News of 26 May 2025
Literary Week
We would like to congratulate the star readers and the fundraising champions.
The class who raised the most money in each grade receives a civvies day on 21 May.
Grade 8 – 8A4
Grade 9 – 9B2
Grade 10 – C4
Grade 11 – D4
Grade 12 – E4
The winner of the junior classes competition that raised the highest amount is B2.
C4 is the winner of the senior classes competition that raised the highest amount.
It certainly does seem the 4 is a lucky number as 4 of the grades had a winner in A4, C4, D4 and E4.
A Prize for the learner in each grade who brought in the most money:
Grade 8 – Georgia McKerr
Grade 9 – Amilcar Hermans and Sara Niazi (tie)
Grade 10 – Michaela McKerr
Grade 11 – Chloe Strydom
A Prize for the learner in each grade who read the most during Readathon:
Grade 8 – Izzy Casali
Grade 9 – Wanda Nogqala
Grade 10 – Tayla Elliott
Grade 11 – Riley Ellie
And then a prize for the learner who brought in the most money and who read the most:
Grade 12 – Erin Pretorius
We would like to thank the sponsors of these prizes: Fogarty’s Book Store, Community Chest and Super Value Stores.
The amount raised, with only a few more sponsorship forms to be returned is R 68 512, 90
Character Dress up Prizes
- Most original/creative interpretation of a character (clever /unexpectedly appropriate portrayal): Umpalumpas Hannah Levey, Caitlin Peters, Morgan de Souza and Willie Wonka Camryn Robinson
- Best dressed duo (Old/New pot characters coordinated based on chosen story): Lord Farquard Maddy Hoyle (Gr 12) and the Gingerbread man Mary Scowby (Gr 8)
- Best dressed Old Pot (especially if it is clear only the OP made an effort): Mr Wormwood Erin Wilson
- Best Dressed New Pot (especially if it is clear only the NP made an effort): Fiona from Shrek Luminathi Mali
Board Competition
Boards were judged on effort, creativity and link to literary week.
1st place – CATS: Sophia Wood
2nd place – Quiz club: Mikaela Caliste
All Girls’ Festival
All Girls’ Festival 2025 was held at Wynberg Girls’ High School in Cape Town from 27th to 30th April. This prestigious festival brought together 20 public all girls schools from across the country, providing a platform for our talented young women to showcase their skills and engage in a variety of competitive and enriching activities.
Collegiate participated in a wide array of events, including Hockey, Netball, Squash, Tennis, E-sports, Chess, Cross-Country, Creative Writing, Public Speaking, Masterchef, Art, Vocal Ensemble and Drama. We are exceptionally pleased with the dedication, commitment, and talent demonstrated by our girls across all disciplines.
While certain events such as Creative writing, Public speaking, Vocal Ensemble, Masterchef, Art and Drama were not based on rankings, our girls were enriched by the opportunity to participate in multiple workshops led by well-established and esteemed professionals in their respective fields. The creative writing participants had the privilege of working with a published author. The art programme explored diverse artistic forms. The drama participants engaged in collaborative performances with other schools and received valuable critiques and feedback from experts. The Masterchef participants had the extraordinary experience of visiting the Silwood School of Cookery in Cape Town, a world-renowned culinary institution. Our public speaking participants also performed commendably.
We are immensely proud of our e-sports team. This year marked the inaugural inclusion of E-sports at the National All Girls’ Festival, and Collegiate was one of the pioneering schools to participate in this event. We are particularly proud to single out the team led by Mr McLachlan, who achieved an outstanding first place overall ranking in this tournament.
Our tennis girls competed fiercely against some of the top schools in the country, securing a commendable 5th place ranking. The cross-country team ran amidst serene settings and achieved a strong 6th place overall finish. Our chess team demonstrated their strategic prowess by drawing against the top chess school in the country and ultimately finished 6th at the end of the tournament.
Our squash team achieved an excellent 3rd place ranking. Our netball team, for the first time in Collegiate's history of attending the National All Girls’ Festival, also secured a remarkable 3rd place. The hockey team, reached the final and, with immense pride, emerged victorious, winning the National All Girls’ Festival championship! Special mention must be made of Kerrin Gillies who was named the top Goal scorer of the tournament as well as player of the tournament.
Beyond the achievements, it was the spirit of camaraderie and support that truly stood out. Seeing so many other schools cheering from the sidelines for Collegiate, and receiving congratulations and well wishes from staff members from across the country, was a powerful reminder of the special privilege it is to be a part of this magnificent institution.
