WCSSAA's junior & senior girls' regular season action gets underway today with a 7 game slate in each division.
Here's a quick look at the senior side of things, along with my picks. I've included last year's records as well for fun. Note that these are all 3:30pm starts.
Glenview Park (1-11) at Cameron Heights (6-6)
Pick: CHCI
Led by Erin Robbins, the Cameron Heights Gaels seem to be an improved club over last year and I look for them to finish the season among the top-six clubs. That said, let's take one step at a time and it starts with a win at home over the GPSS Panthers.
Jacob Hespeler (3-9) at Waterloo CI (12-0)
Pick: WCI
The Hespeler Hawks will be improved this year, thanks in part to some talent coming up from an 11-1 junior squad last year, but they're still a year or two away from some serious success at the senior level. WCI, on the other hand, will contend with some key losses (including Shelby Kurt) ---- but the Vikings don't rebuild, they reload. Grade 11's Lindsay Taylor and Lindsay Lessard (who played huge roles last year in grade 10) will be called upon even more this season, while the championship junior squad will also provide the senior Vikes with additional talent.
WODSS (4-8) at SJAM (11-1) --- game at Waterloo-Oxford
Pick: SJAM
The Highlanders lose a ton of their offense, including stars Krista Van Slingerland and Jordan Tomas, to graduation. They will likely struggle to get back to the CWOSSA championships this year, but they should at least start their season off with a victory at home, er, I mean the road (as noted in a previous post, all SJAM "home games" will be played on the road due to issues with their gym floor).
Southwood (4-8) at Bluevale (8-4)
Pick: BCI
Elissa Dent will be key for the Knights this season, as Bluevale loses a lot of their veteran leadership from last year's semifinalist club. Bluevale can't take Southwood lightly, as the Sabres will be improved from a year ago --- not quite enough to knock off the Knights on the road, though, in my opinion.
Galt (6-6) at Grand River (6-6)
Pick: GRCI
I look for Grand River to get this season off to a good start at home with a win over Galt. Like Cameron Heights, the Rens are a team that should compete for one of those "upper tier" spots come playoff time.
Preston (2-10) at Eastwood (9-3)
Pick: ECI
With 3 returning starters, including Michelle Hudyn, look for the Rebels to again be quite competitive and possibly challenge for a CWOSSA berth. Though the Panthers have some solid juniors moving up from an 8-4 club, it likely won't be enough to take out the talented Rebels here.
KCI (12-0) at Forest Heights (4-8)
Pick: KCI
The Raiders have some big shoes to fill ---- most notably, last year's WCSSAA MVP Rachael Urosevic (Queens University). That said, Coach Nick White still has some pieces to the OFSAA 4th place puzzle remaining, and he always gets the most out of his players. Look for the Raiders to extend their WCSSAA league and playoff win streak to 16 games with a victory today.
**Note: Junior Girls action sees the above matchups with games at 5:00pm.
District 10
GCVI (1-0) at Ross (1-0), 4:00pm **Game of the Day**
Pick: JFR
In what should be a tight battle over in east Guelph, I will give the slight edge to the homecourt Royals. Both squads appear to be the early frontrunners for the 2 D10 "AAAA" CWOSSA berths, so it will be interesting to see what happens in this one.
Lourdes (1-0) at Bishop Mac (1-0), 5:15pm
Pick: BMAC
Though the Crusaders are improved, look for the Celtics to win their 36th consecutive D10 game (league and playoff) this afternoon at home.
Orangeville (0-1) at Centre Wellington (0-1), 5:30pm
Pick: CW
The Falcons came oh-so-close to knocking off Lourdes the other day. They'll have a bit easier time at home against the Bears, and improve to 1-1. Look for a big game from Jamie Janssen here.
Centennial (0-1) at St. James (0-1), 5:30pm
Pick: CCVI
I'll go back with the team that burned me when I picked them on Tuesday, and hope that they can fare better on the road. With GCVI, Lourdes, and Bishop Mac on the horizon, this is almost a "must-win" game for the Spartans.
YTD Picks Record: 3-1 (.750)
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