| (2) | Victoria | 81 | ||||||
| (7) | Toronto | 31 | Victoria | 72 | ||||
| (3) | Winnipeg | 74 | Winnipeg | 41 | Victoria | 70 | ||
| (6) | York | 45 | ||||||
| —–VICTORIA | ||||||||
| (1) | Bishop’s | 51 | ||||||
| (8) | Laurentian | 42 | Bishop’s | 73 | Bishop’s | 55 | ||
| (5) | Saskatchewan | 59 | Dalhousie | 57 | ||||
| (4) | Dalhousie | 64 |
In the quarterfinals, held in Saskatoon, Dalhousie defeated host Saskatchewan 64-59 by using their full court press to force 30 Huskie turnovers. Anna Pendergast scored 23 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. Natalie Vukovich hit 18 and Sandra Pothier 11. Judy Lang paced Saskatchewan with 18. Sheryl Klechman added 14 and 9 boards, while Moira Pennycock scored 8. Saskatchewan shot .400 from the floor and out-rebounded Dalhousie 33-31. “Defence, I think was the biggest thing. They just couldn’t seem to adjust,” said Dalhousie coach Carolyn Savoy. Three Huskies (Judy Lang, Sheila Brennan and Carolyn McCullough) quickly found themselves in foul trouble. All eventually fouled out.
Bishop’s defeated wild card Laurentian 51-42. The Gaiters led 12-10 when coach Wayne Hussey switched to a 2-3 zone, which limited Laurentian to four points and no field goals through the remainder of the half. Bishop’s led 29-14 at the break. “Our best (defence) is man to man so the switch was done more or less as a change,” said Bishop’s coach Wayne Hussey. “But when it gave Laurentian problems, we stayed with it. … “We didn’t play well, yet we were up 15 at the half. I figured we’d get going into the second. Well, that never happened. We were trying too hard, not playing our game. … Putting the ball on the floor, that’s not us.” Andrea Blackwell and Karen McComber led the Gaiters with 10 points apiece. Debbie Davies led Laurentian with 10.
Victoria waxed Toronto 81-31. The Blues had qualified for the tourney by upsetting Laurentian in the OWIAA east semis. Victoria took a 14-9 lead and then exploded for 14 unanswered points to take a 39-17 lead into the half. Victoria’s press and good defence proved too much for Toronto to handle. Victoria led 39-17 at the break. Luanne Hebb led the way with 22 points. Sandy Chambers add 16, along with 9 boards, and Lesley Godfrey 12. Pat Melville paced Toronto with 17.
In the last quarterfinal, Winnipeg throttled York 74-45 by dominating the glass, ripping off 33 defensive rebounds in a track meet. The Wesmenettes took a 30-20 lead at the half. Bea Dyce scored 18 for Winnipeg. Donna Posnick added 13, Cheryl Kryluk 12 and game MVP Karen Ridd 21. Kim Holden led York with 12. Fern Cooper added 10. “We blew them out of there,” said Winnipeg coach Tom Kendall. Ridd “was outstanding tonight.”
In the semis, Victoria thumped Winnipeg 72-41. The Vikings took an 11-6 lead and then exploded to a 45-21 margin at the half. Winnipeg got burned on the full court press. Shelley Godfrey led the way with 13. Leslie Godfrey added 10, while Tracey McAra and Luanne Hebb each scored 11. Cheryl Kryluk paced Winnipeg with 12. Donna Posnick added 10. Victoria out-rebounded Winnipeg 33-17 and outshot them from the floor .530 to .220. Victoria’s Sandy Chambers said the sagging man-to-man defence proved the difference. “It’s a man defence but we play it like a zone. It’s what we call help defence. If someone drives, if the guards get beat, everyone just collapses in the middle. That’s our job. And it’s the guards’ job to force them outside.” Winnipeg’s Kendall said “we choked, is what happened. We just went out and didn’t score early. And you can’t afford to get behind Victoria. They were poised and went with their game plan. We didn’t.”
In the other semi, Bishop’s defeated Dalhousie 73-52. Although the Gaiters initially had some difficulty resolving Dalhousie’s 2-3 zone, their perimeter game eventually caught fire. Bishop’s shot .470 from the floor, including .510 in the first half. Andrea Blackwell scored 16. Wendy Verrechia added 12 and Lynn Polson and Connie Classen 10 apiece. Anna Pendergast scored 23 for Dalhousie. Natalie Vukovich added 13.
In the bronze medal match, Winnipeg nipped Dalhousie 54-52 as Bea Dyce scored 17, Karen Ridd 12 and Cheryl Kryluk 9. Natalie Vukovich led Dalhousie with 23. Anna Pendergast added 16.
In the final, Victoria bombed Bishop’s 70-55. The Vikings took a 17-16 lead midway through the first half and then went on an 11-0 run, including five points by Luanne Hebb en route to a 38-20 lead at the half. The Vikings tough man-to-man defence and good shooting proved the difference. The Vikes also forced Bishop’s to play a strict perimeter game. Game MVP Tracie McAra scored 21 and grabbed five rebounds. She later told Canadian Press that “we did have a bit of a lapse” in the second half when Bishop’s rallied to within 55-49. Hebb scored 18 and grabbed 6 defensive boards, Lesley Godfrey 15, Shelley Godfrey 10 and Sandy Chambers 5, while Sandy Espeseth, Janine Prince, Shawnee Harle, Susie Neil, Sue Shaw and Jamie Mackie were scoreless. Victoria coach Kathy Shields noted “we’ve done that all year; come out strong and had good first halves. Second halves have been a bit of problem though. When you’re leading it doesn’t matter what you say, subconsciously, that’s going to create a problem.” Lynn Polson led Bishop’s with 14. Denise Dignard added 12, Karen McComber 9, Wendy Verrechia 8, Andrea Blackwell 4, Theresa Grant 4, Maria Bobyn 2 and Connie Klassen 2, while Sharon Tolan, Bonnie McNaughton and Wendy Walters (Waters?) were scoreless. Shields said poised proved the difference. “I think that’s been the key to our success. No matter what the score, we play at our level. Everybody talked about Bishop’s perimeter game and how great it is. Well, I think the key to any defence is keeping a team outside. You just can’t live and die on the perimeter.”
The all-tourney team featured: MVP Luanne Hebb (Victoria); Tracie McAra (Victoria); Leslie Godfrey (Victoria); Natalie Vukovich (Dalhousie); Sandy Chambers (Victoria); and Denise Dignard (Bishop’s).
The bronze medalist Winnipeg Wesmenettes: Bea Dyce; Karen Ridd; Cheryl Kryluk; Donna Posnick;
The silver medalist Bishop’s Gaiters: Denise Dignard; Andrea Blackwell; Karen McComber; Wendy Verrechia; Lynn Polson; Connie Classen; Theresa Grant; Sharon Tolan; Bonnie MacNaughton; Maria Bobyn; Wendy Waters; coach Wayne Hussey; assistant Sue Hylland; athletic director Bruce Coulter
The champion University of Victoria Vikings: Luanne Hebb; Tracie McAra; Leslie Godfrey; Jamie Mackie; Shelley Godfrey; Sandy Chambers; Janine Prince; Susie Neil; Sue Shaw; Sandy Espeseth; Shawnee Harle; coach Kathy Shields