(1) | Simon Fraser | 94 | ||||||
(8) | McMaster | 76 | Simon Fraser | 69 | ||||
(4) | Regina | 69 | Regina | 55 | Simon Fraser | 77 | ||
(5) | Laval | 54 | ||||||
—–SIMON FRASER | ||||||||
(2) | Windsor | 64 | ||||||
(7) | Ottawa | 46 | Windsor | 82 | Windsor | 56 | ||
(3) | Saskatchewan | 70 | Saskatchewan | 60 | ||||
(6) | Cape Breton | 54 |
In the quarterfinals, held in Hamilton, the 2nd-seeded OUA champion Windsor Lancers defeated the OUA champ Ottawa Gee-Gees 64-46 as CIS rookie of the year Jessica Clemençon, a 6-3 post from St. Rambert, France, scored 21. A 19-0 run to open the third quarter proved decisive. Clemençon said the team remained composed at the half despite entering the locker-room with just a 31-29 lead. “We are often successful in the third quarter, we are more focused as a team. We have to make sure we stay focused for the whole game,” she said. “We knew it would be a different game today. We’re just taking it one game at a time.” Lancers head coach Chantal Vallée said she was pleased with the team’s performance and said the team was calm at the half. “They are a well-coached team with good athletes, we expected a closer game (from last week),” said Vallée, the OUA West coach of the year. “The last time we played them, they had 19 offensive rebounds. They were the top team in the nation in offensive rebounding. We worked on boxing out a lot this week in practices but also knew to not get mad about (losing the offensive rebounding battle). We knew to not focus on the little details and just execute our game plan.” Former Czech Republic junior national team player Iva Peklova dominated the blocks. Gee-Gees coach Andy Sparks was disappointed with the third-quarter lapse. “We called a couple of timeouts to try to put some composure back out there, but they needed to make plays and our players didn’t. They (Windsor) made plays,” said Sparks. “We saw things last weekend (in the OUA final) we could attack, but we got away from those things in the third quarter. They are a very good team, I’ll be interested to see how they’ll handle it going forward. They have a chance, they have players who can play with Simon Fraser… but they are young.” Ottawa led for a good portion of the opening quarter, holding the Lancers to just six points in the opening five minutes. But cold five-for-17 shooting cost them an opportunity to build a sizable lead in the opening 10 minutes as the Lancers led 23-12 after the first frame. In the second, Ottawa clawed back to make it a two-point affair at the break. The Lancers opened up the third quarter outscoring Ottawa 21-2 in the opening eight minutes of the period and 24-4 in the quarter. Windsor led by as much as 22. Despite struggling on the offensive glass – the Gee-Gees held a 16-9 edge in the game, 13-4 in the opening three quarters – Ottawa was unable to capitalize on their opportunities, scoring just three second-chance points in the game. “I called a couple of time outs to settle things down but we didn’t respond,” said Sparks. “Windsor’s big players kept making big plays but unfortunately our key players didn’t.” Gee-Gees guard Emilie Morasse, who was named Ottawa’s player of the game, said “we lost the game in the third quarter, our defensive game was not very good. We played well in the second and fourth quarters but not the entire game. Our game became a lot better in the fourth quarter when we switched to a zone defence.” Player of the game Jessica Clemencon paced the Lancers with 21 points on 7-10 from the floor, 7-8 from the line and 6 boards. Iva Peklova scored 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 7 boards. Miah-Marie Langlois scored 9 on 4-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 3 steals. Shavaun Reaney scored 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 6 assists and 3 steals. Laura Mullins scored 7 on 1-8 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Emily Abbott scored 4 on 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 boards. Bojana Kovacevic scored 3 on 1-8 from the arc and 6 boards. Raelyn Prince added 2, while Tanya Leclerc, Georgia Billing, Jessica Gordon and Kristy Chute were scoreless. The Lancers hit 21-52 (.404) from the floor, 5-21 (.238) from the arc and 17-20 (.850) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 12 steals, 2 blocks, 12 turnovers and 12 fouls. Hannah Sunley-Paisley paced Ottawa with 11 points on 5-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the line and 8 boards. Emilie Morasse added 11 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 9 boards. Melina Wishart scored 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 4 boards. Kizzy Clarke scored 6 on 3-7 from the floor and 7 boards. Alex Naylor added 3, Awo Farah 2, Kelly Weir 2 and Jade Fair 2, while Kayte Chase, Courtney Berquist, Kaytlyn Faucon, Catherine Cloutier and Marie-Eve Caouette were scoreless. The Gee-Gees hit 18-57 (.316) from the floor, 5-16 (.312) from the arc and 5-10 from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 7 steals, 18 turnovers and 19 fouls. The Gee-Gees (coached by Andy Sparks, assisted by Mario Gaetano, Ian MacKinnon, Kim Swenson, Adam Elgazzar and Jamaal Madyun) also included Charlotte Mackenzie and Rose-Anne Joly.
