Article By: Sean Allen
For all the school’s success in other
sports, Brantford Collegiate Institute doesn’t have its name engraved on
a regional championship plaque for girls basketball.
That could change this year with an
undefeated junior girls BCI Mustangs team that is being ranked as the
best in the Central Western Ontario Secondary Schools Association
region.
In fact, the Mustangs solidified their
rankings on the website CWOSSAbasketball.com this past weekend up
against the Our Lady of Lourdes Lancers in a tournament.
“They are ranked No. 2 in CWOSSA and we were
No. 1,” Grade 9 point guard Kennedy Chisholm said. “It was a little
back and forth, but in the end we pulled away.”
The Lancers hosted the tournament with some of the top competition from CWOSSA.
The Mustangs defeated the Bluevale Knights,
St. David Celtics and St. John’s College Green Eagles on their way to
the championship game.
In tough against the Lancers, the Mustangs
held a 21-11 lead at halftime and settled in for a second-half defensive
battle.
“We had some rough patches, but we came back at the end,” Grade 10 player Taylor Hill said.
The Mustangs won 32-21 to take the gold and
leave no doubt about their standing as one of the top teams as playoffs
approach.
Hill and Chisholm are among the leadership
group on the team, with coach Ross Enslev describing Hill as the quiet
leader and Chisholm as the court general.
Chisholm had a team-high 18 points during a
55-11 win in pool play against the Celtics, which included four
three-pointers. Hill had 12 points in the first quarter on her way to a
team-high 18 in the semifinals against the Green Eagles.
BCI is undefeated in the Brant league, with a
9-0 record and only one game left in the regular season.
Though their eyes are set on making a run at CWOSSA, the Mustangs can’t lose focus in Brant.
CWOSSAbasketball.com ranks the North Park
Collegiate Trojans No. 6 in the region, with the Assumption College
Lions and Green Eagles tied at 10th.
The Trojans are 7-2 and will finish in
second place, while the Lions and Green Eagles square off on Thursday to
decide third and fourth place in the league.
The Mustangs will get a bye in the
quarter-finals and host a semifinal game on Thursday, Nov. 5. The
championship is a best-of-three series which begins Nov. 10.
The Mustangs had an idea that they would have a special team this season.
Last year, the junior team unseated the
three-year reign at the top by the Green Eagles in the Brant
championship.
Current Grade 10s Hill, Maddie Sanderson,
Anne McDougald and Kaitlin Thomson returned to the club, while the team
was bolstered by a talented crop of incoming Grade 9s.
“We kind of knew we would have a strong team
because (Enslev) runs camps during the summer,” Chisholm said.
It was at BCI’s summer skills camp that the players started to come together for this season.
Having experienced Grade 9s makes a huge
difference and Enslev credits the local basketball organizations for
feeding the team quality players.
“A lot of the kids have been well trained by the CYO and Briers programs,” Enslev said.
“We all play rep ball, so we have a good idea of the game,” Hill added.
Defence drives the success of the club.
“Our team defence is really strong,” Chisholm said.
“We operate it by working together and talking on the court,” Hill said.
Enslev said the “controlled aggression” on the court leads to a limit on their opponents’ chances.
“In most of our games this year, we’ve
allowed fewer than 20 points,” he said. “If you don’t allow a lot, you
don’t have to score a lot.”
But perhaps the biggest key is the basis for the strong teamwork of the club.
“They like each other,” Enslev said. “That’s really important. It means they play for each other.”
Including tournament play, the Mustangs are 18-2 this season.
It wasn't exactly how they drew it up, but the St. Mary's Eagles will take it.
