SHS basketball sets high bar to match in 2024-25 season
By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Following the conclusion of the provincial tournament hosted at Strathmore High School a resounding success for both the senior boys and girls teams, coaches Dion Galandy and Matt Laslo are already looking towards next year’s season.
“We will be losing five grade 12’s … we will have a pretty significant(ly) different team going into next season. I do not know what kind of year it will be, whether it will be a transition year or whether we will compete,” said Galandy regarding the girls’ team. “It will all depend on … the players who are on the team – will they work on their skills in the offseason to become better? That is what a lot of teams do is they will continue to be good because their offseason programs are very good.”
Strathmore High School’s senior girls basketball team concluded their regular season going into provincials as the No. 1 seed, and successfully defended their title as provincial champions this year.
Of the five graduating players, three of them were on the starting lineup, holding significant positions on the roster. Galandy said they will be difficult players to be able to replace.
“It would be pretty cool (to go for a hat trick), however, lots of things would have to go right and the players would have to improve … for those kids to step it up for next year,” he said. “It is not out of the realm of possibility, and not something they couldn’t do, but they are going to have to work on the offseason for that to be the case.”
Laslo explained the senior boys team has been crawling their way up the provincial ladder over the past several years, finishing fourth, third, then second in each consecutive season.
He said the boys who will be sticking around to play again next year are eager to continue their run and take the top spot in 2025.
“They recognize how close they are and they want to get back to the same spot next year and pull it off this time,” he said.
The boys team will be losing six of their roster to graduation, each of the players having been recruited to play a variety of sports through their post-secondary educations.
Laslo described this season for the boys as the most successful they have ever had under his watch, winning four tournaments and placing second in two others, prior to provincials.
“It was a really successful season, and the boys have nothing to hang their heads with,” he said. “They should be really proud of the way that they played and came together as a team.”