastic for a group of girls – but for our school.” The Warriors led 30-16 at the half and 42-21 after three quarters. “We didn’t play our best game, but these girls realize the wonderful things they have accomplished,” said Northern coach John Giles. “We have something to wear around our neck – which is more than other teams can say and I’m proud of the effort.” The Red Knights hit 10-17 from the line. “Our rep systems have traditionally given Hamilton a powerhouse label in this game, but for a Toronto team to get this far is a major accomplishment,” said Westdale coach Nadia Flynn. “We just wanted to be sure their success at winning didn’t carry over to our game.” The Red Knights (coached by John Giles) also included Samantha Sigurdson, Brittany MacDonald, Brittany Rose, Sara Marcetic, Leah Smith, Ana Maria Higuera-Trado and Nora Rochman. Warriors coach Nadia Flynn told the Hamilton Spectator that “this was a team. Everybody contributed. Some kids stepped up and played with a lot of heart and that bodes well for next year. … The kids are excited at how great it is to win a bronze and come back next year and expect more. It’s the first medal this century and we’re pretty happy about that.” The Warriors led 30-16 at the half and 42-21 after three quarters. Djurdjevic said “our goal as a team from the beginning of the year was to get to OFSAA. When we got here, we all decided to try and medal. It was everybody, from the players on the floor to the ones on the bench constantly supporting us. We’re a family and that’s what got us this far. Next year, we’re looking for gold. We have so much to look forward to. There’s some great seasons ahead of us.”
In the final, the top-seeded Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders edged the 2nd-seeded Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints 45-43 as Taylor Chiarot scored 18, Rebecca Rewi 11, Devyn Cuncic 6 and Micayla Drysdale 4. Laura Mullins and Lauren Renaud each scored 12 to pace the Lions. Brittany Hedderson added 8, Georgia Billing 7 and Lauren Minello 4. St. Mary led 10-4 after one quarter. St. Anne led 24-20 at the half and 35-29 after three quarters. They trailed by as many as 15 in the fourth quarter but Taylor Chiarot hit a bucket to ignite an 11-0 run. Chiarot then hit a jumper to give the Crusaders the 45-43 with 17.9 seconds to play. “I learned not to get down on myself,” Chiarot told the Hamilton Spectator. “We wouldn’t give up. It’s not in any of us to give up. The third was kind of a rough quarter for us, but we pulled it out in the fourth. … The key was teamwork and a positive attitude. Nobody, not one of us, thought we couldn’t do it.” Crusaders’ coach Rich Wesolowski was worried after the Saints opened the second half with an 11-0 run. “The timeouts early in the second half wasn’t to give them a message,” he said. “It was to get the emotion out of them.” The Crusaders shifted to a press and awoke from their slumber. Saints coach Andy Kiss said “these are high school kids and sometimes you get great swings in momentum,” said Saints’ coach Andy Kiss.
“We had them down 15 in the third quarter. You’re not thinking you have it. We knew they were capable of ripping off a lot of points in a hurry. We learned a lesson and we’ll work hard to get back next year.” Rebecca Rewi ignited the late Crusader run, though she was playing with four fouls. She dished several assists and her pressure defence forced several turnovers. “The game went back and forth,” St. Anne assistant coach Roger Mousseau told the Windsor Star. “They went ahead by two points with eight seconds left and we just couldn’t quite get it done. (Coach) Andy Kiss and I have had some teams with more talent in our 10 years. “But this was the best team we’ve ever coached. They were so supportive of each other, whether they were on the floor or not.” The Crusaders finished 45-1 on the season, while the Saints finished 42-3.
The bronze medalist Hamilton Westdale Warriors: Lauren Wheeler; Amber Hillis; Natalie Djurdjevic; Blair Kelly; Emma Currie; Elena Corry; Ailind Syrotuik; Anna Southall-Milward; Julia Vidic; Catharine Barrett; Victoria Iossifidis; coach Nadia Flynn; assistant Glenn Hillis; assistant Suzanne Miller
The silver medalist Belle River St. Anne Catholic Saints: Brittany Hedderson; Lauren Renaud; Georgia Billing; Lauren Minello; Samantha LaRocque; Dayna MacKenzie; Melanie Bardoel; MacKenzie St. Pierre; Laura Mullins; Taylor Smith; Lauren Bering; Meyada Rafih; Shannon Wales; coach Andy Kiss
The gold medalist Hamilton St. Mary’s Crusaders: Rebecca Rewi; Taylor Chiarot; Kelly Moulden; Catherine Kehoe; Dana Bentzen-Bilkuist; Marie Hacking; Jessica Bonomo; Micayla Drysdale; Sandra Cers; V. Bonomo; Colleen Quinlan; Devyn Cuncic; Lauren Mazzuca; coach Rich Wesolowski