The 3rd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies clocked the 6th-seeded Cape Breton Capers 70-54. Huskies coach Lisa Thomaidis was pleased with the offensive balance and magnitude of the win. “This is huge for the program,” she said. “I just told them they made history. To make it to play for a medal regardless of what happens (in the semifinal) on Sunday, it’s great.” Fourth-year guard Jill Humbert said “it feels unbelievable. I heard we could make history and be the first team to play in a national semifinal. I’m happy we advanced.” The Huskies held fifth-year Capers senior point guard Kelsey Hodgson, the two-time CIS scoring leader, to just 14 points. “We played with confidence,” Humbert said. “We made her (Hodgson) work for every shot. We made sure to make it hard for her to catch the ball, and if she caught the ball she had to work hard for points.” Thomaidis said a defensive switch also made scoring and receiving the ball difficult for Hodgson. “We had to keep Hodgson in check and we knew that coming in,” Thomaidis said. “We made a switch to put (third-year guard Mary) Hipperson on her after Tulloch started defending her.” It worked, tiring out the star Capers guard and giving the Saskatchewan guards an advantage against a fatigued Cape Breton defence. “It’s nice to live up to the expectations, coming in as the higher seed,” Thomaidis said. “We have our work cut out for them. Windsor is a good team.” Capers coach Fabian McKenzie said “defensive intensity killed us. They executed well. Kelsey’s grown as a young lady and although she didn’t have a great night, without her we would not have got here,” he said. In the first quarter, the lead changed eight teams as Cape Breton used their speed on the outside to stay with the Huskies. But Humbert hit a clutch, momentum-gaining three-pointer to stretch the lead to 14-11 for Saskatchewan and the Huskies led 23-19 lead after first quarter. They never trailed again. The Huskies extended the lead to 31-22 with an 8-3 run to open the second quarter, leading 40-30 at the break. Humbert had 17 first-half points. Tulloch drained a nice jumper with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter to stretch the Saskatchewan lead to 11 points. The Huskies led 54-43 after three quarters. Saskatchewan held their largest lead of the game by 16 points in the fourth. “Jill was unbelievable in the first half,” said Thomaidis. “That’s the best I’ve ever seen her play.” Humbert said “it feels so good. It feels good to beat a team that beat us at nationals last year. We just came in with confidence, played our game and had a good result. “We were told coming in here, it was a shooter’s gym and I just seemed to be on fire.” Humbert has been on fire ever since she donned the multi-threat green stripe socks to end the regular season. “Must be the socks,” she agreed with a chuckle. “It was fifth-year night and I actually did borrow one of her (Wilson’s) pairs. I thought it would be a one-time thing (playing Regina to end the regular season). I found it was a good-luck charm, so I’m sticking with it. I had to go out and buy a pair of my own.” McKenzie said “our defence was very, very unintelligent.” Kelsey Hodgson — the leading scorer in CIS women’s basketball — was held to 14 points for Cape Breton thanks to the defensive work of Tulloch and Mary Hipperson. “Mary did a tremendous job,” noted Thomaidis. “She was really key in keeping her in check and then Kim didn’t expend so much energy chasing her (Hodgson) around. She did a great job. The whole team just had a better awareness, especially in the second half, to make things difficult for her (Hodgson). A lot of it stems from going at her offensively in the first half, she got into a little bit of foul trouble, so she had to sit down for a while — that was big.” Jill Humbert paced Saskatchewan with 20 on 8-14 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 2-6 from the line, 5 boards, 10 assists and 2 steals. Kim Tulloch added 19 on 7-14 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 9 boards. Lindsay DeGroot notched 19 on 7-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 5-7 from the line and 12 boards. Lindsay Copeland scored 4 on 1-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 1-2 from the line. Alicia Wilson scored 4 on 2-2 from the floor. Marci Kiselyk notched 2 and Jana Spindler 2, along with 7 boards, while Mary Hipperson and Amy Lackie were scoreless. The Huskies shot 27-55 (.491) from the floor, 4-15 (.267) from the arc and 12-21 (.571) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 8 steals, 3 blocks, 16 turnovers and 20 fouls. Kelsey Hodgson led Cape Breton with 14 on 5-15 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 5 boards and 3 steals. Kari Everett added 22 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Nicole Works scored 8 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 4 assists. Stephanie Toxopeus notched 7 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-5 from the line and 6 boards. Jalica Kirnon added 5 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 7 boards. Karmen Brown added 5 on 1-4 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Brittany Morrison scored 4 on 1-5 from the floor and 2-2 from the line, while Katie McGarrigle was scoreless. The Capers hit 19-62 (.306) from the floor, 3-17 (.176) from the arc and 13-22 (.591) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 6 steals, 1 block, 15 turnovers and 20 fouls. The Capers (coached by Fabian McKenzie, assisted by Doug Connors, Len Harvey and Maureen Murrin) also included Louise Valdez, Luciann Lahey, Jelena Vujovic, Justine MacNeil and Caitlin Ulrich.
