GD Athletics Report

Congratulations to all the athletes who performed at the GD Athletics Carnival held in Casterton last Friday. On the day, we witnessed some elite performances and College narrowly came in second place to Monivae by just a few points. Although the Grand Aggregate was just out of reach, College came away with the Overall Girls’ Aggregate.

Thank you to everyone who performed at their absolute best last Friday. With three students winning their respective Age Group Champions, a huge congratulations goes to:

Grace Austin, 16 year-old girls’ age group champion

Indi Talay, 17-yearold girls’ age group champion

Magnus Howells, 17 year-old boys’ age group champion

A massive congratulations to all the athletes who participated, for their exceptional performances and uplifting sportsmanship on the day. Stand out performances, from those who placed first in multiple events included: Maddi Calvert, Grace Austin, Indi Talay, Claire Cumming, Magnus Howells, Harry Robertson and Jeremy Todd. Congratulations also go to the winning relay teams: the 17- year old girls’, 12-13- year old boys’, 17-year old boys’ and the senior 18-20 year old girls’ team consisting of Juliet Page, Olivia Biggs, Ellie Jeal and Georgia Lehmann and the senior 18-20 year old boys’ consisting of Jeremy Todd, Harry Robertson, Tane Nelson and Sean Cashill in their final year.

A huge thank you is extended to everyone who helped out on the day including Mrs Williams, Ms Outtram and Mr Alexander. The day would not have been able to run as smoothly without these people giving support and ensuring athletes made it their events. Also a special thanks to those parents who came along and supported the team. Everyone should be extremely proud of their efforts.

Georgia Lehmann and Bel Michelmore (Athletics Captains)

Cricket

Girls' Cricket Report

The 2019/20 Girls’ cricket season for College Cricket Club has seen a range of mixed results across the board. Last Wednesday marked the annual First XI match against Monivae, seeing a keen group of girls eager to retain the shield from last year. Maddie Green (43*) starred with the bat, alongside the named Player of the Match Grace Austin (43* and 4 wickets). These, along with a number of cameo performances, saw College defeat Monivae in strong fashion.

Sunday the 15th saw the A Grade Women’s side take on Macarthur in the much anticipated HDWCA Grand Final. Although the girls suffered a convincing loss, there were numerous players who had notable performances throughout the season. Phoebe Russell won the wicket keeping award (4 catches), while Grace Austin and Lucy Roberts polled extremely well in the league’s MVP (Most Valuable Player).

A tremendous thank you to Mrs Williams and Mr Cook in their assistance throughout the season; their efforts in coaching, managing and running trainings do not go unnoticed, and each team is extremely grateful for your input.

Eliza Jagger (who also took home a number of HDWCA Awards for the season – well done, Eliza! Ed.)

Junior Boys' Cricket Report

The junior boys’ cricket season is sadly all over with the College Blue U/14 team capping off their impressive season in the best possible way with an exhilarating Grand Final win over Grampians on the weekend.

Having won through to the final with a clinical semi-final performance against Hamilton the previous weekend, there was a great sense of excitement and confidence surrounding the team as they entered the game. Captain Henry Bensch won the toss and elected to bat, drawing inspiration from the well-known theory of ‘runs on the board’ and he then followed up by leading the way with the bat, accompanied by opening partner Jack Wortley, the pair putting on 60 runs before Wortley was dismissed for 12. Bensch went on to retire on 50, proving he has what it takes on the big stage. From there the team needed to ensure that the foundations set by the top order weren’t to go to waste and George Huf was the man to help make this happen with his innings of 35. George Austin and Max Hindhaugh also provided useful contributions, both making ten, as Blue’s score finished on 162 all out. Returning on Sunday, College set about defending their competitive total with wickets proving hard to come by early on. However, after a great amount of persistence and patience from the bowlers, George Austin finally got the break through with Grampians’ score on 53. The Grampians batters offered resistance, forming multiple partnerships, but despite this College began to take frequent wickets, managing to bowl the opposition out for 155, winning by 7 runs in a thrilling finish to a great game of cricket. The pick of the bowlers were George Austin (2/20 off 8) and Max Hindhaugh who came on late and bowled what proved to be a match winning spell with figures of 1/6 off 4. Congratulations to Henry Bensch who claimed Man of the match honours and to the entire College Blue team on a fantastic season.

