In the regional qualifiers and Regina city playoffs: …………………………………………………… The Winston Knoll Wolverines clocked the Archbishop M.C. O’Neill Titans 71-48 as Danielle Ash scored 13. Krista Rainville led the Titans with 17. The Titans (coached by Mike Chase) also included Suzanne Lamontagne, Jenna Ninowski, Andrea Manz, Kristen Pele. …………………………………………………… The Balfour Redmen stomped the Dr. Martin LeBoldus Golden Suns 93-65 as Leanne Klempner scored 27. Lise Bissonnette led the Golden Suns with 20. The Golden Suns (coached by Jim Gallagher) also included Phuong Nguyen, Jamie Patryka, Gillian O’Bryne. …………………………………………………… The Michael A. Riffel Royals spanked the Luther Lions 83-66 as Megan Wappel scored 20. Logan Harris led the Lions with 21. The Lions (coached by Angela Tillier) also included Kim Mickler, Claire O’Donnell. …………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the Sheldon-Williams Spartans torched the Campbell Tartans 70-53 as Amanda McConnell scored 20. Meara Conway led the Tartans with 16. The Tartans (coached by Jason Coleman) also included Heather Brooks, Sheena Findlay, Jennifer Helquist. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Winston Knoll Wolverines crushed the Sheldon-Williams Spartans 65-33 as Shawna Hughes scored 16. Amanda McConnell led the Spartans with 18. The Spartans (coached by Dave Taylor) also included Jill Cowie, Megan Cherkas. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Balfour Redmen edged the Michael A. Riffel Royals 71-66 as Leanne Klempner scored 20. Janel Walker led the Royals with 18. The Royals (coached by Wade Hackl) also included Bree Edwards, Brittnee Holliday, Stephanie Reinhart, Megan Wappel. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Balfour Redmen dispatched the Winston Knoll Wolverines 65-51 as Leanne Klempner scord 25, Chelsa Haywood 11 and Mallory McCormick 10. Whitney Brhelle led the Wolverines with 14. Whitney Adams added 10.
In the regional qualifiers and Saskatoon city playoffs: …………………………………………………… In the quarterfinals, the Bishop J. Mahoney Saints defeated the Evan Hardy Souls 63-57 as Nicole Schoenberger scored 15. The Souls included Afton Sielski, Amber Simpson. …………………………………………………… The Bedford Road Redmen clipped the St. Joseph Guardians 62-50 as Keri-Lee Porter scored 24. Karen Fraser led the Guardians with 17. …………………………………………………… The 2nd-seeded Holy Cross Crusaders blasted the 7th-seeded Walter Murray Marauders 70-51 as Adrianne Vangool scored 29. Ashley Hanson led the Marauders with 19. …………………………………………………… In the last quarterfinal, the Aden Bowman Bears crushed the E.D. Feehan Trojans 73-33 as Carolyn Ganes scored 21. Brittany Ellis led the Trojans with 7. …………………………………………………… In the semis, the Aden Bowman Bears squashed the Bedford Road Redmen 89-51 as Carolyn Ganes scored 27. Keri-Lee Porter led the Redmen (coached by Stacey Hanson) with 12. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Holy Cross Crusaders rolled the Bishop J. Mahoney Saints 74-47 as Adrianne Vangool scored 20. Nicole Schoenberger led the Saints with 14. The Saints also included Janelle Gudmundson. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Aden Bowman Bears spanked the Holy Cross Crusaders 79-58 as Carolyn Ganes scored 34 and Kara Lackie 17. Crystal Normand led the Crusaders with 16. Maria Paiva added 14.
In the small cities quarterfinals: …………………………………………………… The Moose Jaw A.E. Peacock Toilers defeated the North Battleford Vikings 75-45 as Robin Seida scored 20 and Sarah Stilborn 19. Peacock led 32-11 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Estevan Elecs nipped the Prince Albert Carlton Crusaders 52-51 as Jamie Komarnicki scored 12. Kim Ardell led Carlton with 15. Carlton led 28-21 at the half. …………………………………………………… The Swift Current Ardens defeated Yorkton 49-35 as Ella Hamilton scored 14. Kristi Koval led Yorkton with 24. …………………………………………………… The Weyburn Eagles defeated the Prince Albert St. Mary Marauders 69-25 as Heather Maloney scored 18. Dominique Boucher paced St. Mary with 8. Weyburn led 44-10 at the half. …………………………………………………… In the semi-finals, the Moose Jaw A.E. Peacock Toilers defeated the Estevan Elecs 45-39 as Daphne Belsher scored 13. Beghan Betner led Estevan with 11. Peacock led 24-15 at the half. …………………………………………………… In the other semi, the Swift Current Ardens nipped the Weyburn Eagles 53-52 as Danielle Cuthbert and Jolandie Boutwell each scored 16. Jody Anderson led Weyburn with 20. …………………………………………………… In the final, the Moose Jaw A.E. Peacock Toilers defeated the Swift Current Ardens 72-55 as Kristy Mayor scored 22. Daniel Cuthbert led Swift Current with 17. Peacock led 30-19 at the half.