The top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan dusted the host and 8th-seeded McMaster Marauders 94-76 on a dominant performance by CIS player of the year Robyn Buna. In the third opening-round match-up in five years between the two teams – all won by SFU – the Marauders gave the top-ranked Clan all they could handle until the final quarter, where the defending champs went on a 10-4 run over the final five minutes for the 18-point victory. Simon Fraser opened the game with a 16-4 run over the first six minutes and led 21-10 after one quarter. After shooting just 5-for-17 (29.4%) from the field in the first frame, the Marauders battled back bringing the game within seven points five times in the last five minutes of the second quarter while shooting 12-for-21 (57.1%) from the floor. SFU led 44-37 at the half. In the third stanza, McMaster’s Emily Leger hit a jumper cutting the lead to 56-53 with 5:02 remaining in the quarter. Over the final three minutes of the third, the Clan put together a 7-2 run for a 71-61 advantage after 30 minutes. Buna of Kelowna was chosen Russell Athletics player of the game honours. “The crowd was very loud, it helped [McMaster] a lot, and we didn’t play our best in the first half,” said Buna. “We needed to stay poised and play our game, and I felt we did that in the second half. Once we started moving more on offence, and didn’t take as many bad fouls, we were able to generate a couple of runs. Looking ahead, we know that we can play in this atmosphere now, and we have a lot of confidence going into our next game.” Matteke Hutzler added that “the biggest thing I have going for me is my competitiveness and playing against this type of crowd and this type of team really lights a fire in my belly. It’s a one loss tournament, and we want to leave with a championship, so there was no room to let up, and I think we finally found a rhythm in that fourth quarter.” Taylor Smith, who was chosen player of the game for the Marauders, said SFU’s “experience really showed in the fourth quarter, we are a younger team, and we can leave this game knowing that we can play with the top teams in the country, that’s a good sign for the girls moving ahead. They created a big mismatch for us, we are a smaller team, but I thought we did a pretty good job of staying with them through three quarters.” The 94 points scored by Simon Fraser and the 170 points combined were the most at the CIS championship since the 2001 final, when Regina defeated Alberta 94-85. The 76 points by McMaster was the second most allowed by SFU in 2009-10. Robyn Buna paced Simon Fraser with 27 on 9-16 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 7-8 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Matteke Hutzler added 20 on 7-10 from the floor, 6-8 from the line and 7 boards. Kate Hole scored 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-5 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Laurelle Weigl scored 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Katie Miyazaki added 11 on 3-5 from the floor, 5-8 from the line, 9 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Nicole Raincock-Ekunwe added 7 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Kristina Collins added 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 4 boards and 3 assists, while Lisa Tindle, Brea McLaughlin, Carla Wyman, Kelsey Horsting and Carly Graham were scoreless. The Clan shot 33-62 (.532) from the floor, 3-12 (.250) from the arc and 25-33 (.758) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 9 steals, 18 turnovers and 12 fouls. Nicole Rosenkranz paced McMaster with 19 on 9-12 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Taylor Chiarot added 14 on 7-15 from the floor, 3 boards and 3 assists. Taylor Smith scored 11 on 5-11 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2 boards and 7 assists. Rebecca Rewi scored 9 on 4-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the line and 3 boards. Hailey Milligan scored 8 on 4-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Emily Leger added 6 on 2-2 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Lisa Marie Iavarone added 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-4 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Jaklynn Nimec scored 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 2 boards and 2 steals, while Vanessa Bonomo was scoreless. The Marauders hit 35-71 (.493) from the floor, 2-9 (.222) from the arc and 4-4 from the line, while garnering 28 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 7 seals, 16 turnovers and 23 fouls. The Marauders (coached by Theresa Burns, assisted by Anne Marie Thuss and Ed Grosel) also included Hannah Lamb and Elizabeth Burns.
