The Oilfields Drillers carried a banner season into a fourth-place result at provincials, a best-ever finish for the school's basketball program.
Oilfields won its first two games to advance to the medal round at the Alberta Schools’ Athletic Association 2A Girls Basketball Provincial Championships at Calgary’s Rundle College.
“I told the girls they need to hold their heads high, top four in the province is something to be proud of and doesn’t come along very often,” said Drillers head coach James Holladay. “The way we played, we are able to run with the best teams in the province. This group of girls really are something special, they worked hard all season, they never give up, but more importantly they are the nicest human beings.
“My hope is they have learned something more than just basketball that they can take into their future.”
Fresh off a dominant run through league playoffs and as hosts of the South Central Zone championships in Diamond Valley, Oilfields opened provincials with a 66-31 win over Onoway in the tournament icebreaker.
Sarah Sillito had 12 points, Madi Brown added seven and four steals with Calie Bates bringing down eight boards and five points.
From there, the Drillers held off the No. 4 seed Edmonton Christian 59-56 in a thrilling quarterfinal match.
Brooklyn Holladay had a double-double with 20 points and 13 boards with Mackenzie Wionzek cleaning up in the paint with 18 rebounds, five blocks and nine points and Cassie Crane adding 17 boards.
Oilfields, the No. 5 seed at provincials, took on the top seed Calgary Christian in the first of two semifinals and lost a close 65-55 contest. Holladay had 15 points with Wionzek again dominant with 19 rebounds and 10 points.
“Calgary Christian has the provincial experience and came out gunning and we took a few hits before we settled down, we won three of the four quarters, but if you don’t play all four you have a real hard time,” the coach added. “But our girls worked so hard, no give up, and we made it a great game for the crowd, I’m so proud of this group of girls, they really wanted it and never gave up.”
In the bronze medal match, Taber Christian outlasted Oilfields by a 59-48 score. Immanuel Christian, the No. 2 seed, took the provincial gold with Calgary Christian claiming silver.
Anya Pain had 14 rebounds and five blocks, Crane had 10 points and eight boards, Holladay added 11 points and seven rebounds with guard Josie Raugust scoring six.
Allison Biggs, Oilfields’ defensive stopper, once again played the role of shutting down the top player on the opposition all weekend.
“She never gave an inch and flustered every girl she was assigned to the entire weekend,” the coach added. “You don’t see her contributions on the scoreboard, but she allows us to be in each game by working over the best girl on the other team all game long.”
