Issue no. 32
In this edition
Farewell to Our Class of 2020!
Today, we said farewell to Year 12, and what an action-packed and emotional week it has been. There is no doubt that the girls made the most of each day, with a range of different themes and some unexpected pranks. I must thank the staff for their patience, in particular those whom the girls dressed up as on Monday. Interestingly, Mr Stuart and Miss Gaskell featured heavily and should be recognised for providing the girls with items from their own wardrobes. You don’t get much more supportive than that. End of year pranks are always an interesting topic and there is a wide range of tolerance between schools. I can safely say that we do sit at one extreme. Specifically, we are very close to the ‘high tolerance’ end of the spectrum. This is perhaps one of the great things about Saints and is very much reflective of the close relationship between the girls and the staff. There are also very few schools where teachers are willing to star in a play written by the students, the purpose of which is to poke fun at them. Not to mention the Staff Dance, which does require weeks of lunchtime rehearsals.
Tonight, the girls will join their parents and the staff at the Valedictory Dinner, which is a wonderful closure to their daily lives as Saints Girls. It is important to reflect upon their efforts in what has been such a challenging yet remarkable year. Despite the cancellation or restructure of many events, the girls demonstrated great resilience and showed many younger girls how to pivot from disappointment to appreciation. They led from the front, creating videos to motivate younger girls during online learning, and they continued to participate widely in the co-curricular program. Most importantly, they cared. They cared about each other, about their teachers, about their parents and about the experience of all younger girls. Their inclusive leadership, their energy and endless enthusiasm have left a footprint that will be remembered for years to come.
On behalf of the School, thank you girls. You will be missed.
Kate Mortimer
Deputy Principal / Head of Senior School
A send-off tradition is the Year 12 run through the School watched on by staff and younger students; take a look at the Class of 2020 in action:
Congratulations to our 2021 Student Leaders
There were moving scenes at the School on Wednesday as our 2021 Student Leaders were inducted in a Chapel Service where they were presented with their badges of office by our outgoing Prefects.
Families watched on with pride as our new Prefects and other leaders pledged to serve St Peter’s Girls with distinction.
It was a touching occasion, and we can’t wait to see how the girls lead the School in 2021.
Head Prefect Reflects on Saints Girls’ Journey
2020 Head Prefect Bella Bernardi sat down and had a chat with her very first teacher here at St Peter’s Girls, Mr Shane Davidson. Bella, who joined Saints Girls in Year 5, spoke about her memories of the Year 5 Production, looked back on a class photo from 2013, spoke fondly of her fellow Year 12s, and gave a warm shout-out to Deputy Head Prefect Ellie Anderson.
“The beauty of Saints Girls is that it’s not just a school, it’s a community. Saints inspires young girls to become independent women who are ready to take on the world. It’s been an honour leading the School. I am so proud of all the community this year for taking on the challenges of 2020, and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for Saints Girls!” – Bella Bernardi (Head Prefect 2020)
Check out the video highlights:
‘The Last Blue Sock’ – A Tribute to Our Class of 2020
At today’s Celebration Day Assembly, the Year 12 girls were farewelled with a video presentation. Titled ‘The Last Blue Sock’, the video explores the emotions surrounding graduation and leaving Saints Girls through the eyes of a dark blue winter sock. Combining both sentimental moments and comedy, the presentation was a fitting way to send off an amazing cohort who have embraced life at Saints Girls.
For those who were not able to attend the Celebration Day Assembly (and for those wanting to watch again!) please enjoy the video:
Strings Success on Show
Last Friday evening, students from Reception to Year 12 who play a string instrument participated in our annual Strings Concert under the direction of Natalie Maegraith, our Strings Coordinator. Our live audience was entertained with music of classical, romantic and current contemporary composers. This included cellist and composer Hilary Kleinig, who was our special guest for the evening. It was wonderful to see so many young students participating in the Strings program, enjoying their music and producing outstanding results at the concert.
Special mention must go to Extension Strings for the performance of ‘The Rain in Your Shadows’ and Angel Li for her outstanding rendition of Vivaldi’s ‘Winter’.
Sally Rounsevell
Director of Music
Golden Notes at ABODA Band and Orchestra Festival
Congratulations to all of our musicians who participated in the ABODA Band and Orchestra Festival in Term 3. This year, the competition became a virtual event due to health restrictions. Each ensemble was recorded during their rehearsals at school, and judges viewed the videos and then recorded their own feedback for the girls to watch, read and listen to. Saints Girls received some excellent feedback and achieved very strong results in all sections.