In the last quarterfinal, the 4th-seeded Regina Cougars put together two second-half runs en route to a 69-54 victory over the No. 5 Laval Rouge et Or. Quebec champion Laval held the lead the entire first half and took a 31-23 advantage into the break. In the first quarter, Laval went on a 10-2 run in the opening five minutes and led by 27-17 with 4:35 left in the second period. In the third quarter, Regina put together an 11-0 run over the first four minutes to take their first lead of the ball game 34-31 with 6:34 remaining. For the final six minutes of the third stanza there were six lead changes and three ties with the Cougars up by four points, 50-46, after 30 minutes. In the first five minutes of the fourth, Regina put together a 9-2 run extending its lead to 59-48 highlighted by a clutch three-pointer from senior Gabrielle Gheyssen of Indian Head, Sask. Sophomore guard Joanna Zalesiak of Gorzow Wielkopolski, Poland was named Regina player of the game. “We had a great second half when we needed a great second half,” said Regina coach Dave Taylor. “Our game plan was to rebound on defence and attack hard on offence, and we really executed after halftime. Our big players had to play big, and Joanna and Brittany did just that. Our staff played the good cop – bad cop routine with the girls at halftime. I drew the role of the bad cop and I played it pretty well.” Laval coach Linda Marquis said “in the second half we just couldn’t hit a shot when we needed to. When the game was close down the stretch we were not patient enough as a team. It wasn’t anything they did differently on defence, we had our open looks, we just went cold from the field.” After shooting just 25.7% (9-for-35) in the first half, Regina came out shooting after the break connecting on 53.3% (16-for-30). Laval hit 37.9% before the intermission to 25.0% in the second half. The Cougars outscored the Rouge et Or 30-14 in the paint. Elyse Jobin was chosen player of the game for the Rouge et Or. Joanna Zalesiak paced Regina with 23 on 8-15 from the floor, 7-8 from the line, 7 boards, 2 assists and 4 steals. Brittany Read added 16 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 10 boards. Gabrielle Gheyssen notched 11 on 4-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the line and 4 boards. Lindsay Ledingham added 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Carmen Stewart scored 5 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 6 boards. Stacey Walker scored 2 on 0-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Rebecca Schmidt added 2, while Megan Chamberlin and Danielle Schmidt were scoreless. The Cougars hit 25-65 (.385) from the floor, 3-12 (.250) from the arc and 16-19 (.842) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 11 steals, 1 block, 19 turnovers and 16 fouls. Elyse Jobin paced Laval with 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 6 boards. Myriam Lamarre added 12 on 4-11 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 3 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Marie-Pascale Nadeau notched 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 3-5 from the line and 4 boards. Chanelle St-Amour added 8 on 2-20 from the floor, 1-11 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Marie-Michelle Genois added 4 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the line and 6 boards. Marjorie Ferland scored 4 on 1-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Julie Chapados added 2 and Sandrine Ducruc 1, while Eve Marquis-Poulin and Melodie Laniel-Dion were scoreless. The Rouge et Or hit 19-61 (.311) from the floor, 7-26 (.269) from the arc and 9-15 (.600) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 9 steals, 1 block, 19 turnovers and 17 fouls. The Rouge et Or (coached by Linda Marquis, assisted by Sonia Ritchie and Monique Parent) also included Maude Jacob-Tardif, Kathryn Bariault and Marie-Laurence F-Laberge.
