Aquinas athletes have had a blockbuster Term 4, notching up a number of sporting achievements. First up is…

First up is Caris McGillivray who won second and third placings in synchronised swimming at the NZ Artistic Swimming Championships. The Year 8 student finished third in the Aquanaut Duet division then second in the Aqua combo category with her seven-member team. The event was held in Invercargill. It is the second year in a row that Caris has medalled at Nationals. Fantastic work Caris!

Cricket:

Congratulations to the following Aquinas boys who were recently selected to represent the Bay of Plenty region in cricket at the Northern Districts tournaments.

U19 Boys:

Spencer Wills

Luca Adsett

U16 Boys:

Rico Adsett

Asa Banbury 

Dance:

Congratulations to Year 7’s Ava Weber who was recently awarded the 2023 KJ Studios Scholarship, the top award at her dance school. A fantastic talent! Well done Ava. 

Basketball Selections:

Congratulations to Year 10’s Luka Mahy and Year 13’s Taylor Harris who have been selected to the U17 and U19 Whai Development Programme run by Alex Stojkovic, Director of Coaching for BOP Stingrays Basketball.

Water Polo:

Congratulations to our Year 9 and 10 girls water polo team which won the Thursday night junior college B Grade. They clinched the victory with a recent win over TBC junior boys B team. Best of luck to the team’s nine members heading to the U14 national tournament in a few weeks.

The team also had a strong performance at the recent North Island Secondary Schools Year 9 and 10 tournament, finishing in seventh place. The boys team also finished seventh.

Eve Mischewski:

Football talent Eve Mischewski is at it again! Eve was invited to be part of the Futsal Premier League, a Senior Futsal competition involving players from the BOP, Waikato and Auckland. Eve was drafted in the fourth round by the current New Zealand men’s coach (ahead of some current Futsal Ferns!) Eve's team made it through to the grand final and with eight minutes to go, she scored a game-changing goal that levelled the score from which the team went on to win 5 to 4!

Rugby:

Hats off to Aquinas’ three BOP rugby representatives who recently helped the province beat the top U16 teams in the Waikato Chief region. The BOP U16 Girls squad including India O’Connell (Y10) and Emily Wade (Y11) won the Chiefs U16 Regional Carnival in October, beating teams from Counties Manukau, Taranaki and Waikato.

And the BOP U16 Boys squad featuring Jai McGarva (Y12) also emerged victorious, winning first place in the tournament. Well done India, Emily and Jai – a fantastic end to a successful rugby season!

From 15-a-side to Sevens… India and Year 12 rugby representative Grace Kahle struck gold again – this time at the 2022 Baywide Secondary Schools Girls Sevens Tournament. Their Mount Maunganui team claimed the U18 title at the Labour Weekend event.

Wrestling:

Next up on our list of accolades is Konrad Wisnewski. The Y9 student won silver at the 2022 NZ National Wrestling Championships, placing second in the Freestyle 52kg division. The nationals were held in Gore in October. The 13-year-old has had a stellar season, having achieved numerous podium finishes this year. Definitely a name to watch out for! Well done Konrad.

Football:

Bravo to Y12 footballer Max Stringer! Max and his Tauranga City U17 team finished second in NZ’s Youth National League. The team clinched silver at the League’s finals tournament in October. Impressive work Max!

Kartsport:

Bravo to Year 7 speedster Dylan Brangwynne who clinched a fourth place at the recent Kartsport North Island Sprint Championship in Te Puke. He was competing against seven other drivers aged 12 to 15 in the ROK DVS Junior class. Dylan is just 12 but has been racing for five years. Fellow Aquinas Kartsport racer Jack Mear did not take part in the North Island event.