WESTLOCK — The St. Mary Sharks senior boys’ basketball team brought their season to a memorable end this weekend at the 1A North Central Zone Championships, playing two nailbiters in a row, including one game that went into overtime, to earn a silver medal.
The Sharks opened the 1A Zones, which were hosted on March 8 and 9 at the Westlock Rotary Spirit Centre, with a decisive 84-29 victory over Kinuso on Friday afternoon.
Pitted against Canadian Covenant Reformed School (CCRS) from Neerlandia in the second round, the Sharks were in for a match that coach Ty Snell called “the most exciting game I’ve ever been a part of.”
Snell said the St. Mary boys came out pretty flat at the start, allowing CCRS to gain an early lead that lasted into the fourth quarter when the Sharks managed to turn things around.
“Luckily, our boys were able to chip away at CCRS’ lead, and then Brody Conquergood hit the most important shot of our season to send the game into overtime (with a 63-63 tie),” said Snell.
During the five-minute overtime — a rarity in a high-scoring game like basketball — the Sharks were able to pull it out, with the final score coming in at 73-69.
That pushed St. Mary into the championship against the Breton Cougars, who had defeated Swan Hills and Gerard Redmond earlier in the tournament.
While the Sharks did manage to gain the lead against Breton, the Cougars were able to overtake St. Mary by the end and win 69-63.
"That final against Breton was a battle from start to finish. Our boys were exhausted, and unfortunately, we just didn’t have enough left in the tank to hold on to the lead,” said Snell.
"It is a disappointing way to end the season, but our coaching staff is unbelievably proud of this group of boys and how much they improved and how hard they fought all season.”
Snell also gave a shout-out to his graduating players: Abraham Quilonio, Joshua Darr, Marquis Masongsong, Brad Wade and Jackson Churchill.
