The Paul Kane Blues knocked off the undefeated Edmonton Christian Lions for a sweet repeat in metro Edmonton high school hoops.
Saturday’s division two junior final went down to the wire as the Blues staved off a late charge by the Lions to win 48-45 at Jasper Place High School.
The Lions outscored the Blues 22-16 in the last 10 minutes of play but Paul Kane maintained its lead down the stretch with clutch free throws and a stalwart defensive stand in the face of adversity.
“The game boiled down to the girls coming together and keeping their head in it to fight through the close ending. There were so many times they could have given up but they kept fighting and stayed focused,” said coach Ian Huskins.
The Blues led by 10 with two minutes to play when the Lions roared back by hitting three three-pointers and were fouled on the last shot. After the Lions missed the free throw they fouled and the Blues drained both shots from the charity line.
The Lions made it a one-point game with a field goal and then committed a foul and the Blues sank both free throws to go up by three with only seconds remaining.
The Blues rose to the challenge defensively to stop the Lions from scoring before the buzzer.
Kyla Dane dropped in seven of her team-high 13 points in the fourth quarter.
Sierra Gaulden tacked up 10 points, Hannah Spachynski and Natalie Sluchinski added seven apiece and Ainsley McKinley had six as the Blues improved to 9-1 in league play and 14-4 overall.
Last year the Blues finished 9-0 in metro and 16-2 overall after beating the Archbishop Jordan Scots 54-45.
“You can’t compare the two teams as they both excelled in different ways on the court. We had great talent and skill both years and both teams managed to come together and get those championships,” Huskins said.
The only loss in league for the Blues was 46-35 to the Lions (8-1) in division two pool B action last month at Edmonton Christian High School.
In the rematch the Blues led 13-5 after the first quarter, 19-17 at halftime and 32-23 after three quarters.
“When Edmonton Christian beat us in league play we didn’t play our game. They were making shots and we weren’t and at the end of that game we couldn’t rally back,” Huskins said. “The championship game we managed to stay ahead the whole time. They tied it a few times at the beginning and at the end but our girls stayed strong and ran their systems and came out on top with the win.”
The fourth metro junior women’s basketball championship in school history is also the second for the Blues since winning the 2010 premier (division one) conference crown.
The Blues are also the fourth junior women’s team to repeat in division two (city conference) since the metro league’s formation in 1988/89.
“I wouldn’t say it was any sweeter but it always feels good to get that banner back to back. I think for the returners on our team it was definitely sweeter,” Huskins said of junior veterans’ Chelsey Mandrusiak, Katryne Pharis, Dacia Lopez, Spachynski and Sluchinski.
