REGULAR SEASON
| GREAT PLAINS | CENTRAL | ||||||||
| Regina | 16-6 | 28-10 | Dave Taylor | Alberta | 17-5 | 28-10 | Scott Edwards | ||
| Winnipeg | 8-14 | 13-18 | Tanya McKay | Calgary | 16-6 | 23-10 | Shawnee Harle | ||
| Manitoba | 8-14 | 12-18 | Pam Danis | Saskatchewan | 9-13 | 19-21 | Lisa Thomaidis | ||
| Brandon | 1-21 | 4-23 | Jaime Hickson | Lethbridge | 5-17 | 6-18 | Donna Branch | ||
| PACIFIC | |||||||||
| Simon Fraser | 22-1 | 34-3 | Bruce Langford | ||||||
| U.B.C. | 21-2 | 32-5 | Deb Huband | ||||||
| Victoria | 13-10 | 18-14 | Brian Cheng | ||||||
| Fraser Valley | 11-12 | 15-14 | Al Tuchscherer | ||||||
| Trinity Western | 8-15 | 9-19 | Kerby Court | ||||||
| Thompson Rivers | 1-22 | 1-25 | Scott Reeves | ||||||
Playoff non-qualifiers:
Brandon Bobcats: Melanie Thompson, Allie Butz, Jayla Bousquet, Dayna Prost, Jennalee Burch, Amanda Fortin, Tanysha Robinson, Jaelyn Greening, Sarah Lopes, Chelsey Hiebert, Chelsey Kretai, Carissa Clarke, Jaicee Chartrand, coach Jaime Hickson
Lethbridge Pronghorns: Stephanie Elford, Ashley McClenaghan, Candace Thompson, Lauren Taal, Kim May, Karen Bridge, Kenzie Sheen, Hannah Blanchette, Madison Zilkie, Kara Henry, Anna Watkins, coach Donna Branch, assistant Krista Heidinger
Thompson Rivers Wolfpack: Kaitlyn Widsten, Sarah Cameron, Kelsie Baker, Kayla Forsyth, Jessica Mulock, Alix Stupich, Michelle Dimond, Tami MacKinnon, Angel Mack, Kailey Colonna, Sarah Darley, Kali Ellis, Kelley O’Grady, coach Scott Reeves, assistant Chuck Ferguson
Trinity Western Spartans: Laura Craig, Krystal Crofton, Heather Van Wieren, Katie Haworth, Corina Reimer, Liesa Ohman, Lauren Doubroff, Becky Atkinson, Emily Knauff, Amanda Knauff, Lindsey Gustafson, Jordan Verhoeff, Rachel Raymond, Laura McLellan, Lindsey Horsting, Nambogga Sewali, coach Kerby Court, assistant Jamie Born, assistant Jay Duke, trainer Ruben Desil
In the Great Plains semis, Winnipeg d’d Manitoba 51-53; 86-75; 69-67 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In the opener, Manitoba defeated Winnipeg 53-51 as fourth-year post Melanie Schlichter sank two free throws with 12 seconds remaining on the clock. After a Wesmen basket by Jessica Stromberg with 49 seconds left in the game gave Winnipeg a 51-49 lead, Schlichter hit a running jumper with 39 seconds left to tie the game at 51-51 setting up the last second heroics. Winnipeg had a chance to tie the game with a few ticks left on the clock but a two-point shot by Dawna Wright was unsuccessful. Winnipeg gained the early advantage jumping out to a 13-9 lead after a quick and up-tempo opening quarter of play. Manitoba outscored Winnipeg 12-7 in the second quarter to go into the half time break leading 21-20. The Bisons held the lead for a majority of the third quarter until Stromberg made two big plays, first a bucket to cut the Bison lead to 31-30 and then a steal leading to a Dawna Wright three-point play to give the Wesmen a 33-31 lead with just under three minutes to play in the quarter. Tessa Klassen hit back to back baskets to give the Bisons the lead at 36-33 after three quarters. Manitoba carried the play in the fourth quarter and extended their lead to 46-39 with four minutes left in the game. Winnipeg went on a 10-0 run, which included Randie Gibson scoring eight points to give Winnipeg a 49-46 lead with just over two minutes to play before Schlichter scored seven points, including the game-winning free throws. Tessa Klassen paced Manitoba with 20 on 8-17 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 2 boards. Kaitlyn Flett added 10 on 5-10 from the floor and 9 boards. Melanie Schlichter scored 10 on 3-9 from the floor, 4-5 from the line and 6 boards. Mubo Ilelaboye notched 5 on 2-5 from the floor and 6 boards. Michele Hynes scored 4 on 4-4 from the floor and 4 assists. Leigh-Anne Legal Young scored 2 and Kayla Klassen 2, while Lauren Mortier and Jenna Ralston were scoreless. The Bisons shot 20-62 (.323) from the floor, 1-14 (.071) from the arc and 12-16 (.750) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 9 fouls, 16 turnovers and 4 steals. Jessica Stromberg paced Winnipeg with 12 on 5-11 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 12 boards and 3 assists. Randie Gibson added 11 on 4-9 from the floor and 3-7 from the arc. Amy Ogidan scored 10 on 5-10 from the floor and 6 boards. Dawna Wright notched 10 on 3-17 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 steals. Alexandria MacIver scored 4, Sarah Reilly 2 and Caitlin Gooch 2, while nabbing 6 boards. Kaitlin Rempel, Mackenzie Prasek, Kaitlin Frison and Rosemary Mills were scoreless. The Wesmen shot 21-63 (.333) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 6-6 from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 19 fouls, 12 turnovers, 6 steals and 1 block. …………………………………………………… In game two, Winnipeg evened the series by defeating Manitoba 86-75 in overtime. Freshman guard Amy Ogidan scored 15 in the extra session. The Wesmen shot 76% from the field on their way to a 24-10 lead after the opening quarter. Manitoba started the second quarter on a 7-2 run to cut the Wesmen lead to single digits at 26-17. Winnipeg restored a double-digit lead until just over three minutes to play with Manitoba outscoring the Wesmen 7-2 to go into the locker room at halftime trailing 34-28. Both teams exchanged baskets in a wild, fast paced third quarter. Winnipeg was able to hang onto their lead but barely as Manitoba closed the gap to two points trailing 50-48 after three quarters. The Bisons started the fourth quarter with five straight points and gained their first lead of the game leading the Wesmen 53-50 with nine minutes to play in the quarter. Winnipeg regained the lead on a three-point play by Jessica Stromberg followed by a two pointer by Alex MacIver to give Winnipeg a 57-55 lead with just over six minutes left to play. The teams exchanged baskets with Manitoba taking the lead with 1:32 left on a three pointer by Kyla Klassen to give the Bisons a 64-63 lead. Randie Gibson connected on one-of-two free throws with 1:15 left to tie the game at 64-64 after regulation time. Winnipeg outscored Manitoba 22-11 in the extra frame. The Wesmen connected on 8-of-11 (73%) of their shots in the overtime period. Amy Ogidan scored 26 to lead the Wesmen, hitting 10-18 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 5-6 from the line, while nabbing 12 boards and dishing 6 assists. Dawna Wright scored 16 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 6 boards and 4 assists. Randie Gibson notched 12 on 3-18 from the arc and 3-4 from the line. Jessica Stromberg scored 11 on 5-15 from the floor, 9 boards and 4 assists. Sarah Reilly scored 6 and Caitlin Gooch 6 on 4-4 from the line and 6 boards. Alexandria MacIver added 4, Rosemary Mills 2 and Mackenzie Prasek 2, while Kaitlin Rempel and Kaitlin Frison were scoreless. Winnipeg shot 31-70 (.443) from the floor, 6-17 (.353) from the arc and 18-21 (.857) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 22 assists, 20 fouls, 16 turnovers, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Melanie Schlichter paced Manitoba with 25 on 6-18 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 12-12 from the line and 11 boards. Tessa Klassen scored 24 on 8-21 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 7 boards. Kaitlyn Flett notched 15 on 6-11 from the floor, 3-9 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Kayla Klassen scored 7 on 3-10 from the floor and 6 boards. Jenna Ralston notched 3 on 1-6 from the floor, 8 boards and 5 assists. Mubo Ilelaboye scored 1, while Lauren Mortier, Michele Hynes and Leigh-Anne Legal Young were scoreless. The Bison shot 24-72 (.333) from the floor, 6-20 (.300) from the arc and 21-29 (.724) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 22 fouls, 13 turnovers, 6 steals and 1 