Champion of Champions: Girls Teams of the Year

Celebrating some of the girls sports teams that have done well this year. Here are eight below. 

Baradene College of the Sacred Heart First XI Football
https://www.collegesportmedia.co.nz/football/back-to-back-nzss-football-titles-for-baradene
Last year they were first time national champions, this year they successfully defended their title, at the annual Lotto Premier Tournament in Christchurch. There were eight players at nationals for the first time in this team, including five year nine and 10 players. Baradene put their win down to handling pressure and working well as a team. Baradene beat Auckland rivals Epsom Girls’ Grammar School on penalties in their semi-final and then beat Hamilton’s Hillcrest High School 2-0 in the final. Co-captains Hannah Pilley and Margaret Wood, while Prue Catton scored eight goals.
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Hamilton Girls’ High School First XV Rugby
https://www.facebook.com/pg/NZSchoolgirlsrugby/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1623668387768594
The most dominant team at this year’s Top 4 tournament, Hamilton Girls’ High School defended their Hine Pounamu Trophy title with two emphatic wins over well-prepared and strong opposition. Hamilton GHS defeated Manukura 50-7 on day one. In the final they beat Christchurch Girls’ High School 58-7, 10 tries to one, racing to an early three-try lead. Lock Veisinia Fakalelu was a standout in the final with a top game and three tries to her name, while first five-eighth Kiriana Nolan controlled the attack. Nolan later made her Women’s NPC debut for Waikato.
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Rangiora High School Futsal
https://www.collegesportmedia.co.nz/football/rangiora-high-school-and-st-kents-win-nzss-girls-futsal-titles
Won an extremely hard-fought NZSS Senior Girls Futsal tournament in Wellington in March. Rangiora HS edged Hamilton’s Hillcrest High School 3-2 in a thriller in the final. Rangiora were deserved champions of the senior girls tournament, but not without playing three tough games on day two and amid drama in the closing stages of the final that almost went to a penalty shootout. Rangiora had led 2-0 at halftime in the senior final, through goals to Abbey Neilson and Madi Silcock and then protected a 2-1 lead following a goal to Hillcrest’s Chloe Henderson right up to the final two minutes of play. Henderson scored again to lock it up, but Rangiora through Madi Silcock found the back of the net one last time. Rangiora had defeated Wellington Girls’ College 5-1 in their quarter-final, in a closer match that the score suggested and then defeated Auckland’s Baradene College 7-3 in their semi-final.  Rangiora’s captain Macey Fraser won both the golden boot award for scoring the most goals and the tournament MVP.
 
St Peter’s School Netball
https://www.collegesportmedia.co.nz/netball/team-culture-key-to-st-peters-netballs-nzss-tournament-success
For the second time in three years, the first time participants were also the first time NZSS netball tournament champions. St Peter’s School, Cambridge, joined 2017 winners Howick College in winning their maiden title in their first attempt in the tournament in Nelson in October. St Peter’s went through the tournament unbeaten, beating 2016 winners Saint Kentigern College 35-31 in the final. Prior to the decider, St Peter’s had beaten Howick (41-25), Epsom Girls’ Grammar School (49-38)and Manukura (37-25) in knockout matches. The first Waikato school to win the title since 2003.
 
St Cuthbert’s College First XI Hockey
https://www.facebook.com/pg/collegesportmedia/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1186748921513304
Won their third Federation Cup NZSS hockey tournament since 2012 with a tense 1-0 win in the final over Christchurch Girls’ High School after scoring 40 goals in six wins en route to the decider. This included an 8-0 quarter-final win over St Andrew’s College and a 3-0 semi-final win over Auckland Diocesan School for Girls. Previously they beat Dio 5-1 in the final of the Auckland Supercity competition. The team provided three of the leading goal scorers at the Federation Cup tournament, with Breana Catley scoring 11 goals, Katie Doar nine and Sophie Hildesley eight. Defender Katie Doar also played for the Black Sticks this year and recently won the College Sport Auckland Supreme Sports award for 2019.
 
St Margaret’s Rowing Eight
Won the prestigious Levin Jubilee Cup for the U18 Eight at this year’s Maadi Cup rowing regatta, as part of an overall medal haul of three golds (also winning the U17 fours and U16 eights) and one silver (U18 pair). Beat local schools Waikato Diocesan and St Peter’s School Cambridge into second and third in the final on Lake Karapiro. Also won the SISS race, beating multiple winners Rangi Ruru. The winning winning crew was: Rosa Foster, Lucy Botting, Charlotte Darry, Anna Wilson, Kate Harris, Gaby McKellar, Emma Roberts, Sophie Lightbourne, and Claudia Bethell. This was their seventh Levin Jubilee Cup win overall and their first since in 2015. Won the Most Outstanding Girls Team award at Canterbury secondary sport’s recent Zonta Awards.

Westlake Girls’ High School Volleyball
https://www.facebook.com/pg/collegesportmedia/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1078551932333004
Westlake Girls' High School defended their NZSS Division 1 Girls volleyball crown in Palmerston North in late March, beating Otumoetai College 3-1 in the final, after beating Aorere College 3-1 in their quarterfinal and Trident High School 3-0 in their semi-final. Four Westlake players made the tournament team: Kaila Ru, Rachael Webster, Tamara Otene and Emme Shearer - who was named Tournament MVP. Westlake had also won the Auckland Secondary Schools Volleyball Championships, beating Aorere College 3-0 in the final and Tamara Otene the Player of the Tournament.
 
Whangarei Girls’ High School Squash
https://www.collegesportmedia.co.nz/other/maiden-nzss-squash-title-for-whangarei-girls-high-school
Whangarei Girls’ High School won their maiden NZSS Squash Championships title in Tauranga in August. Whangarei GHS were top seeds heading into the tournament, but they had to be at their best to see off the other leading schools, who included recent champions Palmerston North Girls’ High School (third), Havelock North High School and Westlake Girls’ High School. Whangarei GHS beat Westlake Girls’ High School in their semi-final tie on Saturday and returned on Sunday to defeat Havelock North Girls’ High School in the final. The winning team was (seedings in brackets): Shea Ferguson (1), Pippa Saunders (2), Chelsea Traill (3), Ruby Collins (4), Amy Brown (5), Olivia Rhodes (6), Jordyn Chapman (7). Coach: Delwyn Houlihan. Manager: Justine Collins.

The Champion of Champion series is not intended to be a definitive list of the ‘best’ athletes in each code, rather it celebrates a selection of the leading athletes and teams in each that College Sport Media has followed this year. Preference has gone to those individuals/teams that CSM has interviewed and profiled in 2019. Got a story? Email editor@collegesportmedia.com