Flyers qualify for OFSAA AAA hoops
The Eden Flyers made it to the championship game of the Southern Ontario Secondary Schools Association AAA senior boys basketball playdowns before dropping a 72-56 decision to host Saltfleet.
Scoring for the Flyers in the final were: Luke Johnson 20; Chad Thorpe 17; Kai Schatz 13; Luke Midgley 5; and Dylan Durlov 2.
Ben Kyle, Anmol Sidhu and Tyson Gooden each scored 17 for Saltfleet.
“I’m really proud of the way the team played facing two very physical opponents. Myer really pushed us the first game and made it difficult to get back up to that intensity for the finals,” Eden head coach Jonathon Thorpe said. “Despite that, we executed well offensively and got the shots we wanted. They just didn’t fall the way they normally do so now we put that behind us and put together a good week of practice, getting ready for OFSAA (Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations).”
Because Saltfleet is hosting OFSAA March 4-6 and Notre Dame decided not to play a challenge game, the Flyers will take part in the provincial championships in Stoney Creek. Last season, the Flyers made it to the OFSAA quarter-finals.
Eden advanced to the SOSSA final with a 55-46 over the Zone 4 champion A.N. Myer Marauders.
Eden built quarter leads of 16-7, 32-22 and 42-33 to record the victory.
Scoring for the Flyers were: Thorpe 21; Schatz 12; Durlov 9; Johnson 7; and, Midgley 6.
Recording points for the Marauders were: Isaiah Corsaro-Oteng 18; Noah Walters 10; Tanner Pare-Smith 8; Tavish McMahon 5; Nikolas Zapata 3; and, Jayke Arnold 2.
“We played hard every possession and battled for every point. Eden is a very skilled team and we put forth an incredible effort to try and get the win. Our defence was strong and we had key performances from our senior players,” Myer head coach Tyler Thomson said. “Although losing in the SOSSA semis is a tough way to end a season, I’m proud of the effort our team put forward.”
The Niagara Catholic Athletic Association champion Notre Dame Fighting Irish lost 65-56 to Saltfleet in the SOSSA semifinals.
Scoring for Notre Dame in the loss were: Nicholas Cappreta 14; Andrew Benko 13; William Benko 11; Trent Groulx 7; David Babalola 6; Colton Kizlyk 4; and, Devon Devost 1.
“It was a hard-fought game. Unfortunately we didn’t play four full quarters. Slow start and poor finish,” Notre Dame head coach Andy Lucchetta said. “We had a nine-point lead in third quarter and four at beginning of fourth and then we couldn’t execute like we did in the third. Getting outscored 22-9 in the final frame is a tough way to finish especially when we fought so hard to come back.”
