The St. Joseph’s Catholic High School Jaguars made history, obtaining their first Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) AA boys basketball championship with a 58-46 victory over Ashbury College. The Number 7-ranked Jaguars stunned the Number 5-ranked hometown favorites in a dominant gold medal game.
Entering the tournament with a sparkling 31-2 record, St. Joseph’s steamrolled through 20 teams to be the first Barrie, Ontario, school in 28 years to win the AA championship. Only two schools from the Georgian Bay Secondary School Association (GBSSA) had done it before: Innisdale Secondary in 1996 and Barrie North C.I. in 1993.
The title game did not start in their favor, though, with Ashbury jumping to an 8-0 advantage. The Jaguars, however, returned with an 11-1 run, capped by a buzzer-beating three-pointer, to lead 17-15 at the end of the first quarter. Their strong defensive presence in the second quarter held Ashbury to a mere eight points, their second-lowest scoring quarter of the tournament, and St. Joseph’s was able to take a 36-23 halftime lead.
Ashbury, led by point guard Jalen Flindall, mounted a second-half comeback attempt, but St. Joseph’s was always in command. Led by six-foot-six forward Will McCauley, the Jaguars stayed in control, ahead 49-36 after three quarters and never letting up. McCauley and six-foot-four point guard Ryan Harris each scored 17 points to pace the victory, while Flindall led Ashbury with 19 points.
The Jaguars’ title march was dominant from the start. They began with a 68-28 win over Number 13-ranked ESC Theriault, then defeated Number 10-ranked Lo-Ellen Park 68-44. A 73-57 quarterfinal win over Number 20 All-Saints brought them to a hard-fought 58-56 semifinal win over Number 6 Kings Christian, which set the stage for their historic final.
The victory is a milestone for basketball in Barrie, marking the city’s first OFSAA AA championship in nearly three decades. The Jaguars' achievement is sure to inspire a new wave of young athletes and reinforce Barrie’s growing presence in high school basketball.
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