In the provincial quarterfinals, held at Regina Miller, the 3rd-seeded Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders defeated the 6th-seeded Swift Current Ardens 73-54 as Kristi West scored 14 and Adrianne Vangool 11. Jolandie Boutwell paced Swift Current with 17. Danielle Cuthbert and Ella Hamilton each added 13. The Crusaders got off a slow start and fell behind 11-9 but quickly turned that into a 37-21 lead. They led 41-30 at the break and romped. “This was an OK starting game,” Crusaders coach Sharon Klein told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. “We weren’t physically prepared and I was afraid that might happen. We had to switch from zone to man defence in the first three minutes just to get our legs going.” Crusader guards Kristi Wist and Adrianne Vangool were the catalysts at the front end of the press, which resulted in a host of runout layups for Grade 10 forwards Alison Burns and Christine Nisbet. “We got our fast break going. That always seems to get us out of our bad play,” said Wist. “We got some turnovers and ran the ball pretty well.” Jolandie Boutwell led the Ardens with 17. Danielle Cuthbert and Ella Hamilton each added 13.
In the other quarterfinal, the Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines nipped the Moose Jaw A.E. Peacock Lady Toilers 64-61. Seniors Danny Ash and Shawna Hughes combined to score the last 10 points as the Wolverines pulled out the win. “Shawna and Danny are gamers,” coach Amy Mickleborough told the Regina Leader-Post. “They realize that they’re playing their last high school games. The experience of being three years in a row definitely paid off.” Robin Seida had hit 2 of her 17 points as the Toilers moved ahead 55-54 with two minutes to play. Hughes countered with a layup to put Knoll ahead 56-55. Ash stole the ball and set up Hughes for a jumper with 58 seconds on the clock. Ash was then fouled on a rebound and hit both free throws to put Knoll ahead 60-55 with 33.6 seconds to go. She added four more free throws to ice the win. Hughes finished with 19. Ash added 15. “Those two work hard, whether it’s a game or a practice,” Mickleborough said. “They’re excellent role models, especially for the young girls.”
In the semi-finals, the top-seeded Saskatoon Aden Bowman Bears defeated the Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines 76-67. Wolverines coach Amy Mickelborough told the Regina Leader-Post that said she could count the number of Carolyn Ganes on one finger. “She only missed one shot that I can remember. Pretty good, eh?” Indeed, Ganes notched 40 as the Bears coasted to the easy win. “It’s significant because (today) will be my last game of high school basketball,” said Ganes, whose personal best was a 63-point outburst at a tournament in Calgary last season. “You want to finish on the right note. This is a huge tournament, no matter how you look at it. You’re playing the best teams in Saskatchewan.” Winston Knoll led 41-40 early in the second half, with Ganes having scored 26 of Bowman’s 40. “I couldn’t have asked any more out of any group of girls,” Mickleborough said. “Carolyn Ganes. What can you do? We did a really decent job on the rest of Aden Bowman’s players. I was really impressed with the intensity and confidence our girls went into the game with against a team that nobody has come close to, like 20 points. The girls really fought hard and showed a lot of heart.” En route to the provincials, the Bears had swept to the Saskatoon city title by dumping E.D. Feehan in the quarterfinals, Bedford Road in the semis, and then Holy Cross in the final. Ganes carried the Bears for most of the game but it was Jill Vinish who stepped up down the stretch. Ganes and Vinish combined for 22 of Bowman’s final 35 points. “We came out shaky but we loosened up finally in the second half and pulled away,” Ganes told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. “This was a huge game, and there are a lot of outside expectations on us. We struggled with that a bit, because we knew if we lose this one, it’s all over. But we finally just relaxed, which made a big difference.” Winston Knoll led 33-32 at half-time, and extended the lead to as much as 45-40 in the second. A turning point came when Wolverines star guard Danielle Ash went out with an injury, allowing the Bears to press more effectively. Knoll was up by three when she left the game, but Bowman soon led 70-56. Shawna Hughes paced the Wolverines with 15.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Regina city champion Balfour Redmen whipped the Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders 76-40 as Leanne Klempner scored 20. Kristi West led Holy Cross with 10. “Anything that could go wrong did go wrong,” Crusaders coach Sharon Klein told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. “The harder we tried, the worse it got. That was probably our worst game of the year and I’m not sure why it happened.” The Crusaders shot horribly. The Redmen led 15-6 and quickly extended it to 38-15, 43-24 by half-time and 30 points midway through the second half.
