Our annual Mercy Empowerment Dinner in McAuley Hall on Thursday 27 February was once again a resounding success, with attendees being treated to a wonderful evening which truly exemplified our College theme of Be the Light that Inspires Hope.

A highlight of the night was the presentation by Gemma Sisia, whose thoughtful and inspiring words resonated deeply with the audience. Gemma is a founder of St Jude’s, a pioneering leader in charitable education, providing nearly 2000 Tanzanian children with free, quality education that supports the sustainable development and empowerment of young people to lead full and meaningful lives. Gemma’s experiences and perspectives gave those present a welcome insight into the remarkable work she undertakes.

Live musical performances provided a perfect backdrop to the event. Guests were treated to the shared experiences from our 2024 student immersion participants, which truly showcased the passion and dedication of the younger generation to creating positive change. Their thoughtful contributions demonstrated SHC’s commitment to nurturing socially responsible leaders, and we look forward to seeing them grow in this space over their time here at SHC.

This event acts as our annual fundraising opportunity, whereby all proceeds contribute towards initiatives that address environmental protection, First Nations rights, and access to educational support for young people in Timor. The silent auction and raffle were both warmly received, with generous contributions from attendees further boosting the fundraising efforts.

Thank you to all those who made the evening such a wonderful success!

Our Year 7 students have had a great time at their camp! They travelled by bus and ferry to Camp Manyung in Mt Eliza, where they stayed for two nights in fully catered, ensuite accommodation. Loyola and Siena attended camp from Monday 3 to Wednesday 5 March, while Clairvaux and Padua's camp was from Wednesday 5 to Friday 7 March. 

The students participated in many fun activities, including archery, raft-making, snorkelling, bike skills and initiatives. By all accounts the camp was enjoyed immensely by those who attended, both students and staff alike! Please see below some reflections of the camp.

On Monday 24 February, we travelled to South Barwon Reserve to begin our defence of our GISSA Girls Cricket crown. This preliminary round was a four team T10 round robin against St Ignatius, Christian College and Clonard. The top 2 teams qualify for the GISSA Grand Final in a few week's time. Sacred Heart progressed through the 3 games undefeated and will face Clonard in a rematch of the 2024 final. Well done to all our amazing cricketers!

Game 1 SHC vs St Ignatius

St Ignatius 9/38 (10 overs) v SHC 1/55 (7 overs) - Mia C 2 wickets, Milly N 2 wickets. Scarlett B 20 retired

Game 2 SHC v Christian College

Christian College 6/44 (10 overs) v SHC 3/72 (10 overs) - Ally C 2 wickets. Lily C 25 retired

Game 3 SHC v Clonard

SHC 1/100 (10 overs) v Clonard 3/47 (10 overs) - Ally C 21 retired, Scarlett B 22 retired, Lucy G 16 not out

Team:

Ava Osbourne (c), Macy Lee, Lucy Gummer, Scarlett Birrell, Lily Cavie, Mia Caruana, Ella Caruana, Ally Croft, Isla Hanna-Phillips, Milly Naylor, Georgie Naylor

Coaches: Josh Davidson, Tim Birch, Evie Ryan

Josh Davidson, Cricket Coach

A sunny morning on Tuesday 18 February made this year’s CGSAV Triathlon at Geelong Eastern Beach quite spectacular. There were eight schools participating this year, with SHC representing Geelong, with all other schools from Melbourne. The competition was tough, team support very prominent as was the sportsmanship.

The SHC teams were very competitive in all 3 divisions (Juniors, Intermediates and Seniors). Well done to our SHC team who represented us in such a competitive all round effort and congratulations to the individual students who won medals for placing in the top 10. SHC came 2^nd in the Junior section, 4^th in the Intermediates, and 5^th in the Seniors. The Overall Aggregate saw SHC finishing 4^th.

Thank you to the SHC Staff and students for all their help and assistance on the day.

