The St. Paul Regional Saints swept the board winning both sides of the 2017 Saints Invitational, as both the boys’ and girls’ basketball teams won their respective tournaments in convincing fashion.
The action started on Friday, with games being held at Regional, Racette, and Glen Avon. The tournament wrapped up on Saturday.
On the boys’ side, the tournament featured two Regional High School teams, along with teams from Glendon, Notre Dame (Bonnyville), Lac La Biche, Elk Point, Onoway and Cold Lake.
The Saints would go 3 – 0 with victories over Glendon, Notre Dame and Cold Lake to secure the tournament championship.
“Parker Lumby is our leading scorer. We kind of let the fourth quarter get to us and let off the gas pedal. You can’t argue with success. We are 7 – 0 and tournament champs,” said workhorse power forward Henri Laidley.
The Saints beat Glendon and Notre Dame to send themselves to the finals.
The St. Paul boys would finish the tournament with a 64-47 victory over Cold Lake, demonstrating both scoring prowess, but defensive sharpness as well.
During the tournament, Grade 11 student Owen Breast said, “We get a good lead, then let them catch up. We are playing good. Strong, we kind of lose our heads a bit, but we are playing good.
The Saints play their next tournament in January in Westlock.
The girls’ side saw Regional, Mallaig, Glendon, Lac La Biche, Elk Point, Onoway, Boyle and St Jeromes (Vermillion) take to the court.
The Lady Saints would also sweep their way through their tournament going 3-0 in a convincing victory. The girls were like a wrecking ball, smashing their way through opponents who weren't quick enough to get out of the way.
“Georgia Sallstrom really stepped up her play this year and is our most consistent player,” said coach Trent Rowley. “She played some minutes as a Grade 10, but stepped into a starting role this year. Jorja Gates and Sarah Silva are starters, and strong ones despite being only in Grade 10.”
After dropping their first game of the season, the Lady Saints have gone 6-0. The St. Paul girls defeated Mallaig and Lac La Biche to put themselves into he final with the F.G. Miller.
The girls powered to a 55-33 victory. The Lady Saints are a young team, only having two Grade 12s on the squad, along with five Grade 11s and five Grade 10s.
“I am really blessed to have two Grade 10 starters. I usually see some good girls come out of Racette and Glen Avon. Sarah Silva and Jorja Gates are graduates of Joy Tremblay's program at Racette,” said the coach. “They were able to step right in and not miss a step. I roll a Grade 10 and 11 together in the backcourt rotating in and out every four minutes. We play a very aggressive style of basketball these girls are right on the edge all game every game.”
The Lady Saints play next on Dec. 19, against Cold Lake.
