It has been fantastic to see the St Catherine’s students embrace the opportunity to get back into Sport this term. While the GSV Basketball and Cricket seasons were unable to proceed, our Years 7 and 8 girls jumped at the chance to play a three-week round robin against Loreto and Lauriston.

Alongside these activities, Rowing, Yoga, Run Group, Triathlon Group, Swimming and Diving have all been enjoyed. In a year where we missed out on so much, it is important to recognise the sporting successes that have occurred, and as you will note from the below highlights, there were some amazing achievements!

Highlights from 2021

GSV Sport

• Tennis: Over 100 students were involved in the St Catherine’s Tennis program, with our Intermediate A and B Teams progressing to finals. The B Team were successful in winning the GSV Premiership, while the A Team were awarded Runners-Up after a nail-biting draw and subsequent tie breaker in their grand final.
• Softball: The Intermediate A Softball Team gained the School’s first finals appearance in over five years. After winning their semi-final, our Team were awarded the GSV Runners-Up pennant against Sacre Coeur in a close grand final match.
• Swimming: The addition of Mr Ian Pope to St Catherine’s coaching ranks brought a new level of training to our GSV Swimming. Six individuals and three relay teams competed in the GSV Finals, placing these swimmers in the top 10 across the GSV schools.
• GSV Triathlon: Twenty students competed in the GSV Triathlon (six as individuals, 14 as part of a team). Overall, St Catherine’s placed sixth of the 17 GSV Schools that entered; a fantastic achievement. Madeleine Hooker (Year 11) and Emma Peele (Year 7) won bronze medals in their respective events.
• AFL Football: 2021 saw our Senior (Years 9 to 12) Team produce the School’s most successful AFL season in history. After a tough round one loss to MGGS, our girls put in fantastic performances to defeat Sacre Coeur, Shelford and MLC2. The highlight of the season was the annual Huntingtower/Heyington Shield match against Lauriston. In front of a big crowd, the match ended in a very exciting draw.
• Hockey: Our highly talented Intermediate Hockey Team (2019 GSV Champions) set out to defend their title. After winning all five games played, the Team had an unbelievable goal difference of +34! Disappointingly, the GSV finals were cancelled, however, we organised an ‘unofficial’ grand final against the opposing zone winner Strathcona. The St Catherine’s Team prevailed, winning 4-1.
• Cross Country: At the GSV Cross Country Preliminary Carnival, our Junior Team placed third, Intermediate Team fourth and Senior Team fourth in their respective divisions, seeing the School progress to the Division 1 Championships.

Rowing

Junior and Intermediate Highlights:

All Junior Crews and two out of four Intermediate Crews qualified for A Finals (top 4) at the State Championship Regatta. This saw a return of three bronze, two silver and three gold medals. The Intermediate Cross won gold in the A Final in the Division 3 Coxed Four at the Head of Schoolgirls’ Regatta.

Senior Highlights:

Our Senior Crews had an incredible season, achieving numerous wins. This included a quinella at the Nagambie Regatta and at the Australian Henley Regatta, as well as a Gold Medal for the Ferg and Bronze Medal for the Scot at the State Championships.

For the first time in our 33-year history of Rowing, St Catherine’s won gold in the A Final in both the Division 1 and 2 School Girl Coxed Eight races at the Head of the Schoolgirls’ Regatta. At the Australian Rowing Championships, the Ferg won an impressive silver medal, while the Scot won gold in the Schoolgirl 500m Sprint. Four students, Sarah Marriott, Zara Bongiorno, Bronte Cullen and Chloe Cooper, made the Australian Junior Rowing Team.

Other Highlights

• The St Catherine’s Netball Club entered its inaugural year, with over 80 players joining the Club which competes in the Prahran Netball Association.
• The annual Sports Celebration Evening took place online on Thursday October 7, with guest presenter Sara Blicavs speaking about her experiences as a professional basketballer and Tokyo Olympian. Over 100 members of the School community were in attendance as we announced the Excellence and Coaches Award winners from the 2021 GSV competitions.
• After attending the forum for Olympic Change Makers as St Catherine’s nominee for 2021, Sarah Marriott (Year 11) has been selected by the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) to attend this year’s National Summit. Sarah is one of 24 young leaders selected from over 900 change-making nominees. To read a reflection from Sarah click here.

State/National Level Athletes

While we regularly recognise and praise the performances of those students who wear the light blue on competition day, we also acknowledge achievements of those who wear different colours, yet still represent the pride of St Catherine’s.

This year, we had a number of students who represented either Victoria or Australia in sport teams or squads across a range of sports. The following students are recognised for their outstanding achievement within sport:

• Lilly Fogarty (Year 8) Sailing Victoria
• Eliza Grey (Year 9) Hockey Victoria
• Lucy Dunlop (Year 10) Hockey Victoria
• Phoebe Russell (Year 10) Hockey Victoria
• Samantha Love (Year 10) Hockey Victoria
• Madeleine (Maddie) Hooker (Year 11) Snowsports Victoria and Swimming Victoria
• Zara Bongiorno (Year 11) Snowsports Victoria and Rowing Australia
• Bronte Cullen (Year 11) Rowing Australia
• Sarah Marriott (Year 11) Snowsports Victoria and Rowing Australia
• Olivia Nigido-Scott (Year 11) Track & Field Victoria
• Chloe Cooper (Year 12) Rowing Australia
• Mayuri Muralidharan (Year 12) Australian Fencing Team

The success of our students is without doubt thanks to the support of our Physical Education and Sport staff, specialist coaches, Sport auxiliaries and parents. The ongoing innovation, creativity and enthusiasm displayed by these groups has ensured St Catherine’s Sport has been supported throughout the year.

Congratulations to all students involved in the various sporting programs throughout the year. We look forward to getting back into competition in 2022. Enjoy the ‘Highlights of Sport’ photo gallery below.