Under the direction of Strings Coordinator Natalie Maegraith, our Junior, Developmental and Intermediate Strings all came away with SILVER awards and our Senior Strings achieved GOLD. Our Percussion Ensemble, directed by Nick Parnell, achieved SILVER as did Developmental Band, conducted by Miss Rounsevell. Our Stage Band, also directed by Miss Rounsevell, competed in Division 1 Big Band, and Little Big Band, directed by Mr Heading, entered the Novice Big Band section with both achieving SILVER awards. A further congratulations to Concert Band who achieved a GOLD in the Intermediate Concert Band section.
A fantastic achievement for the 150 girls who participated in this festival.
Sally Rounsevell
Director of Music
Community Unity at P&F Family Day
What a beautiful afternoon we had for our inaugural P&F Family Day last Sunday, the sun shining right on cue as people arrived with picnic rugs to enjoy delicious food, laughter and friendship on Chiverton Lawns.
We were so lucky to be able to come together in these uncertain times, and it was a lovely reminder of what an amazing community we have here at Saints Girls.
Tours of the new Media Hub were a highlight of the day. The P&F will be presenting a cheque at our AGM on Monday 16 November with funds raised from the event to go towards the Media Hub fit-out.
Thank you to our awesome team of volunteers who made the day possible and also to our sponsors L’Abruzzesse, Chesini House and Mercato for supporting this fantastic event.
Bronwyn Bartter
Parents’ and Friends’ Association President
Healthy Girls
During Science in Term 3, the Year 8 girls have been working on a PBL unit called ‘Healthy Girls’ as part of the body systems topic. The task was to raise awareness by creating a campaign about what it means to be healthy, focusing on healthy diets, exercise and sexual health. The girls have worked with Health, PE and Food Tech to combine ideas and create a real-world context for the concepts discussed in Science.
The project culminated with the girls running an expo to showcase their final campaigns, which include videos, websites and infographics, during Home Group time. The Year 7 and 9 students were invited to walk through and interact with each of the groups, asking questions so the girls could share their knowledge and provide feedback to the Year 8s.
Well done girls on all your hard work.
Clare Gaskell, Craig Byrne and Christine Smith
Science Teachers
Welcome Support from Good Sports
The Saints Sport Support Group (SSSG) aims to help increase student involvement in sporting pursuits, whether as participants or in a coaching or officiating capacity. This is not just for competitive reasons, but because physical activity is positive for health and wellbeing and that a lifelong foundation for this should be instilled at a young age. Through fundraising and support, our committee strives to make sport something that all girls want to be a part of throughout their years at school and beyond.
The SSSG meets once a term and welcomes any parents with an interest in joining our group. If you would like to do so, please contact me.
Katie Lucas
President
Katie.Lucas@opencolleges.edu.au
Sports News
SOCCER
Congratulations to Grace Stevens (Year 7) and Chloe Richardson (Year 6) who have been selected in the U14 FSA State Soccer squad. The selection process began with over 100 nominated club players attending. The girls succeeded through all four trial stages which ran over a two month period.
SOFTBALL
Middle – Saints 22 defeated Scotch 6
For the first game of the season, the girls put up a strong performance against Scotch College, coming away with a convincing win. Daniela Vari had an outstanding batting game, hitting 2 home runs for the team. Ashlyn May and Nellie Ion were amazing in the field with awesome games at pitcher. A great catch was taken in centre field by Yvanda Qu. The girls played wonderfully together and I can’t wait to watch them further improve over the term. – Kellie Bested (Softball Captain)
SWIMMING
2020 South Australian Short Course Swimming Championships
Elysia Scarr – 20th 50M Backstroke, 23rd 100M Breaststroke, 23rd 50M Freestyle, 22nd 50M Breaststroke, 15th 100M Backstroke, 14th 50M Butterfly, 27th 100M Freestyle
TENNIS
Premier League – Saints 3-25 defeated by Pembroke 3-31
Singles: Sienna Glazbrook 1-6, Tahlia Cahill 6-5, Ruby Deakin 6-3, Britney Korir 3-6
Premier Reserves – Saints 3-25 defeated by Pembroke 3-28
Singles: Annie Baldwinson 2-6, Charlotte Staples 4-6, Ella Dnistriansky 6-3, Grace Beaumont 6-5
Division 1 Blue – Saints 6-36 defeated Pembroke 0-16
Singles: Georgia Mallick 6-5, Ariel Spartalis 6-1, Eva Young 6-5, Adele Eaton 6-1
Division 1 White – Saints 4-34 defeated Pembroke 2-25
Singles: Grace Beaumont 6-5, Malaika McLeod 6-1, Soph Ryan 4-6, Sapphire Moser 6-2
Division 2 – Saints 0-5 defeated by Concordia 6-36