In the semis, the 2nd-seeded Windsor Lancers advanced to their first CIS final in team history by clipping the 3rd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies 80-62. “To play for the Bronze Baby, it’s the dream of every coach, every player. This is what we want,” said Lancers coach Chantal Vallée, in her fifth season at the helm. “Saskatchewan came out and played with a lot of poise to start. But our girls came out and were very focused.” Miah-Marie Langlois was chosen player of the game for Windsor, while Kim Tulloch earned the laurels for the Huskies. “The girls are upset right now, and hopefully we can regroup and focus for tomorrow,” said Huskies head coach Lisa Thomaidis. “This is a great opportunity for our program. To win a national medal would be a great way to end the season.” Windsor led 21-18 after the first quarter. But when they needed to regain momentum, the Lancers would put together runs with aggressive half-court defence and excellent outside shooting. In a key game-changing play early in the second quarter, Bojana Kovacevic, a sophomore nursing student, drained a three and then stole the ball on defence, diving through the air to save it from going out of bounds. She paid the price by running into the scorer’s table while dishing it to Clemençon for an easy score to give Windsor an eight-point lead. “It was huge,” Kovacevic said of the play. “We wanted it more. That’s why I did that. We came here to win and we just wanted it so badly. It feels great.” Langlois scored 10 in 10 minutes of play to give the Lancers a 14-point cushion midway through the second quarter. “For her (Langlois) to get that kind of experience and play so well in a national semifinal, it was huge for us,” said Vallée. “All eight of our players played extremely well. I am pleased.” Windsor led 42-33 at the half and scored the first basket after the break, and never looked back, leading by as much as 22. The Lancers held the Huskies scoreless for almost five minutes to close the third and start the fourth quarter, playing a strong defensive game. “It was a big difference,” Thomaidis said of the scoring drought. “Another factor was too often we gave them rebounds and they scored on their second chances. And we left too many of their shooters wide open.” The Huskies were outscored 15-7 on second-chance points. Jessica Clemencon paced Windsor with 16 on 6-14 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 8 boards. Miah-Marie Langlois added 15 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 6 boards, 2 assists and 5 steals. Bojana Kovacevic added 13 on 4-9 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 7 boards. Shavaun Reaney score d12 on 5-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 2 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Emily Abbott scored 11 on 4-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 5 assists and 3 steals. Iva Peklova notched 10 on 4-12 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 10 boards. Laura Mullins scored 4 and Raelyn Prince 1. The Lancers hit 28-68 (.412) from the floor, 9-20 (.450) from the arc and 17-23 (.739) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 18 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 11 steals, 5 blocks, 18 turnovers and 20 fouls. Lindsay DeGroot paced Saskatchewan with 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 12 boards and 3 steals. Jill Humbert added 16 on 7-22 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 2 boards and 5 assists. Kim Tulloch added 14 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 7-8 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Marci Kiselyk added 6 on 3-4 from the floor and 3 boards. Mary Hipperson added 3 and Jana Spindler 2 on 0-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. Alicia Wilson scored 2, while Lindsay Copeland was scoreless. The Huskies hit 20-64 (.312) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 17-21 (.810) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 17 turnovers and 17 fouls.
In the other semi, the top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan qualified for their fifth national final in nine years with a 69-55 win over the No. 4 Regina Cougars. Strong defence and physical play allowed the taller Clan squad to advance. Their bench was also a key factor, outscoring the Rams 33-9 with non-starters. Fifth-year arts major Lisa Tindle of Vancouver was named game MVP for the winners. “They were running a box-and-one defence and then when they switched to a triangle and two, we were able to run up the score faster when you shoot threes,” said Clan post Kate Hole said. “It’s a credit to our team to stay composed and bounce back.” Leading 12-9 after the first quarter and only 29-25 at the half, the Clan exploded to lead by as much as 13 points in the third quarter, which ended 48-40 for SFU. Guard Joanna Zalesiak of Gorzow Wielkopolski, Poland, was named the Russell Athletics player of the game. Despite staying close early, Regina committed too many turnovers to stay with the defending champions. The Clan scored 23 points off 24 Regina turnovers and dominated in the paint with a 34-18 scoring edge. CIS player of the year Robyn Buna of Kelowna, B.C., was held to just three points. Hole said Buna, despite her scoring woes, still contributed. “She is still a floor general,” Hole said. “Tindle stepped up, she got stronger as the game went on. Here’s someone who’s been fighting adversity all year. She postponed surgery so she could win a final national championship.” Hole said the team with its experience and drive is ready for Windsor in the final. “Having been in these big key situations, we are ready,” she said. “But they have an extremely talented group of girls and are well-rounded offensively