Final Scores at the end of competition:

AGGREGATE

SHC INDIVIDUAL PLACINGS

Juniors

Intermediates

Seniors

On Tuesday Sacred Heart College students participated in the CGSAV Tennis at Geelong Lawn Tennis Club, competing against a range of different girls’ Catholic schools. The students played in 6-8 sets and had some very good rallies throughout the day, with amazing sportsmanship and support on display by all students. 

Junior, Intermediate and Senior teams all fought hard throughout the day against some tough competition. Thank you to staff Steph Ellis and Emily Bensted for coaching the three teams, and to our trainee Evie Ryan for assisting.

Results:

Juniors – 3^rd

Intermediates – 5^th

Seniors – 3^rd

Congratulations to the following students:

Juniors: Alice Walsh, Saskia Harendarz, Isla Eslick Isla McKeag, Grace Scholes, Caitlin Foley, Pippa Dow, Eleanor Van Kalken

Intermediate: Sienna Clatworthy, Layla Kenny, Mercedes Collier, Neve Nielson, Selina Ortiz, Mary-Kay Kerr, Georgia Moloney, May Lynch

Seniors: Charlotte Iles, Isabella Saunders, Sienna Thompson, Monique Fox, Hannah Burke, Alexis O’Toole, Konstandina Zavitsanos

On Thursday 27 February, Sacred Heart students took part in the CGSAV Division 1 Diving competition held at MSAC. SHC had a very successful day showing great individual and team spirit, with the talented divers finishing 5^th overall.

Results: Juniors 2^nd, Intermediates 3^rd, Overall 5^th

Individual Results:

Junior A – 3^rd Lily Harris

Junior B – 1^st Babette Lloyd

Junior C – 2^nd Tessa Kanellos

Junior D – 2^nd Matilda Learmonth

Inter A – 3^rd Maya Simanjuntak

Inter B – 3^rd Winter Davies

Inter C – 1^st Zoe Van Dreumel

Congratulations to all students who participated, and a huge thank you to Bianca Holt, Mary Veale and our trainee Evie Ryan, for organising and supporting the diving team.

Team: Babette Lloyd, Matilda Learmonth, Lily Harris, Tessa Kanellos, Winter Davies, Maya Simanjuntak, Zoe Van Dreumel

On Thursday 27 February, a group of students took part in the CGSAV Division 1 Swimming competition held at MSAC during the day. All students were excited and ready to go when we arrived. It was a fantastic afternoon for the SHC team as all tried their best, cheering each other on from the stands.

Sacred Heart had a very successful afternoon with the overall score displaying great individual and team results. The SHC Swimming team finished first in the Junior and Intermediate division and second in the Seniors. This resulted in SHC winning the overall trophy!

Congratulations to all students who participated on the afternoon; it was great to see team spirit and determination from all. A huge thank you to the staff involved in helping on the day - Marcelle Korth, Jenny Goding and Taylah Morley.

RESULTS:

Juniors – 1^st SHC Geelong 834

Intermediates - 1^st SHC Geelong 823

Seniors - 1^st Mount St Joseph’s 582, 2^nd – SHC Geelong 560

Overall – 1^st SHC Geelong 2217

TEAM:

On Wednesday 5 March, we gathered in House groups for the Ash Wednesday liturgy, marking the first day of Lent. Students and staff respected the solemnity of the occasion, using the time for personal reflection of what the holy day meant to them, as well as the Lenten period as a whole. The distribution of ashes was respectfully observed, marking an important part of the ceremony. 

As we prepare for Easter, we acknowledge the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf, and strive to live our lives as he would have us do.

This year our SHC swimmers representative team competed in the All Schools Swimming Relays, held on Monday 3 March at Melbourne Sports and Aquatic Centre. Students and staff headed up on a bus together. All students came prepared to race and were very supportive of one another cheering and clapping throughout the events.

Sacred Heart College were very competitive in all relay events against the best schools in Victoria. The students should be very proud of their efforts. Well done!