Singles: Ayanna Roy 0-6, Sophie Abbott 1-6, Zihan Huang 1-6, Gloria Zou 1-6
Division 3 Blue – Saints 6-36 defeated Pembroke 0-3
Singles: Tara Nedumaran 6-0, Yang Yang Gu 6-0, Olivia Reynolds 6-1, Lydia Tolley 6-0
Division 3 White – Saints 6-36 defeated Pembroke 0-7
Singles: Chloe Richardson 6-0, Elodie de Wit 6-1, Alison Francis 6-0, Shirley Liu 6-2
Division 4 – Saints 1-24 defeated by Concordia 5-34
Singles: Nathara Perera 3-6, Kayla Park 2-6, Amy Hu 3-6, Freya Hermann 5-6
TOUCH FOOTBALL
Open A – Saints 1 defeated by Marryatville 4
The girls started the season with a tough match against Marryatville, who are considered one of the top teams in the school competition. However, they remained positive and performed strongly in defence, forcing Marryatville to miss out on multiple tries. Set plays and strategies learnt at training were put into play which led to Hannah Freeman scoring a great try in the first half. – Holly Cardone (2021 Captain)
Open B – Saints 3 defeated by Wilderness 6
The girls played a quality first game back against Wilderness! Our attack was strong rucking up the field, resulting in 3 tries – well done to Ellie Humphrey and Willow Stewart-Rattray. Throughout the game, we did struggle to score and find opportunities due to inadequate communication. We also have to work on our defence when stopping the opposing team from scoring, but for the first game back and playing at a higher level for most of the team, it was a positive outing. Good job girls! – Annie Warrick
Open C – Saints 0 defeated by St Michael’s 6
The game was a great opportunity for us to develop as a team, with some girls playing their first-ever match. Although we lost, the girls showed promising signs of improvement as the game progressed. They particularly improved defensively in the second half, with St Michael’s only scoring 2 tries compared with 4 in the first. Looking forward to the season ahead; the Open Cs will be focusing on improving defensive tactics and attacking pace in training over the coming weeks. – Emily Teague
Middle A – Saints 1 drew with St Ignatius 1
The girls played a great game considering it was our first for the season. A mention to Mathilda Thomas for scoring our try of the match. The girls did really well in defence, limiting our opposition from scoring. They played an amazing game and I look forward to the season ahead. – Charlie Piper
Middle B – Saints had a bye
Middle C – Saints 0 defeated by St Michael’s 4
With a number of girls playing their first game, the team found it difficult to deal with the opponent’s attack early on. Easy tries in the first half put us under pressure, but the girls responded and improved throughout the game. Dani Cox and Chloe Cardone were excellent contributors, rucking the ball forward and leading the team in defence, and Emily Ketteridge made some skilful runs in attack. The girls will learn plenty from this first effort and come back stronger in the next match. – Dan Searle
VOLLEYBALL
Open A – Saints 2 defeated Westminster 1 (25-14, 17-25, 25-13)
Arriving at Westminster unsure of the opposition’s strength given the school’s tradition as a powerhouse in volleyball, we focused on our warm up while sizing up the opposition. Even though Westminster had a very tall player, we felt confident of our team cohesion going into the match. With early strong serving and match play, we quickly found rhythm and claimed the first set. Volleyball has a strong mental element and match momentum can swing rapidly. Taking it too easy on the opposition in the second set, we found ourselves stuck in a rotation that we struggled to ‘dig’ ourselves out of. Gifting Westminster the second and with only 10 minutes to go, the senior players steadied the ship and took the third set easily. Special mention to Clair Kao with strong serving, and a great team effort to take home the win. Keep up the awesome effort!
Open B – Saints 2 defeated Westminster 1 (25-16, 25-15, 22-25)
Two Open A Westminster players backed up to play Open Bs but that didn’t dent the confidence of our Open B squad, primarily made up of Year 10s. We stuck to our traditional system and dominated the net using the 3 to set up plays to gain advantage. The opposition had a sniff at the start of the first with scores equal to about 13-all, but our girls served strongly and powered ahead to take the first set easily. A slow start in the second by Saints allowed Westminster to take the lead. Samantha Keough stepped up and served 11 straight, with Westminster having real trouble returning. Closing out the match winning the first two sets, and with only a small amount of time left, the girls changed to a new system of backcourt setting we have been practising. Giving Westminster a 5-0 lead, the girls worked hard and with a valiant effort, came back to almost win the third. A fantastic team effort and all played well!