and their perimeter game is good. It should be a good fight. But our goal is to win, and it’s not going to be easy for either team.” Lisa Tindle paced Simon Fraser with 17 on 6-15 from the floor, 5-14 from the line and 3 assists. Kate Hole scored 15 on 7-12 from the floor, 1-1 from the line and 4 boards. Matteke Hutzler notched 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 7 boards. Laurelle Weigl scored 8 on 4-8 from the floor, 6 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Katie Miyazaki added 8 on 4-7 from the floor, 8 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Nicole Raincock-Ekunwe notched 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the line and 7 boards. Carly Graham scored 3 and Robyn Buna 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Brea McLaughlin, Carla Wyman and Kristina Collins were scoreless. The Clan hit 29-70 (.414) from the floor, 7-22 (.318) from the arc and 4-8 from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 14 turnovers and 20 fouls. Joanna Zalesiak paced Regina with 18 on 6-15 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 10 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Lindsay Ledingham added 11 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Brittany Read added 10 on 3-6 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 7 boards. Carmen Stewart notched 7 on 2-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Gabrielle Gheyssen scored 5 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Rebecca Schmidt added 2 on 1-7 from the floor and 2 boards. Megan Chamberlin scored 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 5 boards, while Stacey Walker was scoreless and dished 3 assists. The Cougars hit 17-55 (.309) from the floor, 4-15 (.267) from the arc and 17-24 (.708) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 7 steals, 3 blocks, 24 turnovers and 18 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, three-time all-Canadian Lindsay DeGroot led the 3rd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies to a 78-67 victory over the 4th-seeded Regina Cougars and earn the school’s first podium finish at nationals. Regina trailed 11-9 with 4:45 left in the first quarter, before going on an 11-0 run over the next two minutes for a 20-11 advantage with 2:30 left in the opening period and a 25-16 cushion at the end of the stanza. In the second quarter, the Huskies found themselves down by as many as 12 points, 31-19 with 6:56 remaining, before putting together a 16-3 run to regain the lead 35-34 on a three-pointer from Lauren Whyte with 3:01 on the clock. The provincial rivals were deadlocked 37-37 at the half. In the first four minutes of the third period, Saskatchewan went on a 12-2 run and led 49-39 four minutes in. The tough Regina squad would not go away however and brought it to within 51-46, with 3:38 left in the third. Saskatchewan went into the final quarter ahead 60-52. Regina opened the fourth with back-to-back field goals from sophomore guard Joanna Zalesiak of Gorzow Wielkopolski, Poland, cutting the lead to four points, 60-56, with 8:01 left in regulation. Over the next four minutes, the Huskies put together a 7-0 run for the 67-56 advantage while stepping up on defence keeping the Cougars scoreless. “This is a special moment, this is such a great group of girls,” said Saskatchewan coach Lisa Thomaidis, in her 12th season at the helm. “The girls worked so hard, not just today, but game in and game out. We knew Regina would be exhausted today and we knew we had to be good. I thought having been in games like that, down to Regina before, we knew we could come back because we had done it before. It gave us a sense of confidence.” DeGroot, who was chosen player of the game for Saskatchewan, said “I cannot even explain how great this is. To have all my family, my friends here, it was special. It may not have been the colour of medal I wanted, but it was my fairy tale ending and it will be great to celebrate tonight. We said no matter what, all of us girls needed to play for each other and from there we got focused and turned it around. We had five minutes and a whole other half and we were able to come together.” Regina coach Dave Taylor said “we ran out of legs, especially in the second half. They had a quick turnaround too but found a way, found an extra step. They were able to stay strong.” Joanna Zalesiak was chosen player of the game for Regina. “This was amazing,” Thomaidis said. “I couldn’t have scripted it any better. Obviously, it wasn’t the colour of medal we wanted on Sunday afternoon, but to get one and to make program history with a national medal on the national stage, against our provincial rivals and do it on my home court, it was just unbelievable. Really, I couldn’t feel happier for a greater group of girls.” DeGroot said “It’s unbelievable. This wasn’t the one we wanted, but it’s a medal and we come home with some hardware. It’s been a fairy-tale ending for me, personally, to end here at Mac with my team and my friends here. I couldn’t write a better script. I was saying all weekend what a great team this is, how proud I am of these girls and how proud I am to be a Huskie. It’s the best the school has ever done, so I’m happy to be a part of it.” Thomaidis said “we showed lots of grit. We had great contribution from people off the bench today and that was so critical. The Huskies capitalized on Cougar mistakes, scoring 22 points off turnovers. “It was back and forth,” said Thomaidis. “We were able to claw back in the second quarter with some better defence, (and) a little more flow against their zone defence. This (win) means a lot. It’s really big for this program. It’s a huge step forward, that’s for sure. It’s a tremendous accomplishment for these girls.”
