WCI Red Devils celebrate ‘historical’ OFSAA A silver

The OFSAA A senior boys’ basketball silver medalist Woodstock CI Red Devils. In the front row, left to right are Zack Molinaro, Ben Hutchins, Tyler Smith, Diangelo Sanfilippo and Kael Wettlaufer. In the back, are Coach Eric Molinaro, Community Coach Andrew Heggie, Jack Carnegie, Colton Thomson, Angus Jacques, Oscar Berkeley, Will Halward, Derek Gravel, Nicolas Hagen-Johnson, Preston Hilderley, Team Manager Graeme Arthur, Assistant Coach Chris Coyle and Assistant Coach Jason Poole. (Jeff Tribe photo)

Jeff Tribe, Echo Correspondent

The Woodstock CI (WCI) Red Devils senior boys’ basketball team would have preferred gold.

But that doesn’t diminish an Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations A silver-medal finish believed to represent the highest level of team achievement in the school’s sports history.

“I’m still going to wear that medal proud,” said WCI’s Jack Carnegie following a 55-45 defeat to the Windsor ESC E.J. Lajeunesse Royals on March 5 at Woodstock St. Mary’s. “We’re here, faced a great team,” Carnegie continued. “Unfortunately, we lost, but it doesn’t downplay our season or what we achieved.”

The 4-0 third-seeded Red Devils faced number one in the championship final. Also undefeated, the Royals received top billing for a record featuring a win over the top-seeded AAA team in Ontario.

Will Halward, a ball-handling guard with a sweet three-point stroke, the ability to post up offensively and ‘board it’ at both ends of the court, put the Red Devils on his back through the opening quarter. Halward fuelled a 16-8 lead by knocking down a quartet of three-point field goals, backing up coach Eric Molinaro’s assessment as the tournament’s best all-around player.

“We knew already, but he proved it.”

The Royals battled back, closing the deficit to four in the final two minutes of the second quarter with full-court pressure, defensive intensity and by finding their outside shooting touch. Lucas Kwapisz hit a three-point field goal in the final minute, captain Jack Zhang’s runner with 3.4 seconds remaining giving E.J. Lajeunesse a 25-24 lead at the half.

The Royals opened up a five-point (36-31) lead on a Zhang corner three with 4:35 remaining in the third quarter, but Halward knocked down his sixth trey just past the midway point. Neither team scored for a back-and-forth, defensively intense two-and-a-half minutes, with Zhang skying to pull down an offensive rebound. However, WCI’s Kael Wettlaufer executed a forceful steal as he came down with the ball, outletting for a rush upcourt. Known as much for quality defence, rebounding and screen-setting as his offence, Wettlaufer completed a nifty series by knocking down a three from the top of the key, giving WCI its final lead at 37-36.

The Royals responded, David Yengo Kabuya and Zhang knocking down threes to regain momentum, establishing a five-point (42-37) lead heading into the final quarter.

The Red Devils battled back, with Halward and Derek Gravel on strong takes to the basket, the latter scoring his third tough two-pointer against high-quality defence. However, back-to-back threes and ongoing pressure re-established the Royals advantage, opening to nine with 4:55 remaining. WCI cut it to six, but with time running out, had to extend defensively after an E.J. Lajeunesse squad content to work the clock, ultimately contributing to a ten-point victory.

“They hit some threes in the fourth, pulled away a little bit and we had to get a little desperate,” said Molinaro.

Halward finished with a game-high 24 points, Gravel added nine, Wettlaufer five, Preston Hilderley four and Zack Molinaro three. Zhang had 16 for the Royals and Kwapisz added 12.

“Will led, kept us positive, kept us in it,” credited Hilderley, also giving the Royals ‘props’ as a great team. “Should have won, we were there, we were competitive. Right there through the whole game.”

Hilderley appreciated the support from WCI fans and alumni filling the stands through an exciting back-and-forth final more than living up to OFSAA championship expectations.

“It wasn’t the result they wanted, but I hope we put on a good show.”

“Just fell short,” said Wettlaufer. “A heck of a run but it is what it is.”

Entering as Western Ontario Secondary Schools Athletics Association (WOSSAA) A champions with a 64-51 victory over London Monsignor Bruyere in that final, the Red Devils opened their OFSAA A run with a hard-fought win over 17th seed Aurora ESC Renaissance at WCI.

“We just kept rolling from there,” said Halward of subsequent double-digit victories over 14th-seed Toronto Crawford Adventist Academy, sixth-seeded Timmins O’Gorman, and the eventual bronze medalist seventh-seed Breslau Woodland Christian Cavaliers. The Hamilton ESAC Jaguars (15th seed) defeated the Oshawa Monsignor John Pereyma Patriots (9th) in the consolation final.

“We had to beat four great teams just to get here,” said Hilderley.

“It’s hard in the moment,” Carnegie added, “but it’s a great achievement for our school.”

It would have been even more special to win OFSAA as host, said Halward, who played all 160 minutes of five provincial final games, but the Red Devils had certainly left their game on the court.

“We gave it everything we had.”

Obviously, coach Molinaro would have preferred gold medals, but in giving credit to a juggernaut of a Royals team, he also praised his Red Devils squad for their historical achievement.

“We’re the second-best team in OFSAA A,” he said, looking back on a program trailblazed by coaches including Peter Ewing, Lance Elliott and Dave Alexander, a torch picked up by Chris Coyle, who mentored Molinaro for 20 years and is still assisting he and Jason Poole.

“A lot of good coaches, kids, parents and hence, teams,” said Coyle. “It’s just cool to see it carry on.”

“We earned our way here and we competed,” Molinaro summed up. “It’s the evolution of the legacy of the program to host OFSAA and be ready to play in this moment, at this level.”

Physically exhausted from dual responsibilities of coach and convenor, but still exhilarated from its execution, an at-times emotional Molinaro reflected on an event significant in WCI sporting history and also arguably Woodstock’s.

OFSAA A came together as the result of four host sites, including Notre Dame, along with many contributions, beginning with the OFSAA committee. Molinaro also cited Pat Sloan at St. Mary’s, Scott Awde and Jerry Kleiner from College Avenue, and a cadre of community and in particular student volunteers. Students embraced responsibility for everything from school liaison roles, scorekeeping and updating scores on the website and shuttling food, largely without direction.

“They took on a huge role.”

The conclusion was a 600-plus fan, standing-room-only event featuring a multigenerational ‘Sea of Red’, but also representation from The Oxford Attack, across Oxford County and beyond.

“The basketball community was strong,” Molinaro concluded. “What an event for Woodstock, so cool, just so cool.”