Spartans achieve ultimate success

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

It was a banner year for the Strathmore Spartans high school basketball teams – literally.

The school played host to the ASAA 3A Provincial Championship March 14-16, where the girls captured their second provincial title in a row, while the boys earned silver medals in the process.

The Lady Spartans opened defence of their 2023 provincial title with a 66-41 win over R.F. Staples on March 14, earning them a shot at the semifinal versus George McDougall the following day. With a spot in the final on the line, the Spartans pulled out an 86-82 win.

The Strathmore High School gym was rocking for the final, as the host Spartans defeated St. Peter the Apostle 70-68 in the final to successfully defend their provincial title.

“Going in as the No. 1 seed and also winning last year, we had a lot of experience and confidence going into this year. Because it was also at our home gym, we also felt probably more confident that we would be able to pull out any close wins,” said Dion Galandy, coach of the girls’ team. “The girls came in with a great attitude, they were very composed, not excited about being up or down, they were quite calm and ended up with all the wins that we needed to do.”

Meanwhile, the boys opened the provincial championship with a 90-81 win over St. Joseph on the opening day of the tournament. 

In the semifinal, the Spartans beat Edmonton Christian 73-69, earning them a berth in the provincial championship. 

In the final, the Spartans played their hearts out, but ultimately fell 85-84 in overtime. However, it captured one of their best seasons in the team’s history, earning a provincial silver medal.

“We are a little bit heartbroken; it is always tough to lose a one-point game in overtime, but I think most of the boys have, over the last couple days, have come to recognize the significance of their achievement,” said Matt Laslo, coach of the boys’ team. “It was pretty crushing to lose by such a close margin … coaches and athletes, anytime you lose a close game like that, you just relive the memories in your brain for a couple of days thinking about ways that you could have pulled off or pulled ahead, but I am really proud of the boys and the way that they played and the way they supported each other and showed up for our community and represented our school.”