Africa-Press – Kenya. St Mary’s School Yala stamped their authority at the Nyanza Secondary Schools Term One Games, delivering a commanding all-round performance as the four-day championships concluded at Maseno School in Kisumu County on Saturday.
Backed by chief principal V.O Makanda, St Mary’s reclaimed the rugby 15s title and clinched the boys’ handball crown, underlining a dominant campaign. However, their push for a clean sweep fell just short after a narrow defeat to Agoro Sare in the boys’ basketball final.
St Mary’s biggest statement came in rugby, where they ended Kisii School’s three-year dominance with a hard-fought 8-6 victory in a tense final. The match looked destined for a deadlock at 6-6 before Timothy Wesonga delivered a dramatic last-minute drop goal to seal the win. Hanningtone Odera scored twice for St Mary’s while Leystone Onduko matched him with two penalties for Kisii.
“It was an intense and tight game. The boys have made us proud by ending Kisii’s three-year dominance,” said Yala’s head coach.
Kisii School coach Edwin Morara remained gracious in defeat, noting: “It was a good fight. We put up a spirited performance, but it was not our day.”
Both St Mary’s and Kisii booked their tickets to the national championships set for April 5–11 in Kisumu.
St Mary’s added to their medal haul in handball, edging Kisii School 28-26 in another tightly contested final. In the girls’ category, Nyakach Girls dethroned Kadika Girls with a narrow 28-27 victory.
In hockey, East Africa bronze medalists Ng’iya Girls, under chief principal Hellen Masengeli, continued their dominance by retaining the title with a 1-0 win over Nyamira Girls at Maseno University. Mercy Rebecca scored the decisive goal, repeating her heroics from last year’s final. Both teams advanced to the nationals.
Kisumu Day reclaimed the boys’ hockey title with a 2-0 win over Our Lady of Mercy Ringa Boys, courtesy of goals from Daniel Onyango and Fidel Odhiambo, with both sides progressing to the next stage.
In boys’ basketball, Agoro Sare edged out St Mary’s 60-59 in a thrilling final, with coach Paul Odock admitting it was a game that “could have gone either way.”
Meanwhile, Asumbi Girls dominated the girls’ basketball final, retaining their title in emphatic fashion with an 80-41 victory over Barchando Girls from Siaya County.
