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Kevin Nagel Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports "They're going to get better playing with (senior players). If you want to see the benefits of four years of senior ball, look at Notre Dame." Notre Dame, boasting several three and fouryear starters, is now reaping the rewards of giving junior-aged players additional time at the senior level. That experience showed in Tuesday's meeting between the teams. Trailing by five late in second quarter, the Irish closed the half on an 8-0 run and outscored Loyola 36-11 in the second half by using a press to create turnovers. But one promising aspect of Loyola's youth movement is that the team has essentially skipped any rebuilding phase. Notre Dame had its struggles with its young lineup -- going 7-10 over the past two seasons before starting 7-0 this year. Loyola hasn't missed a beat. Since winning an OFSAA bronze two years ago, Loyola is 13-2 in regular-season play and advanced to last year's Halton final, where it lost to King's Christian Collegiate, another team led by two junior-aged players. And despite the junior players on the senior team, the Hawks' haven't completely raided their junior squad, which is a very respectable 4-2. So despite playing without Pocrnic, who Bobanovic calls the Hawks' "go-to player in transition," the Hawks still have the talent to reach the Halton final. Temple, Taylor Bondoc (six points vs. Trinity) and Ivanukis (five) have the ability to lead the offence while Lauren Cross (two blocks, four points) provides a strong two-way presence and Large (five rebounds) gives the Hawks a presence under the basket. "We're always looking at the Halton championship as our goal," Bobanovic said. 21 | Friday, October 28, 2016 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com "Connected to your Community" Hawks confident despite loss to Irish in battle of unbeaten Loyola forced to play without injured `go-to' guard Pocrnic By Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver staff The battle between the last two undefeated Tier 1 high school senior girls basketball teams in Halton lacked a bit of the anticipated zing. Given the fact the Loyola Hawks and Notre Dame had met just three days earlier in the final of the Fighting Irish's tournament, you might have expected even more heightened tension. But after an evenly-matched first half, the Irish turned up the pressure in the second half on its way to a 58-30 victory. The Hawks came into the game on a high, having beaten rival Holy Trinity 55-49 in their previous league game to improve to 6-0. But Loyola was dealt a blow when starting guard Kali Pocrnic rolled her ankle in the semifinals of the Notre Dame tournament last weekend. "Injury is a part of sport," Loyola coach Sasha Bobanovic said. "Her ankle is still swelling so we'll have to see, but there are only two weeks left." Bobanovic said while Pocrnic will be missed, the injury will provide an opportunity for a player to step into a starting role. And if there's a team that's willing to provide opportunities for players, it's the Hawks. Darcy Large and Laura Ivanukis are the only Grade 12s on Loyola's roster, which features an equal number of Grade 9s. Pocrnic, in her second year as a starter, is in Grade 10, following in the footsteps of her backcourt partner Hannah Temple. Temple, a Grade 11 student, led the Hawks with 13 points, six rebounds and three steals against Notre Dame. "If they're able and capable of playing senior, that's where they'll play," Bobanovic said. Loyola Hawks' Darcy Large (12) reaches for the ball along with Notre Dame's Melina Delullo (21) in action from Tuesday's Halton senior girls basketball clash between the two undefeated teams at Loyola High School. The irish came out on top, 58-30, after trailing at the half. | photo by Nikki Wesley ­ Oakville Beaver Dance Workshop With choreographer JJ Moore and the cast of Family Channel's show Backstage. 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