Open C – Saints 1 defeated by Concordia 3 (14-25, 14-25, 17-25, 13-11)
Saints played well throughout each set but just couldn’t string a series of points together. Efua Yawson had some excellent serves and Zara Blight showed good positioning when at the net. Saints pushed Concordia in the third set, going down 17-25, with Rebecca Holloway and Charlotte Adams teaming together to set up a number of rallies. Eliza Monaghan had a solid game, adjusting her shot selection when receiving to great effect. One area highlighted for improvement is in calling for the ball and then being ready for the second and third shots. – Neil Fuller (Supervisor)
Middle A – Saints 0 defeated by Westminster 3 (15-25, 17-25, 20-25)
The girls started a little uncertain of their abilities, however, as each set progressed, so too did the skills. It was an exciting start to watch them work together and see things we can continue to improve. Special mention to Anna Venning and Annabel Keough who proved to be great leaders. – Milli Gentle (Coach)
Middle B – Saints 0 defeated by Westminster 3 (6-25, 12-25, 15-17)
Good to see some improvement as we moved through the course of the game. We were very inconsistent in the first set, but improved greatly throughout. The girls started to understand spatial awareness on the court and realised the importance of the ‘ready position’ when receiving serve. Moving forward, the focus is on consistency in serving and technique through this and creating communication on court instead of watching the ball hit the floor. – Katie Dancer (Coach)
Middle C – Saints 0 defeated by Westminster 3 ( 4-25, 19-25, 8-15)
A very similar slow and inconsistent first set, however, working through rotations and understanding the importance of using our 3 touches and controlling the ball was comprehended well throughout the last two sets. Great improvement shown in both confidence and voice. Moving forward, the focus will be on transition and control over the ball. – Katie Dancer (Coach)
Middle D – Saints 0 defeated by Concordia 3
Saints were a little slow to get started but showed improvement through each set with Angelina Hii having some great serves. The team stayed positive and consistently worked on trying to have 3 hits. Eliza Monaghan stayed and was a great team member, leading with her experience. Rita Ling, Lily Zheng and Elena Liu all contributed and improved throughout the game. – Neil Fuller (Supervisor)
VOLLEYBALL
INTERCOL v Walford
Open A – Saints 3 defeated Walford 0 (25-20, 25-19, 15-13)
After arriving at Walford, the Open A and B teams put on blue ‘war paint’ to lift the School spirit and draw our focus to the Intercol matches. Analysing the Open A opposition during warm up, there was a clear height difference between the teams. Instead of letting this intimidate us, we knew that blocking and covering were going to be big focuses during the match. Walking on court before the first point, energy was high. Missing one of our stronger players in Ruby, Anna stepped into the setting position. Serving was strong throughout, winning plenty of points. The opposition fought back, putting up a good fight and making each set close. Coming from behind in the last set, we performed well under pressure, remained focused and pushed through to take a very tight win. Overall, it was an intense, high energy game. The team’s cohesion was heightened with the addition of a win from the Open Bs, allowing Saints to take home the Intercol Volleyball trophy once again. Really well done to those who played at Intercol! All of the girls are super excited for the rest of the season! – Georgina Keough (Captain)
Open B – Saints 3 defeated Walford 0 (25-14, 25-19, 25-17)
Saints started strongly with Joss Forster winning numerous shots with powerful serving. Milly Brett showed great net awareness in both attack and defence, with Sivanthi Sivasuthan putting Walford on the back foot with shots into the back court. In the second set, Dayna Petruzzella joined the serving club, winning 7 points straight to create a lead mid-way through the set, and Chloe Venning and Milly Brett made some critical point saves. In the third set, all girls played really well using 3 point shots regularly, with Samantha Keough setting well and allowing Sivi, Joss and Dayna to all hit winners. A well-earned win. – Neil Fuller (Supervisor)
Middle A – Saints 1 defeated by Walford 2 (24-26, 25-21, 16-25)
WATER POLO
Open A – Saints 14 defeated St Ignatius 5
What an awesome start to another season of water polo! In a hard-fought game, Saints reigned triumphant over St Ignatius with an impressive win. It was great to see the girls working really well together to create many counter-attack opportunities and a very strong defence. A special shout-out to Ashlyn May who played a spectacular game in goals! Her strong saves and passes were truly commendable. Best players were Stephanie Smalls and Lara Wakeham for playing an unbeatable defence and shooting some incredible goals. An amazing effort girls!
Open B – Saints 5 defeated by St Michael’s 12
The girls had a very strong first half, down by just 2 points at half-time. It was awesome to see incredible fight for the ball in both attack and defence, especially considering it was the first game many had played in the Open B division. Lady Murphy had an awesome match in attack and defence, setting up successful attacks and showing leadership in the pool. In goals, Willow Stewart-Rattray used her strong legs and quick reflexes to block shots. A very impressive effort girls, well done!
Open C – Saints 15 defeated Loreto 3
Saints played a solid game which led to a very impressive 12 point win over Loreto. The girls worked brilliantly as a team to produce lots of quick passes and shots as well as some awesome steals. A special mention to Ashlyn May who scored a goal from the other side of the pool as goalie! Claudia Pearce played a very strong offensive game filled with many successful counter attacks and shots. Alice Braithwaite also played a brilliant game by winning every single swim up at the start of each quarter and always being a passing option. A very strong and convincing win for the girls – go Saints!