In the end, that Rideau District High School would walk away with the EOSSAA A Division crown for Senior Girls’ Basketball would come as no great surprise for anyone who spent time watching the EOSSAA championships here at SJCHS Wednesday and Thursday.
Coming into the event as the number one seed, the girls in green and gold were full value for that top-billing, rolling through opponents methodically, implementing a game plan that had a little bit of everything, but a whole lot of quality. And so, while the other five entrants took their best shots, Rideau was able to roll out a combination of speed, interior toughness, ball control, and a balanced attack to prevail. And so they did right through to the tournament final, posting a 49-26 victory over Vankleek Hill in the title game. A 22-4 second-quarter run by Rideau made it 33-10 at the half, a decisive lead for a team that’s very difficult to play catch-up against.
In the consolation final, the host St. Joseph’s Jaguars took a 41-20 decision from Holy Trinity.
Rideau gained the final by defeating St. Joseph’s 50-30 in the first game of the day in one semi-final, while Vankleek Hill went to the wire with Holy Trinity in the other, scratching out a dramatic 31-30 last-second victory in a game where they trailed 22-17 at the half.
From a Jaguar perspective, the tournament classifies as a success, both on and off the court.
The basketball, of course, was nothing short of exhilarating, and a 44-41 nail-biter to open the tournament against Holy Trinity put everyone on notice that there would be some top-notch basketball to be played over the course of the two-day schedule, by the Jaguars, and everyone else. The MacLaren sisters, Sarah and Rebecca owned the place in the early going, controlling the interior paint at both ends, and chipping in with some nice ball distribution and shooting. Natalie Walters continued to be a scoring threat, Kerry Keyes provided balance at both ends of the floor, and Caroline Holley played with such abandon that a medical crash team might well be considered for future tournaments. Leanne Lacompte and Madison Wren were effective in relief in the early going, and as the team gained entry to the consolation final, coach Mike McMahon was able to roll through his entire bench, giving floor time to everyone in a game that had plenty of meaning.
In their second contest, against Sharbot Lake, the Jaguars traded points with the Panthers in the second half, resulting in a two-point Sharbot Lake lead at the half ending in a 25-23 victory, but with the excitement of having the ball in the offensive paint at the buzzer, just coming up short on the missed layup.
What makes sports interesting, or maybe crazy at times, is the parity that often shows up among many teams at tournaments such as these. So, with their backs against the wall as the only team in the pool without a victory, Holy Trinity proceeds to go out and dismantle Sharbot Lake 45-23, creating a three-way tie at the end of the round-robin portion of the tournament, making the tie-breaking mechanism a necessity. And when the point differentials were taken into account, Holy Trinity and St. Joe’s ended up seeded one and two, gaining entry to the playoff round Thursday, Holy Trinity getting Vankleek Hill, and the Jaguars earning a game against Rideau.
In that Rideau game, St. Joe’s came out with full bars on the compete meter, with Walters, Holley, and Sarah MacLaren all hitting for deuces in the first quarter. It’s just that Rideau’s Kelly Brooke decided to hammer home eleven first-quarter points of her own to go along with Tess Morris’ four to stake Rideau to a 15-6 lead at the end of one, and another six and four from those two players in the second put the green and gold ahead 27-14 at the half. Brooke and Morris both finished the game with 17 points apiece, while for the Jaguars, MacLaren hit for 14, Walters for 8, and Holley for 4.
As was the basketball itself, the fan support was outstanding, with the entire school population chipping in to help with the atmosphere of excitement that pervaded the place throughout. As the home team, there could be no doubt of the one-sided support of the fans towards the Jaguars, and of course, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. And to the credit of the other teams and their fans, support for the other entrants picked up as family members were able to arrive after making the trip to Renfrew to watch their own girls.
Again, from a SJCHS perspective, this was something that had a good feel to it. Our basketball programs have been steadily improving over the past few years, and Jaguar teams have qualified for EOSSAA tournaments in the girls division three years running, this year being another of those, with both our junior and senior teams representing the school at the Eastern Ontario Championships. And taken on the heels of our OFSSAA Senior Soccer appearance, and the rousing pep rally/game against cross-town rival RCI in volleyball recently, there can be no doubt that a sense of athletic pride is emerging again, both in the athletes and in the fans who seem more increasingly willing to come out and support them. The banners that grace the gym from previous years now preside once again over a Jaguar den that’s alive with something called school spirit.
Full marks go out to all those who contributed to the generation of that spirit, people like Bailey Rogers, Sarah Ennett, Zach Mcintyre, and many others, who’ll likely need a few days to get their singing voice back. To Colin Carnegie for giving the place some pizzazz with his event announcing. And, of course, to the couple of hundred people who showed up decked out in garnet and gray and black, who wore their hearts on their sleeves, and who made just being there something to be proud about.
Thanks to Mike McMahon and Brian Friske for a wonderful basketball team, and thanks to the girls who make that so. Thanks to Jeff Halk for taking on the role of convenor, and Sonya Bergin for taking so much time to shoot video and post it online for parents ,friends, family, schools, and media to access.
And of course, thanks to all the teams who joined us as our guests, who demonstrated their competitive spirit, graced us with their class, and made the event the success that it could not have been without them.
And so, finally, from a completely SJCHS point of view, this was a good time. And yes, maybe a basket here and a basket there would make a world of difference, but nevertheless, what happened over the past couple of days can only be characterized as a success, and for so many different reasons.
The good feeling that remains is incalculable.
