This weekend’s Paul Kane Invitational is a slam-dunk tournament highlighting the high school women’s basketball scene.
The expanded draw this year from eight to 12 teams tips off at 9 a.m. Friday and ends with Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. final.
The tournament lineup is comprised of the Paul Kane Blues, St. Albert Skyhawks, Bellerose Bulldogs, Bishop Carroll Cardinals of Calgary, Catholic Central Cougars of Lethbridge, Harry Ainlay Titans, La Crete Lancers, Medicine Hat Kwahommies, Ross Sheppard Thunderbirds, St. Mary’s Saints of Calgary, Strathcona Lords and the defending champion Jasper Place Rebels.
“There is lots of good teams so we’re excited to see how we do and if we can win it,” said Bella Gaulden of the Blues prior to Saturday’s practice at Paul Kane.
The Blues lost the last two finals to Jasper Place by scores of 59-52 last year and 64-41 in 2017.
“It’s really fun and comforting, too, when you have lots of fans cheering on your side,” Gaulden said.
Overall, 13 games are scheduled for the home of the Blues and seven will be staged at St. Albert Catholic High School.
Admission for adults is $6 per day or $10 for a tournament pass.
The tournament results will also have a bearing on the first 4A rankings of the season Jan. 16 as a number of teams that are entered will be listed among the top 10 in the province.
“It’s fun to see that our school tournament is just as good as a Jasper Place tournament,” said Gaulden of last month’s REB Invitational with the Blues finishing second in the eight-team women’s division after winning the tournament title the previous season. “We’re not as skilled as we were last year so a tournament like this really helps us test our abilities in playing up to the other team’s skills and if we beat them, it really helps us move up in confidence.”
If everything goes according to how the draw is designed, Saturday’s semifinals at Paul Kane are expected to be the Blues versus Jasper Place at 10:45 a.m. and the Skyhawks versus Bishop Carroll at 12:30 p.m.
Bishop Carroll is led by Yvonne Ejim, the No. 1 player in the province who is being heavily recruited by NCAA division one teams.
Obviously, organizers have their fingers crossed the Blues and Skyhawks will match wits in the third-place game at 5:30 p.m. or the 7:30 p.m. final in front of a standing-room only crowd.
Leading up to the final four pairings on the championship side of the bracket are Friday’s games at 5 p.m. for the Blues against the 11 a.m. winner between Bellerose and Catholic Central at Paul Kane, and 7:30 p.m. for the Skyhawks against the 1:30 p.m. winner between the Titans and St. Mary’s at the SkyDome.
Saturday’s consolation final is 12:30 p.m. at the SkyDome.
The tournament is the third this season for the Blues after placing fourth at the 21st annual Mike Dea Classic at St. Francis Xavier High School and losing the 37th annual REB final 70-39 to the Western Canada Redhawks of Calgary.
“It’s our first tournament getting back from the (Christmas) break so it will help us see how we’re going to play for the rest of the year. It helps us get back into it faster and get that momentum going for the rest of the year so it’s really good,” Gaulden said.
The metro Edmonton division one Blues (3-1) also have one league game on tap this month before the exam break and tonight’s tipoff is 6:30 p.m. against the host Leduc Tigers (3-1).
“We’ve been practicing a lot (Sunday’s practice was the team’s eighth during the holidays) and we’ve been doing really good so we’re excited to get back playing again,” Gaulden said. “We know Leduc is a really hard team so it will be a challenge.”
The Blues are 6-4 overall with six returnees, including Grade 12 starters Ella Stanley and Kaitlyn Kluttig, from the 2018 division one semifinalists and 4A provincial consolation champions.
Stanley, a high-scoring six-foot forward, will join her older sister, Alesha, next fall with the Mount Royal Cougars in Canada West while Kluttig, a top-notch guard, is committed to the Concordia Thunder in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Colleges.
The duo is among four Grade 12s on a roster that includes five Grade 11s and two Grade 10s.
“We’re really young and scrappish. We really push for it. We never give up,” said Gaulden, a consistent scorer and Grade 11 guard. “We’ve done really good so far. When we beat SACHS (79-75 against the Skyhawks in double overtime in the REB semifinal) that was really exciting for all of us because they’re really, really good this year and then in the SFX tournament we played Saskatoon (61-54 loss to the St. Joseph Guardians in the third-place game) and Regina (85-56 semifinal loss to the LeBoldus Golden Suns) and they were both really good, too, but we held our own against them so it was really good to see that.”
Gaulden, 16, is a major contributor in a starting role after coming off the bench last season for a team that benefited from six Grade 12s.
“I’m trying to pass the ball and get people open and play good defence and score as much as possible,” said the dangerous long-range shooter. “Sometimes it’s really nerve-racking because I’m used to warming up and chilling on the bench before going on and when you’re starting you go right in there to help your team get that momentum going right away in the game.”
