For the second year in a row, the O'Gorman Knights are hosting a provincial girls basketball championship. The 18-team 'battle for Ontario's 'A' title tips off in Timmins today, and the Knights have been awarded the number one seed.
They are looking to avenge a tough loss one year ago, and bring home the first provincial girls title in the school's history.
It is a rare opportunity.
"We applied for last year, and a team had beat us to it, so we were awarded this year. Then the team that originally was supposed to host last year couldn't, so they offered it to us, and so we took it for two years. So it is rare, I mean you can do it, but it is rare to get it two years in a row. So it's kind of nice. It has it's 'pros' and 'cons," said Head Coach Marcy McCarty.
According to OFSAA records, it is actually unprecedented in Girls 'A' history for one city to host back-to-back tournaments. Timmins also hosted in 1994 and 2003.
McCarty elaborated on the 'pros' and 'cons' of being hosts.
"Having the girls home, and playing in front of their home crowd is definitely the biggest 'pro'. Being able to sleep in their own beds, and not having to eat out, those are others, for me as well. The 'con' is that when we go away for a championship, we're together as a whole family for sometimes five days, depending on where it is. So it's really important, and sometimes difficult, to keep them together in that team mentality in a sense, because after a game is over, if they're in town they usually go home. Whereas as if we were away, after a game we would stay together, we would debrief, we would go out for lunch or whatever, and you're together with each other for five whole days. Here, that aspect of it is a little more challenging."
She said it is something the players and coaches are well aware of, so steps have been taken. On Wednesday evening, the team ate dinner together at the school as visiting teams held their practices.
The heartbreak of last year is likely still in the minds of the Knights' returning players, but McCarty said it's not a dominant topic of discussion.
"Going into last year, our only goal as a team was to do better than we did the year before. We succeeded, we met that goal, however it was bittersweet. Losing in a gold medal game, definitely for the girls, was hard. As a coach, I reflect back on it. I'm not going to dwell on that fact, or even bring it up. We haven't talked a whole lot about it. It's a very different team this year, a very different dynamic. I think that, yes that is there, and the 'redemption' part for some of my girls is definitely in the back of their minds, and yes Gold is obviously the goal this year, but we haven't spent a lot of time dwelling on that."
The defending OFSAA 'A' Girls provincial champions, the Ecole Secondaire Catholique Jean Vanier Lynx from Welland are back, this time as the number 3 seed. They have won four of the last six titles. Andrew Autio for TimminsToday Despite being narrowly defeated in the championship final and being hosts, last year's edition of the Knights likely went further than expected considering there was only one Grade 12 student on the team.
This year's team includes nine players who either played or were reserves on last year's OFSAA squad, including four starters.
Ally Burke, Hannah Culhane, Brianna Dodd, Chloe Finnila, Arianna Gagnon, Brianna Hway, Holly McLean, Gabriella Schaffner, and Mallory Turcotte will all bring OFSAA experience to the floor. Only Gagnon and Schaffner are grade 12 students. They are bolstered by young additions Gracie Barbuto, Abby Couture, Jenna Katic, and Jadyn Weltz.
"It's a very different team. We had no 'league games' this year, so we travelled a lot together. So I find that the girls are a family more than a team. We spent a lot of time on the road this year, so they had no choice," said McCarty.
Sadly there was no senior girls league in the city this year, so the Knights had to travel around the province to find competition.
"To get those high calibre games, so that obviously you're challenged and you rise to the challenge, and that's how you get better and work towards where we are right now, hopefully peaking."
McCarty said the team has been focusing on improving one day at a time, and that she and Assistant Coach Cathy Beard have singled out one 'key' for the tournament.
"Make sure the girls are having fun, and enjoying the moment, and leaving it all on the court. They have to live in the moment, and know that this is something they've worked hard for all year. I think if they do that, and they focus, anything is possible."
2017 OFSAA Girls 'A' Basketball Championships Tournament Seedings:
1. O'Gorman High School Knights - Timmins
2. ES MacDonald-Cartier Panthers - Sudbury
3. ESC Jean Vanier Lynx - Welland
4. ESC E.J. Lajeunesse Royals - Windsor
5. Woodland Christian High School Cavaliers - Breslau (near Waterloo)
6. Trinity College School Bears - Port Hope
7. Notre Dame Catholic High School Celtic Warriors - Carleton Place
8. Smithville Christian High School Storm - Smithville
9, St. Mary's DCVI Salukis - St. Mary's
10. ESC Algonquin Barons - North Bay
11. ES LeCaron Dragons - Penetanguishene
12. ES Saint-Famille Cougars - Mississauga
13. University of Toronto Schools Blues - Toronto
14. Lester B. Pearson High School Patriots - Burlington
15. Timiskaming District Secondary School Saints - New Liskeard
16. Sutton District High School Sabres - Sutton West
17. Red Lake District High School Rams - Red Lake
18. Quinte Christian High School Eagles - Belleville
