The WCI Vikings are one win away from a CWOSSA AAAA junior title.The Vikings did something no CWOSSA team outside of the D8 league has done this year, beating the St. Mary's Eagles in a 74-67 thriller on Saturday evening in Brantford.
Aaron Grubb scored 40 points, the highest registered total by a CWOSSA player this season, which included a 20-for-21 performance from the free-throw line.
The Vikings jumped out to a 22-6 lead, only to see St. Mary's gradually cut into the deficit --- cutting things down as far as 64-61 with 3:00 to go, and then 68-67 with 1:00 left. However, timely makes by Grubb down the stretch (he was 10-for-10 in the fourth quarter from the line) helped to seal the win.
Adham Eleeda picked up 22 points for the Eagles in the loss.
St. Mary's did not have starting PG Minas Abara in the lineup on Saturday, and his status for today's semifinal (and possibly final) is still in doubt.
Earlier on Saturday, WCI again used a strong first quarter surge (22-4) to take care of Guelph JF Ross 63-46. Griffin Floto (15), Shanif Hirani (12) and Adam Piazza (12) were all in double-figures for WCI, while Adam Dingwall had 9 for the Royals.
St. Mary's led 40-15 at the half versus Grand River and cruised to a 64-39 win. David Nguyen and Jason Jaros had 15 each for the Eagles, while Aleks Cvrkalj (16) and Jake Zuzan (11) were the top Renegades.
JF Ross eliminated Grand River later on Saturday in a 56-54 game. Dingwall had 15 to pace the Royals, while Cvrkalj netted 24 for the Rens.
Today's semifinal will see JF Ross take on St. Mary's, with the winner playing WCI later today at Brantford Assumption for the CWOSSA "AAAA" junior title (5:30pm).
