LANGLEY — Welcome to Day 1 of the 2020 B.C. senior girls Double-A championships.
Please check back on this posting throughout the day as we continue to update the eight sudden-elimination games on tap.
DOUBLE A
TOP HALF DRAW
QUADRANT A
NO. 1 LANGLEY CHRISTIAN 112 NO. 16 PRINCE CHARLES 22
By Gary Kingston (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — The top three or four teams in B.C. senior girls Double A basketball may be able to beat some of the best in Triple A and Quad A as evidenced by Langley Christian and Britannia knocking off a handful of elite teams in the province’s top two tiers this season.
But there is a huge gap in competitiveness between top-ranked Langley Christian and the bottom ranks of Double A.
The Lightning began the provincial tournament bright and early Wednesday morning at Langley Events Centre by opening up a stunning 61-0 lead over Creston’s No. 16 Prince Charles Bulldogs en route to an easy 112-22 win.
The Lightning used a swarming defence and quick hands to throw a virtual blanket over the Bulldogs’ offence. Prince Charles didn’t get a bucket until the seven-minute mark of the third quarter when a wild heave from behind the three-point arc by five-foot-one guard Vaughn Semmler found nothing but net. The Bulldogs first seven points, the first with 2:48 remaining in the opening half came from the free throw line.
The athletic and quick Lightning, fast-breaking off every steal or defensive rebound, were up 37-0 after one quarter, 61-5 at the half and 87-12 through three quarters.
“We pride ourselves on trying to play hard defence for a full 40 minutes,” said Langley Christian head coach Danielle Gardner, whose squad did dial it down a bit in the fourth quarter. “Every opponent is different and you respect your opponent. And you’re doing what you can do to get better for the next game. You adjust accordingly to what you have to work on.”
Grade 12 guard Makenna Gardner led the Lightning with 23 points, seven assists and six steals. For the game, Langley Christian had a ridiculous 26 steals while forcing the Bulldogs into 40 turnovers and holding the Kootenay school to just 15.9 per cent shooting.
Substitutes Kathryn New (21 points, nine rebounds) and Taelor Coxford (14 points, eight rebounds) had strong games off the bench for the Lightning, while starting guard Lainey Shelvey added 16 points and five steals.
“It’s hard to play (a game like that),” said Shelvey. “But we just run some new stuff that we are doing.”
Coach Gardner said her team has “the bulls-eye, so to speak . . . and we’re going to come out against some tough competitors. It’s up for grabs and we just hope we can put ourselves in position to have a shot at (the title).”
NO. 9 NOTRE DAME 66 No. 8 LAMBRICK PARK 52
By Gary Kingston (special to Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — A sneak attack defence and a three-point bomber turned the game Wednesday for the Notre Dame Jugglers.
Leading by just one, 32-31, after a back-and-forth first half, the Jugglers instituted a full-court press to open the second half against Lambrick Park, forcing a handful of turnovers and disrupting the Lions offence. It led to a 15-4 Notre Dame run and control of a game the Jugglers would eventually win 66-52 on the opening day of the B.C. senior girls Double A basketball tournament.
Jugglers’ head coach Tracy Clarke said she purposely held back the press until the third quarter.
“We don’t show our stuff right away,” said Clarke. “We usually try to do a little bit of sneak attack. It seemed to work.”
The Jugglers forced Lambrick Park into 31 turnovers. And even when the Lions did manage to beat the pressure, the exertion required seemed to take them out of their offensive rhythm. Diminutive guard Alyssa Scott was one of the keys to the pressure as she was all over the court breaking up passes.
“Once we started pressing, we got a lot of adrenaline and we went on that 10-point run,” said Scott, who was inexplicably credited with just two steals in addition to her 13 points and four rebounds. “I really like to look for (steals). Sometimes I get caught on the back door, but most of the time I get in front.”
Guard Maezell Del Mundo paced the Jugglers with 21 points, 13 of them coming in the decisive third quarter, including nine on a trio of three-pointers.
“She’s definitely one of our shooters, super vital to the team, especially when she’s hot,” said Scott. “It gets everybody excited.”
Allie Brinton led Lambrick Park with 19 points and 12 rebounds, but committed 13 turnovers and was just six-of-27 from the field.
Ninth-seeded Notre Dame now moves on to face No. 1 Langley Christian on Thursday.
