It’s a thin in numbers and large in talent roster that has all the ingredients to deliver Richmond its first B.C. senior girls basketball title in over 20 years.
What has been five seasons in the making, the McMath Wildcats have already embarked on a journey that they hope will take them to the provincial championship game come next March at the Langley Events Centre.
The Wildcats lived up to their pre-season No. 2 ranking at last weekend’s Skyline Invitational at Fraser Valley University, rolling to top honours. McMath produced three straight wins including a 66-42 triumph over Prince George’s Duchess Park in the final. It was one of six tournaments for McMath over the next three months.
Hall of fame coach Anne Gillrie-Carre and Paul Jones began working with the core of this group back in Grade 8. They lost just once as Grade 10s and finished fifth at the provincials a year ago. Along the way there has been plenty of adjusting to the roster on the fly to keep the provincial dream alive.
The team features just nine players, including one in Grade 8 and two more in Grade 10. The rotation is only eight deep for now while Hannah Partridge fully recovers from an ankle injury suffered playing soccer last spring.
“It’s quite a bit different for girls,” reasoned Gillrie-Carre. “We have lost some players to other sports, work and school which has become a bigger focus in their lives. What it means is you really can’t have any injuries, illness or foul trouble at the crucial time of the season. Fortunately, a lot of the (top teams) are in the same position as us.”
The Wildcats’ fifth place result at the 2015 provincials included a heartbreaking quarter-final loss to No. 2 seed WJ Mouat. It came on the heels of a tough defeat to Handsworth in the Lower Mainland Championship game that saw a double digit second half lead evaporate. Both games are considered part of the learning experience for a squad that is basically intact.
Throw in extensive work over the summer by many players and Wildcats are poised to take the next step. Recent Simon Fraser University commit Jessica Jones, along with Bobbi-Jo Colburn played for the U17 provincial team. Abby Zawada was with the U15 B.C. team, while Jessica Zawada, Lyric Custodio and Justine McAskill were very active in club ball.
Colburn was an all-star last weekend while Jones collected tournament MVP honours.
“We have kids who have worked hard at basketball, in particularly during the off-season,” said Paul Jones. “If they all step up then we have a chance this year. We want to be getting a steady diet of good teams throughout the season to be prepared in March. There shouldn’t be any surprises.”
McMath’s biggest threats reside in the Fraser Valley as usual, including defending champion and No. 1 ranked Brookswood, along with No. 3 Riverside. The Wildcats will be challenged when they host the Lower Mainland championships at the end of February, by the likes of No. 9 Handsworth, along with Argyle, New West and Churchill.
