The destination may be the same, the journey far from it. The Foothills Falcons repeated as silver medallists at the Tier II senior girls rugby provincials Saturday in Calgary to come away with their second podium finish in as many trips to the championships. “Last year we weren’t really expecting to get to provincials and when we did we were so hyped up,” said Falcons senior Kerryn Van Rooyen. “This year right from day one we were playing for this provincial final, so every league game was just a step in the right direction. “By the time we got here it was such a big deal for all of us. It was really bittersweet but we’re all happy to be here.” Foothills was right there with Sturgeon Composite in a seesaw final which saw the Spirits score 12 unanswered points to take it by a 22-15 score. “We fought the hardest we’ve ever fought before,” said Grade 12 Falcon Ireland McAnally. “I’m so proud of that. It was a good last game together as Grade 12s as we all go our separate ways. “It could have gone a different way today, it could have gone the same way. It is what it is, but we’re still happy with how we did.” Foothills had early control of the game and had the Spirits pinned deep only to have Sturgeon open the scoring on a marathon run across the pitch. The Falcons countered quickly and off a line-out charged into the try-zone through Eden McCarthy. They would take the lead into halftime 10-5. The Spirits swiftly made good on the extra-attacker early in the second half due to a Falcon yellow card and evened the score 10-10. Foothills again bounced back when fly-half Brogan Mior scored off a penalty. Sturgeon scored and converted in short order to take the 17-15 advantage. The Spirits would put the game out of reach in the final five minutes when they forced a turnover deep in their end and scored a 60-yard try with a shout for offside leading to the change in possession. Bittersweet would be the best word for Foothills’ determined athletes. “Silver is not too bad in the grand scheme of things,” McAnally said. Especially when considering how the Falcons got there. Foothills avenged its 2017 provincial final loss to Winston Churchill in a terrific semifinal 12 months later. Mior and scrum-half Sadie Watkins scored consecutive late trys to power the Falcons 24-12 past the Lethbridge squad. “It was good to show them how much we’ve improved,” McCarthy said. “That we could come back and fight and get that title that we wanted. “I’m super proud of our girls.” Foothills opened the tournament in 29-26 victory over Lloydminster Composite. They completed league play in the Big Sky Rugby Union undefeated and went on to claim their second straight zone championship to punch their way into provincials. Along with the Falcons boys bronze medal, Foothills’ rugby teams finished on the podium together for the first time in school history on Saturday. “The continued legacy, we have some girls who’ve come back from last year and when they were in Grade 10 they didn’t win a single game all year,” Van Rooyen said. “By the time they got to Grade 12 we were undefeated. Just seeing that growth piece and looking at the game we played, you’re thinking about your game for next year. “The year we joined was the year after we had such a bad season. They were really trying to hype it up and we’re paying for it, we’re getting the results from that.” Foothills Falcons roster: Aaryn Christensen, Abbigail Stephan, Alison Tolg, Alysha Godin, Andrea Boulton, Brogan Mior, Callie Eagleton, Cara Gitterman, Cassidy Baas, Chantel Zylstra, Chloe Boone, Chloe Dalziel, Claire Shirakawa, Delanie Nering, Eden McCarthy, Emilie Haugrud, Etta Johnson, Ireland McAnally, Jadyn Jeanson, Janae Cooper, Jenna Romaniuk, Jewon Oh, Kaitlyn Hogan, Keelin Fenske, Kerryn Van Rooyen, Krystal LeLonde, Larissa Little, Lauren Waldner, Mackenzie Sutton, Madison Peters, Madison Nietmann, Mattea Curtis, Nicole Zacaruk, Niloufar Shahipour, Olga Klepcheva, Rebecca Uhlenberg, Reilly Carlson, Rylee Krauss, Sadie Watkins, Shaylee Dressel, Shaylon White, Sydney Aitken, Telia Bearchief. Coaches: Jeff Mason, Chris Isherwood, Stan Bannister and Curtis McCarthy.