block. …………………………………………………… Winnipeg took the deciding cost 69-67 in overtime after erasing a 15-point halftime deficit. After a close first quarter which ended with Manitoba holding a slim 17-16 lead, Manitoba caught fire with a 23-9 run to take a 40-25 lead into the lockers. But the Bisons lost Tessa Klassen to a knee injury four minutes into the game. The Wesmen started the comeback early on in the second half, starting the third quarter on an 8-0 run to cut the Bison lead to seven at 40-33. Winnipeg kept putting pressure on the Bisons and by quarters end Winnipeg outscored Manitoba 16-5 in the quarter to only trail 45-41 after three quarters. Winnipeg tied the score at 45-45 on an Alex MacIver basket two minutes into the third quarter and on the next possession Dawna Wright drained a three pointer to give Winnipeg its first lead since early in the first quarter by a score of 48-45. Both teams exchanged baskets for the remainder of the quarter. Amy Ogidan tied the game at 59-59 with 37 seconds left and after a Melanie Schlichter miss with two seconds left the teams were headed to overtime. Manitoba opened the extra frame scoring five straight points to take a 64-59 lead with over three minutes to play. Winnipeg closed to within one point and a huge basket by Alex MacIver gave the Wesmen a 65-64 lead with 1:23 left. Catie Gooch hit a free throw and Ogidan hit two free throws with 12 seconds left to extend Winnipeg’s lead to 68-64 with 12 seconds left. Kayla Klassen hit a three pointer with 3.5 seconds left to cut the lead to 68-67. Manitoba was forced to foul and Randie Gibson clinched the win with a free throw with two seconds left in overtime. Dawna Wright paced Winnipeg with 15 points on 4-13 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 7 boards, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Amy Ogidan scored 13 on 5-13 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 11 boards. Alexandria MacIver added 12 on 6-9 from the floor and 16 boards. Jessica Stromberg scored 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 8 boards. Caitlin Gooch notched 10 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4 boards and 5 assists. Rosemary Mills added 4, Kaitlin Rempel 2 and Randie Gibson 1, while Mackenzie Prasek, Sarah Reilly and Caity Purvis-Collins were scoreless. The Wesmen shot 27-63 (.429) from the floor, 4-16 from the arc and 11-18 (.611) from the line, while garnering 46 boards, including 20 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 15 fouls, 16 turnovers, 7 steals and 3 blocks. Melanie Schlichter paced Manitoba with 14 on 5-15 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 12 boards. Michele Hynes added 11 on 4-16 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 5 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Kayla Klassen scored 9 on 3-11 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 7 boards. Leigh-Anne Legal-Young notched 9 on 4-8 from the floor and 4 assists. Jenna Ralston scored 8 on 3-11 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 5 boards. Kaitlyn Flett scored 6 on 3-7 from the floor, 6 boards and 2 steals. Tessa Klassen scored 6 on 2-2 from the arc. Mubo Ilelaboye added 2 and Rachelle Harty-Edwards 2. Manitoba shot 25-73 (.342) from the floor, 11-24 (.458) from the arc and 6-9 from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 21 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 17 fouls, 17 turnovers and 6 steals. The Bisons (coached by Pam Danis) also included Jenna Ralston, Riley Epp, Sheena Gee and Maria Pawlyshyn.
In the Pacific semis, U.B.C. d’d Victoria 69-56; 66-71; 58-52 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, U.B.C. prevailed 69-56 as their backcourt tandem of Erica McGuiness and Cait Haggarty combined for 33 points. Janet Hatfield scored the opening bucket of the contest to put the Vikes up 2-0, but Haggarty made back-to-back three-pointers for UBC’s first scores of the game, in sparking a 13-1 run that put the Vikes down by double digits. The Vikes rebounded early in the second quarter, temporarily taking a one-point lead on seven straight points from McKay. The lead was short-lived as the T-birds wound up leading 38-29 at the halftime break. The Vikes held ground through the third quarter, and entered the final frame trailing 55-45. The T-birds, however, were not willing to cede any ground and the league’s top-ranked defence closed out the win by holding the Vikes to 11 points in the final quarter. UBC put the game out of reach with a three-pointer from Haggarty, the team’s ninth of the night, to take a 17-point lead. “I think we got off to a good start and pushed the ball well,” said UBC coach Deb Huband. “And when we are running the floor well it puts a lot of pressure on their transition defence. I thought we had a lot of opportunities throughout the game to run the ball.”
The T-Birds’ lead fluctuated from four to ten points throughout much of the contest. Ryan McKay, the Vikes’ top offensive threat, led numerous charges to cut into the UBC lead in the second and third quarters, but every time Victoria got within striking distance, the T-Birds seemed to be waiting with a key three-pointer to restore a comfortable cushion. Haggarty led the ‘Birds with four three-balls on the night. “Cait is our top percentage three-point shooter,” said Huband. “With the way Victoria chose to defend, they chose to play a little bit of combination defence, so it left a lot of space for some of our shooters and gaps for our post players. I thought it was a good team effort with a number of people chipping in and being effective offensively for us.” UBC managed to put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter, as their defence tightened up, holding the Vikes to just 11 points in the frame. The T-Birds also clamped down on McKay near the end of the contest, holding the Canada West scoring champ to just three points in the final quarter. “I thought UVic executed their game quite well, and that involves trying to get Ryan the ball,” said Huband. “For us trying to limit her touches and knowing where she is on the floor all the time is important. Erica was on her a lot of the night and I thought she did a pretty good job limiting her opportunities.” Erica McGuinness paced U.B.C. with 17 on 7-9 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 5 boards and 4 assists. Cait Haggarty added 16 on 6-16 from the floor, 4-10 from the arc and 3 boards. Leanne Evans notched 16 on 7-10 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards, 3 steals and 3 blocks. Devan Lisson scored 8 on 3-6 from the floor and 4 assists. Alex Vieweg added 6 on 3-5 from the floor, 4 boards and 4 assists. Julie Little scored 4 and Zara Huntley 2, while Kira Carre, Candace Morisset, Montanna Dunmore and Robyn Fashler were scoreless. The Thunderbirds shot 29-58 from the floor, 9-16 (.563) from the arc and 2-3 from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 22 assists, 15 fouls, 19 turnovers, 8 steals and 4 blocks. Ryan Mckay paced Victoria with 19 on 6-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 6-7 from the line, 4 boards and 4 steals. Janet Hatfield added 11 on 5-11 from the floor, 7 boards and 3 blocks. Ashely Yee scored 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 8 boards and 7 assists. Kristen Hughes scored 6 on 3-4 from the floor, Kayla Dykstra notched 5 on 2-9 from the floor and 6 boards. Michelle Lee added 4 and Tiffany Olsen 3, while nabbing 5 boards. Erin Hubenig scored 2, while Melaina Dolcetti and Jane Anholt were scoreless. The Vikes shot 22-5 (.400) from the floor, 2-7 (.286) from the arc and 10-17 (.588) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 9 fouls, 18 turnovers, 8 steals and 3 blocks. …………………………………………………… Victoria evened the series by defeating U.B.C. 71-66 after holding off a