A big thank you to all students who came along on the night, and special thanks to staff Casee Graham and Steph Ellis for organising the team and coaching our swim teams on the night.

Team: Natalia Muises-Khoury, Alice Walsh, Sienna Stapleton, Elodie Walker, Matilda Biberow, Madison Rafter, Lily Anderson, Evie Lee, Macy Lee, Amelia Shell, Indiana McDonald

Results in Heats:

On Thursday 6 March, in celebration of International Women’s Day, SHC hosted an event onsite - Celebrating Women in Construction and the Built Environment. We were most fortunate to be inspired by a panel of engaging industry leaders who are currently leading within their respective fields of construction and the built environment. These amazing women included:

• Kristyn Kelly – Project Manager, Cotton On / SHC Planning & Facilities Subcommittee Member
• Lauren Corless – Project Manager, SEMZ Property Advisory & Project Management
• Jen Falco (Mechanical Engineer) – Head of Health, Safety & Wellbeing, Barwon Water / SHC Chair of College Advisory Council
• Georgie Laverick – Project/Site Manager, Hutchinson Builders
• Jessica Rafter – Director of Property, Space & Infrastructure Projects, Swinburne University of Technology / SHC Planning & Facilities Subcommittee Member
• Caitlin See – Project Manager, SEMZ Property Advisory & Project Management
• Dani Storm – Industrial Designer, SHC Design Futures Lab/Makerspace Manager
• Linda Tivendale – Past President, Victorian Chapter AIB, Senior Lecturer, Deakin University School of Architecture & Built Environment

Those present were treated to an inspiring afternoon, as they listened to the speakers give insights into their respective industries, the successes they have achieved, and the obstacles they have managed to overcome.

Following the panel discussion, students had the opportunity to visit the construction site of the new Sports and Wellness Centre, and they were suitable impressed with how it is all coming together. The afternoon finished with coffee and cake in the Atrium.

On Thursday 6 March the SHC Alumni Committee supported another networking opportunity event by purchasing two tables for our current students and Alumni to attend the Soroptimist International Women's Day breakfast at GMHBA Stadium. Soroptimist International (SI) in Australia is a volunteer organisation that works to improve the lives of women and girls. They said of the day that it...'was not a fundraiser, but a day to educate the community about the continuous fight for equality, the gender bias and the need to eliminate discrimination and is partly subsidised by SI Geelong in their role of advocates for women'.

Ten of our senior students attended the event together with other Alumni from a broad demographic to get together and engage. The guest speaker was Amy Gardner who is a young local Geelong woman and an active member of the tourism community who shared her insights on Seniors in Melbourne and other career highlights. Amy also volunteers with West Welcome Wagon, a grassroots organisation supporting asylum seekers with essential goods and services. The students were impressed and inspired to hear from Amy and other speakers, and the amazing work they all do in their respective fields.

Evelyn Downie, our Mercy and Mission Leader in Year 11, reflected on the event:

This experience was so incredible and I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to enjoy this breakfast with many women, who are extraordinary to have listened to. While enjoying the delicious breakfast, I learnt more about different women who shared some of their experiences throughout their lives, which was inspiring. I would like to thank the alumni committee who facilitated my and the other students' attendance to this event, as it was amazing.

Congratulations to our rowing team who participated in the School state championships recently. A fantastic effort was given by all, and we had some great results. Special mentions and congratulations to the following students: 

Rio Smith, winning Gold in the Year 10 single Scull. Rio also Raced the Open single and raced in the A final.
Laura Ahearn and Lola Thomas for making the A final in the Open Double Scull and placing 4th, Just missing out on a Bronze Medal.

This weekend, 14 to 16 March, we are ready for the 2025 Head of the Schoolgirls, the final and biggest regatta of the season. This three day event will see almost 2000 competitors on the Barwon River, for some tough racing. Please come along and support our crews by cheering them on along the banks of the river.

Good luck to all our competing students - we are so proud of you all!

On Friday 14 March, Sacred Heart travelled to Barrabool Cricket Club in Ceres for the GISSA Girls final against Clonard. 

