For only the second time in the school鈥檚 history, the Mark R. Isfeld Ice are sending a team to the junior girls鈥� provincial basketball tournament.

The weekend started in winning fashion for the Ice, with a decisive 70-35 victory over Brentwood College.

All players hit the scoresheet and played ample minutes. Phoebe Cunningham led the Ice with 20 points, Rylan Boccabella had 16 and received player of the game honours for her stellar defence and hot shooting. Lilianne Bourget added five three-pointers for the Ice. Nayell Farvaque added timely minutes and energy from the perimeter.

That set up a semifinal against SMUS from Victoria, a team that Isfeld had only beaten narrowly at the start of the season. SMUS executed its game plan and built a lead going into the fourth quarter. The Ice stuck to their game plan and finished the game on a 12-3 run to win the game 44-40. Rylan Boccabella hit a timely three, Jayla Robinson was clutch from the free throw line, going three-for-four in the final minute. Cunningham rebounded her only miss and put it back to give the Ice the lead for good. The turning point in the game was Amelia Kuhn standing her ground on defence and taking a charge that ignited the crowd鈥檚 appreciation. Janel Follis was player of the game, gritting out an ankle injury she sustained in the North Island final the previous weekend.

鈥淪he is the glue that holds the Ice together and her return to action gave the girls poise and confidence to finish the game,鈥� said coach Colin Cunningham,

The victory set up an exciting Island final in front of a healthy, boisterous crowd against No. 3 provincially ranked Oak Bay. The Ice had beaten Oak Bay twice earlier in the season by a narrow margin, but the Breakers were firing on all cylinders. Makenna Banks shut down the Oak Bay top scorer (and tournament MVP) Adelle Bergmann, holding her to just mine points for the game. It was the supporting cast for Oak Bay that kept hitting timely shots. Isfeld battled to the very end, falling 56-40. Gillian Galik provided a spark for the Ice, playing through a hamstring injury. Boccabella once again led the Ice with 12 points. Cunningham added nine points and was awarded player of the game for her rebounding and battle against the taller Oak Bay post players.

Crosstown Vanier had an amazing run, narrowly losing to SMUS in the third- and fourth-place game in an effort to qualify for provincials. Samantha Fournier was rewarded with a well-deserved tournament all-star and most outstanding defensive player for her efforts.

Boccabella and Cunningham were tournament first-team all-stars and Follis was a second-team all-star.

Isfeld is off to provincials on Thursday morning. They are ranked No. 11 of 24 going into the tournament and play Kelly Road from Prince George in their first game.

鈥淪pecial thanks go out to all the Isfeld parents (extra, extra thanks to Heather Follis for creating the tournament program and Heather Banks her background work for the concession) who tirelessly volunteered all weekend to put on a great tournament and showcase the school and our community,鈥� said coach Cunningham. 鈥淭hank you to Heidi Hyser, Larry Peterson, Craig Follis and Kent Milburn for their effort on the all star committee. And a huge thank you to the officials and scorekeepers for their time and dedication. Last but not least, injured player Cate Shaver has been an amazing manager and support to the team all season.鈥