“Wish us luck,” cracked Clarke. “I know those players. I know that coach. My own daughter played with them for a couple of summers.
“I know what they do. And I’m not even going to show my team film tonight. I’m just going to say go out there and play hard.”
QUADRANT B
NO. 13 SEYCOVE 71 NO. 4 PACIFIC CHRISTIAN 67
By Gary Kingston (Special to Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — Their composure was tested late on Wednesday, but a gritty, undermanned group of Seycove Seahawks proved that the resilience gained during a season of learning to play as a cohesive squad could pay dividends at the B.C. senior girls basketball tournament.
The North Vancouver school, seeded No. 13, pulled off the first big upset of the Double A championship, edging No. 4 Pacific Christian of Victoria 71-67.
Tied at 31 at the half, the Seahawks built a second-half lead that reached 19 points early in the fourth. Then they nearly frittered it all away before hanging on for the hard-fought win.
The sixth-place finisher at provincials last year, the Seahawks lost a lot to graduation and played this season with a roster of just eight while relying heavily on the five starters to play heavy minutes.
“Pacific Christian is an outstanding team, but we knew we had it in us,” said head coach Darcy Grant. “The fourth quarter became a little scary there with foul trouble and not being able to dribble the ball past half-court.
“But they’re resilient and they showed their perseverance all season.”
Ahead by just two with 30 seconds remaining, Seycove broke the Pacers’ effective full-court pressure and clinched the win when Grade 12 Kayla Robinson drove baseline for a crucial basket.
“I was panicking, I wasn’t sure it was going to go in,” said a beaming Robinson. “This is a huge win. To come here with eight players and we weren’t even sure we were going to make provincials, I’m so proud of our team.
Robinson finished with 21 points, while six-foot-one post Sofia Bergman was huge inside, scoring 23 and pulling down a game-high 17 rebounds. She was also a dominating presence in the back of the Seahawks zone, forcing the Pacers front court into difficult shots.
“We ask her to just do simple jobs and when she does those simple jobs and plays to her strengths, she has outstanding games,” said Grant. “We lost a lot of leadership from last year, but Sofia and Kayla have stepped up considerably.”
Jenna De Greeff led Pacific Christian with 31 points and 16 rebounds, while dynamic guard Addy Tupas-Singh contributed 18 points.
NO. 5 YORK HOUSE 79 NO. 12 HOLY CROSS 55
By Gary Kingston (Special for Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — The roar is back for the York House Tigers.
Once a perennial presence at the B.C. senior girls Double A basketball championships, the Tigers were more like pussycats from 2015 through 2019, failing to qualify each of those five years.
But with an exciting group of Grade 10 talent added to Grade 11 sharpshooter Nadeen Wu and some solid Grade 12s, and with David Prissinotti back as head coach, the Tigers returned to provincials this year as the No. 5 seed.
On Wednesday, they played up to the seeding, easily dispatching No. 12 Holy Cross Crusaders 79-55.
Wu led the winners with 27 points, while hitting on five of six three-point attempts. Grade 10 forward Avery Ratcliffe chipped in with 18 points, a team-high 13 rebounds and three assists.
“Nadeen Wu is an unbelievable talent and we have some Grade 12’s who are great role players,” said Prissinotti. “You didn’t see it today because she found herself in foul trouble, but Akash Grewal (seven points, four rebounds), is a handful. At zones a couple of weeks ago, when we beat (No. 6 St. Thomas Aquinas), Akash had 30 something points. She’s athletic as heck.”
Prissinotti says Ratcliffe will be a key to York House being a strong contender the next couple of seasons.
“Avery is one of the highest IQ, smartest basketball players I’ve ever coached.”
The rest of the Grade 10 core includes guards Rain Thomas and Mila Urban and forwards Kasey Grewal and Finley Butler.
“I’ve got to give a lot of props to Split Second Basketball,” said Pissinotti. “ Eric Butler, who’s one of our coaches, he’s worked with a lot of these kids when they were young, in elementary school. And when they came up into Grade 8, we had a really strong team. We won the Grade 8 provincial tournament.”
York House owns a record eight Double A titles, including five in a row from 2002-2006. Family commitments forced Prissinotti, who first began coaching in 1998, to step back, then he coached one of his daughters at Eric Hamber for three seasons before returning to the York House bench this year.