late charge from the Thunderbirds. Janet Hatfield scored the Vikes first seven points of the fourth quarter, spear-heading an 11-4 run. With five minutes left to play the Vikes led by 11 points. By halftime the game had already featured six lead changes. UBC held a six-point lead midway through the second, but a three-pointer from Michelle Lee helped give the Vikes a 35-34 halftime lead. Midway through the fourth quarter, with the score 65-54 Victoria, Devan Lisson’s three-pointer kicked off a 10-0 UBC run that got the T-Birds back within striking distance. On Victoria’s next possession, Kayla Dykstra, who was 0-for-4 from the free-throw line at that point, was put on the line for a crucial opportunity from the charity strike. Dykstra would hit both shots to put her side up 67-64, and then, with 32.3 seconds remaining, Canada West scoring champ Ryan McKay sealed the win for Victoria, as she drove to the basket, hit a tough layup while falling, and completed the three-point play on the ensuing free-throw chance to make it a six-point game. “They are a team with a lot of pride and a lot of tradition,” said UBC coach Deb Huband, “and obviously they are going to come in and battle to the end. Their big players dominated ours, and they got us into a bit of foul trouble and hit their free-throws when they needed to. I thought it was a good battle. Both teams came out hard and they deserved to win. They were the better team tonight. I think that whether we were in zone or man, we had a hard time getting a defensive board at crucial times in the game. Having Leanne in foul trouble hurt us. We just didn’t find what we needed from our bigs tonight, and both their bigs came out and did a great job inside.” Janet Hatfield paced the Vikes with 21 points on 8-10 from the floor, 5-8 from the line, 10 boards, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Kayla Dykstra added 18 on 8-17 from the floor, 2-6 from the line, 8 boards and 4 steals. Ashely Yee scored 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 assists. Michelle Lee scored 8 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc and 6 steals. Ryan Mckay scored 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 8 assists. Kristen Hughes notched 4, Tiffany Olsen 3 and Melaina Dolcetti 1, while Erin Hubenig and Jane Anholt were scoreless. Victoria shot 26-52 from the floor, 3-7 (.429) from the arc and 16-28 (.571) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 17 fouls, 21 turnovers, 13 steals and 2 blocks. Erica McGuinness paced U.B.C. with 17 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 10-12 from the line, 4 boards and 5 assists. Leanne Evans scored 15 on 7-10 from the floor, 6 boards and 3 steals. Julie Little notched 13 on 4-7 from the floor and 5-5 from the line. Alex Vieweg scored 10 on 5-9 from the floor and 5 boards. Devan Lisson scored 7 on 3-7 from the floor and 4 assists. Cait Haggarty added 2 and Candace Morisset 2, while, Montanna Dunmore and Zara Huntley were scoreless. The Thunderbirds hit 24-50 (.480) from the floor, 2-8 from the arc and 16-18 (.889) from the line, while garnering 26 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 22 fouls, 20 turnovers, 10 steals and 3 blocks. …………………………………………………… In game three, U.B.C. took the series by pulling out a 58-52 win. Michelle Lee’s three-pointer late in the fourth brought her side to within a point of the T-Birds, but after Erica McGuinness hit both her free-throws on the ensuing possession, Devan Lisson made it a five-point game with just 15.5 seconds remaining to secure UBC’s win. “Victoria was a formidable opponent and they battled tough,” said UBC coach Deb Huband. “It was anybody’s game down to the wire, and fortunately for us, we did enough little things right to come away with the win.” The T-Birds seemed to be in trouble early in the fourth quarter, when Kayla Dykstra and Janet Hatfield each scored to cap an 8-0 run for Victoria which put the Vikes out in front 49-46, but UBC came back with a 7-0 run of their own to regain the lead heading into the final minutes. “I thought we controlled their point production, and obviously they are a load on the boards too,” said Huband. “I thought they got a lot of loose ball rebounds, where we didn’t quite get a hand on it and they ended up picking it up, but I thought we did a much better job inside, and obviously having Leanne Evans able to play her normal minutes was a big factor for us defensively.” The Vikes got off to a quick start, opening the contest on a 9-0 run and taking a lead into the first break, but UBC took its first lead of the game just over two minutes before half time after holding Victoria to just eight points in the second quarter. “We haven’t lost that many games this year,” said Huband, “so I think losing yesterday got everyone’s attention and I think sometimes it’s a really positive thing. It depends on how you address it and how you bounce back from it. I told the girls that five years ago we were in a similar situation playing on Sunday in game three of a series. It was stressful and it was a tough game to play, but we were successful and that led to our first national championship.” Ryan McKay had a chance to tie the game in the final minute with a long-range three-point attempt that bounced in and out. UBC capitalized on the miss, scoring a second-chance hoop from Devon Lissan and burning precious seconds off the clock. Lissan’s basket put the T-birds ahead by five with just 20 seconds left. The Vikes would be unable to score in their final possession, and UBC secured the win with a free-throw. The Vikes held the largest lead of the game, at 11 points, coming after opening the game on 13-2 run. The Vikes held the lead throughout the first 18 minutes of the first half, with UBC taking their first lead of the game late in the second quarter behind consecutive baskets from Julie Little. At halftime, the T-birds led 29-26. UBC led throughout the third quarter with their top-ranked defence forcing the Vikes into three shot-clock violations in the period. However, the Vikes got back on track in the fourth with eight unanswered points to re-take the lead. Hatfield capped off the run with a lay-up, putting the Vikes ahead 49-46 with six minutes remaining. Unfortunately, UBC was quick to respond in reeling off a 7-0 run and holding the lead for good. Julie Little paced U.B.C. with 16 on 6-9 from the floor and 4-4 from the line. Erica McGuinness notched 16 on 4-10 from the floor, 8-9 from the line, 5 assists and 4 steals. Leanne Evans scored 10 on 5-11 from the floor, 10 boards and 5 blocks. Alex Vieweg added 7 on 3-6 from the floor. Zara Huntley scored 5 on 2-3 from the floor and 6 boards. Cait Haggarty added 2 and Devan Lisson 2, while Candace Morisset and Montanna Dunmore were scoreless. The Thunderbirds shot 22-52 (.423) from the floor, 0-7 from the arc and 14-17 (.824) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 11 fouls, 16 turnovers, 6 steals and 9 blocks. Ryan McKay paced Victoria with 14 on 5-10 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Ashley Yee added 12 on 6-12 from the floor and 4 assists. Kayla Dykstra scored 11 on 4-13 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 11 boards. Janet Hatfield scored 6 on 2-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Tiffany Olsen notched 4 on 2-9 from the floor and 5 boards. Michelle Lee scored 3 on 1-6 from the floor and 4 boards. Melanie Dolcetti added 2, while Kristen Hughes was scoreless. The Vikes shot 21-58 (.362) from the floor, 1-6 (.167) from the arc and 9-9 from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 21 fouls, 16 turnovers, 5 steals and 3 blocks. The Vikes (coached by Brian Cheng, assisted by Dani Everitt-Sinclair) also included Jane Anholt, Rochelle Thoutenhoofd, Erin Hubenig, Heidi Padjen and Sarah Williams.
