Claremont’s senior girls basketball team outscored Oak Bay 22-13 in the final quarter of the 2018 AAA Island Championship game, but could not catch the Breakers in the end.
Three-pointers from Maki Jenner, Marin Abe and Sierra Reisig helped erase a large Oak Bay lead. The Breakers led 40-23 at the half and appeared to be running away with the game.
However, the scrappy Spartans didn’t give up and put up 15 fourth-quarter points. The Breakers could only muster three points in that period until coach Rob Kinnear called two quick time outs to get his team back on track.
“They’re out-working you,” he told his players.
Oak Bay responded by shutting down Claremont defensively and adding five points to put the Breakers on top at the final buzzer, 67-60.
The final of the Island girls AAA hoops championship was the eighth time in the last 10 seasons that both teams faced each other. As a tournament organizer put it, that was testament to the great girls basketball programs build at the respective schools.
Tournament Most Valuable Player Georgia Alexander of Oak Bay scored a game-high 20 points to lead the Breakers.
Claremont’s Sierra Reisig scored 13 to lead the Saanich school.
Both teams qualified for the B.C. provincial championships Feb. 28 to March 3 in Langley, as the Island sends its top two teams. Third place Nanaimo District Secondary School - which beat Cowichan in the consolation final earlier on Saturday - has a chance to get into the provincials through the back door, via a wildcard game against a lower mainland team.
Tournament awards:
MVP - Georgia Alexander, Oak Bay
Top Defensive Player - Maddie Manns, Claremont
Most Sportsmanlike Team - Cowichan
Second Team All-Stars: Chloe Scaber (Claremont), Jayden Saywell (NDSS), Brianna Gray (NDSS), Jazmine Charles (Cowichan), Maddie Manns (Claremont)
First Team All-Stars: Sierra Reisig (Claremont), Natalie Froese (Oak Bay), Jamine Lambert (Oak Bay), Marin Abe (Claremont), Emma Dewit (Cowichan).
