Saturday Showdowns: Championship finals matchups set

Holy Cross and St. Thomas More Collegiate tipped off in the semi-final round of the BC School Sports 2A Girls Basketball Provincial Tournament at Langley Events Centre on Feb. 28. Ryan Molag photo

After three days of action, the championship finals are set for all four tiers at the BC School Sports Girls Basketball Provincial Championships being held at Langley Events Centre.

The four finals will be played on Saturday (March 1) on the Arena Bowl Court beginning at 1:00pm in the 75^th edition of the championships.

Three of the four top seeds advanced as No. 1 Pacific Christian (Victoria) will face No. 2 Sir Alexander Mackenzie (Hagensborg) in the 1A Tournament, while No. 1 Holy Cross (Surrey) plays St. Michaels University School (Victoria) in the 2A Tournament.

The 3A Tournament will feature No. 1 M.E.I. (Abbotsford) against No. 2 Sa-Hali (Kamloops) while the 4A Tournament final is the only one without a non-top seed as No. 4 Brookswood (Township of Langley) is up against Seaquam, the No. 2 seed and defending champion.

Daily schedules, scores and news can also be found at www.bchighschoolbasketballchampionships.com. Tickets are available for purchase and every game of all four championships is also available to stream through pay-per-view at TFSETV.ca

1A TOURNAMENT

Will the third time be the charm for the Pacific Christian Pacers?

For consecutive years, the Pacers have fallen agonizingly short in the championship final but tomorrow afternoon, they get another crack at earning a blue banner. Pacific Christian – as they have done in both games so far this tournament – came roaring out of the gates with a 20-2 lead after 10 minutes on their way to a 50-23 semi-final win over the Unity Christian Flames.

Although some of the players have graduated, the victory was even sweeter as it was the Flames who denied Pacific Christian the title in 2024.

Kealayna Tupas-Singh scored 21 for Pacific Christian with Anabel Martinez adding 14.

Kenna Friesen led the Flames with seven points while both Linden Martens and Brielle Vander Kooi pulled down 16 rebounds apiece.

The Pacers’ will play the Sir Alexander Mackenzie Grizzlies for the gold medal after they held off a late rally against the Credo Christian Kodiaks. The Grizzlies were ahead by 11 early in the fourth quarter before the Kodiaks battled back to pull within a point, but ultimately came up short, falling 62-59.

Leading the way for the Sir Alexander Mackenzie squad was Annika Parr, who finished with 28 points, and is averaging nearly 33 points per game. Twin sister Ayanna Parr added 15 with Skylene Andy chipping in 10. All three are Grade 11 players as the Grizzlies have just one Grade 12 on the roster.

Kenzie Raap was tops for the Kodiaks with 16 while Alexa Leyenhorst adding 14.

2A TOURNAMENT

It was a valiant effort, but in the end, the St. Thomas More Collegiate Knights could not pull off the improbable comeback. The Knights trailed by 32 points in the third quarter and cut the lead to five, but ultimately fell short, losing 81-73 to the Holy Cross Crusaders.

Solene Jackson led the top-seed Crusaders with a 25-point, 11-rebound double-double, adding three assists, three steals and a pair of blocked shots. Isla Iannuzzi added 23 points – including going 5-for-11 on her 3-point attempts – eight rebounds, four steals and three assists.

Mia Beliveau had 29 points for the Knights with Demicah Arnaldo adding 19 while Lauren Wong finished with 16.

The St. Michaels University Blue Jags are back in the championship final following a dominating 55-22 win over the Britannia Bruins. The trio of Charlie Anderson, Avery Geddes and Olivia Pickering had identical stat lines of 12 points and 10 rebounds with Geddes adding seven assists.

Bianca Padolina led Britannia with six points.

3A TOURNAMENT

A 13-0 run in the second quarter helped turn the tide as the M.E.I. Eagles held off the Vernon Panthers 64-55, earning themselves a shot at the first gold medal since winning the title in 1999.

Holy Cross and St. Thomas More Collegiate tipped off in the BC School Sports 2A Girls Basketball Provincial Tournament semi-finals on Friday at Langley Events Centre. Ryan Molag photo

The Eagles – who entered the tournament as the top seed – were led by the double-double of Ella Tatlock (17 points, 13 rebounds) while Olivia Sidhu stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and eight steals. Lola Reimer added 13 points and 10 rebounds.

Adie Janke was 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, leading the No. 4-seeded Panthers with 29 points. Chloe Collins and Paige Leahy each had 10.

Looking to ground the Eagles will be the second-seed Sa-Hali Sabres (Kamloops). The Sabres were locked in a 40-minute battle with the No. 3-seed Duchess Park Condors (Prince George). The game featured eight ties and 10 lead changes with the Sabres taking the lead for good thanks to a late 6-0 run to put themselves ahead for good.

Nevena Nogic was the top scorer for Sa-Hali with 24 points, also adding five steals, four rebounds and a pair of assists. Zahra Ngabo led the Condors with 26 points, eight rebounds, four steals and three assists.

4A TOURNAMENT

The lone upset of semi-final Friday saw the No. 4 Brookswood Bobcats (Township of Langley) take out the top-seed Argyle Pipers (North Vancouver) 67-58. Jordyn Nohr dropped 32 points in the win – including 7 triples – with Ashley Vande Ven and Hazel Phillips scoring 14 points each. Vande Ven added 11 rebounds.

Isabella Miljkovic had 22 points and 11 rebounds with Mariia Maydan adding eight points and 14 rebounds.

The Bobcats go for a second-straight upset in the finals against the defending champion and No. 2 seed Seaquam Seahawks. Sydney Roufosse finished with 25 points and 10 rebounds to lead Seaquam with Syra Toor dropping five 3’s as part of her 17-point game. Mackenzie Henderson and Camryn Tait added 11 points apiece.

Riverside was led by 33 points and nine rebounds from Jorja Hart.

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