In the other Pacific semi, Simon Fraser d’d Fraser Valley 98-66; 95-43 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Simon Fraser pasted the Fraser Valley Cascades 98-66. “We worked hard, I thought in the early stages our work rate was as hard as it has been in some time and the speed we brought to the game gave [UCFV] some trouble,” said coach Bruce Langford. “Our goal was to try and play hard for 40 minutes, and I thought we did that tonight.” The Clan opened the game on a 10-2 run and never looked back, leading 21-9 after the first quarter. By halftime UCFV had accumulated 18 turnovers, while rookie Katie Miyazaki already had four steals. SFU scored 12 points off turnovers in the first half, and led 47-34 at halftime. Playing in her first game in two weeks due to a back injury, and coming off the bench, Courtney Gerwing had 13 points at the half to lead Simon Fraser. “I just think it was a good start to our playoff series, we worked hard for four quarters,” said Gerwing. “My game plan was to be more active and stay positive and get excited, and to bring something to the game when I came off the bench.” The second half featured more of the same from SFU, as the Clan held a 20-point plus lead for the majority of the session. It was Simon Fraser’s ability to generate points inside by making quick cuts and finding open looks. SFU scored 64 points in the paint, due in large part to strong passing from fifth year senior Lani Gibbons. The top-ranked Clan improved to 7-0 all-time against the Cascades. Lani Gibbons paced the Clan with 19 on 7-16 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 8 boards and 5 steals. Laurelle Weigl added 14 on 6-8 from the floor and 2-4 from the line. Courtney Gerwing notched 13 on 5-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the line, 4 boards and 4 steals. Kate Hole scored 13 on 6-10 from the floor, 6 boards and 3 blocks. Robyn Buna scored 13 on 6-8 from the floor and 2-4 from the line. Matteke Hutzler notched 12 on 5-7 from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 5 boards. Katie Miyazaki added 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 4 boards and 6 steals. Lisa Tindle scored 5 and Carly Graham 2, while Rakel Helboe, Brittany Fraser and Brea McLaughlin were scoreless. Simon Fraser shot 39-84 (.464) from the floor, 4-25 (.160) from the arc and 16-26 (.615) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 20 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 17 fouls, 10 turnovers, 24 steals and 4 blocks. Samantha Hill paced the Cascades with 19 points on 9-15 from the floor, 7 boards and 4 assists. Alyssa Gaukel added 14 on 4-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Olivia Hunt scored 8 on 2-6 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 7 boards. Heather Boer notched 7, Megan McAlister 6 and Michelle Buhler 5, while nabbing 7 boards. Carmella Silvestri scored 3, Tara McNeill 2 and Lindsay Robinson 1, while Ashley Teister and Bridget O’Brien were scoreless. Fraser Valley shot 25-51 (.490) from the floor, 4-9 (.444) from the arc and 12-18 from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 19 fouls, 36 turnovers, 1 steal and 3 blocks. …………………………………………………… Simon Fraser completed the sweep by dusting Fraser Valley 95-43. “We really wanted to make sure we kept the intensity and play up for an entire four quarters,” said Robyn Buna, who scored a career-high 26. “It doesn’t matter which team we play next weekend, we have to be ready to play no matter who becomes our opponent.” SFU led 28-11 after the first quarter, and dominated the second period to lead 52-18 at halftime. The Clan had forced 25 turnovers in the first half. The second half was more of the same, although the Clan continued to struggle from the arc. “I’m not sure why we haven’t been able to hit our outside shots,” said Buna. “[Clan head coach Bruce] Langford told us to just keep shooting when we are open and eventually the shots will start to fall.” The Clan closed out the game on a 25-8 run. Buna’s 26 points came 9-16 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 6-9 from the line and 3 steals. Kate Hole notched 14 on 5-6 from the floor, 4-5 from the line and 11 boards. Laurelle Weigl scored 12 on 4-6 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 3 boards. Courtney Gerwing notched 11 on 2-5 from the floor and 7-12 from the line. Lisa Tindle scored 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 3 assists. Matteke Hutzler scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 6 boards and 5 steals. Katie Miyazaki notched 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 3 boards, 3 assists and 7 steals. Lani Gibbons scored 5 on 2-6 from the floor and 6 assists. Rakel Helboe added 2, Carly Graham 2 and Brea McLaughlin 2, while Brittany Fraser was scoreless. Simon Fraser shot 31-60 (.517) from the floor, 3-17 (.176) from the arc and 30-43 (.698) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 16 fouls, 22 turnovers, 25 steals and 4 blocks. Samantha Hill paced Fraser Valley with 10 on 3-6 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 4 steals. Lindsay Robinson added 9 on 3-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 5 boards. Michelle Buhler scored 8 on 3-8 from the floor. Olivia Hunt notched 7 on 3-9 from the floor and 4 boards. Heather Boer scored 3, Tara McNeill 2 and Alyssa Gaukel 2, while Brooke Verschuur, Megan McAlister, Ashley Teister, Carmelle Silvestri and Bridget O’Brien were scoreless. The Cascades shot 14-46 (.304) from the floor, 2-7 (.286) from the arc and 13-15 (.867) from the line, while garnering 28 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 25 fouls, 46 turnovers, 4 steals and 2 blocks. The Cascades (coached by Al Tuchscherer) also included Chelsea Beaumont and Tara McNeill.
In the Central semis, Saskatchewan defeated Calgary 69-66; 80-75 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In game one, Saskatchewan rode a stifling defence and a deadly shooting by Kara Lackie to a 69-66 win. “I think the girls learned a lot tonight,” said Saskatchewan coach Lisa Thomaidis. ”We had so many people contribute and that made the difference. The win was a huge confidence booster.” The first half was very tight and saw no team jump in front with a big lead. With the first quarter ending 15-14 in favor of the Dinos, the second quarter was no different as the Huskies came out on top leading by one, 29-28. The third quarter remained close until the final three minutes when the Huskies jumped out to a ten-point lead. Prokop hit Marci Kiselyk back-court for an easy lay-up making the score 54-44 in favor of the Dogs. Saskatchewan’s bench and fans roared after Prokop was called for double dribble and given a technical foul for contesting the call with 4.5 seconds left in the third. With both teams and the fans on the edge of their seats, the fourth quarter saw a great deal of intensity on both sides of the ball. In the first minute of the quarter, Prokop dished to Mary Hipperson for a three-point shot but Calgary’s Jane Meadwell answered two possessions later with a three-point shot of her own. Calgary finally took their first lead of the game at 61-60 with just four and a half minutes to play in the fourth when Lauren MacDonald scored her only two points of the game at the free throw line. The point capped an 8-0 Calgary run, and the Dinos looked to finally have some rhythm on offence. However, the Huskies responded with an easy lay-up by Jill Humbert to retake the lead for good. The Huskies continued to lead the majority of the final quarter until the Dinos made a string of baskets capped off by a three-point shot by Courtney Coyle making the score 65-61 Huskies. The fourth quarter remained close until the final minute. Trailing by two, Calgary had one last chance to tie the game but Willson’s lay-up missed the rim and was rebounded by Lackie. Lackie was then fouled and shot four free throws because of bonus and a technical foul given to Dinos Coach Shawnee Harle for walking onto the court to argue for a foul on Willson. Lackie made all four shots from the line with 6.3 seconds on the clock and the Huskies held on the win 79-73. The Dinos did have two chances to tie in the final 15 seconds of the game, but the Huskies caused a turnover on the first and Jane Meadwell’s long three-point attempt at the buzzer bounced straight off the back rim. With 37.9 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Huskies guard Amy Prokop turned the ball over to the Dinos, who trailed by two points, after being charged for going over and back. The Huskies, leading 75-73, held strong defensively and regained possession after Dinos guard Michelle Willson drove to the hoop and put up a shot that was rebounded by Kara Lackie with 6.3 seconds to play. Calgary coach Shawnee Harle said her troops weren’t prepared. “Playoff basketball is different than the rest of the year. We need to understand that everything gets cranked up a notch, and I didn’t think that we cranked it up a notch consistently. We did a couple of times here and there, but then we had some severe lapses and unforced errors that were very costly just when we were making a run. We’ve got to bring it up to another level tomorrow night, and our goal now is to get to Sunday.” Harle added that the Dinos didn’t take advantage of their opportunities against the Huskies defence. “That should work into our favour, because we should be able to penetrate, we should be able to post up. We have to be more aggressive on our offensive end. They stuck it to us, and that’s why they won.” Kara Lackie paced Saskatchewan with 18 on 6-9 from the floor, 6-10 from the line, 7 boards and 3 blocks. Jillian Humbert added 11 on 4-14 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Lindsay Copeland scored 10 on 4-6 from the floor. Jana Spindler added 7 on 2-2 from the floor and 5 boards. Kimberley Tulloch scored 7 on 3-8 from the floor and 7 boards. Lauren Whyte scored 6 and Amy Prokop 5, while nabbing 5 boards and dishing 7 assists. Mary Hipperson notched 3 and Alicia Wilson 2, while Amy Lackie, Kelsie Bastura and Marci Kiselyk were scoreless. Saskatchewan shot 24-62 (.387) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 18-27 (.667) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 18 fouls, 23 turnovers, 12 steals and 9 blocks. Courtney Coyle paced Calgary with 16 on 5-13 from the floor, 4-8 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Ashley Hill added 15 on 6-20 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 1-2 from the line. Megan Lang scored 9 on 3-8 from the floor and 4 assists. Jane Meadwell scored 9 on 3-8 from the floor and 6 boards. Michelle Willson