Ben McCure (Boys’ Cricket Captain)

Cricket Report

The current social uncertainty is leading to a mixture of sadness, but also some strange delights. College CC B Grade has been crowned Premiers on the back of the cancellation of this week's Grand Finals. Although a strange feeling, it is a system that rewards the most consistent side. Congratulations to Leigh Alexander (first premiership after two years of Grand Finals losses) Fergus Roberts, Henry Bensch, Stephen Mirtschin and the rest of the team for their consistent performances throughout the year. Sadly the D Grade team was on the other end of a similar situation: they become runners-up in their division as their Grand Final opponent finished higher on the ladder.

Congratulations also must go to our College Blue U14 and First XI women’s sides who were victorious this week. Please see our Cricket Captains’ reports for their reviews of both matches.

Commiserations to the A Grade women’s side. It has been a season of success with many new players making their mark on the HDCA women’s competition and representing both the College CC and also the school proudly.

Disappointingly, the junior presentation night planned for March 25th has been cancelled. All trophy recipients will be recognised in the coming weeks.

Finally, congratulations to the following boys who were successful in receiving the following league honours for their performances over the season:

Ciaran Nelson – equal bowling aggregate

Jack Wortley – equal wicket-keeping award

Henry Bensch – Batting Aggregate

Jock Barrie – Batting average

Jarran Cook

Head of Boys’ Cricket

Rowing Report

Victorian Rowing State Championships

The weekend of 29th of February presented the much anticipated Victorian Rowing State Championships to be held on the mercurial course of Lake Wendouree. All crews have endured the challenging training regime and were eager to do well at this prestigious event.

Saturday presented near perfect rowing conditions with the forecast set for a clear and calm day. The racing started early with all senior girls’ crews entered in the Female Under 19 Coxed Quad Scull. The girls raced strongly, or some not at all due to some bow ball start line incidents; however, those that raced were unlucky to not make finals. This event was followed by the First Boys’ race and they received a promising second place in their heat for Division 1 Open Men’s, giving them a place in the A final. The girls shortly followed this, with all senior crews 1st, 2nd and 3rd girls, being entered Division 2, 3 and 4 of the Open Women’s respectively. Again, the girls were unfortunate in not qualifying for any finals, but all were pleased with the racing and acknowledged the strong competition. In the late afternoon the boys competed in their final for Division 1 Open Men’s. The boys rowed a gruelling and eventful 2km race, with Kardinia International College on their tail the whole way and, fortunately, they were able to hold their rival off and place a respectable fourth.

Sunday’s weather was quite the opposite to Saturday’s, with a gusty wind creating some horrible conditions. Rowers looked on in dread as they saw boats flipping and coming back filled with water. The Fourth Girls’ were able to get their first race in and they gained some valuable racing experience. Due to the abysmal weather the remaining regatta was unfortunately cancelled.

Rowers give huge thanks to the parents and coaches, as well as Dr Hirst for all his efforts. All though this concludes the season for the boys, the girls will continue to train for Head of School Girls in the coming fortnight. We wish the girls the best of luck.

Milo Cooper (Rowing Captain)

Dimboola Regatta

Twenty-one seasoned rowers attended the esteemed Dimboola Rowing Club Regatta. On the Saturday, rowers participated in the sprint races of 750m, with each crew entered in multiple races throughout the day. Competition was tough with a record number of entries from clubs from all over the state. Many crews competed well in their heats with a few managing to qualify for finals. Special mention to the First Boys, who won their C Grade final with a very tight finish.

On Sunday, rowers prepared for the 6.2km Head of the Wimmera race. Rowers were required to row to the start line and then race against the clock in their return trip. All crews were very appreciative of their coxes who did a fantastic job navigating the challenging course. We had some very close finishes with the First Boys’ crew only being 15 seconds behind rival Kardinia crew, and also with two of the girls’ crews only finishing with a second between them.

Rowers appreciated the lengths their coaches went to throughout the weekend driving along the river in the 6.2km race, cheering them on as they rowed past. Our coaches played a huge role in getting crews ready for the regatta and we really appreciate their support in our club. A massive thank you to Dr Hirst and Trine Hirst for their flawless organization of the weekend allowing the trip to Dimboola to be an enjoyable weekend for everyone.

Any students interested in trying rowing are most welcome to come along to a Tuesday or Thursday training session after school.

Nina Pern & Milo Cooper

Captains of Rowing

Dates to Remember