We lost the toss and were asked to bat first. The presence of the Australian Men's coach Andrew McDonald running warm ups for Clonard did not dent the confidence of the Sacred Heart girls. 

We got off to a great start with Ally C leading the way with a quick fire 37 retired. Ally was ably supported throughout the line up, with strong contributions from Lucy G, Lily C, Isla H-P and Mia C taking us to a formidable total of 145 from our 20 overs. 

In reply, Clonard got off to a fast start but we were able to reel them back in. We didn't take a lot of wickets but were able to stem the runs and restrict them to an even 100 from their 20 overs.
The win sees Sacred Heart go back to back in this tournament and paves the way for our entry into the State Premier Shield to be held in Term 4. Ally C was named player of the match.

A big thanks to the players and to Tim Birch and Mel Riley for their support through this tournament.

Team: Ava Osbourne (c), Macy Lee, Lucy Gummer, Scarlett Birrell, Lily Cavie, Mia Caruana, Ella Caruana, Ally Croft, Isla Hanna-Phillips, Milly Naylor, Georgie Naylor

Josh Davidson - Cricket Coach

Over the weekend of 14 to 16 March, 35 girls enjoyed three days of rowing at the Head of Schoolgirls Regatta. The traditional final event in our rowing season saw us compete in a total of 34 races, with some amazing performances in varied weather conditions over the course of the weekend.

Highlights included:

• The performance of Rio Smith, who, in a competitive field of rowers from around the state, was successful in winning the Year 10 single sculls event—her second Head of Schoolgirls win in as many years. Well done, Rio!
• Senior rowers Lola Thomas and Laura Ahearn, in the open double sculls event, raced strongly all weekend and only narrowly missed making the A final.
• Our Year Ten rowers, joining the seniors to race above their years. They had a very competitive weekend, along with our first season seniors who came in at the tough end competing successfully and showing progress from the beginning right to the end of the regatta.
• An enthusiastic set of Year Seven, Eight and Nine girls formed five of our junior crews, who gave their all in many highly entertaining rows across the three days—a sign of great things to come in future seasons.

A big thank you to the parents and staff for their support from the riverbank, and for working tirelessly to ensure everyone was fed and organised across the weekend. Also to Charlotte from Year 12 who volunteered her time to be Sacred Heart's representative for the 3 days, running the photo finish camera.

We wish Rio Smith well as she heads off to represent Sacred Heart and the Australian Rowing Championships in the Open schoolgirl single to compete against the best there is.

Congratulations to all our amazing rowers. We are so proud of each and every one of you as you battled it out on the Barwon River, digging deep to achieve fantastic results, both for the team and individually.

Laura Schouten, Rowing Coach

The Respect Cup is an annual event we always look forward to each year, and it once again did not disappoint! The event is a way in which we promote gender equality, celebrate women's achievements in AFL, and challenge bias, and our amazing footballers did not let us down in achieving all of these aims.

The extremely warm weather at GMHBA Stadium proved to be a hurdle in what was a solid showing by the SHC team. St Joseph’s battled hard with St Pat’s, but fell away in the last quarter to give Loreto a 12-point head start.

The handicap proved not to matter though as a fast-starting SHC extended a 24-point lead at quarter time. The lead only extended from there with the end result a massive 88-point win. Cramp was the theme of the second half with at least half a dozen players limping to the boundary. They all showed great resilience as they were very eager to get back on the field after a quick stretch.

We had a number of individual performances on the day however, the most pleasing part was that every player on the field played their role in what was a great team effort and win.

Sarah Conroy was hot on the footy and used her speed to rebound the ball out of our backline all day. Meg Lappin read the flight as well as we all know she can, taking some great intercept marks across the back 50 (and she tells us she’s a forward!). The whole backline unit was solid – a great effort to only allow one goal and three scores in total.

