Wildcats finish second in Ontario Cup D5 Finals
The Chatham Wildcats Major Atom Boys took home silver in their Ontario Cup D5 Finals in Niagara Falls this past weekend.
The Wildcats, coached by Tom Grochmal and Skylar Baylis, had the seventh-ranked spot out of eight teams in their division. However, with hard work and fearless effort, they went undefeated in their pool play, before losing their final match in the gold medal game.
The boys opened with a 53-30 win over MUMBA Markham Elite, who had outmatched the Wildcats during the regular season. Leading scorers were Braelen Baylis with 11 points, Isaiah Francis with 10 points, Carter Holland-Segee with nine points, and Josiah Redman with eight points. The boys played a great defensive game with a collective 27 steals.
In the second game, the boys faced the St. Thomas Shock, who had outmatched the Wildcats twice during the regular season. The boys continued to gel as a team, finishing with a 61-38 victory. Leading scorers were Latrell Cobey with 12 points, Tommy Grochmal with 11 points, Carter Holland-Segee with seven points, and Jack Chickowski and Maverick Zele with six points each.
In their final pool game, the Wildcats faced the South Toronto Golden Eagles, who were also 2-0 in their pool play. After a nail-biter, the boys came out on top with a 53-47 victory, finishing first place in their pool and securing their spot in the gold medal game. Top scorers were Isaiah Francis with 10 points, Tommy Grochmal and Latrell Cobey with nine points each and Carter Segee-Holland and Jack Chickowski with seven points each.
In the gold medal game, the Wildcats fell short to the Number 1 seeded team, the Milton Stags. The final score of this emotional game was 61-31. Leading scorers were Carter Holland-Segee with seven points, Braelen Baylis with six points, and Tommy Grochmal with five points. Miles Carrington, Jack Chickowski and Josiah Redman each contributed three points, while Elijah Brown added two.
The coaches are incredibly proud of the boys for all their hard work and determination throughout the season. Every game has a victory or defeat. These boys stuck together through them all. Their silver medal is a testament to a great team effort!
Way to go Wildcats!