It wasn't pretty, but the St. Benedict Saints will take it.In a mistake-filled game, the Saints (CWOSSA #6 ranked) handed Kitchener Resurrection (CWOSSA #2 ranked) their first loss of the D8 junior girls' basketball season in a surprising low-scoring affair, 29-23.
I say surprising because both teams came into the game solidly averaging 42+ PPG, more than 10 PPG more than their nearest D8 opposition.
The Saints jumped out to a 7-0 lead in Monday's contest, which wound up being the difference in the game. Afifa Salaad led the Saints with 8, while Laura Ivitis had 7. Krissia Vasquez had a game-high 10 for Rez, with Britney Haughton adding 6.
Monday's D8 junior games also marked the point at the season where the league will now "divide" into "A" and "B" divisions. The top 4 teams proceed to the "A" section, while the remaining four comprise "B".
All four "A" teams will make the playoffs, along with the top two from "B". Top two "A" teams receive first round byes, while the bottom two "A" teams play the top two "B" teams in the quarterfinal round.
The other junior scores from Monday:
St. David 46, Mons. Doyle 24
Megan Goar led the Celtics with 18, while Megan Dalley was also in double figures with 10. Kayley Hannusch was tops for MDCSS with 10.
St. Mary's 35, PRDG 17
The Eagles moved above .500 with a road win in Cambridge. Samira Wardak (9) and Alexis Stoyakovich (8) led the way for the Eagles; Cassandra Dumouchel had 7 for PRDG.
Woodland 27, Rockway 18
The Cavs gain the edge towards the "A" CWOSSA berth with a win at home. Brooke Mulder and Madeleine Graham had 7 points each for the Cavs, while Jamie Torrence-Perks led the Flames with a game-high 9.
D8 Junior Standings
"A" Division
1. St. Benedict 7-0
2. Resurrection 6-1
3. St. David 5-2
4. St. Mary's 4-3
"B" Division
5. Mons. Doyle 3-4
6. Woodland 2-5
7. Rockway 1-6
8. PRDG 0-7
Senior
I was a bit surprised to see (on the D8 website) yesterday afternoon that St. David was forfeiting their game against St. Mary's yesterday due to a lack of players.
Michael Grobe, the D8 Athletics Convenor, quickly put to rest any rumours floating around when he tweeted, "an academic field trip was planned and after efforts to reschedule, St. David elected to forfeit."
So that's that.
Officially, it goes down as a 20-0 St. Mary's win in the books, and I'll take the "correct pick" as well for good measure.
In the games that actually went down on Monday:
Resurrection 37, St. Benedict 20
My Pick: RCSS by 12
A solid defensive effort by the Phoenix gets them their 7th straight win to start the season. Sarah Schulz (17) and Celia McGlynn (14) led the way for Rez, while Kayla Leusink had 12 for the Saints.
Woodland 50, Rockway 23
My Pick: WCHS by 18
As expected, the Cavs proved their "A" superiority in the D8 league on Monday with a convincing win. Kirstin Hofstee (18), Emily Pidduck (10) and Emma Roorda (10) were all in double figures for the Cavs, while Lindsay Mustard had 12 and Sam Veltri 6 for RMC.
D8 Senior Standings
1. Resurrection 7-0**
2. St. Mary's 6-1**
3. St. David 4-3
4. St. Benedict 3-4
----
5. Woodland 1-6
6. Rockway 0-7
** - clinched playoff berth