Lindsay DeGroot paced Saskatchewan with 24 on 8-16 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 8-9 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. Jill Humbert added 19 on 5-14 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 4 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals. Kim Tulloch notched 11 on 4-8 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 7 boards and 4 assists. Lauren White added 10 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 5 boards. Lindsay Copeland added 6 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Jana Spindler scored 4 on 2-4 from the floor, 4 boards and 2 assists. Marci Kiselyk notched 4 on 2-5 from the floor, while Mary Hipperson, Alicia Wilson and Amy Lackie were scoreless. The Huskies hit 26-65 (.400) from the floor, 9-27 (.333) from the arc and 17-23 (.739) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 12 turnovers and 22 fouls. Joanna Zalesiak paced Regina with 26 on 9-17 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 7-11 from the line, 7 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals. Brittany Read added 17 on 3-8 from the floor, 11-12 from the line, 15 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, and 2 assists. Rebecca Schmidt scored 9 on 3-6 from the arc and 2 boards. Gabrielle Gheyssen added 8 on 4-9 from the floor and 8 boards. Carmen Stewart notched 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Lindsay Ledingham added 2 on 1-10 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists, while Stacey Walker, Danielle Schmidt, Megan Chamberline, Ashley Wishira, Vanessa Wesolowski and Kelsey Lothian were scoreless. The Cougars shot 22-64 (.344) from the floor, 4-20 (.200) from the arc and 19-27 (.704) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 3 steals, 20 turnovers and 22 fouls. The Cougars (coached by Dave Taylor, assisted by Steve Burrows and Christin Dickenson) also included Rayna Belyk.
In the final, the top-seeded Simon Fraser captured their second consecutive and fifth CIS crown in 9 years by clubbing the 2nd-seeded Windsor Lancers. It was also Canada West’s 19th consecutive title. “We had talked in the pre-game about how my first national championship was won on this court,” said Simon Fraser coach Bruce Langford, who took over the program one year after it joined CIS in 2000-01. “We were down 12 or 14 in that game, and when we came out nervous, I just reminded the players that this is a special event and a special day and to not get down. In this game we stayed poised.” CIS player of the year and tournament MVP Robyn Buna called it the perfect way to end her CIS career, as one of seven Clan players on this roster to win a third ring. Centre Matteke Hutzler of Napanee, Ont., guard Lisa Tindle of Vancouver, guard Brea McLaughlin of West Vancouver, post Laurelle Weigl of Stony Plain, Alta., forward Kelsey Horsting of Langley, B.C., and post Kate Hole of St. Albert, Alta., also became three-time champions. “It was the best way to finish my career,” said Buna. “I think we were all playing a little tight. We were apprehensive, it’s the national final. But 10 years from now, I won’t think about whether or not we won but how hard we worked together to accomplish this goal.” Buna credits balanced scoring and the ability to score on back-door cuts for the Clan’s victory to keep the Bronze Baby in the Canada West conference. Lancers coach Chantal Vallée, in her fifth season at the helm, said she was pleased with the effort and getting one step closer to winning a national title. “We started out really well, playing to our strengths,” Vallée said. “But after opening up with a 15-6 lead, we missed a couple of open layups. Then Iva Peklova got into foul trouble and we missed some rebounds and we were not quite ourselves. But Simon Fraser responded right away after we got the lead. The closer you get to tasting gold the more disappointed you are in a loss.” The Clan weathered an early lapse before going on a 20-3 run over eight minutes into the second quarter to lead 39-27 at the half. In the opening quarter, the No. 1 Clan took an early lead, but the Lancers built a nine-point lead led by the strong play of forwards Peklova of Prague, Czech Republic, and Bojana Kovacevic of Windsor midway through the quarter. But foul trouble to Peklova and guard Shavaun Reaney of Sherwood Park, Alta., allowed Simon Fraser to exploit a size advantage and their bigs allowed them to close the quarter on a 14-3 run to lead 20-18 after the first frame. Peklova picked up her third personal foul early in the second quarter, and the Clan extended their lead to 26-18 forcing turnovers