“The timing was right for me to step back in and help,” said Prissinotti, who counts Butler, Ben Dove and former player Erin Allan as part of what he calls a “collaborative” coaching group.
“I just wanted to set the culture and a tone,” he says.
After Wednesday’s convincing win, it appears he’s succeeded.
BOTTOM HALF DRAW
QUARDRANT C
NO. 2 BRITANNIA 86 NO. 15 CALEDONIA 34
LANGLEY — There would be no surprise in the late game Wednesday night at the BC senior girls Double A basketball championships.
Then again, you could also say there was plenty of Surprise.
Britannia Bruins Grade 12 standout Surprise Munie scored 24 first-half points and finished with 34 as the No. 2 seed easily dispatched the Caledonia Kermodes of Terrace 86-34.
The Bruins, who have knocked off a handful of top Triple A and Quad A powers this season, did as expected against the game but outclassed Kermodes. They played tough, smothering defence and ran at will, particularly with the lightning quick Munie on the fast break.
She scored six points early in the third quarter, then took a seat on the bench, leaving most of the rest of the scoring to her superstar backcourt mate Shemaiah Abatayo. Munie returned for the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, scoring four points and dishing out a bullet pass to Jewell Leeson who converted a baseline drive.
Munie’s 34 points were a game high. She also had 13 rebounds and dished out five assists. Abatayo had 26 for the winners.
Madison McKay and Mackenzie Walker each had nine points to lead Caledonia.
NO. 2 BRITANNIA 86 NO. 15 CALEDONIA 34
LANGLEY — There would be no surprise in the late game Wednesday night at the BC senior girls Double A basketball championships.
Then again, you could also say there was plenty of Surprise.
Britannia Bruins Grade 12 standout Surprise Munie scored 24 first-half points and finished with 34 as the No. 2 seed easily dispatched the Caledonia Kermodes of Terrace 86-34.
The Bruins, who have knocked off a handful of top Triple A and Quad A powers this season, did as expected against the game but outclassed Kermodes. They played tough, smothering defence and ran at will, particularly with the lightning quick Munie on the fast break.
She scored six points early in the third quarter, then took a seat on the bench, leaving most of the rest of the scoring to her superstar backcourt mate Shemaiah Abatayo. Munie returned for the first five minutes of the fourth quarter, scoring four points and dishing out a bullet pass to Jewell Leeson who converted a baseline drive.
Munie’s 34 points were a game high. She also had 13 rebounds and dished out five assists. Abatayo had 26 for the winners.
Madison McKay and Mackenzie Walker each had nine points to lead Caledonia.
NO. 10 ST. JOHN BREBEUF 61 NO. 7 SOUTHBRIDGE 48
By Gary Kingston (special to Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — A first ever appearance at the BC senior girls Double A basketball tournament looked like it was going to be an early relegation to the losers bracket for the St. John Brebeuf Bears of Abbotsford.
Early jitters and an inability to break the vaunted Southridge press had the turnover-prone No. 10 seed Bears down 30-20 at halftime.
But they found their footing in the third quarter, going on a 21-5 run to take control en route to a mildly surprising 61-48 win over the higher-ranked Storm.
“This is just a tough bunch of kids,” co-head coach Gianni Bittante said of his Grade 11 heavy squad. “Once we settled into the things we wanted to do, we started to have success.
“Southridge did some things that really discombobulated us early on. But when we started to find the gaps (in their press), we started to have success. Every press has gaps, you just have to find them. It took us about a quarter-and-a-half to figure out where we wanted to attack.
The Bears couldn’t find any holes in the first 15 minutes, continually dribbling into trouble and turning the ball over. But Southridge failed to capitalize on numerous opportunities, due in large part to an in-your-face Bears’ defence and terrific work on the boards from the likes of Marijke Duralia (12 rebounds), Olivia Buckle (14) and Rachel MacDougall and Shania Buenaflor (10 each).
“We were really good on the glass in the second half,” said Bittante as his squad outrebounded the Storm 55-36.
Duralia led the Bears in scoring with 27, the only player in double figures. Jayda Anderson, with a team-high 20 points, was the only Storm player in double figures.
“This was a huge win for us,” said Buckle. “If we can keep our confidence and keep playing the way we are, we should be able to go pretty far.”
