SMUS teams put together another busy and successful week, highlighted by a championship-final appearance for the Junior Boys Basketball team, strong league performances across multiple age groups, and podium finishes for SMUS squash athletes competing at the provincial level. Here’s a roundup of the latest results, standout performances, and what’s ahead on the schedule.
Junior Boys Basketball
The SMUS Junior Boys Basketball team enjoyed a successful week, winning four of six games in total and reaching the championship final of the Mark Isfeld Spirit Bear Tournament in Courtenay.
Most importantly for the Junior Jags, they won two key Lower Island Division 1 games, beating visiting Reynolds and Edward Milne on back-to-back nights to boost their record to 4-2 in the ultra-competitive local circuit.
On Tuesday, SMUS overcame a sluggish start to score the final 14 points of the game and defeat Reynolds 58-51 behind twin 22-point performances from guards Alex MacKay and Manav Kang. All nine players dressed for SMUS saw floor time and made contributions to the victory.
The following night, all 10 available players saw action in a 60-33 win over Edward Milne. Forward William Low led the SMUS attack with 17 points while MacKay added 12 points, Matt Nacey had 10, and Isaac Ren and Kang seven each.
On Thursday, the Blue Jags faced BC’s eighth-ranked Walnut Grove Gators of Langley in an exhibition game at Oak Bay. SMUS gave the bigger Gators a good battle but came out on the wrong end of a 59-47 final score. MacKay scored 17 points, Kang added 13 points, and Low contributed nine points and seven rebounds.
In what was an extremely hectic week, the Blue Jags then travelled to Courtenay on Friday morning before tipping off the Spirit Bear Tournament with a 67-35 win over Timberline of Campbell River. Ren was named player of the game, providing excellent defence, handling the ball well, and contributing four steals and five points. Nacey led SMUS with a strong 18-point game inside, while Low added 11 points and four steals, and Kang had nine points. Will Hamilton topped SMUS on the boards with six rebounds and MacKay chipped in five assists.
That result moved the Blue Jags into an early Saturday semifinal, where they faced the sharpshooting Dover Bay Dolphins of Nanaimo. Kang turned in an outstanding game, scoring 30 points and adding four assists and four rebounds in an 82-74 SMUS win. MacKay contributed 24 points, six assists, and five rebounds, while Low had 14 points and seven rebounds. Nacey chipped in with eight points and 11 boards in what was a strong team effort.
Unfortunately for SMUS, the busy week seemed to take its toll in the Spirit Bear championship game late Saturday afternoon against the hometown Ice. The Blue Jags looked fatigued during a span from midway through the first quarter until early in the second when the aggressive Ice badly outrebounded them and took advantage of multiple three-point opportunities to go on a 21-3 run – a span that essentially decided the game. The Blue Jags found a second wind and battled back to within five points with possession of the ball midway through the fourth quarter, but the gap proved too much to overcome. Isfeld eventually took a well-deserved 68-60 win and the tournament championship while SMUS settled for the silver in the eight-team event.
MacKay was named player of the game in the final for the Jags with 24 points, including 19 in the second half, to lead the comeback attempt. Kang was the leading scorer for SMUS with 26 points. Swingman Evan Pressello, guard Tor Nelson, and forwards Andy Pan and Hamilton contributed defensively in the comeback.
The Junior Boys will be almost as busy this coming week, with important league games on Tuesday at Stelly’s and Wednesday at home against Royal Bay, with both games tipping off at 5:45 pm. They will also take part in the eight-team Junior Spartan Invitational at Claremont, beginning with a 10:30 am game on Friday against Quw’utsun.
Senior Girls Basketball
The Senior Girls Basketball team also had a busy week. Lower Island league action last Tuesday night featured the Blue Jags at Claremont. SMUS made quick work of the Spartans, going up 35-23 at the half. The Blue Jags never looked back, extending their lead to win 75-36.
Mikaela Dubé led all scorers with 27 points and also added 18 rebounds for SMUS, Elspeth Rodger contributed 18 points and 15 rebounds, and Mya Beare finished with 15 points.
SMUS then hosted the girls’ portion of the 53rd annual Victoria City Police Tournament over the weekend. In their opening round game on Thursday, the Blue Jags squared off against a hungry and athletic team from Southridge. Up 36-33 at the half, SMUS struggled to put away the Storm. However, some key defensive stops down the stretch helped to secure a 63-57 win. Rodger finished 25 points, Beare added 21, and Grade 9 point guard Piper Geddes chipped in with seven.
The win set up a semifinal matchup against Island rival and current BC AAA No. 3 Mark Isfeld. Unfortunately, SMUS was no match for the smothering defence and physical play of the Ice. Mark Isfeld stretched its seven-point halftime lead to 20 early in the third quarter and never looked back, eventually winning 58-35. Beare lead the Blue Jags with 13 points, while Rodger added 12.
In Saturday’s bronze-medal game, the Jags met the Oak Bay Breakers – a rematch from a week earlier when the Blue Jags got the better of their city rivals. In what was a competitive game from start to finish, neither team held more than a six-point lead. Down 26-22 at the half, SMUS looked for a boost on both ends of the floor. The Blue Jags found it in two Grade 9 players – Ali Brooks and Natalie DiFelice-Oinonen. Creating steals and getting to the rim, Brooks finished with six points.
