Four high school girls basketball teams from Surrey are competing at the provincial championships underway at the Langley Events Centre, and all four have advanced to the quarterfinal round of their respective tournaments.
In the Junior Girls tournament, the Lord Tweedsmuir Panthers and Panorama Ridge Thunder will play at 1 p.m. this afternoon with the winner advancing to tomorrow’s semifinals. Both teams pulled off upsets yesterday (Wednesday) to reach the quarterfinal stage.
The Panthers, seeded 13th in the 32-team competition, began their day with a 36-34 victory over the Nanaimo District Islanders in the morning, then eliminated the four-seed Whistler Storm 49-40 in the afternoon.
Panorama Ridge also won twice. The 13-seed Thunder began their day with a 53-35 victory over the 21st-ranked Mt. Baker Wild of Cranbrook, then surprised the five-seed Penticton Lakers 61-47.
Both Panorama Ridge and Lord Tweedsmuir schools are also represented in the Senior 3A girls tournament, and are playing this afternoon.
The Thunder, seeded fifth in the 16-team tournament, easily won their first-round game 78-41 over the SIr Winston Churchill Bulldogs, with Savannah Dhaliwal netting 31 points. The Thunder tip-off today at 3:15 p.m. against the four-seed Walnut Grove Gators.
The eight-seed Panthers had no trouble with the nine-seed R.A. McMath Wildcats or Richmond, winning 86-44. Maryn Budiman with 22 points and Shelvin Grewal with 20 were top scorers for the Panthers. Lord Tweedsmuir will take on the first-seed Oak Bay Breakers at 4:45 p.m.
