Strong bounce-back snares fifth for STM girls

One loss wasn't going to rain on the St. Thomas More Knights' parade.

The senior girls basketball team showed character and resilience in rebounding from a quarter-final setback to finish the B.C. 2-A provincial championships as the fifth-best team.

By trumping St. John Brebeuf 74-42 and Seycove 52-37, the No. 3-seeded Burnaby squad put a positive close to what was overall a tremendous year.

The lone blemish of the tourney, last Thursday's 71-65 loss at the hands of the St. Thomas Aquinas Fighting Saints, may have dashed their championship final hopes, but it didn't derail their determination to finish strong.

In last Saturday's battle for fifth place, a big third quarter spirited STM ahead in what had been a three-point game at halftime. The North Shore squad actually garnered a 18-15 advantage thanks to a 12-6 run, but seven straight points by the Knights put them back in front 22-18 by the break.

While Seycove scored first to narrow the margin, STM exploded with a 19-3 surge to lock it up. Gigi Gaspar counted a team-high 20 points, while Cassiel Penalosa netted 11 points and Bella Gaspar added eight.

It followed a well-rounded decision over Brebeuf, where the Knights led by 10 points after one quarter and 16 at halftime. Gigi Gaspar netted 15 points and Ryland Monks tallied 12 points, all from three-point range. Chipping in with 12 points of her own was Tatiana Yau.

After opening the tournament with a resounding 104-28 triumph over Nechako Valley, the Knights crossed paths with the same opponent they faced in the B.C. Cathlolics final nearly six weeks ago.

That vaunted victory, 51-36 over the Fighting Saints in late January, was not a template the Knights could follow however.

Aquinas erased a 33-32 halftime deficit with a strong third quarter that put them up 48-41. The Knights put in a strong challenge over the final eight minutes, tying it at 61-61 on Penalosa's trey with 2:26 to play. However, the underdog Fighting Saints took control down the stretch with a 10-3 run, finishing the game with 39.7 success rate on field goals. They also cashed in on second chances with an 18-11 advantage over STM.

Gigi Gaspar netted 29 points, six rebounds and six steals, while twin sister Bella contributed 18 points and four steals. Penalosa chipped in 15 points and five steals in a game where the Knights collected 23 points off turnovers.

Earning second-team all-star honours were Penalosa and Gigi Gaspar.