In the bronze medal match, the Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders defeated Regina Winston Knoll Wolverines 76-60 as Kristi West scored 23. Shawna Hughes paced the Wolverines with 18. Holy Cross’ full-court pressure rallied the Wolverines into a raft of turnovers as the Crusaders took an early 10-point lead. “We had a lot of fast break points,” said West. “There was some easy shots we took that we could have made but we didn’t.” Knoll was able to capitalize and rally as Shawna Hughes and Whitney Adams kept attacking the basket. But the Crusaders prevailed by maintaining their poise. The key, Wist told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, “was to “keep our heads in the game mentally while going into that second half and to not fall apart. We just had to keep doing things well. This was a good experience for us. It’ll help us if we can hopefully be back here next year. We showed ourselves that we can stay mentally tough and play well for an entire game.” The Wolverines (coached by Amy Mickelborough) also included Danielle Ash, Whitney Brlelle.
In the final, the top-seeded Saskatoon Aden Bowman Bears defeated the Regina Balfour Redmen 80-52 to cap an undefeated season. The Bears intensity was the difference, coach Wendy Benson told the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix. “The girls played with their hearts tonight. We played our best game when we wanted it most. That first half was fabulous. I’ve said all year that we don’t play good offence unless we have good defence.” Ganes noted that “we wanted to finish it feeling good about ourselves. There’s been pressure on us all year long. It feels great. We came out so intense and so pumped up. The girls played with their hearts tonight. We played our best game when we wanted it most. That first half was fabulous. I’ve said all year that we don’t play good offence unless we have good defence.” The Bears full court pressure force a bushel of turnovers and generated layup after layup. They led 40-12 at the half. We haven’t always opened games with (the press) but I asked my assistant coaches if we should start with the 1-2-1-1 press. They said yes so we went it.” Balfour forward Ashley Fekula said that press was unmanageable. “We couldn’t handle it this game. They came at us so hard and I don’t think we were totally ready for it. The more we played them, the less intimidation there was. I actually thought we had a chance to win this game but we couldn’t come out with a bang and they did.” Katherine Keys, who scored 10, said “we all so close and we’re such good friends. It’s so special being able to go out winning together.” Added guard Stacey Ferguson: “we were really focused going into this one. It was the last time we’ll all play together. We’ll remember this one.” Des Dyck noted “this year was the closest team I’ve been on. Everyone gets along so well and we’re all so happy for each other. That’s something that makes this win so good.” Ganes said she couldn’t have asked for a better way to close out her career. “It’s emotional because it’s been such a good year. I’m so happy we could end it not only winning, but showing what we could do as a team.” Balfour post Leanne Klempner told the Regina Leader-Post that covering star 6-3 Bears post Carolyn Ganes as “so much fun. You have to rise to the occasion against her. It’s fun being an underdog and having to do your best. It’s fun playing against someone better than you. It makes you play better. Every time I play against Carolyn, I get better. I feel I did the best I could. I left it all out on the floor. It’s a rush, having to guard one of the best players in Saskatchewan and one of the best players I’ll ever compete against in my life. She can shoot and rebound. Obviously, you’re not going to block her shot. She has developed her inside and outside game really well, so it’s tough to defence that, especially with the seven inches she has on me in height.” The University of Oregon-bound Ganes finished with 35 points and praised Klempner, who led Balfour with 20. “She was excellent. If she was taller, she’d be even better. She did really well, especially being at a height disadvantage.
The bronze medalist Saskatoon Holy Cross Crusaders: Kristi Wist; Crystal Normand; Maria Paiva; Adrianne Vangool; Caroline Deutscher; Alison Burns; Kelly Froess; Lesley Grinius; Tara Meissner; Vanessa Thomas; Christine Nisbet; Marissa Taylor; Charissa Krienke; coach Sharon Klein; assistant Angie Vangool; assistant Mark McTavish; manager Liz Dubourt; manager Tara Bekolay
The silver medalist Regina Balfour Redmen: Ashley Fekula; Leanne Klempner; Chelsea Heywood; Mallory McCormick; Allix Schweitzer; Tara Griffith; Krista Burnett; Elyse Kessel; Tracy Dewhurst; Melissa Leniuk; Trista Bartlof; Erica Schmidt; coach Wendy Bileski; assistant C Nourse; manager Jenna Haynee
The gold medalist Saskatoon Aden Bowman Bears: Alanna Baillod; McKenzie Hodgins; Katherine Keys; Carolyn Ganes; Stacey Ferguson; Desiree Dyck; Kara Lackie; Amy Prokop; Jill Vinish; Justine Chabot; Kailee Marland; Christine Perret; Megan Ragush; coach Wendy Benson; assistant Jacquie Lavallee; assistant Jason Benson; manager Kirsty Taylor; manager Sarah Figley