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Athletics Update 1
Welcome back from a well-deserved vacation, Brentwood. I hope you are ready for the busiest athletics term of the year!
Before we look ahead, however, let’s look back at athletic program seasons that came to an end just before Spring Break. In February, our hockey teams wrapped up their seasons in dramatic fashion as they hosted our annual Ross Cup tournament. The girls’ program, running a team with only Brentwood girls for the first time ever, demonstrated their incredible skill development this year with two convincing wins against the development program at Shawnigan Lake School - including an impressive display in their Showcase game. Our Development Team, comprised of both boys and girls with hockey experience, was split into two even teams for the weekend tournament. Despite BCS 1 edging out BCS 2 in the round-robin portion of the event, it was the BCS 2 team making it all the way to the final. The Development final was a hotly contested affair and, while our team fell short, they definitely did the School proud with their effort.
The Senior Team concluded their season by claiming the regular season Island Championship and had an excellent showing in a very competitive Ross Cup. This was unquestionably one of the better teams we have fielded and the squad was organized, motivated, and talented. They opened the tournament with a Showcase game against Shawnigan Lake in a jam-packed Kerry Park Arena. Needless to say, the atmosphere was electric and the boisterous crowd of both Shawnigan and Brentwood fans had teams on the ice fired up. After falling behind 1-0, the Brentwood squad rallied and won a thrilling 2-1 game.
The fans were terrific and definitely willed the team to the win. Playing some of their best hockey of the season, the team then managed wins against Frances Kelsey and Cowichan Secondary on Friday, and met up with Shawnigan again in the championship game on Saturday afternoon. The team played outstanding hockey but sometimes the puck just doesn’t bounce your way and they came up just short - losing 3-2. I know though, from speaking with the team and the coaches, that this group is and should be extremely proud of their efforts. A huge thank you to Mr Shadlock and the entire coaching staff for orchestrating such wonderful seasons for all three teams in our program.
Meanwhile, in basketball, our Senior Girls team made their much-anticipated debut at the Provincial Championships - and they did not disappoint. They went in as the #10 seed and lost an agonizing 2-point game to #7 seed Southridge in the opener, but it was not for lack of effort. The girls bounced back nicely with a win the next day, but in the process lost one of their best players for the tournament when Miranda NP went down with a knee injury. Losing Miranda was definitely a huge loss both emotionally for the girls and, of course, for her outstanding play on the court. Nonetheless, the girls played their hearts out for the remainder of the tournament and - while we struggled to score - our hustle and competitive spirit enabled us to hang tough with some of the best teams in the province. It was an excellent season for the girls and with a strong nucleus returning next year, hopefully they can make a repeat appearance at the Provincials in 2023.
Our Senior Boys Basketball team, after winning Silver at Islands, also finished off their season with a trip to Provincials that concluded at the beginning of Spring Break. The team did not play their best basketball in the opening round but still managed to come away with a convincing 90-49 win over a feisty Hugh Boyd team. In the quarter final, we managed to take a 6-point lead into halftime against #6-ranked Pacific Academy before pulling away for a strong 72-48 victory that set up a semi-final showdown with Island rivals Lambrick Park. The boys played a strong first half and were a bit unlucky to be down by 2 at the break. In the third quarter, however, Lambrick played outstanding basketball and built a big lead from which we were not able to recover and we eventually lost the game 85-73.
After an emotional loss, our boys did the School proud with the way they responded in the bronze medal game. They worked extremely hard at the defensive end of the floor and were able to defeat a talented West Point Grey team 65-52 to come away with a Provincial Bronze medal. In addition to winning bronze, somehow - despite the antics of the coaching staff on the sideline - the boys were awarded the “Most Sportsmanlike Team” for the tournament, which says a fair bit about how they conducted themselves both on and off the court.
Also just before break, after a two-year hiatus, our rugby teams finally had the opportunity to jump into some competition as they took on SMUS and St Georges. The coaching staff was delighted with the energy and enthusiasm on display and it set the tone for what should be a fantastic season for our teams.
Finally, while many were resting over the break, our rowers were back early for a training camp. According to Mr Carr, there were “many kilometers, many blisters, lots of smiles” and the camp was an immense success and they are excited for the competitive season that lies ahead. In addition to our rowing and rugby programs, the third term will also see our tennis, golf, and girls’ soccer teams back in their competitive seasons so be ready for an action-packed finish to the year!
