Well, here we are.With the temperatures cooling down, that can only mean one thing --- fall is here, and with it, another year of girls' high school hoops.
And just like the leaves on the trees changing colours, there are some significant changes to CWOSSA girls' basketball this year.
For starters, there are the divisional changes. The "AAA" CWOSSA division projects to be arguably the strongest in CWOSSA this year with the addition of perennial powerhouse Brantford St. John's, and a very strong Waterloo-Oxford team.
Cambridge Southwood has now dropped to the "AA" division from "AAA", due to a decline in enrollment.
There will also be some format changes to the CWOSSA championships this coming year, with the "AAAA" division now only a four-team tournament (1 D8, 2 WCSSAA + D5/D10 play-in winner).
As for the teams themselves? Well, this could arguably be one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory, with parity seeming to be the name of the game.
After winning 10 of the last 11 WCSSAA titles (if my math is correct), the WCI Vikings do not appear to be the consensus favourite to "five-peat" as WCSSAA champions. In fact, the Vikings face the arduous task of replacing the majority of their scoring offense, with three graduates (Alex Klein, Lindsay Taylor, Julia Pavlik) having moved on to post-secondary basketball.
All-star Kaylee Anagnostopoulos is WCI's lone returning starter, but a good one at that. A couple returnees (notably Courtney Banham) mixed with an influx of junior talent should still have the Vikes in the running for one of the top spots in the league.
My preseason WCSSAA favourites would include Bluevale Collegiate and Waterloo-Oxford. The Knights, in fact, return almost all of their scoring offense from last season with 4 starters back (Natalie Bishop, Julia Curran, Sarah Hamm & Kailee Sawyer). The same can be said for the Crusaders, who now have a year of senior basketball under their belt. WO's Maddy Horst is the lone returning 1st-team all-star in the WCSSAA league, while F Alisha Glendinning and G Becca Payne (their other 2 top scorers from a season ago) are also 4th year students.
Jacob Hespeler is not to be discounted in the conversation of top teams, despite losing some key talent from a season ago (Brooklyn Wright, Naomi Adams, Taylor Dennis) as they still return two Wright sisters (Courtney & Candace). Guard play will be key in determining the Hawks' success.
Over in Brantford, the St. John's Eagles should again find themselves at the top of the league standings with arguably the best one-two punch in CWOSSA with PG Kendra Van Leeuwen & F Megan Thompson. With 3 returning starters, and a host of talent coming up from junior, I have the Eagles currently ranked #1 in CWOSSA.
Both the North Park Trojans & Assumption Lions have talent left from a season ago, but will have to overcome some key losses to graduation (as detailed in my CWOSSA commitment list below).
The D8 league should be a three-team race, with Resurrection, St. Mary's and St. Benedict being the most competitive. Edge goes to Resurrection at this point, with Sarah Schulz and junior grad Celia McGlynn as big-time offensive threats.
Last year's D10 champions, Bishop Mac, are facing some rebuilding challenges as their AA rivals, the Lourdes Crusaders look to be the (on paper) favourites entering the season. St. James, JF Ross and Centennial are also teams to watch out in Guelph.
We'll have league-by-league breakdowns next week.
In the meantime, here's a look at my preseason top 10 CWOSSA teams. These are based upon returning players, key players lost to graduation, as well as incoming talent (transfers/junior grads):
1. St. John's College (Brantford) - AAA
2. Bluevale Collegiate (Waterloo) - AAAA
3. Waterloo-Oxford (Baden) - AAA
4. Waterloo Collegiate (Waterloo) - AAAA
5. Our Lady of Lourdes (Guelph) - AA
6. Jacob Hespeler SS (Cambridge) - AAA
7. Resurrection CSS (Kitchener) - AAAA
8. North Park CVS (Brantford) - AAA
9. Assumption CS (Brantford) - AAAA
10 (tie). Bishop Macdonell CHS (Guelph) - AA
10 (tie). St. James CHS (Guelph) - AAA
