The following is being distributed at the request of School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador:

Girls provincial hockey and  four provincial boys basketball tournaments this weekend

School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador will be hosting five provincial tournaments this coming weekend. Four high school champions will be declared in boys basketball and also in girls hockey.

Roncalli High in Port Saunders will host the girls hockey championships. This is only the second year in girls hockey sponsored by School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador. Seven teams will travel to Port Saunders with the hopes of winning the coveted championship banner. Facing off in Division 1 will be King Academy (Harbour Breton), Holy Heart of Mary (St. John�s), Fogo Island Central High and Roncalli High (Port Saunders. Competing in Division 2 will be Holy Spirit High (Manuels), Ascension Collegiate (Bay Roberts) and St. James Regional High (Port aux Basques). Games are scheduled to get underway 9 a.m. Thursday with opening ceremonies set for 1 p.m. Round robin games continue throughout Thursday and Friday. A skills competition will take place 1 p.m. on Friday. The top two teams meet in the cross-overs 10 and noon on Saturday with the winners facing off in the championship game at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Stella Maris Academy in Trepassey is the host school for the provincial 2A boys basketball tournament. Eight teams will compete in two divisions vying for the right to advance to the playoff round. Competing in the gold division will be Stella Maris Academy, Bay dEspoir Academy, Random Island Academy and Belanger Memorial (Doyles). The blue division will see action from Riverwood Academy (Wings Point), Mountain Field Academy (Forteau), Holy Name of Mary Academy (Lawn) and Grandy�s River Collegiate (Burnt Islands). Round robin games will be played throughout Thursday and Friday starting at 11 a.m. The top two teams from each division will advance to Saturday�s cross over games at 9:30 and 11:15. The championship game is Saturday afternoon.

Baltimore High in Ferryland is the host school for the boys 3A basketball provincials. Eight teams will compete for top honours in this event as well. The schedule starts 9 a.m on Thursday and continuing throughout Thursday and Friday. Competing teams in Division A include St. Catherines (Salmonier), Pasadena Academy, Harriot Curtis Collegiate (St. Anthony) and St. James Region High (Port aux Basques). Playing off in Division B will be J. M. Olds Collegiate (Twillingate), Elwood High (Deer Lake), Baltimore High and Menihek High (Labrador City). The provincial banner will be awarded after the championship game set for 2:30 on Saturday.

Holy Heart of Mary High in St. John�s is the site of the boys 4A basketball championships. Once again eight teams will be vying for the provincial champion title. Bishop�s College (St. John�s), Fatima Academy (St. Brides), Gonzaga High (St. John�s) and Regina High (Corner Brook) will face off against each other in Division A. Playing round robin action in Division B will be Prince of Wales Collegiate (St. John�s), Herdman Collegiate (Corner Brook), Holy Heart of Mary High (St. John�s) and Gander Collegiate. The first game of the tournament is scheduled for 1:15 p.m. at Thursday at Holy Heart. The round robin portion of the tournament concludes Friday evening. The top four teams advance to play on Saturday in cross-over games with the winners facing off in the championship game at 5:30 p.m.

St. John�s is the site of yet another basketball tournament this weekend as Bishop�s College plays host to 10 teams competing in the Fair Play Division. The Fair Play Division is an opportunity for schools to compete in a very inclusive atmosphere where all players are guaranteed meaningful playing time in each game. A specific set of fair play rules govern this tournament. The Fair Play Division also give schools the opportunity to field a second totally different team, thereby increasing participation in that sport at their school.

Teams competing in Division A Fair Play include Bishop�s College, Tricentia Academy (Arnolds Cove), Heritage Collegiate (Lethbridge), Leo Burke Academy (Bishop�s Falls) and Baccalieu Collegiate (Old Perlican). Seeing action in Division B will be O�Donel High (Mount Pearl), Dunne Memorial (St. Mary�s), Clarenville High, St. Catherines High (Salmonier) and Marystown Central High. The tournament is scheduled to start 3 p.m. on Thursday at Bishop�s. Games continue all day Friday at both Bishop�s and O�Donel, and into Saturday as well. The championship game is scheduled for 5 p.m., Saturday at Bishop�s College.

In its continuing effort to emphasize sportsmanship, School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador, in conjunction with Crime Stoppers Newfoundland and Labrador are sponsoring the Sportsmanship First Program. In addition to the Team Sportsmanship Award, each team will nominate an individual player to receive an individual sportsmanship medal.

The top teams will be rewarded with gold and silver medals, while the winner of the championship game will also receive the coveted championship banner.

All the School Sports Newfoundland and Labrador tournaments are sponsored by School Milk Foundation/Dairy Farmers of Newfoundland and Crime Stoppers Newfoundland and Labrador.

Media contact: Karen Richard, (709) 729-2795

Convenors:
Boys 2A Basketball - Jacinta McGrath, (709) 438-2361, (709) 438-2442 (Fax)
Boys 3A Basketball - Robin McGrath, (709) 432-2090, (709) 432-2262(Fax)
Boys 4A Basketball - Andrew Hickey or Bob Thompson, (709) 754-1600, (709) 754-0855 (Fax)
Boys Fair Play Basketball - Bob Pike, (709) 579-4107, (709) 579-4109 (Fax)
Girls Hockey - Mike White, (709) 861-3624, (709) 861-3206 (Fax)

2005 03 17                        9:50 a.m.