December, 2024

Trinity College congratulates all Year 12 students on their fine results for 2024!

James Skelton is Dux with an ATAR of 99.80! Out of more than 15,967 students who received the SACE in 2024, only 33 have been selected to receive a prestigious award from the Governor of South Australia - James Skelton is a 2024 Governor of South Australia Commendation - Excellence Award winner. Keen to pursue a career in performing arts, James will shortly relocate to London after accepting a scholarship to attend the celebrated Royal School of Music to study a Bachelor of Music and Performance. 

• 31 students attained an ATAR above 90
• 369 ‘A’ Grades were awarded to Trinity students
• 71 students attained ATARs above 80
• 16 students attained an ATAR of 95+
• 99% of eligible Trinity students achieved their SACE certificate in 2024
• 11 Merits were achieved across these subjects: Essential Mathematics, General Mathematics, Child Studies, Material Solutions, Music Explorations, Mathematical Methods, Ensemble Performance, Solo Performance and Activating Identities & Futures.
• 80 students studied a Certificate II VET qualification
• 110 students studied a Certificate III VET or higher qualification
• 60 Year 12 students used a Certificate III VET towards their ATAR
• 99 students used their VET towards their SACE
• 18 students commenced a school-based apprenticeship or traineeship within SACE

Students who attained ATARs above 96
 

• James Skelton - 99.80
• Rhys Young - 99.55
• Blake Nykke - 99.35
• Keian Curthoys-Davies - 99.15
• Emilia Muriti - 98.00
• Isobel McRae - 97.65
• Katy Tran - 97.60
• Connor Foreman - 97.50
• Grea Wise - 96.50
• Caitlin Bentley - 96.45
• Olivia Golder - 96.30
• Mia Devlin - 96.25
• Kaitlyn Switala 96.05

National glory and school pride were on the line at the 2024 Chemist Warehouse National Schools Challenge Final in Brisbane recently with Trinity College joining Australia’s other top school athletics programs to flex their form in a fast and fun format.

Only the finest of margins could separate the nation’s best school athletics programs as they battled for points to be crowned champions, with every race crucial to team success and our athletes did not disappoint.

Our students braved the heat and extreme humidity achieving season personal bests against a very strong field from across the country.

• Junior Boys – 5th Overall
• Intermediate Boys – 7th Overall
• Intermediate Girls – 9th Overall
• Senior Boys – 8th Overall
• Senior Girls – 8th Overall

Congratulations to all our athletes who not only represented the College with great pride their never give up attitudes the College finished in the top ten of all but one division. 

Source: Jess Ryswyk, Athletics Co-Ordinator

The Trinity College Open A Basketball Team finished an incredible run at nationals with a Silver Medal – the second-best school basketball team in Australia.

In oppressively humid conditions all week, playing six games in five days, Trinity consistently won the effort areas, played a very disciplined and team-oriented style and defied the odds to make it to the final, eventually losing to deserved winners Berwick (VIC) 77-87.

Coming in as the youngest team in the Championship division, with the majority of players in Year 11, the team could have been forgiven for turning up to enjoy the experience and make up numbers, but despite the more mature bodies of the opposition, Trinity scrapped and hustled their way deep into the tournament, beating reigning champions The Southport School (QLD) and national powerhouse Lake Ginninderra (ACT) along the way.

All the other schools in the Championship division hand out basketball scholarships and/or have a basketball-specific program built into its curriculum. Trinity has neither. Instead, Trinity’s basketball success has been built on players and staff stealing time before and after school, lunchtimes and school holidays in order to compete with the best in the country.

The 2024 silver medal adds to the growing list of national championship-division medals in basketball, including the national gold in 2018, bronze in 2019, and another silver in 2016. The College can lay legitimate claims to being one of the top three or four championship-division programs in the country.

The Trinity community can rightly be proud of the medal, but what is more impressive is the group of young men representing the College. There was no grandstanding or gesturing during the games, no behaviour issues on or off the court, just a band of incredibly tight teammates focussed on a single goal of advancing as far as they could. Every spare moment was spent recovering, scouting, and preparing for the next game. Their approach was exemplary.

Throughout the year, the boys were fundraising during their school holidays by coaching younger Trinity students in clinics, and during the school term they were coaching STARplex teams in order to help pay for their trip. They stayed in barrack-style accommodation in a Scout Hall to minimise costs, and on the morning of the final, were scrubbing and mopping the accommodation down ready for the next group coming in that afternoon.

It is hard to overstate the type of experience a campaign like this does for the students and staff that commit so much to it, but humility, discipline, sacrifice, togetherness and ultimately pride are traits that come to mind.

Kudos to Chris Clausen (2005) for inspiring these young men, and investing a full year of team sessions, shooting and weights totalling up to 4-5 sessions per week. As an old scholar and member of Trinity’s first-ever state championship in 2005, he has a deep love for his College and the young players that are continuing the legacy.  Seeing how the boys respect him and respond to him is the exact reason Trinity has a co-curricular program. 

Thank you also to basketball co-ordinator Jye Watson who grinds himself to a pulp during these weeks, preparing meals, cleaning, shopping, scouting, assistant coaching and whatever else needs to be done. They have created a life-lasting experience for the Open A Basketballers.

Source: Rupert Sapwell, Trinity College Director of Sport

Everyone is welcome at Christmas celebrates at Trinity including our horses! 

The annual Equestrian Program Christmas function was held recently for students and their families.

The fun gathering includes a few novelty events with the ponies and finishes with a morning tea and presentations to the students for their achievements and the volunteers for their contributions.

Well done to all, we know you're all looking forward to more Equestrian fun in 2025!

The Trinity College Lion Dance Troupe had an incredible time participating at the 2024 Gawler Christmas Parade on Saturday 30 November. 

It was great to see so many supporters in the crowd and the troupe send their thanks to everyone who attended for helping to make the whole experience so memorable. Chinese teacher and Lion Dance Coach Hongrui Chen reported that the students felt privileged to represent the College and to share vibrancy, cultural diversity, laughter and community spirit of our College with the local community. This event marked the conclusion of the lion dance troupe performances for 2024. 

The team would also like to extend their heartfelt thanks and gratitude to everyone for their support throughout the year. The contributions from staff, parents and students have been invaluable - from inviting the team to perform at school events to enthusiastically welcoming their visits and accommodating student schedules to allow them to participate fully. These experiences have strengthened the College’s connection with the wider community and with each other.

We look forward to continuing this vibrant tradition together in 2025! 

Source: Trinity College Lion Dance Troupe