We have loved seeing St Catherine’s students embracing the opportunity to get back into the School Sport Program that we very much missed last year. Our amazing team of Sport coaches, coupled with the dedication and commitment of our students has seen an incredibly successful term.

See below for the term’s wrap up:

GSV Weekly Sport

Tennis

Approximately 60 Year 7 & 8 students, 25 Year 9 & 10 students and 30 Year 11 & 12 students participated in GSV Tennis. Thanks to the fantastic coaching provided by the Victorian Tennis Academy, all students involved saw development in their skills and match play. The Inter A & B Teams had superb seasons, finishing atop their respective zone ladders and progressing to the finals at Melbourne Park. The B Team rounded out their season with an impressive 3 sets to 1 victory in the Grand Final, claiming the GSV B Grade Premiership. The A Team defeated MLC in the semi-final to progress to the Grand Final against Lowther Hall which turned out to be a match for the ages. After four sets, both teams were tied on 2 sets and 22 games each. To settle the match, the top three pairings played tie-breakers. With St Catherine’s winning the first and Lowther Hall the second, all eyes were on Angelina (Angie) Chumbley and Zenan (Amy) Chen who went down 8-10 in a heart stopping final tie-breaker. We couldn’t be prouder of the spirit and fight these girls showed!

Softball

In their third year working with our much-loved Softball Coach, Tony (Coach T) Black, our softballers continued on their upwards trajectory. Our Inter team was a standout, going through the season undefeated, winning their zone and entering the finals as the number one seed. They won their semi-final clash 11-8 and progressed to the Grand Final. With scores locked going into the final innings, Sacre Coeur pulled out some great plays to snatch victory from our team. Again, we are so proud of the determination shown by this team, as well as their graciousness in coming A Grade Runners Up.

GSV Carnival Sport

Swimming

Great numbers attended GSV Swimming training sessions throughout the term, where our athletes honed their swimming fitness. Led by former Australian Olympic Coach Ian Pope, our swimmers worked on their sprinting skills and relay changeovers. The team finished 4^th in their Preliminary Carnival and progressed to the Division Two Championship Carnival where they placed 5^th. Six individuals and three relay teams competed in the GSV Finals, placing these swimmers in the top 10 across the GSV schools. Special mention to Emma Gregory (Year 10 Backstroke) and Annabel Taylor (Year 8 Butterfly) on swimming PBs!

Diving

The St Catherine’s team finished 5^th in their Preliminary Carnival which saw the team also progress to the Division Two Championship Carnival, where they finished in 8^th place.

Rowing

Junior and Intermediate Highlights

• All junior crews finished and two out of four intermediate crews qualified for A Finals (Top 4) at the State Championship Regatta. This saw a return of three Bronze, two Silver and three Gold medals.
• The Inter Cross won gold in the A Final in the Division 3 Coxed Four at the Head of Schoolgirls Regatta.

Senior Highlights

• Our senior crews had an incredible season, achieving numerous wins. This included a quinella at the Nagambie Regatta and at the Australian Henley Regatta, as well as a Gold Medal for the Ferg and Bronze Medal for the Scot at the State Championships.
• For the first time in our 33-year history of rowing, St Catherine’s won Gold in the A Final in both the Division 1 and 2 School Girl Coxed Eight races at the Head of the Schoolgirls Regatta.
• At the Australian Rowing Championships, the Ferg won an impressive Silver Medal, while the Scot won Gold in the Schoolgirl 500m Sprint.

Engagement Sports

Triathlon

Twenty students competed in the GSV Triathlon on a wet and windy morning in Altona (six as individuals, 14 as part of a team). All students competed with great determination to see St Catherine’s finish 6^th overall, out of 17 schools! Special mentions must go to Emma Peele (Year 7) and Madeleine (Maddie) Hooker (Year 11) who won Bronze Medals in the Junior and Senior Individual Events, respectively.

Girlsail Event

St Catherine’s entered two boats in the more advanced Division 1 competition, which had a total of 18 teams entered. After the first series of racing, Rosie Oxley (Year 10) and Rhea Werner (Year 9) qualified for the gold fleet finals and finished in an impressive 7^th place overall. Lilly Fogarty (Year 8), who sailed with Katharine Soutter (Year 9) and Phoebe Hayne (Year 9), finished in 3rd position in the Silver fleet.

Training has commenced for Term 2 sports and we are looking forward to getting back into Hockey, Netball, AFL, Water Polo and Cross-Country Running. A date to remember is Friday 7 May when our senior AFL team will compete against Lauriston for the annual Huntingtower/Heyington Shield Match. After a year off the footy field, our team will be keen to retain the shield and we would love the St Catherine’s community to come out and support them. Look out for more details early in Term 2.