added 6 on 2-5 from the floor and 13 boards. Whitney Haswell notched 6, Juliette Gonzalez 3 and Lauren Macdonald 2. Calgary hit 23-64 (.359) from the floor, 9-20 (.450) from the arc and 11-17 (.647) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 24 fouls, 25 turnovers, 8 steals and 2 blocks. …………………………………………………… In game two, Saskatchewan completed the upset sweep by defeating Calgary 80-75 in overtime. It was the second consecutive year that the Huskies upset Calgary in the opening round of the playoffs. “Unfortunately for Calgary, they’ve come up against us when we’ve been playing our best basketball each of the last two years,” said Huskies coach Lisa Thomaidis. “This year we’ve been working so hard to improve and make strides with our young group. Last week we played pretty darn well against Calgary, and we were even better this weekend.” The Huskies held the highest scoring offence in Canada to less than 40 per cent shooting despite sub-par shooting of their own. With Saskatchewan leading 58-50 after three quarters, the Dinos offence finally looked like it had found its stride as they cut the deficit early in the fourth. A three from Ashley Hill brought the Dinos to within one point at 63-62, and a pair of free throws seconds later by Jane Meadwell gave the Dinos their first lead since early in the second quarter. Calgary opened up a two-point lead on a bucket from Michelle Willson but a clutch three by Amy Prokop killed the Dinos’ momentum and the teams matched each other point-for-point the rest of the way. Each team had an opportunity to win it in regulation, but Megan Lang’s long three-ball attempt sailed off the rim and out of bounds for Calgary, while a buzzer-beater attempt by Jill Humbert was off the mark for Saskatchewan. Calgary experienced significant foul trouble in overtime, with four players on the court sporting four fouls. The Huskies took advantage in the extra period, forcing the ball inside where the Dinos could not afford to foul. Prokop gave Saskatchewan the lead for good at 74-73, and two Humbert free throws put it out of reach as Calgary was unable to overcome the three-point deficit. Thomaidis said that “at the beginning of the year, I don’t think anybody would have thought that we would have had a chance to do well in Canada West considering the people that we lost. We have a bunch of girls who are tough and competitive and they want to earn their spot.” Jillian Humbert led Saskatchewan with 16 on 2-12 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 10-10 from the line and 8 assists. Jana Spindler notched 16 on 8-13 from the floor and 8 boards. Kimberley Tulloch scored 15 on 6-13 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 7 boards and 2 steals. Kara Lackie scored 9 on 3-6 from the floor and 8 boards. Lindsay Copeland scored 9 on 2-11 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 4 boards and 4 blocks. Amy Prokop notched 7 on 3-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Alicia Wilson added 4, Mary Hipperson 3 and Lauren Whyte 2, while Marci Kiselyk was scoreless. Saskatchewan shot 26-70 (.371) from the floor, 7-25 (.280) from the arc and 21-26 (.808) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 19 fouls, 22 turnovers, 11 steals and 6 blocks. Michelle Wilson paced Calgary with 20 on 7-8 from the floor, 6-7 from the line and 6 boards. Megan Lang added 16 on 6-13 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 6 assists. Whitney Haswell notched 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 8 boards. Courtney Coyle scored 11 on 4-10 from the floor and 3-7 from the arc. Ashley Hill scored 9 on 3-18 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc and 4 steals. Jane Meadwell scored 7 on 7-8 from the floor. Juliette Gonzalez-Pulido, Brittany Knievel and Lauren Macdonald were scoreless. The Dinos shot 24-64 (.375) from the floor, 7-21 from the arc and 20-25 from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 24 fouls, 19 turnovers, 13 steals and 4 blocks. The Dinos (coached by Shawnee Harle) also included Jamie Morck and Celeste Clarke.
In the Plains final, Regina d’d Winnipeg 71-64; 78-60 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… Regina took the opener 71-64. Early on, it looked as though the Cougars might run away with this one. Regina scored eight points before Winnipeg got on the board three minutes into the first quarter, and the Cougars took a 10-point lead into the second quarter. That’s when Winnipeg first-year guard Amy Ogidan threw her game into gear, scoring her team’s first nine points of the quarter to rally the Wesmen. Regina led 35-30 at the half. In the third quarter Winnipeg came out determined and hungry and made a statement going on a 10-3 run to grab their first lead of the game with just over six minutes to play me the quarter at 40-38. But Winnipeg soon found itself in foul trouble, which translated into seven Cougar points from the charity stripe. Fourth-year forward Maja Kralovcova helped spark the hometown Cougars, who responded with a 15-2 run to seize control of the game. Regina was able to expand their lead to 53-44 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter Winnipeg was able to close to within two points at 55-53 with just over seven minutes to play. Regina responded by scoring seven straight points to regain their nine-point lead at 62-53. Winnipeg closed to within four points down the stretch but the Cougars responded with timely baskets to pull out the win. “We won it with our defence tonight,” Cougars head coach Dave Taylor said. “We were a little tentative on offence which could have been due to the long break, but there were no surprises from Winnipeg tonight. They’re never going to quit and will keep making runs at you. We did a good job of weathering their runs tonight.” Maja Kralovcova paced Regina with 19 points on 5-7 from the floor, 9-12 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Jessica Lynch added 17 on 5-13 from the floor, 7-8 from the line, 11 boards and 3 assists. Rebecca Schmidt scored 11 on 5-14 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3 boards and 3 assists. Jacquie Kenyon notched 9 on 4-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Carmen Stewart scored 4on 2-4 from the floor and 5 boards. Stacey Walker added 4 and Chelsea Cassano 3, along with 3 boards. Megan Cherkas scored 2, Gabrielle Gheyssen 2 and Meryl Jordan 2, while Brittany Read was scoreless. The Cougars shot 23-65 (.354) from the floor, 2-14 (.143) from the arc and 23-30 (.767) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 21 fouls, 16 turnovers, 7 steals and 3 blocks. Amy Ogidan paced Winnipeg with 22 on 8-14 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 5-8 from the line, 4 boards and 3 seals. Caitlin Gooch added 15 on 5-14 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 5 steals. Alexandria Maciver scored 7 on 2-3 from the floor and 3-3 from the line. Jessica Stromberg scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor and 5 boards. Randi Gibson added 5 on 2-3 from the arc and 3 boards. Dawna Wright scored 4, Rosemary Mills 2 and Sarah Reilly 1, while Kaitlin Frison was scoreless. The Wesmen shot 22-49 (.449) from the floor, 4-12 from the arc and 16-23 (.696) from the line, while garnering 22 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 22 fouls, 20 turnovers, 9 steals and 1 block. …………………………………………………… In game two, Regina completed the series sweep with a 78-60 win. The Cougars again got off to a quick start, leading 14-5 with 3:20 left in the opening quarter. The Wesmen responded with a 10-2 run, led by Catie Gooch’s pair of three pointers to cut the Cougar lead to 16-15 after the opening quarter. The Cougars relied on their vast experience in the second quarter, outscoring the Wesmen 19-7 to open up a 35-22 lead at halftime. Winnipeg had problems solving the Cougar defense as the team was forced into many awkward shots with the shot clock winding down. The third quarter was an offensive display with both teams answering each other’s baskets. Every time Winnipeg would cut into the Cougar lead, Regina would respond with a basket of their own. Winnipeg closed the gap to seven points at 50-43 with 57 seconds left and had momentum on their side until Cougar guard Rebecca Schmidt drained a three pointer with 18 seconds left in the quarter to give the Cougars a 53-44 lead after three quarters. The Cougars kept rolling in the final quarter and never letting up, holding a double-digit lead throughout the quarter before both teams took out their starters and went to their respective benches to close out the game. “I thought we played excellent tonight,” Cougars head coach Dave Taylor said. “We played playoff basketball tonight, and going into a Final Four that could very well feature four of the top five teams in the CIS, it’s exactly what we needed to do.” Winnipeg coach Tanya McKay said “youth caught up to us in this game.” Rebecca Schmidt paced Regina with 12 points on 4-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 2 steals. Chelsea Cassano added 11 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-5 from the line and 8 boards. Gabrielle Gheyssen scored 10 on 4-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 4 boards. Jessica Lynch notched 9 on 4-11 from the floor, 12 boards and 5 assists. Jacquie Kenyon scored 8 on 4-6 from the floor and 4 boards. Maja Kralovcova scored 7 on 2-4 from the floor. Stacey Walker added 6 on 2-6 from the floor and 8 assists. Carmen Stewart scored 6 on 3-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Megan Cherkas notched 5 on 2-6 from the floor and 2 steals. Brittany Read added 4, while Meryl Jordan was scoreless. The Cougars shot 32-73 (.438) from the floor, 7-13 (.538) from the arc and 7-12 (.583) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 26 assists, 20 fouls, 21 turnovers, 9 steals and 2 blocks. Caitlin Gooch paced Winnipeg with 17 on 5-8 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 2 assists. Amy Ogidan added 14 on 2-7 from the floor, 10-18 from the line and 3 steals. Jessica Stromberg added 9 on 4-9 from the floor and 6 boards. Dawna Wright added 5 on 3-4 from the line. Mackenzie Prasek added 5 and Alexandria MacIver 3, while nabbing 6 boards. Randie Gibson scored 3, Kaitlin Frison 2 and Rosemary Mills 2, while Kaitlin Rempel and Sarah Reilly were scoreless. The Wesmen shot 17-45 (.378) from the floor, 6-12 from the arc and 20-34 (.588) from the line, while garnering 19 boards, including 3 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 13 fouls, 21 turnovers, 12 steals and 1 block. The Wesmen (coached by Tanya McKay) also included Dawna Wright and Caity Purvis-Collins.
