Can anyone derail the St. John's Green Eagles?That's the question being asked in advance of this weekend's AAA Senior Girls' tournament in Waterloo, where St. John's enters as overwhelming favourites to take the title and advance to the OFSAA tournament, where they were silver medalists in the AAA division a year ago.
Of course, there's seven teams that will play their hearts out to try to prevent that from happening, so let's take a look at the field:
Cameron Heights CI (Kitchener)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: None
The Gaels enter CWOSSA with one of the most dynamic players in the tournament on their roster -- PG Nina Farkic -- which alone should at least keep them competitive in each game.
As I mentioned in my WCSSAA preview, Jovana Zubic, Andjela Stankovic, and Katrina Stickel have all been solid complimentary options for the Gaels throughout the season.
The bottom portion of the draw is somewhat wide open, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see the Gaels get through to the semifinals, or sneak their way into the finals even.
Guelph CVI (Guelph)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: 1995
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: 1
Despite not having won the D10 title since 1969, the Gaels are hoping that they'll be able to repeat the surprise CWOSSA championship of the 1995 Gaels on its 20th anniversary.
Of course, the earlier injury to double-digit scorer Abbey MacIntyre will certainly make it that much of a tougher task, although Jenna Falconer and Emina Bektic (who is also a double-double threat most games) have assumed some of those scoring responsibilities during GCVI's run to the D10 final.
Sydney Wilson, GCVI's PG, is a post-secondary level talent who is a lot of fun to watch. Despite her size, she can stuff a stat sheet as evidenced in the D10 final where she pulled down double-digit rebounds and added 3 blocked shots.
John F. Ross CVI (Guelph)
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: None
JF Ross' reward for winning D10? A first-round game against an opponent (RCSS) that I had ranked higher than GCVI's first-round opponent (SJAM) during the season.
With Ross' height across their lineup, though, they can certainly create some match-up issues for their opposition. Maddy Darling, their star scorer, is a guard-forward who they can even call on to play the PG spot on occasion. She can hit the three, but is equally adept at driving the lane.
Athletic leaper Mya Leacock and forward Ana Vuckovic compliment a Ross front-court that is sure to amass their share of blocked shots throughout the tournament.
The Royals are deeper than the average CWOSSA team, and Catie Terrey has often provided a nice boost off the bench, as she did during the D10 finals.
Although Ross has been a bit of an "up and down" team at times this season, when they're on, they are a tough team to beat.
Kitchener CI (Kitchener)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: 2009
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: 2
Certainly, nobody expected the Raiders to be in this position, given that they had to pull three significant upsets along the way. They entered the WCSSAA playoffs as a #11 seed, before upsetting #6 Jacob Hespeler, #3 Grand River, and then defeating #5 Bluevale in a CWOSSA Play-In game.
In other words, KCI is playing with house money right now, and that's always a dangerous thing when a team can easily be overlooked but has nothing to lose themselves.
North Park CVS (Brantford)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: 2012
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: 6 (all AAA)
The NPC Trojans were able to survive a dog-fight in the BCSSAA league and earn the league's second CWOSSA berth.
Having returned only four players from a season ago, the Trojans have relied heavily on co-captains Sarah Minutillo and Brooke Cesar for the bulk of their scoring offense.
Of course, in a tough tournament like CWOSSA, the contributions of other options, like Julia Rankin and Hattie Osborne, will be paramount to the Trojans' ultimate team success.
A scrappy, well-coached bunch, the Trojans are certainly a team capable of springing an upset this weekend.
Resurrection CSS (Kitchener)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: 1994
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: 1
Rez is a youthful squad that has had success this past season, but might be a year or so away from making a significant splash at CWOSSA.
PG Krissia Vasquez, F Jama Bin-Edward, and G Meghan Sharp are three key grade elevens who were members of Resurrection's CWOSSA junior championship team a season ago. Rachel Engel and Patricia Enrique have provided solid leadership as returning veterans.
After slipping up against St. Benedict in their season finale, Rez clamped down defensively through the D8 playoffs, allowing just 21.5 PPG in the semifinals and finals. If they can continue their defensive prowess, they are among the group of teams in this tournament that may be able to give St. John's a game.
St. John's College (Brantford)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: 2014
Total CWOSSA SG Championships: 12 (10 AAA, 2 AAAA)
The St. John's Green Eagles enter CWOSSA as the overwhelming favourite to take home the title.
Having been ranked in the top three provincially by various sources throughout the season, the Eagles haven't been touched against other CWOSSA teams, often winning by 40 or 50+ margins.
Kelly Van Leeuwen, who has committed to NCAA D-1 George Washington University, leads the charge for the Eagles, who have a ton of talent on their roster.
Co-captain Madi Cohoon, fifth year players Leah Coon and Erin Dubois, as well as a couple of grade ten talents in Alaina McMillan and Kaitlyn Overeem, are among those that make the Green Eagles the deepest team in the tournament --- and one of the deepest teams in the province.
Sir John A. MacDonald SS (Waterloo)
Last CWOSSA SG Championship: None
SJAM has been finding their stride late in the season, and it's been no surprise that it's coincided with the emergence of grade ten F Kate Moran as one of the true talents in the CWOSSA region.
Moran, who played for Canada's U-16 team this past summer, has really come on down the stretch as the 'Landers have roared past their opposition to the tune of (at least) double figures in each game.
Sharp-shooting veteran guard Milica Koprivica, plus rookies Joanna Bamberger and Griffin Lack-Shane, compliment an SJAM team that can put up some points in a hurry.
If they can win their first game and avoid St. John's in the second round, the 'Landers have a chance to make a deep run at this tournament.
Predictions
Like the junior ranks, there's one game on the senior side that certainly sticks out among the first-round games --- JF Ross vs. Resurrection. I'd say Rez is a slight favourite given that they have more offensive depth, but Ross' size at every position could cause some issues. Definitely a game to keep an eye on there.
Round 1
SJAM over Guelph CVI
St. John's over KCI
JF Ross over Resurrection
Cameron Heights over North Park
Round 2
SJAM over KCI
St. John's over Guelph CVI
Resurrection over Cameron Heights
JF Ross over North Park
Semifinals
St. John's over Resurrection
SJAM over JF Ross
Championship
St. John's over SJAM
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