The Cornwall Lions U19 girls’ basketball team took home the gold medal in their division at the Ontario Cup hosted at Queen’s University in Kingston on Mother’s Day weekend.
The Lions opened the tournament with a 55-42 win over the Thornhill Thunder. The Lions offense was led by Ella Fontaine (12 points), Yasmine Reda (11 points) and Celine El Mallah (8 points). Layla McDonell, Anya Crispin and Endryanna Jeune Popa added 6 each.
In game two, the Lions suffered their only loss (44-40) to the Midland Wolves, despite outstanding offensive performances from Reda (16 points) and McDonell (13 points).
The Lions bounced back in game 3, beating Grimsby 45-37. Fontaine again led the scoring with 12 points, while Reda, Sarah Delves, and McDonell combined for an additional 22 points. The victory sent the Lions to the gold medal game, a rematch against the Wolves.
With less that 43 seconds remaining in the gold medal game, the Lions trailed 44-42. After a time out, the Lions put up a shot that bounced off the rim, but Crispin grabbed the rebound and scored on the put-back attempt with 15 seconds remaining. A defensive stop by the Lions sent the game into overtime. At the end of the overtime period, the Lions prevailed, winning 53-48. Reda scored a game high 19 points, including five 3-pointers, while Fontaine and McDonell added 17 and 8 points respectively.
“We had some really spectacular offensive performances by Yasmine Reda and Ella Fontaine” said coach Brian Hickey, “but it was really our hustle and our defensive ball pressure that gave us a chance to win”. Bianca Bernier and Celine El Mallah’s on-ball defense was outstanding. Post players Fontaine, McDonell, Crispin, and Inleigh Morrison combined for 80 rebounds during the tournament, and Jeune Popa and McDonell made 14 and 8 steals respectively. Fontaine, McDonell and Morrison combined for 20 blocked shots. “The most satisfying part of the victory was that all 11 players made important contributions in some very close games” Said coach Hickey. “Our three first-year players, Sarah Delves, Peyton Andre, and Janessa Belanger combined for 7 rebounds and 2 assists, so it really was a complete team victory”.
