Senior Boys CWOSSA "Top 20": Edition #5 - Rankings Shake-Up

With a bit of an absence on my end last week, it was the perfect way to allow for a couple of "upsets" and a resulting "rankings shake-up".

To be fair, I've said it before and I'll say it again --- this appears to be one of the deepest CWOSSA seasons in recent memory.  Double-digit ranked teams have been competitive (even beaten) the upper-echelon clubs.

It's made for an exciting season to this point, and I'm sure the playoffs will be no exception.

Here's this week's ranking (last ranking in brackets):

1.  St. Mary's / Kitchener (1)
Lost the SJAM final to Windsor Catholic Central last weekend, but are still undefeated against CWOSSA opposition.

2.  SJAM / Waterloo (2)
A couple of big wins (Cameron Heights in tournament, Eastwood in regular season play) to keep them solidly in the #2 spot.

3.  Cameron Heights / Kitchener (4)
Furious comeback against St. Mary's (down 13 with 1:30 to go) just fell short, but they did rebound nicely with a win over Grand River yesterday.

4.  St. James / Guelph (5)
Still undefeated (10-0) in D10 play, which is saying something given the depth of that league.

5.  Assumption / Brantford (6)
A new entry to the top 5, the Lions have been quietly going about their business.  Nice effort this weekend at the SJAM tournament, which culminated with a consolation title over London HB Beal.

6.  Grand River / Kitchener (3)
A bit of a shaky week for the Rens, with losses to KCI and Cameron Heights in league play sandwiched around a tournament loss to Bishop Mac.  The talent is there, though, for a playoff push.

7.  Bishop Macdonell / Guelph (10)
A bit of a closer-than-expected call yesterday in league play against Lourdes, but consistent results in league and tournament play have the Celts on the upswing.

8.  North Park / Brantford (7)
The Trojans and their solid core will certainly be a factor come D5 playoffs and CWOSSA (AAA).  Big showdown for first-place in league coming up against Assumption.

9.  KCI / Kitchener (11)
Coach White noted in last week's Record article that if his team takes a game off, they'll "get blown out by 40".  So far, they haven't taken any games off and it's shown with some impressive results as of late.

T10.  Waterloo CI / Waterloo (15)
The Vikes have been up-and-down over the course of the season, so it's tough to spot exactly where to place them.  That said, it's about time to give them their due for some quality tournament wins (CWDHS, St. James, St. Benedict) that overshadow their league losses (Forest Hts., Eastwood).

T10.  Eastwood CI / Kitchener (8)
The Rebels, who currently sit 8th in the WCSSAA standings, are the team that nobody would want to face come playoff time.  A bit of a slip-up last week at Galt could prove costly in terms of their final standing, but did play well against SJAM yesterday.

12.  St. Benedict / Cambridge (9)
The Saints can compete with anyone in the CWOSSA circuit, but have dropped a couple of tournament games lately, including one to WCI this past weekend.  Another high-calibre win should get them right back into the top ten.
 
13.  JF Ross / Guelph (12)
The Royals have played well of late, with some single-digit losses to good teams (Grand River, St. James, Sarnia St. Patrick) and have beaten who they should have in league play.  

14.  CWDHS / Fergus (13)
After clinching a home playoff game, things don't get any easier for the Falcons.  Huge games tomorrow at St. James (a potential semifinal preview in the D10 circuit).

15.  Resurrection / Kitchener (14)
The Phoenix gave St. Mary's a big run earlier this week (trailing by 2 after 3; losing by 7) and are another team that is "top 10" calibre --- but without the wins on the resume to warrant it.  Still a dangerous club in league & tournament play the rest of the way.

16.  Forest Heights / Kitchener (16)
How's this to end their season schedule?  Galt, Cameron Heights, Eastwood, and SJAM.  

17.  Galt CI / Cambridge (19)
Any time you have TJ Lall on your team, you have upset potential, and that's what the Ghosts did by beating ECI last week.

18.  Centennial / Guelph (18)
A team with a solid core of grade 11s that are improving daily.  Won't be much fun to run into this team the rest of the way.

19.  St. John's / Brantford (17)
Came close to North Park in league play, so they may be close to turning the corner (at the right time, too).

20.  Huron Heights / Kitchener (T20)
Having beaten KCI in league play, which is enough of a resumé builder to keep them ranked for now (and for teams not to overlook them).