In the Central final, Alberta defeated Saskatchewan 64-58; 60-66; 72-57 (2g-1). …………………………………………………… In game one, Alberta prevailed 64-58 as Carly McLennan dominated. The Alberta shooters came out red hot to start the game, torching the Huskie hoop for 24 first quarter points, shooting close to 50% in the first twenty minutes, including a treys from McLennan and guard Katie Barrett. The 24-16 lead didn’t last long as Saskatchewan stepped up their defence in the second quarter, blocking two shots and picked up two steals as well. The 11-9 Alberta second quarter advantage meant the Pandas took a 35-25 lead into the half-time break. Although Scott Edwards’ Alberta crew continued to play strong ball in the second half, at times racking up a 20-point difference and owning a 55-39 lead after three quarters, the Huskies would not go quietly into the night, as they racked up a 19-9 final quarter surge, closing to within four points before losing by six. Carly McLennan paced Alberta with 16 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Patricia Ariss added 12 on 6-11 from the floor and 4 boards. Ashley Wigg scored 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-6 from the line and 3 assists. Emily Bolduc notched 9 on 2-9 from the floor and 4-4 from the line. Katie Barrett added 5, Marisa Haylett 4, Kristin Jarock 3, Michelle Anderson 2 and Meghan Knowles 2, while Paige Gaudreau, Caitlin Stiksma and Aylssia Rissling were scoreless. The Golden Bears shot 23-61 (.377) from the floor, 5-15 from the arc and 13-23 (.565) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 20 fouls, 15 turnovers, 6 steals and 2 blocks. Kara Lackie led Saskatchewan with 18 points on 7-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 5 boards. Lindsay Copeland added 15 on 6-8 from the floor and 3-4 from the line. Jana Spindler scored 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 8 boards and 2 blocks. Kimberley Tulloch notched 7 on 2-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 6 boards. Mary Hipperson added 3, Jillian Humbert 3 and Lauren Whyte 2, while Amy Prokop, Amy Lackie, Alicia Wilson, Kelsie Bastura and Marci Kiselyk were scoreless. The Huskies shot 20-52 (.385) from the floor, 5-11 (.455) from the arc and 13-20 (.650) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 20 fouls, 19 turnovers, 5 steals and 3 blocks. …………………………………………………… In game two, Saskatchewan even the series with a 66-60 win. Although the Huskies were better down the stretch, neither team was at their sharpest in the game two contest. The Huskies, thanks to a 29-23 rebound advantage, eked-out a 24-23 half-time advantage. Alberta’s third quarter was easily their best as they stepped up their defence took the rebounding lead and opened up a three-point lead at 43-40. The play of Kristin Jarock powered the Pandas to a 10-point lead but the Huskies would not roll over and play dead, storming back to reclaim the lead and hold on throughout the fourth. As the Pandas pressed, they got clutch three-pointers from Ashley Wigg and Katie Barrett to draw them to within three points each time, including Barrett’s with under a minute to play, but could force a turnover and instead took foul calls to regain the possession. Every time a Huskie stepped to the charity stripe they moved further and further ahead of the Pandas. “Saskatchewan’s post players have dominated us all weekend,” said Alberta coach Scott Edwards “Absolutely dominated us. Early in the game, we were aggressive. We were going to the glass but we just didn’t score. All of sudden they start settling for shots, which weren’t going in either. We have to find a way to battle hard for 40 minutes. We chose not to play in stretches and it finally caught up with us. Saskatchewan was exactly what we though they were going to be. They came out hard and battled and they worked their butts off for 4 0minutes. They didn’t stop playing hard and we chose to play in spurts and it really hurt us.” Kristin Jarock added that “they outworked us on every spot on the floor. We were settling for the easy shot as the game wore on instead of pushing harder. …It’s been a big mental game and I think they’ve got inside our heads a little bit.” Saskatchewan coach Lisa Thomaidis said her troops did an excellent job on the glass. “We knew rebounding would be key but for us to come up with 23 offensive boards is unheard of for our team. … We had an opportunity to get up 10 points but we didn’t capitalize. I thought, ‘O man, they just shot 20% 9in the quarter) and we are only up one. We have a lot of character and it’s a credit to how hard our kids work. We’re not going to lay down and give up, no matter what we are down by.” Kara Lackie paced Saskatchewan with 16 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 22- from the line, 4 boards and 2 blocks. Jillian Humbert added 16 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 4-6 from the line, 5 boards and 3 steals. Lauren Whyte added 9 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 blocks. Kimberley Tulloch notched 9 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 3 boards. Amy Prokop scored 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 3-6 from the line and 5 assists. Jan Spindler scored 5 on 1-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 15 boards. Alicia Wilson added 2 and Mary Hipperson 2, while Amy Lackie, Lindsay Copeland, Kelsie Bastura and Marci Kiselyk were scoreless. The Huskies shot 19-66 (.288) from the floor, 4-13 (.308) from the arc and 24-38 (.632) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 13 fouls, 11 turnovers, 5 steals and 4 blocks. Kristin Jarock paced Alberta with 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 5-6 from the line and 5 boards. Carly McLennan added 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Katie Barrett added 9 on 4-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4 boards and 4 assists. Ashley Wigg notched 7 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4 boards and 4 assists. Patricia Ariss added 6 on 1-1 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 8 boards. Paige Gaudreau added 4, Marisa Haylett 3, Emily Bolduc 2 and Caitlin Stiksma 2, while Michelle Anderson, Meghan Knowles and Alysia Rissling were scoreless. The Pandas shot 21-66 (.318) from the floor, 3-11 (.273) from the arc and 15-16 (.938) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 27 fouls, 14 turnovers, 6 steals and 5 blocks. …………………………………………………… Alberta took the series with a 72-57 in the decisive game as Carly McLennan took command in the second half. The Pandas led 33-29 at the half but McLennan scored 10 in the second frame, including a key robbery midway through the fourth, as she intercepted a Saskatchewan pass and raced up court all alone for an easy lay-up to put Alberta up by 10 with under five minutes to go. Katie Barrett provided a deep threat for the Pandas, while Ashley Wigg and Paige Gaudreau added treys. Gaudreau’s second quarter minutes were a big part of the Pandas success as well as Alberta trailed by two after the opening quarter. The ex-Huskie came off the bench to score five points, including the trey, pushing the Pandas past the Huskies and into the half with the lead. Alberta coach Scott Edwards said his troops relaxed in the fourth quarter. “We had a good laugh about it at the end of the third when we were trying to relax the kids. We said ‘look, what more can happen to you in the fourth quarter? Get to the rim, knock down free throws and get yourselves some scores.’ We scored in the first minute and you could see everyone relax on the bench. We really toughed up the in the fourth quarter and we rebounded hard. We scrapped for loose balls, which we need to do. We don’t shoot the ball well enough to rely on any one person to knock down shots for us, we have to play edgy basketball. We talked about challenging yourself and being energetic and challenge yourself to get through that lull you get in a game naturally and not ask for subs. Stop asking me for subs, I hate that. Just go out and play until you drop. I’ll say when to come off the floor.” Huskies coach Lisa Thomaidis said “it wasn’t there for us tonight. I though we got the crap beat out of us. I thought the game was way too physical and we missed 10 free throws. We just didn’t make some easy ones we probably should have.” Trish Ariss said the Bears we’re confident. “There was something about today. I wasn’t nervous. I knew we had it.” Edwards said Ariss brings the intangibles. “She’s just one of those kids who finds a way late in big ball games to get a big rebound, to get a big block-out, to play tough defence, to know a shot down for us, to get to the free throw line. She just finds a way in those games.” Ariss said “I think when I got out on the court, I was giving it everything I had every shift and I was energetic. And I was being obnoxious. “Ashley Wigg paced Alberta with 17 on 5-10 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 5 boards. Katie Barrett added 14 on 4-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 3 assists. Carly McLennan scored 14 on 5-7 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 2 boards and 2 steals. Kristin Jarock notched 11 on 4-15 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 2 steals. Paige Goudreau notched 5 on 1-2 from the arc. Patricia Ariss scored 4 on 2-8 from the floor and 9 boards. Michelle Anderson added 3, Meghan Knowles 2 and Marisa Haylett 2, while Emily Bolduc, Caitlin Stiksma and Alysia Rissling were scoreless. The Pandas shot 24-60 (.400) from the floor, 6-16 (.375) from the arc and 18-23 (.783) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 24 fouls, 14 turnovers, 6 steals and 2 blocks. Kimberley Tulloch paced Saskatchewan with 15 on 5-10 from the floor, 3-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Jillian Humbert added 12 on 3-11 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 4-8 from the line and 4 boards. Kara Lackie added 10 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 11 boards. Amy Prokop scored 7 on 2-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Lindsay Copeland added 6 and Jana Spindler 3 on 1- 4 from the floor and 7 boards. Mary Hipperson scored 3 and Lauren Whyte 1, while Marci Kiselynk, Kelsie Bastura and Alicia Wilson were scoreless. The Huskies shot 19-53 (.358) from the floor, 5-19 (.263) from the arc and 14-24 (.583) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 24 fouls, 27 turnovers, 5 steals and 1 block. The Huskies (coached by Lisa Thomaidis, assisted by Allison Fairbrother and Jacqueline Lavallee) also included Amy Lackie, Erin Beckett, Meaghan Koroll and Kayala Cassano.
