Less than two weeks before high school basketball’s postseason begins, the Holy Cross Crusaders served notice yet again they are deserving of their number one ranking among Senior AA girls teams.
The Surrey school rolled through three opponents at the 15th annual 26th Street Tournament hosted by York House high school in Vancouver last weekend.
The Crusaders clinched top spot by dismantling the host York House Tigers 68-26 in Saturday night’s championship game. The Tigers are eighth in the provincial rankings.
Holy Cross reached the final by defeating St. Michael’s University Blue Jags 70-32 in the first round, then topping the Southridge Storm 73-28 in a semifinal contest. Both the Blue Jags and Southridge were given honorable mention in the provincial rankings.
The 26th Street Tournament featured six of the top 10 teams in the province, also including the third-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas Fighting Saints of North Vancouver, the sixth-ranked Sa-Hali Sabres of Kamloops, the seventh-ranked Duchess Park Condors of Prince George and the ninth-ranked G.W. Graham Grizzlies from Chilliwack.
Michelle Bos of the Crusaders was named the tournament MVP (Most Valuable Player), while Rachel Beauchamp, Nicole Vander Helm and Amy Sprangers were tournament all-stars.