The Bears will face winner between the No. 2 Britannia Bruins and No. 15 Caledonia Kermodes in the quarterfinals on Thursday.
“It’s a really tough tournament,” said Bittante. “The top five or six teams are a real load. We’re just excited to be here . . . excited to be in the quarters. We’ll just see what happens.”
QUADRANT D
NO. 3 ST. THOMAS MORE 104 NO. 14 NECHAKO VALLEY 28
By Gary Kingston (special to Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — The St. Thomas More Saints are the only team in the B.C. senior girls Double A basketball championships that doesn’t list the players’ heights in the program.
No matter. Except for a couple of maybe five-foot-five guards, everybody else looks to be the same size and interchangeable at any position.
“They are all the same height,” said head coach Winston Brown, who nonetheless was surprised by the omission. “You just put the same number for all of them. I think we’re all about five-foot-seven across the board.
“It’s one of the reasons why we have to play tenacious defence. We aren’t blessed with the growth team at all.”
Okay, so no dominant inside presence. But that tenacious defence and a squad of dead-eye shooters was all the Saints needed Wednesday to defeat the Nechako Valley ViQueens of Vanderhoof 104-28 in their provincial tournament opener.
After a decent first quarter and a tough second, after which they still built a 45-16 lead, the Saints blew it open in the third with a 41-point quarter. During one stretch, the Saints drained three-pointers on six consecutive possessions.
“We have a lot of three-point shooters,” said player of the game Bella Gaspar. “We’re a fast team and we need to focus on our shooting and finishing from all around the court.”
Rylan Monks and Gaspar each hit on 4-of-7 from behind the arc, while Bella’s twin sister, Gigi was a perfect 3-of-3 from long range.
“It was nice,” Brown said of the barrage of three-pointers. “I hope they still have some of that left in the tank. They’ve been putting in a lot of work in the gym, so it was nice to see it pay off.”
Bella Gaspar had a team-high 32 points and 11 steals, with Gigi and point guard Cassiel Penalosa chipping in with 18 points each. Penalosa also dished out 10 assists.
Kalissa Brooks led the game but out-classed ViQueens with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
The Saints now have a quarterfinal date Thursday with the St. Thomas Aquinas Fighting Saints, a team they beat by 15 in the B.C. Catholic Schools final.
“That was a pretty good game,” said Bella Gaspar. “They’re a competitive team. They’re tall. We just need to come out like it’s do-or-die because that’s what it is.”
NO. 6 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS 74 NO. 11 SUMMERLAND 25
By Gary Kingston (special to Varsity Letters)
LANGLEY — The St. Thomas Aquinas Fighting Saints and the Summerland Rockets came into the B.C. senior girls Double A basketball championships with identical 17-4 records.
But with apologies to Ernie of Sesame Street, One of these things is not like the others.
The Saints, a North Vancouver school with a formidable college-bound front court, dominated from the opening tip en route to a 74-25 victory.
Gemma Cutler, a six-foot-one post player who is off to SFU in the fall, led all scorers with 22 points and 12 rebounds. Jessica Clarke, a six-foot-two post who is headed to Washington State, added 15 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists for the Saints, who led 23-2 after one quarter and 50-12 at the half.
“Their basketball literacy is pretty high,” said head coach John Prescott of his twin towers. “So much of the stuff that you see them doing is nothing that I scripted, it’s just them reacting to what’s going on and just the familiarity of them playing together.”
Point guard Caelan Prescott chipped in with 15 points, while hitting on five of 13 three-pointers.
“Obviously, we’re an inside out team,” said Prescott, “and if our outside presence is helpful and steps up, it makes things flow a little bit better for us. We started out the game with some pretty good shooting from the outside and then it just opened up a few more lanes and opportunities for Gemma and Jessica to get to work.”
Cutler said she felt her team “out-competed” the Rockets and took a good first step towards the goal of making the championship final. The Fighting Saints have yet to play the favored Langley Christian Lightning this season, but Cutler feels her squad has the talent and tenacity to win the school’s first ever title.
“I think we can. It’s going to be tough, but it’s definitely doable.”
Brinay Burdick led Summerland with 12 points. The Rockets shot just 15 per cent from the field and were outrebounded 60-27.
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