In the Pacific final, Simon Fraser defeated U.B.C. 64-45; 81-57 (2g-0). …………………………………………………… In the opener, Simon Fraser defeated UBC 64-45. The game held up to the hype early on, as the two juggernauts went head-to-head in an opening quarter that saw the lead change four times. At the end of the first, the Thunderbirds found themselves ahead 12-11. After a Julie Little layup put UBC up 14-11 in the opening seconds of the second quarter, the Clan responded with stingy defence and deadly shooting from Kate Hole, Robyn Buna and Courtney Gerwing that sparked a 15-4 run to take a 26-18 lead with three minutes left in the period. After exchanging baskets, a Candace Morisset three-pointer closed the gap to 30-25 before the halftime break. At the start of the third quarter, the Clan took over, riding the dominant play of Hole to a 17-6 run and a 47-31 lead with just two minutes remaining in the period. The Clan extended their lead thereafter, combining timely shooting with a suffocating defence that allowed the T-Birds just ten points in both the third and fourth quarters. “The big thing for us is any team can beat any other team on any given day,” said Kate Hole. “As we saw with UBC earlier in the year, we cleaned their clock in the first game and they cleaned us in return the next night. So we have to make sure that we don’t take anything for granted and come out tomorrow as hard as we came out tonight.” UBC’s Erica McGuinness said “we got outplayed tonight, we were outworked. SFU got after the loose balls and those are the type of things that it is going to come down to in a series like this and I thought they just played harder tonight.” Kate Hole paced Simon Fraser with 19 on 9-15 from the floor, 1-3 from the line and 8 boards. Matteke Hutzler added 13 on 5-9 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 8 boards, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Robyn Buna notched 8 on 3-4 from the floor and 2-3 from the arc. Lani Gibbons scored 7 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards, 5 assists and 4 steals. Laurelle Weigl scored 6 on 3-12 from the floor. Courtney Gerwing added 6 on 2-10 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc and 5 boards. Katie Miyazaki added 3 and Brea McLaughlin 2, while Lisa Tindle and Brittany Fraser were scoreless. The Clan shot 26-68 (.382) from the floor, 5-23 (.217) from the arc and 7-10 from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 12 fouls, 19 turnovers, 15 steals and 5 blocks. Julie Little paced UBC with 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Erica McGuinness scored 12 on 5-7 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Cait Haggarty notched 8 on 4-10 from the floor and 4 boards. Candace Morisset scored 5 on 2-4 from the floor. Zara Huntley added 4, Alex Vieweg 2 and Leanne Evans 2, while nabbing 5 boards. Kira Carre and Montanna Dunmore were scoreless. The Thunderbirds shot 19-48 (.396) from the floor, 1-5 from the arc and 6-8 from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 14 fouls, 30 turnovers, 6 steals and 1 block. …………………………………………………… In game two, Simon Fraser whipped UBC 81-57 to sweep the series. The Clan outscored the T-Birds 20-9 in the period, with Robyn Buna scoring eight of SFU’s points in the first frame. Simon Fraser continued their strong play into the second quarter, out rebounding UBC 23-to-16 in the first half, including seven on the offensive glass, to lead 44-24 at halftime. UBC started the second half strong, as fifth year guards Erica McGuinness and Cait Haggarty were the catalysts of a 10-6 Thunderbird run. The Clan however answered UBC’s tempo, generating shots from outside, while Kate Hole hit five straight jump shots in the second half to extend SFU’s lead to 65-42 after three quarters. “It’s fun to be playing well,” said Lani Gibbons. “When you get to this point in the season, rankings and standings don’t matter. There are no gimme wins, whoever is playing and competing harder earns the victory. This is the best we have played all season and it’s fun to play like that. I think our forwards stepped up for us, both offensively and especially defensively, and right now we have a lot of options on the offensive end. This is the time of year you want to be playing your best basketball.” UBC’s Erica McGuinness said “we came out flat tonight and they took advantage of it. I thought we competed well in the second half and that’s all you can ask for when you have a deficit like that. We know we are going to be playing again next weekend, so we have two big games ahead and we are looking forward to it.” Kate Hole paced Simon Fraser with 17 on 8-19 from the floor and 12 boards. Matteke Hutzler added 14 on 7-9 from the floor, 8 boards and 3 assists. Lani Gibbons notched 14 on 3-4 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 3 boards, 5 assists and 2 seals. Robyn Buna scored 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Lisa Tindle scored 9 on 3-7 from the floor and 2-5 from the arc. Courtney Gerwing notched 9 on 3-11 from the floor, 7 boards and 6 assists. Laurel Weigl added 4, while Katie Miyazaki, Rakel Helboe, Carly Graham, Brittany Fraser and Brea McLaughlin were scoreless. The Clan shot 30-66 (.455) from the floor, 8-20 (.400) from the arc and 13-15 (.867) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 13 fouls, 17 turnovers, 9 steals and 1 block. Erica McGuinness led UBC with 19 on 7-15 from the floor, 5-6 from the line and 3 assists. Cait Haggarty added 11 on 4-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc and 4 boards. Alex Vieweg added 8 on 4-7 from the floor. Julie Little notched 7 on 2-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 9 boards. Leanne Evans scored 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 8 boards and 3 blocks. Zara Huntley added 4 and Candace Morisset 2 while Kira Carre and Montanna Dunmore were scoreless. The Thunderbirds shot 22-5 (.400) from the floor, 3-12 from the arc and 10-14 (.714) from the line, while garnering 29 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 13 fouls, 18 turnovers, 6 steals and 3 blocks.
U.B.C. received the wild card to the Final four.
In the Final
Four semis, Regina shocked top-seeded Simon Fraser 84-70, marking the third consecutive
season in which the Clan were knocked off in the Final Four. “We approached the
game as the underdogs, nobody expected us to win, and we knew we had to play
hard to win the game,” said Gabrielle Gheyssen, who paced the Cougar attack. “Winning
is so much better than losing, and not been expected to win and then winning is
the best feeling ever.”
