Team captures Notre Dame/News Advertiser basketball crown on Saturday
Oct 04, 2008 - 08:58 PM
By Al Rivett
AJAX -- The three-peat's in the bag for the Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School Lady Cougars.
The Lady Cougars senior girls' basketball team won its third straight Notre Dame/News Advertiser Classic title in as many years after putting away the Etobicoke Collegiate Rams 64-46 in the championship final at the north Ajax school on Saturday night.
The tournament, which featured 12 of the top teams not only from Durham Region, but from as far away as Ottawa, Kingston, and Mississauga, ran over two days at the Notre Dame Catholic Secondary School and Pickering High School gymnasiums.
In front of a large crowd at Notre Dame, the Lady Cougars used their overall team speed, aggressive defence and solid inside game to add yet another crown at their own tournament. And, to win it three consecutive years is a big source of pride, said Notre Dame head coach Rose Booker.
"It was perfect -- great," said Booker following the contest. "It was great to get the third championship with a tougher draw this year."
The Notre Dame/News Advertiser Classic represented the second tournament championship in three tries for the Lady Cougars, which also won a title in Kingston last month.
Leading by a scant four points at 15-11 after the first quarter, the Lady Cougars began to pull away on the Rams in the second quarter, going on a 7-0 run to take a comanding 30-13 lead with 4:30 remaining in the quarter. Notre Dame eventually led by 18 (38-20) at half time.
The Lady Cougars continued to pour it on in the third quarter, going on an 8-0 run to open the quarter to open up a 26-point bulge and put it on cruise control the rest of the way.
Point guard Catherine Bougoulias was named as most valuable player of the championship game.
Lady Cougars' centre Nicholle McKenzie led all scorers with 17 points, followed by Shanika Baker with 10.
Casea Fuller led the Etobicoke Rams with 10 points.
The Lady Cougars earned their way to the final after defeating Whitby's Father Leo J. Austin Wildcats 60-51 in one semifinal. The other semifinal pitted the Etobicoke Rams against the Pickering High School Trojans of Ajax, with the Rams scoring a 49-42 victory.
In the consolation contest, the Holy Cross Crusaders from Kingston defeated the Our Lady of Mount Carmel Lions of Mississauga 48-42.
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