Submitted by: Lise Fraser |
The JV Girls had a successful tournament at the Provincial tournament in Altona this past weekend. The Tigers were the youngest team at provincials but set a goal for themselves to be in a final playoff on Saturday, March 11, 2017.
The first game of the tournament was against St. John’s Ravenscourt. Ravenscourt had a 6’1″ player who presented a challenge for the Tigers. The posts were tasked with limiting the Ravenscourt player’s offensive ability. Adria Bateman pulled down 14 rebounds to lead the defensive core. The game was close throughout, each team pressed hard as a win meant advancing to the Championship side of the draw. The final score for the game was 52-47 for Ravenscourt. Adria Bateman scored 10 points, Sabrina Kopecky 9 points, followed by Decorbea Fleury with 8 points. Lauren Klatt and Sydney Fleming contributed defensively with 5 rebounds and 2 steals each. Sabrina Kopecky was named the Player of the Game.
The loss moved the Tigers to the Consolation side of the draw where they met the host team, W.C. Miller Collegiate from Altona. The gym was packed with students from the collegiate, cheering on their home team. The Tigers maintained a lead throughout the game but it never seemed to be enough. Altona utilized an aggressive press and would chip away at the lead but the Tigers were score a timely basket to restore some breathing space. The Tigers were up by ten points with 1 1/2 minutes left in the game but Altona stole the ball to cut the lead to eight. Then stole the ball again and scored which reduced the Tigers lead to six. Coach Fraser called a timeout and the Tigers regrouped. Decorbea Fleury scored on the next play and was fouled. Fleury cooly made her foul shot despite the crowd noise which increased the Tiger lead to nine. Altona scored on their next possession and the clock ran out. The Tigers had won 50-43 which placed them in the Consolation Finals on Saturday.
Fleury scored 17 points in the game and was named the Player of the Game for the Tigers. Brenna Schure scored 9 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Bateman scored 9 points. Defensively the Tiger press of Fleury, Kopecky, Staples and Rowe created turnovers which prevented Altona from overtaking the Tigers. This was a good character win for the Tigers as it is extremely difficult for a team to win a playoff game against a host team.
On Saturday morning, the Tigers faced Calvin Christian Eagles in the Consolation Final. The Tigers were out-sized by the Eagles but they were up to the challenge. The Eagles had two players at the 6 foot height and two other players at 5’10. The Tigers started off strong, with Staples, Fleury and Kopecky sinking perimeter shots. The Eagles quickly switched defensive strategies and used a man to man defence. The game remained close, with both teams scoring when they had possession. At the half the Tigers were down by one point. During the second half, the game remained close. In the final two minutes the Eagles stretched their lead to ten points. The Tigers were not able to close the distance and the final score was 60-50 for Calvin Christian, which placed the Tigers as the runner-up in the Consolation Final. Bateman was named Player of the Game with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Lauren Klatt had 12 points and 11 rebounds. Coach Fraser and Zamzow were very proud of the effort that the Tigers put forth in the game, never giving up.
The Tigers had a great season and would like to thank their fans for travelling to Provincials to cheer for the team. The team has already set a goal for next year and that is to return to Provincials and come home with a medal.