Two losses in the same week were two too many for the St. Albert Skyhawks.
The setbacks before the exam break dropped last year’s 4A provincial bronze medallists from first to fourth in the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association rankings in women’s basketball and forced the players to look in the mirror and question their will to win.
“It’s all mental. We were on a roll. We were winning some big games and then I think we made a decision that we didn’t need to work as hard and we found out the hard way that we do need to keep working as hard as we have been,” said Marinya Marcichiw, co-captain of the 12-2 Skyhawks.
After a blistering 9-0 start to the season the Skyhawks were embarrassed 61-46 by the Jasper Place Rebels, a metro Edmonton division one 3-3 team ranked ninth in 4A, and a few days later at the Chinook Invitational in Lethbridge they trailed the Raymond Comets by two points with 24 seconds to play but coughed up the ball twice before losing 66-62 to the defending provincial champions who are ranked fifth in 4A.
“Against Raymond it just didn’t work out. People who need to score didn’t score,” said Marcichiw, a high-scoring Grade 12 forward.
The Skyhawks went on to finish third in their third tournament of the season after repeating at the Mike Dea Classic at St. Francis Xavier High School and the REB Invitational at Jasper Place High School.
The two losses put the Skyhawks behind the No. 1 Spruce Grove Panthers, No. 2 Cardston Cougars and No. 3 St. Francis Browns of Calgary in the 4A pecking order.
“It’s really more about us than the rankings. It’s what we do as a team and what we come into practices and games thinking and that’s more important than rankings,” Marcichiw said.
The second half of the season for the Skyhawks tips off Friday at their fourth annual tournament at the SkyDome. The first game for the three-time defending champions is 1:30 p.m. against the St. Francis Xavier Rams, a winless division one team the Skyhawks whipped 95-35 Jan. 13 in their last game before the exam break.
The Miles Macdonell Buckeyes of Winnipeg and the Edmonton Christian Lions (2014 3A provincial champions are ranked third in 3A) hook up at 3 p.m.
The Medicine Hat Kwahommies (ranked seventh in 4A), winners of the recent Paul Kane Classic, play the Archbishop Jordan Scots at 5 p.m.
The Chinook Coyotes of Lethbridge (2014 provincial silver medallists are ranked 10th in 4A) and Chestermere Lakers meet at 6:45 p.m.
Eight games are on tap Saturday, including the consolation final at 4:45 p.m., third-place game at 6:30 p.m. and the 8:15 p.m. final.
“We’ve had some time to regroup after those two losses and have really practised hard as we worked toward the goals that we’ve set for it,” Marcichiw said of the tournament. “We’re going to come out strong and show people what we’re going to work for in the second half of the season.”
If the draw works out the way the organizers designed it the Skyhawks will match up with the Kwahommies in Saturday’s 11:30 a.m. semifinal.
The Kwahommies are led by the impressive Jenna Spruyt, a tall post who overpowered the Paul Kane Blues for 37 points and a ton of rebounds in the final of the Paul Kane Classic.
Spruyt, who played with Marcichiw and Brielle Wise of the Skyhawks with the Team Alberta bronze medallists at the 2014 Canada Basketball U17 nationals, scored 13 (three field goals and seven foul shots) of her team’s 24 points in the fourth quarter of the 76-68 victory.
“She is just a big person in the key,” Marcichiw said. “The coaches know what to do on her and we know what to do with her. If we keep her out of the key and keep her off the boards then I think we’re golden with that team.”
Next month, a busy Skyhawks’ schedule includes the Battle of St. Albert against the Blues on Feb. 9 at 5 p.m. at Paul Kane and the Titans Tri-Prov, starting Feb. 12 at Harry Ainlay High School.
The Skyhawks and Panthers will also lock horns in the Feb. 17 division one showdown at Spruce Grove and the Feb. 20-21 Panthers Classic.
In league play, the Panthers are 5-0 and the Skyhawks and Blues are both 4-1.
Last year the Panthers beat the Skyhawks 70-65 in the division one final but at provincials the St. Albert Catholic High School team knocked off Spruce Grove 56-51 for bronze to finish the season at 30-5 overall.
“All these games and tournaments we have are just more opportunities to show people that even though we lost (two games) we’re going to come back harder to prove why we should be here and why we can be here,” said Marcichiw, 18, the MVP at the REB Invitational.