When the All Girls’ touring team returned home, our U14A and U16A Hockey teams left Gqeberha and joined our first team Hockey in Paarl, to compete in the Belgotex Girls Hockey Challenge. The tournament took place from 1st to3rd May. The competition was fierce with many of the Top 20 schools represented in each category.
Our 1st team continued their impressive track record of late losing only one match out of the 7 matches played, and finishing 5th out of 20 teams. In the under 19 division, Kerrin Gillies received the Player of the Tournament Award.
Our U16A team played 6 matches, losing only 2 of which one was to the top ranked school in South Africa. They also finished 5th overall in their division.
Our U14A team also played 6 matches, losing two, drawing one and winning three. They finished 13th overall.
Our U17A Netball also travelled during the short school break to George to participate in the inaugural Kwagga Netball Festival hosted by Outeniqua High School. They played 10 matches over three days. Unfortunately, they did not get the results they hoped for but had a great time making memories and learning valuable lessons in the process.
Pearson Derby
Some exciting Netball was played and we are proud of the grit and determination. The results are:
14A lost 10-21
14B lost 16-17
14C lost 4-11
14D won 12-7
14E won 8-7
14F won 6-1
15A lost 5-2
15B lost 1-22
16A won 18-17
16B won 18-8
16C won 18-13
16D won 13-11
16E won 15-1
16F won 15-1
17A lost 9-36
3rd lost 7-13
2nd lost 8-19
1st lost 23-40
Our squash girls impressed us on the courts with the following results:
1st 12-0 win in games
2nd 11-4 win in games
3rd 9-0 win in games
What a pleasure it was to watch our girls play hockey against Pearson.
The results are:
1st: 4-0 win
U16A: 2-1 win
U14A: 6-2 win
2nds: 1-0 win
U16B: 0-3 lost
U14B: 2-0 win
3rds: 2-1 win
U14C: 3-0 win
U16C: 0-3 lost
4ths: 2-2 draw
U16D: 0-1 lost
U16E: 0-4 lost
World Irish Dancing Championships
Shanna du Plessis (Grade 12) recently participated at the 2025 World Irish Dancing Championships in Dublin and was the second South African female (and youngest South African female dancer) ever to recall to the final round where the top 50 competitors dance again for a final placement. Shanna placed 46th in the World out of 147 dancers in the ladies under 18 category and was awarded a prestigious Worlds recall medal. Well done, Shanna!
Belgotex Girls’ Challenge
The Collegiate First Hockey team participated in the inaugural Belgotex Girls’ Challenge held in Paarl from the 1st to the 3rd of May. It was an incredible experience with some fast paced and tense hockey matches taking place over the three days. The team played six matches losing only one of their fixtures and ultimately finishing 5th out of 20 teams. Kerrin Gillies was award the player of the Tournament accolade at the final prize-giving. A huge congratulations to all the girls for some incredibly gutsy performances.
The U16A Hockey team travelled to Paarl to attend the Belgotex Girls. It was an amazing opportunity to play against strong opposition and gain valuable experience.
Results:
7-1 win against Worcester Gym
0-1 loss against St Cyprians
1-0 win against Waterkloof
0-2 loss against Paarl Gym in Quarter Final
1-0 win against Reddam Constantia
2-0 win against Fairmont High to finish 5th overall
The U14 hockey team participated in the Belgotex Sports Challenge. The team came up against strong competition but never gave up.
Results:
2-0 win vs Somerset College
0-4 loss vs Herschel
0-0 draw vs Bloemhof
0-0 draw then lost on shootouts to Durbanville
2-1 win vs Reddam Constantia
2-0 win vs Somerset College
The team finished 13th overall.
Netball
Our U17A netball team participated in the Kwagga Netball Festival in George. Our girls were nominated for Player of the Match in two encounters. They are Vutomi Ndyoko and Kiara Nicholls.
Surf Lifesaving SA Championships
Congratulations to Madison Fourie, one of our Grade 11 learners, for her incredible achievement at the recent 2025 Surf Lifesaving SA Championships. Madison won Gold in the Single Ski, Silver in Surf Swim & Iron, and Bronze for Run Swim Run & Board. These results clinched her the Victrix Ludorium for u17 Girls awards.
Founders’ Weekend
The OCGG hosted a wonderful reunion dinner. There was laughter, recollection and nostalgia at this wonderful event where the reunion groups caught up and reminisced.
