Brant News: Trojans Stopped at OFSAA

Retrieved From: http://www.brantnews.com/sports.cfm?page=sports§ion=read&articleId=7166

Article by: Tom Kennedy

The North Park Collegiate Trojans’ strong season has come to an end.

The senior boys’ basketball team was defeated 42-28 by the Jarvis Bulldogs of Toronto in the second round of the AAA Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations tournament in Kingston.

While their run has come to an end, the Trojans enjoyed success at several levels of competition in the 2010 season.

The senior boys remained undefeated to claim both the Brant County high school and AAA Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Association championships with a record of 16-0. With OFSAA and tournament play included, their overall record finished at 29-6.

Trojans’ head coach Todd Andrew said his team had performed well throughout the season and was happy to close it with the school’s second-ever appearance at the provincial level in boys’ basketball.

“It’s been a great season,” he said. “The boys have been very dedicated. It’s always good to finish with a provincial tournament.”

Andrew was also happy his team was able to keep the fourth-seed Bulldogs to a low score.

“I think holding a Toronto team to 40-odd points speaks volumes of our guys’ defence,” he said.

On the first day of competition, the Trojans downed the St. Theresa’s Thunder 46-39, with Dave Eves leading his team with 13 points.

In their game against the Bulldogs, playing at Queen’s University, Trojans’ powerhouses Eves and Mike Dulmage were shut down significantly, kept to just four points each.

“(Bulldogs) did a very good job of containing our big guys,” Andrew said. “They took away that inside element and put some pressure on the perimeter, so they took away that offensive presence.”

The Bulldogs got off to a strong start, doubling the Trojans 12-6 in the first quarter and extending their lead to 19-14 by halftime.

The Trojans were down 26-19 at the end of the third quarter but managed to close the gap to 29-26 with three minutes left in the game.

However, as the clock wound down, the Trojans missed a couple of late scoring opportunities and were forced into fouling their opposition.

The Trojans were led in scoring by Cale McDonald (11), Mark Dickens (7), Tyler Johnston (3) and Marcus Hamilton (3).

For Dickens, Eves and Dulmage, the OFSAA tournament was the last appearance wearing the green and orange of the NPC Trojans as they are all fifth year players.