Once again, the Holy Names Knights found a spot on the podium.

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For the second time in three years, the Holy Names Knights found a spot on the podium.

The third-seeded Knights beat No. 5-ranked Hamilton St. Thomas More 80-54 on Saturday to capture the bronze medal at the OFSAA girls’ AAA basketball championship in Brampton.

“This team has two members from our silver-medal winning team two years ago in Grade 12 players Yasmine Kadri and Jane Pozzi,” Knights’ head coach Sean Culhane said. “I think the experience from two years ago went a long way in helping our team understand what it takes to compete and win at the provincial level.”

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The Knights shook off a tough 58-47 loss to No. 2 Barrie Maple Ridge in the semis to secure a medal. Barrie would go on to be a top-seeded London Mother Teresa in the gold-medal game.

“After the semifinal loss, we talked about the goal of staying focused and bringing home a medal,” Culhane said. “Our defence has been our trademark all season and when we lock in defensively, we give ourselves a great chance of being successful.”

Holy Names jumped to a 21-point lead after the first quarter and turned that into a 31-point lead at the half in the bronze-medal game.

Jane Pozzi had 24 points while Kadri finished with 20 points.Anna Pozzi added 15 points, Kel French finished with 12 points and Maysa Arabi chipped in with 10 points.

Holy Names had rolled into the semis with a 64-40 win over No. 9 Brampton St. Roch and a 56-35 victory over No. 6 Toronto Lawrence Park before falling 58-47 to Maple Ridge.

Flyers on rebound

The Leamington Flyers got back in the win column on Sunday with a 3-1 road win over the Buffalo Jr. Sabres in Ontario Junior Hockey League play.

Colton Smith, Griffin Grundner and Brayden Degelas scored single goals for the Flyers (24-3-2-1), who had a nine-game winning streak snapped on Friday in a 4-2 road loss in Milton. Goalie Marcus Vandenberg made 28 saves against the Jr. Sabres (14-11-1-1).

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Vipers crown Kings

A 41-save performance by goalie Jake Windbiel helped the LaSalle Vipers secure a 4-1 win over the Komoka Kings on Saturday in Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League play.

The Vipers (16-6-0-0) got single goals from Joseph Gingras, Max Brocklehurst, Julian Gignac and Nicholas Graniero against the Kings (4-17-1-0).

73’s drop Blades

Karson Beuglet had three goals and added an assist as the Essex 73’s rolled to a 10-3 road win over the Blenheim Blades in Bill Stobbs Division play in the Provincial Junior Hockey League on Sunday.

Luke Sherk added two goals and two assists for the 73’s (18-2-0-0) while Carter Dembinski, Patrick McManus, Nate Dowling, Austin Guevremont and Gabe Piccolo added single goals against the Blades (8-9-2-0).

Lancer basketball sweep

The Windsor Lancer men’s basketball team dropped the Nipissing Lakers 87-73 in OUA action on Saturday while the women’s team beat the Lakers 71-56.

For the men, Yohann Sam had 21 points for the Lancers (5-5), who have won four of their last five games and share first place in the West Division. Emmanuel Otong and Yashar Greaves-Saadat added 16 points each while Simeon Smith and Justice Gordon chipped in with 10 points each.

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For the women, Julia Chiarot came off the bench to score 20 points and lead the Lancers (7-3), who sit in first place in the West Division. Kali Grootenboer added 14 points and Leah Tate finished with 12 points.

Lancer hockey splits

The Windsor Lancers mens’ hockey team jumped to a three-goal lead after the first period and held on for a 3-1 win over the Lakehead Thunderwolves in OUA play on Saturday while the women’s team dropped a 2-1 decision in overtime to Ottawa.

For the men, the Lancers (8-6-0-0) got single goals from Keegan McMullen, Johnny Ulicny and Ty Toews while goalie Nathan Torchia made 30 saves.

For the women, Maggie Peterson’s goal had the Lancers (7-3-2-1) up 1-0 after 40 minutes, but Ottawa tied it with a power-play goal with less than two minutes left in regulation and won it in overtime.

Saints basketball splits

The St. Clair Saints men’s basketball remains unbeaten in OCAA play while the women’s team slipped under .500.

For the men, the Saints (8-0) got 24 points from Jacob Masters in a 102-70 win over the Niagara Knights. Galdo Tutu had 18 points and 10 rebounds off the bench while Kyle Brown-Fazekas finished with 14 points while Amari Frye added 13 points.

For the women, the Saints (3-4) got 11 points from Kaelyn Batten in a 47-39 loss to Niagara with Quinn MacIsaac added 10 points.

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