Congratulations to all the learners who participated in the public speaking competition for Collegiate's Founders weekend against Union High School. There was a great spirit amongst the participants as they overcame their fears and presented prepared and unprepared speeches. Well done to Afikile Tyiso, Holly Tudhope, Zimfefe Gomomo and Emily Ball. We are especially proud of Holly Tudhope, who placed first in the junior section.
Natalie Stear and Charles Kayser Speech and Elocution Competition
The annual Natalie Stear and Charles Kayser Speech and Elocution Competitions took place this afternoon. Participants are required to recite a poem and monologue, and read an unseen extract. It was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon as participants demonstrated depth of insight and wonderful expression in their interpretations of the pieces. Congratulations to Isabella Casali, who placed first in the junior section and Dion Duri, who placed first in the senior section. Special thanks to Chloé Shelton for giving of her time and expertise as the adjudicator.
Mountain Biking
Congratulations to Madison Law who took part in the school MTB league over the weekend, winning the Junior Ladies B U17 age group.
Simamele
A beautiful Simamele session was held in the Resource Centre by Mrs Kelly, our school psychologist. She addressed anxiety, a very real worry for many learners. She covered what anxiety looks like, how it feels and then how to cope. We are so fortunate to have someone on staff to support our learners in times of anxiety.
Show Jumping
Congratulations to Leah Killian who participated in the Eastern Cape Youth Show Jumping championship held in Bathurst this weekend, winning the 1.30m Eastern Cape Championship on her horse, Moonflight. Well done, Leah and Midnight!
SASMT Into the Mix Competition.
Eden Jonker recently participated in the Eastern Cape Junior Showjumping Championships in Bathurst. She had a very successful weekend, where she placed first in both the Eastern Cape Equitation and Eastern Cape 80cm Show Jumping Championship on her horse, African Royal Jewel. Well done Eden and African Royal Jewel!
SASMT Into the Mix Competition
Our musicians showcased their skills in Contemporary, Pop, R’n’B, Jazz and Musical Theatre at the annual SASMT Into the Mix Competition. We would like to congratulate all who participated. The C of Saxes Ensemble as well as Avethandwa Goboza and Katherine Wilson (Vocal duet) placed in the top 3 in the High School ensemble category. The Contemporary and Jazz Grades 2-5 section was won by Luminathi Gedze for her Jazz Vocal performance and Aisha Mxokozeli made the top 6 of the Contemporary and Jazz Grades 6-8 category. Clarice Pieterse placed 3rd in the Contemporary and Jazz Grades 6-8 category for her contemporary piano performance. We would also like to congratulate Minenhle Maisela and Jenna Eaton on placing among the top 4 in the Junior Musical Theatre category. Avethandwa Goboza placed first in the Junior Musical Theatre category and Camryn Robinson won the Senior Musical Theatre category. Katherine Wilson was awarded The Robert Gillmer Trophy for the best senior vocalist overall. Congratulations to all who participated in the competition this year and on making it yet another near-clean-sweep for Collegiate.
AD Maths
Congratulations to Clarice Pieterse (Grade 10 - 2024) and Jennifer Friskin (Grade 11 - 2024) who each achieved an average of 100% for the June and November 2024 Admaths examinations. Additionally, they were the top Admaths students in South Africa overall for the year in their respective grades.
Music
Our Grade 12 Music Class for 2025 showcased their hard work at the annual Matric PAT Concert. This concert is one of their Practical Assessment Tasks (PAT) for Music. In addition to the performance, they have to write programme notes for the piece being performed and these were printed in the programme for the concert. Our senior musicians delivered a performance of diverse repertoire of a very high standard.
JCC
On 23 May, representatives from JCC, Liyakhanya Speelman, and Sinalo Mfecane, visited Motherwell High School as part of the organisation's community outreach initiatives. The primary purpose of the visit was to donate sanitary towels to the school, aiming to support young girls and promote menstrual health and dignity.
Through this act of service, JCC continues to make a positive impact in local communities by addressing real challenges faced by youth, especially young women. We look forward to more opportunities to serve and uplift others in meaningful ways.
Isuzu Herald Quiz
We are proud of our Quiz Team's performance in the Isuzu Herald Quiz competition. They competed in the quarter-final against Pearson High School. It was a competitive round ending with a tie of 8 points each, resulting in a sudden death round. After a deadlock of three rounds, Pearson secured the win. We could not be prouder of our girls for their efforts.
