Indianna Surian Year 7, Latisha James Year 9 and Ellie Mitchell Year 11, all participated in the 2022 National Acrobatic Clubs Carnival on the Gold Coast, throughout the holidays. Latisha & Indianna are National Champions, coming away first overall in their selected group/level (11-16 years Trio & Level 10 Trio) and Ellie came second overall in the Level 8 Trio. They all had a wonderful time & displayed all their hard work and training on a National level. All students should be so proud of their efforts! 

Girls' Diocesan Basketball 

On Monday 17th October, the junior and senior girls’ basketball teams met for an early 7 am start at St Joseph’s. We arrived in Wollongong at ‘The Snakepit’ with a combination of nerves and excitement. Both teams had a bit of a tough start against tall and athletic John Terry and St Pat’s, and both went down by quite a lot in their initial games. Neither team put their head down and instead used the disappointing starting games as motivation to improve throughout the day. The junior girls had a very close second game against Mt Carmel, unfortunately being unable to get the win, despite a late comeback. The junior’s final games were against teams with a number of rep players (Holy Spirit and St John’s), and despite showing great hustle and effort, they were unable to come away with a win. A special mention goes to Rebecca McGlashan for being the junior girls’ top point scorer for the day. 

The senior girls had a very close and exciting second game against St Benedict’s, which ended in a 16-16 draw after some scoring confusion. They then had a convincing win for their final pool game against St John’s which put them in the 7th/8th playoff providing a chance to get the win against the team they drew with earlier in the day. A great game, which included two consecutive 3-pointers from Emma Judd and Chloe Bloomfield meant they came away with the win and finished in 7th place. A special shout out to Monica Tololeska for being the senior girls’ top point scorer for the day. 

Both teams showed excellent sportsmanship, effort and camaraderie during the day and are to be commended for trying their hardest all day. A fun day was had by all. Thanks also to Mrs Linsley for organising the teams, Miss Corradini for helping to coach the senior girls, and Tim Bloomfield for refereeing all day (including being selected to referee the grand finals). 

Junior girls’ team:

Elizabeth Bryla, Bethany Campbell, Tahlia Coan, Cate Mansbridge, Rebecca McGlashan, Kiara Shelton, Zahra Wilson

Senior girls’ team:

Chloe Bloomfield, Jessica Cheetham, Hunter Graham, Emma Judd, Kaliah Tindall, Alexandra Tololeska, Monica Tololeska, Madeleine Varga

Boys' Diocesan Basketball 

Our junior (Years 7-9 ) and senior (Years 10 & 11) boys basketball teams had a very early start to their day, leaving Joey’s at 6 am to make the trip to Minto Basketball stadium. We arrived ahead of schedule giving both teams some time to relax and calm their nerves prior to our first game. After numerous training sessions, both teams were excited to play on the Gala Day.  

The junior boys' team played 4 round games, playing against teams who were much older, taller and more experienced. Throughout the day, the boys developed their understanding of the game and became more familiar with each other. Our third game of the day saw the Joey’s boys comfortably beat St Francis, putting themselves into the crossover games to contest 5th to 8th place. Unfortunately, we were unable to win any further games, finishing off the day in the eighth position. A special mention to Thomas Hoffman, who demonstrated excellent leadership and basketball skills. Well done boys, it was a pleasure coaching you. You all displayed outstanding sportsmanship and enthusiasm for the game. 

Junior boys’ team: Thomas Welland, Thomas Hoffman, Alex Sipka, Zep Treuen, Samuel Shepherd, Ridhaan Pannala, Tristan Denmeade, Nash Burling, Blake Barsby, Cody Cartwright. 

The Senior Boys' Basketball team also played 4 pool games, competing against schools from around the Diocese. Although they were the youngest competing team, they played with competitiveness, respect and passion, however, we were outplayed by more experienced and taller players. They continuously grew more cohesive as a team and improved their movement and shot selection. Although St. Joseph's students played hard, we lost all 4 games, with the last pool game losing by 2 points to Magdalene. All students enjoyed a competitive day with their friends. Full credit to the team as they never gave up, and played with the utmost respect for the game and their opposition. Plenty of promise, and there is always next year!

Senior Team (L - R): Xavier Infante, Isaac Galea, Matthew Jewitt, Ryan Cazalet-Smith, Lucas Thompson, Liam Cergovski, Harvey Andrews, Luke Kolts. 

Cricket Team:

The Diocesan Boys Cricket Gala Day was held on Wednesday, 19 October at Dalton Park. We were certainly blessed with the weather, as the only sunny, glorious day in recent memory fell on this day. It was a 7 over per game, with St Joseph's Year 7-9 boys playing 4 pool games. We dropped a game early against Edmund Rice, we won the next two games against St Benedict's and St John's. Unfortunately, we lost the last pool game against Magdalene, which led to us finishing third instead of at the top of our pool. We then played Holy Spirit in a battle for 5th/6th, losing that meaning we finished 6th overall. Cricket was definitely the winner after the past 2 years of multiple interruptions to sports and extra-curricular activities. The showing of passion, respect and competitiveness will hold us in good stead for the Berg Shield, which is the longer, knockout competition.

Team: Tristan Denmeade, Wil Moran, Aaron Smith, Tyler Ruprecht, Ben Maloney, Thomas Welland, Archie Faulks, Sam Huetter, Riley Smith, Cody Cartwright.