Down the stretch, smart defensive plays and a huge three-point shot by Grade 12 Leila Mostachfi helped to secure a 50-48 win for SMUS and third place in the eight-team girls’ draw. Dubé finished with 15 points and pulled down 13 rebounds. Beare chipped in with 10 points and Rodger finished with nine points.
The Blue Jags were proud of their third-place finish and Beare was recognized a Police Tournament all-star.
Next up for the Senior Girls is a league game at home on Tuesday at 5:45 pm against Royal Bay. They will also compete in the EmpowHER Tournament at Oak Bay, beginning with a 6:45 pm game Thursday against Langley.
Senior Boys Basketball
Grade 12 point guard Dani Pelyhe poured in a career-high 46 points to power the host SMUS Senior Boys to a 65-64 decision over Vanier on Saturday morning in the seventh-place game of the boys’ side of the Victoria City Police Tournament.
The win ended the tournament on a positive note for the shorthanded Blue Jags, who lost their first two games of the eight-team draw.
The Jags fell 98-53 to Mark Isfeld in first-round action on Thursday. Guard Will Bateson, with 15 points, and Pelyhe, with 14, were the leading scorers for SMUS in the loss.
Bateson scored 35 points, including 10 three-pointers, in a 97-74 defeat to Nanaimo District in Friday’s consolation-side action. Pelyhe added 21 for the Blue Jags. For his efforts, Bateson was named to the Police Tournament all-star team.
The Blue Jags also split a pair of Lower Island AA league games last week. Bateson scored 20 points and Pelyhe 11 for the Senior Boys in an 82-53 road loss at Parkland on Tuesday.
The Blue Jags rebounded on Wednesday as Pelyhe scored 33 points, including six threes, to power SMUS to a 78-61 victory at Glenlyon Norfolk School. Bateson added 23 points while Azaad Gill contributed 11.
The Senior Boys will play just once this week – a 7:30 pm tip-off against visiting Parkland on Tuesday in the Single Gym.
Grade 9 Boys Basketball
The SMUS Grade 9 Boys continued their strong season with three wins in four games last week, including a third-place finish in the Vancouver College Grade 9 Emerald Tournament on the weekend.
Guard Jerome Chan scored 22 points to lead the Jags to an impressive 63-48 win over Semiahmoo in the first round of the Emerald on Friday. Adrian Villen Diez added 16 points for SMUS while Kian Harris had 12.
The Blue Jags ran into a tough, physical opponent in Saturday morning’s semifinal round, however, falling 77-30 to Burnaby South. Seb Divoky was the top SMUS scorer with nine points in the loss.
The Grade 9s bounced back with a strong 59-38 win over New Westminster in the Emerald third-place game. Villen Diez paced the Blue Jags with 23 points.
The team also continued its undefeated roll in the Lower Island Junior Division 2 basketball league with a 57-39 road victory over Reynolds ‘B’ last Monday afternoon. Villen Diez scored 10 points to lead a well-balanced SMUS attack in which a total of nine Blue Jags scored.
The Grade 9s play another league game this Monday at Parkland, beginning at 4:15 pm. They will also compete in the Mark Isfeld Grade 9 Spirit Bear Tournament beginning Friday in Courtenay.
Junior Girls Basketball
The SMUS Junior Girls won a pair of Lower Island Division 1 home games last week to run their league record to 5-0.
The Junior Jags beat visiting Royal Bay 49-20 on Tuesday afternoon. Piper Geddes led the Blue Jags with 18 points.
On Wednesday, SMUS defeated Pacific Christian 60-37. Natalie DiFelice-Oinonen scored 16 points in the win while Geddes added 13 and Ali Brooks had 10.
The Junior Girls will play host to Claremont in another league game this Tuesday at 4:15 pm and then travel to Belmont for a 5:45 pm game on Wednesday. They will also play in the EmpowHER tournament beginning Thursday at Oak Bay with a 3:30 pm tip-off against Dover Bay.
Junior ‘B’ Girls Basketball
Yiran Yang scored 14 points as the SMUS Junior Girls ‘B’ team beat host St. Andrew’s 42-25 on Thursday in Lower Island Division 2 action. Syd Martin added 11 points in the victory while Kayleigh MacKay had 10.
The Junior ‘B’ Girls will play at Vic High this Monday at 4:15 pm.
Squash
Fifteen members of the SMUS Squash team travelled to Vancouver this past weekend to compete in the Vancouver Lawn Junior Open - BC NJC Gold #3, bringing home a total of four medals.
Finishing on the podium for SMUS were Rakshith Arun (second in Boys U15); Amos Guan (third in Boys U13); Andrew MacEachern (third in Boys U15); and Keith Alexander (third in Boys U19).
Kieran MacKay won the consolation (fifth) in Boys U17. Roy Park placed fourth in Boys U19. Omar Ghoneim won the consolation side in Boys U15.