and scoring in transition, continuing on their run. Down by 12 at the half, the Lancers made a valiant effort to regain the lead, pulling the spread to eight points as Simon Fraser got into foul trouble of their own in the third quarter. They put Windsor at the line 12 times and sent the Lancers into the bonus with over four minutes left in the period. But the OUA champions only connected on seven opportunities from the charity stripe, and Simon Fraser re-established the cushion, leading 59-43 at the end of the third period. Hutzler scored a jump-shot to stretch Simon Fraser’s lead to 67-47, their biggest of the game. Buna was the first to check out, as Langford honoured his seniors, subbing her off seconds after draining a three to give her 17 points on the day. “I thought we were deeper and we set a goal of controlling the boards and I thought we did that quite well,” Langford said of the 34-20 edge in rebounding. “We knew there would be ups and downs but we handled it when we got down and played with great intensity when the game got physical.” Weigl was named the Clan game MVP, while Clemencon earned the laurels for Windsor. Simon Fraser finished the season 31-1, losing only to Victoria in their second last game of the regular season. Robyn Buna paced Simon Fraser with 17 on 8-17 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 0-2 from the line and 2 steals. Laurelle Weigl added 16 on 7-10 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Kate Hole scored 11 on 3-3 from the floor, 5-6 from the line and 7 boards. Katie Miyazaki noted 8 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 7 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Matteke Hutzler added 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 7 boards, 3 assists and 5 steals. Kristina Collins added 5 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 3 assists. Nicole Raincock-Ekunwe added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-4 from the line, 10 boards and 3 steals. Carly Graham added 3, Lisa Tindle 3, Kelsey Horsting 2 and Carla Wyman 2, while Brea McLaughlin was scoreless. The Clan hit 32-64 from the floor, 4-18 (.222) from the arc and 9-16 (.562) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 14 steals, 4 blocks, 23 turnovers and 15 fouls. Jessica Clemencon paced Windsor with 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 6-10 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Bojana Kovacevic added 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Iva Peklova notched 11 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 9 boards. Emily Abbott added 7 on 3-6 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Miah-Marie Langlois added 7 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-4 from the line and 5 steals. Shavaun Reaney added 3 on 0-5 from the floor, 3-6 from the line, 2 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals. Raelyn Prince added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 3 boards, while Laura Mullins, Tanya Leclerc, Jessica Gordon, Kristy Chute and Georgia Billing were scoreless. The Lancers hit 20-55 (.364) from the floor, 5-9 (.556) from the arc and 11-22 from the line, while garnering 24 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 15 steals, 1 block, 23 turnovers and 20 fouls.
The all-tourney team featured MVP Robyn Buna (Simon Fraser); Kate Hole (Simon Fraser); Jessica Clemencon (Windsor); Jill Humbert (Saskatchewan) and Joanna Zalesiak (Regina)
The bronze medalist Saskatchewan Huskies: Lindsay DeGroot; Jill Humbert; Marci Kiselyk; Kim Tulloch; Jana Spindler; Mary Hipperson; Amy Lackie; Alicia Wilson; Lindsay Copeland; Lauren Whyte; Brittany Bodnar; Erica Gavel; Julia Schmidt; Morgan Wingate; coach Lisa Thomaidis; assistant Jacqueline Lavalle; assistant Ali Fairbrother; manager Jennifer Mawson; manager Laryssa Lemke
The silver medalist Windsor Lancers: Jessica Clemencon; Iva Peklova; Shauvaun Reaney; Emily Abbott; Bojana Kovacevic; Miah-Marie Langlois; Raelyn Prince; Tanya Leclerc; Georgia Billing; Jessica Gordon; Kristy Chute; Laura Mullins; Bojana Mullins; coach Chantal Vallee, assistant Tom Foster; assistant Josh Leeman; assistant Amy Bakos; recruiting coordinator Andy Pilkington; athletic director Gord Grace; SID Elisa Mitton
The champion Simon Fraser Clan: Robyn Buna; Laurelle Weigl; Kate Hole; Katie Miyazaki; Matteke Hutzler; Lisa Tindle; Kristina Collins; Nicole Raincock-Ekunwe; Carly Graham, Kelsey Horsting; Carla Wyman; Brea McLaughlin; Anna Carolsfeld; coach Bruce Langford; assistant Dani Langford; assistant Dan Nayebzadeh; assistant Brittany Fraser; assistant Frank Chan; trainer Alex Wright