Mr Blake Gage, Director of Athletics
Before we look ahead, however, let’s look back at athletic program seasons that came to an end just before Spring Break. In February, our hockey teams wrapped up their seasons in dramatic fashion as they hosted our annual Ross Cup tournament. The girls’ program, running a team with only Brentwood girls for the first time ever, demonstrated their incredible skill development this year with two convincing wins against the development program at Shawnigan Lake School - including an impressive display in their Showcase game. Our Development Team, comprised of both boys and girls with hockey experience, was split into two even teams for the weekend tournament. Despite BCS 1 edging out BCS 2 in the round-robin portion of the event, it was the BCS 2 team making it all the way to the final. The Development final was a hotly contested affair and, while our team fell short, they definitely did the School proud with their effort.
The Senior Team concluded their season by claiming the regular season Island Championship and had an excellent showing in a very competitive Ross Cup. This was unquestionably one of the better teams we have fielded and the squad was organized, motivated, and talented. They opened the tournament with a Showcase game against Shawnigan Lake in a jam-packed Kerry Park Arena. Needless to say, the atmosphere was electric and the boisterous crowd of both Shawnigan and Brentwood fans had teams on the ice fired up. After falling behind 1-0, the Brentwood squad rallied and won a thrilling 2-1 game.
The fans were terrific and definitely willed the team to the win. Playing some of their best hockey of the season, the team then managed wins against Frances Kelsey and Cowichan Secondary on Friday, and met up with Shawnigan again in the championship game on Saturday afternoon. The team played outstanding hockey but sometimes the puck just doesn’t bounce your way and they came up just short - losing 3-2. I know though, from speaking with the team and the coaches, that this group is and should be extremely proud of their efforts. A huge thank you to Mr Shadlock and the entire coaching staff for orchestrating such wonderful seasons for all three teams in our program.
Meanwhile, in basketball, our Senior Girls team made their much-anticipated debut at the Provincial Championships - and they did not disappoint. They went in as the #10 seed and lost an agonizing 2-point game to #7 seed Southridge in the opener, but it was not for lack of effort. The girls bounced back nicely with a win the next day, but in the process lost one of their best players for the tournament when Miranda NP went down with a knee injury. Losing Miranda was definitely a huge loss both emotionally for the girls and, of course, for her outstanding play on the court. Nonetheless, the girls played their hearts out for the remainder of the tournament and - while we struggled to score - our hustle and competitive spirit enabled us to hang tough with some of the best teams in the province. It was an excellent season for the girls and with a strong nucleus returning next year, hopefully they can make a repeat appearance at the Provincials in 2023.
Our Senior Boys Basketball team, after winning Silver at Islands, also finished off their season with a trip to Provincials that concluded at the beginning of Spring Break. The team did not play their best basketball in the opening round but still managed to come away with a convincing 90-49 win over a feisty Hugh Boyd team. In the quarter final, we managed to take a 6-point lead into halftime against #6-ranked Pacific Academy before pulling away for a strong 72-48 victory that set up a semi-final showdown with Island rivals Lambrick Park. The boys played a strong first half and were a bit unlucky to be down by 2 at the break. In the third quarter, however, Lambrick played outstanding basketball and built a big lead from which we were not able to recover and we eventually lost the game 85-73.
After an emotional loss, our boys did the School proud with the way they responded in the bronze medal game. They worked extremely hard at the defensive end of the floor and were able to defeat a talented West Point Grey team 65-52 to come away with a Provincial Bronze medal. In addition to winning bronze, somehow - despite the antics of the coaching staff on the sideline - the boys were awarded the “Most Sportsmanlike Team” for the tournament, which says a fair bit about how they conducted themselves both on and off the court.
Also just before break, after a two-year hiatus, our rugby teams finally had the opportunity to jump into some competition as they took on SMUS and St Georges. The coaching staff was delighted with the energy and enthusiasm on display and it set the tone for what should be a fantastic season for our teams.
Finally, while many were resting over the break, our rowers were back early for a training camp. According to Mr Carr, there were “many kilometers, many blisters, lots of smiles” and the camp was an immense success and they are excited for the competitive season that lies ahead. In addition to our rowing and rugby programs, the third term will also see our tennis, golf, and girls’ soccer teams back in their competitive seasons so be ready for an action-packed finish to the year!
Mr Blake Gage, Director of Athletics