Our midfield was hungry for the ball, hunted the football consistently and gave multiple 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th efforts on all occasions. Georgia Wall battled hard in the ruck all day; my prediction would be 36-2 hit out win – pure dominance. Emily Soppitt was tough over the ball in our midfield, several acts of courage and skill shown throughout the day. Ally Lappin ran HARD on the wing all day showing her toughness and slotted 2 captains’ goals for the game – a great reward for effort.

The entire forward unit worked seamlessly together, scoring opportunities were created all over the forward 50 throughout the game. Ellie Walsh started the game on fire slotting 3 first quarter goals before being ruled out after a head knock. It was our Year 9 student Sienna Schmidt that impressed the most on the day, bouncing back at quarter time to slot 5 goals and showed pure danger and class whenever she went near the ball. Sienna was named best on ground for her efforts (the only Year 9 since Mekah Morrissy to do so – following in some special footsteps there!).

A special mention to Minnie McGay who not only showed great ferocity whenever she went near the ball, but stayed to comfort an injured opposition player for several minutes on the ground. A great show of RESPECT for the opposition and a huge part of what the day is all about.

Overall, there were some amazing moments from EVERY player, simply too many to mention. Well done to all players, you made your school and coaching staff VERY proud as always. Girls footy is in good hands with our current group coming through and I (as well as many others) look forward to seeing what our players can achieve in 2025 and beyond.

A big thank you to Carl Tracey and Bianca Cheever for their coaching in the lead up and on the day. Bianca also put in a mountain of work to organise the event. Shout out to past Respect Cup player Liv Mairos who was our runner and hype person on the day, a great person to have around our group of players.

A sincere thank you to all of the staff that came down to watch or live streamed from home; this does not go unnoticed by our players and goes a long way in supporting our incredible footballers.

Scores:

SHC – 14.12.96

Loreto – 1.2.8

Goals:

Sienna Schmidt 5, Ellie Walsh 3, Ally Lappin 2, Evie Albones, Neave Dickson, Izzy Korth, Kaeli Oliver.

Best:

Sienna Schmidt, Meg Lappin, Ally Lappin, Emily Soppitt, Georgia Wall, Sarah Conroy.

Josh Todd, Respect Cup Football Coach

Harmony Day is a celebration of diversity and inclusivity, reminding us of the importance of respect, belonging, and coming together as a community. This year, our Year 11 Vocational Major students embraced this spirit by preparing and selling a delicious meal of dahl and naan bread to staff. Their efforts not only showcased their teamwork and cooking skills but also supported a great cause—raising an impressive $600!

All proceeds will go towards purchasing ingredients to cook meals for Feed Me Geelong, a local organisation that provides nutritious meals to those in need. A special thank you to Mr Blackburn, who generously donated the ingredients and shared his culinary expertise with the students.

This initiative truly reflected the values of Harmony Day—bringing people together through food, culture, and kindness. Well done to all involved!

On Sunday 23 March we celebrated our Foundation Day, a day in which we reflect on, and give thanks for, the establishment of SHC.

The day began with a solemn and beautiful Mass, celebrated by Father Jospeh Panackal, honouring the college's rich Catholic heritage. It was a reverent occasion, and those who attended were moved by the service.

After Mass, it was time to enjoy the carnival! Attendees enjoyed a diverse range of activities, including exciting rides, classic lawn games and a cute petting zoo. For those seeking a more refined experience, there was High Tea served in Celies, which provided an elegant setting to enjoy delicious treats and convivial conversation. There was also a variety of food trucks around the grounds, which catered to all tastes.

Throughout the day, the college's historic heritage wing was open for self-guided tours. A concert featuring our beautiful organ was held, delighting all of those who attended. The chapel provided perfect acoustics for the concert; we truly are so lucky to have such a magnificent instrument in our possession.

Sacred Heart College Geelong’s Foundation Day was more than just a celebration; it was an opportunity for the community to come together, celebrate the college’s legacy, and enjoy the wonderful community we have here at SHC. A big thank you to all of those who helped in making this such a special day for all.