History was written Wednesday night in the Foothills high school basketball circuit.
New champions were crowned in the revamped Foothills Athletic Council with Diamond Valley's Oilfields Drillers senior girls and High River's Notre Dame Collegiate Timberwolves senior boys rising to the occasion to win the first of its kind high school basketball banners.
"It was just keeping our cool, we didn't want to crack under pressure," said Drillers Grade 12 Shona Nicholson. "In the past, we've been scrambly sometimes so it was really important to stick together and know that no matter what happens, we were embracing it as a team because we practice it that way."
Oilfields, the undefeated top seed in the FAC, won the banner with a convincing 71-32 result over High River's Highwood Mustangs.
"It was a little closer at half than I would have liked," said Drillers head coach Robert Miller. "The girls started moving the ball better in the second half, that just opened the court a little bit and gave them the time and space they needed to finish those baskets."
The title has been building in Diamond Valley.
Oilfields hosted the provincials in 2022 and a strong core of Grade 10s on that team has been part of the program for three seasons.
"Those Grade 10s put in a lot of effort and improved a bunch over the last three years," the coach added. "And now as seniors, it's nice to see them take home the banner."
Drillers senior Reese Grover credited those who've come before them for setting the team up for success in claiming its first FAC senior varsity banner.
"It means a lot and it just shows the hard work we've put into it and all of the girls before us," she said. "When we were in Grade 10 and looked up to those Grade 12s, they were amazing and took the time with us to work on our skills and improve us for the future.
"I'm so thankful for them for giving us that opportunity."
Victory for NDC
The battle for a first FAC senior boys title for a pair of schools fittingly went down to the wire.
Notre Dame Collegiate started strong, weathered a storm and finished the job in besting the top-seed and host Strathcona-Tweedsmuir Spartans 63-56.
"It's incredible, we've got fantastic kids at our school, they put in the work and they're fantastic ambassadors on and off the court," said Timberwolves head coach Connor MacDonald. "It's a big testament to them and their work that they were able to pull it off."
The Timberwolves built a 17-point lead at the half with the Spartans pushing the pace in the third quarter and drawing even early in the fourth.
A pair of key three pointers from the visitors in front of their passionate travelling crowd pushed a 54-54 game into one that was out of reach in the final seconds.
"They're a strong team and have had our number most of the year, but our guys responded well today and they made the shots when it counted," MacDonald added. "We've got the best fans in the league, they travel with us, they cheer on our guys win or lose, we're really lucky to have them and couldn't have done it without them as well. We love the energy and everything they do for us."
Spartans head coach Ken Zelez said his team clawed back after falling behind in the first half, a trend that's played out at times this season.
"We just couldn't keep up with their momentum and they brought all of their fans with them and they're a real energy team and an absolute joy to play against," Zelez said. "In the end, they hit those two threes that were daggers. We thought we had them with our energy and our pressing.
"We got on the glass with our hustle guys, they really got a lot of rebounds out of that, but we weren't able to convert."
STS will be the site of the 2A boys South Central Zone tournament on the second weekend of March, a competition that will feature the Spartans, Drillers and Timberwolves. The 2A girls zones competition is being held in Hanna.
The FAC is in its first season under its format featuring teams at the 2A level in Oilfields, STS, NDC, Highwood and Holy Cross Collegiate.
The Holy Trinity Academy Knights, a 4A school, and Strathmore Spartans, who compete at 3A, moved out of the league ahead of the 2023-24 season with the Foothills Falcons previously opting out to compete in an exhibition and tournament schedule.