The back-and-forth battle featured 12 lead changes, as the Clan opened the game
with a strong first quarter, leading by as much as ten points, before Regina
closed the gap to 24-16 at the end of the period. Gheyssen and the Cougars
however exploded in the second quarter, outscoring SFU 30-13 in frame, as
Gheyssen netted 18 of her 20 first half points in the period, to lead 46-37 at
the half. SFU started the third quarter on fire, producing a 16-to-6 run to
take a 53-52 lead midway through the period. SFU led by as much as eight in the
frame, however a late third quarter run by the Cougars closed the gap to 60-58
heading into the final quarter. The teams traded leads throughout the fourth, but
down the stretch key buckets by Chelsea Cassano and Brittany Read in the final
two minutes permitted the Cougars to extend their lead to two possessions,
ultimate winning the game 84-79. “We have been in this position before, where we
played a heck of a lot worse than we did tonight,” said SFU head coach Bruce
Langford. “We had some quarters that were pretty good tonight, we had some
quarters that weren’t so good tonight, and I told them after the game, do we
bring [tomorrow] our third quarter, or do we bring our fourth quarter, and we
need start thinking about that right now.” Cougars coach Dave Taylor said “we talked
all week about playing fearless, and we did that. We weren’t going to be
tentative, and we went out and had a fantastic game. Gabby (Gheyssen) was incredible
and I’m so proud of Brittany Read. She came in and played big minutes and hit
some huge shots.” Gheyssen paced Regina with 28 on 9-13 from the floor, 5-5
from the arc, 5-5 from the line, 6 boards and 3 steals. Chelsea Cassano notched
10 on 3-6 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 6 boards. Maja Kralovcova added
10 on 5-10 from the floor and 9 boards. Rebecca Schmidt scored 10 on 3-8 from
the floor, 3-4 from the line and 3 steals. Carmen Stewart scored 6 on 4-4 from
the line. Brittany Read scored 6 on 2-2 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 3
boards. Jacquie Kenyon added 6 on 3-3 from the floor and 6 boards. Megan
Cherkas scored 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 4-4 from the line 4 boards and 4
assists. Jessica Lynch notched 2, while Stacey Walker, Julia Schmidt and
Danielle Schmidt were scoreless. The Cougars hit 27-52 (.519) from the floor, 6-11
(.545) from the arc and 24-34 (.706) from the line, while garnering 44 boards,
including 10 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 22 fouls, 30 turnovers, 12
steals and 2 blocks. Laurelle Weigl paced Simon Fraser with 20 points on 9-15
from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 4 boards. Lani Gibbons scored 13 on 4-13
from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 6 assists and 4 steals.
Lisa Tindle added 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 assists.
Robyn Buna scored 9 on 3-9 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Matteke
Hutzler notched 7 on 5-8 from the line, 6 boards and 4 steals. Courtney Gerwing
notched 7 on 2-7 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 6 boards. Kate Hole scored
7 on 1-9 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 5 boards. Katie Miyazaki added 4
on 2-4 from the floor and 6 boards, while Carly Graham, Brittany Fraser and
Brea McLaughlin were scoreless. The Clan shot 27-76 (.355) from the floor, 4-21
(.190) from the arc and 21-29 (.724) from the line, while garnering 36 boards,
including 18 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 19 fouls, 19 turnovers, 11
steals and 2 blocks.
In the other semi, the U.B.C. Thunderbirds defeated the University of Alberta Pandas 76-66 after staving off a fourth quarter rally. “We wanted to come out and compete, we weren’t happy about last weekend [against SFU], but we put that aside and came out tonight with a lot of energy,” said UBC guard Erica McGuinness. “A goal of ours all season has been to get [to Nationals] and so it’s a great feeling to get back there.” The Thunderbirds led 22-15 after the first quarter, and extended that gap to 40-29 at halftime. McGuinness, Julie Little and Alex Vieweg each had ten points at the half, while UBC led by as much as 16 points in the second quarter. UBC continued to hold a double-digit lead for most of the third period, however a 5-2 run at the end of the frame by the Pandas allowed Alberta to close within 11 (60-49) heading into the final quarter. Alberta utilized that momentum, coupled with poor shooting from the ‘Birds to start the fourth with a 10-0 run to cut the gap to 60-59. Cait Haggarty however answered with a three-pointer to give UBC some breathing room, prompting 13-0 run from the T-Birds to extend their lead to 72-59 with just under three minutes to play. Out of gas, the Pandas did not have another rally in the tank. “Our kids came in and remembered the game they had with [UBC] from a month ago and thought they couldn’t play with this team, but they can,” said Alberta head coach Scott Edwards. “We are the smallest team in this tournament and you have to play a certain style to play here, and the effort we put forth in the first half just didn’t cut it.” Erica McGuinness paced U.B.C. with 23 on 8-15 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 6-6 from the line and 9 assists. Julie Little added 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Alex Vieweg notched 12 on 6-7 from the floor and 3 boards. Leanne Evans added 9 on 4-5 from the floor, 11 boards and 5 blocks. Zara Huntley scored 7 on 3-6 from the floor. Cait Haggarty added 6 on 2-3 from the arc, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Candace Morisset added 3 and Montanna Dunmore 2, while Kira Carre were scoreless. U.B.C. shot 30-52 (.577) from the floor, 3-9 from the arc and 13-17 (.765) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 21 assists, 14 fouls, 19 turnovers, 5 steals and 6 blocks. Emily Bolduc paced Alberta with 21 on 7-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc and 4-4 from the line, Carly McLennan added 16 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 5-5 from the line and 2 boards. Marisa Haylett notched 10 on 4-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Patricia Ariss notched 5 on 2-7 from the floor and 6 boards. Katie Barrett added 4 on 2-6 from the floor. Ashley Wigg added 4 on 2-0 from the floor and 8 assists. Kristin Jarock notched 4 on 1-10 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Michelle Anderson added 2, while Paige Gaudreau, Caitlin Stiksma, Meghan Knowles and Alyssia Rissling were scoreless. The Pandas shot 24-68 (.353) from the floor, 5-13 (.385) from the arc and 13-15 (.867) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 18 fouls, 14 turnovers, 9 steals and 3 blocks.
In the bronze medal match, Simon Fraser captured Canada West’s third berth in nationals by dumping Alberta 72-55. “We had two goals tonight heading into the game, stay out of foul trouble and make certain we didn’t let our mismatches hurt us because they are a fast team,” said SFU coach Bruce Langford. “We did alright at handling the mismatches, but we weren’t that good at staying out of foul trouble. It’s nice to be going back to nationals, we handled some adversity this weekend, and that was nice to see.” Kate Hole dominated inside for the Clan, while Lani Gibbons dictated the tempo and managed the game with aplomb. The Pandas opened the game on a 6-2 run but SFU responded with a 13-1 run to retake the lead and never looked back. SFU outscored Alberta 20-13 in the first quarter, and led 37-27 at halftime. The Clan blew the game wide open in the third quarter, extending their lead to 61-41 before the final frame. Alberta never recovered. “Our approach was the same as always against SFU, and early in the game we played at a high tempo but weren’t able to make shots and fell behind,” said Alberta coach Scott Edwards. “In the third quarter SFU really came out and demonstrated their toughness at home and played hard, and we weren’t able to match, and you can’t play basketball in the Canada West if you can’t make shots.” Kate Hole paced Simon Fraser with 25 on 8-18 from the floor, 9-13 from the line, 9 boards and 3 blocks. Courtney Gerwing added 13 on 4-8 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Lani Gibbons scored 11 on 3-10 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 3 boards and 4 steals. Katie Miyazaki notched 10 on 5-9 from the floor, 3 boards, 3 blocks and 2 steals. Matteke Hutzler scored 5 on 2-4 from the floor and 5 boards. Robyn Buna added 3 on 1-5 from the floor and 5 boards. Lisa Tindle scored 3 on 1-1 from the arc. Laurelle Weigl notched 2, while Brea McLaughlin and Brittany Fraser were scoreless. The Clan shot 25-61 (.410) from the floor, 4-11 (.364) from the arc and 18-27 (.667) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 24 fouls, 12 assists, 21 turnovers, 7 blocks and 10 steals. Carly McLennan led Alberta with 14 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 blocks. Ashley Wigg added 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 2-3 from the line and 9 boards. Kristin Jarock scored 8 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 blocks. Patricia Ariss scored 7 on 2-8 from the floor, 3-6 from the line and 7 boards. Paige Gaudreau scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor. Katie Barrett scored 3 on 3-4 from the floor and 4 boards. Emily Bolduc notched 3 on 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Michelle Anderson added 3, while Alyssia Rissling, Caitlin Stiksma, Meghan Knowles and Marisa Haylett were scoreless. The Pandas shot 18-62 (.290) from the floor, 3-9 from the arc and 16-25 (.640) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 24 fouls, 4 assists, 28 turnovers, 2 blocks and 7 steals. The Pandas (coached by Scott Edwards) also included Sarah Mosaico, Breanna Emmerzael and Claire Wilson.
In the final, the U.B.C. Thunderbirds clipped the Regina Cougars 70-59. “It was a competitive game, I thought both teams put on a good display of Canada West basketball,’ said UBC coach Deb Huband. “We had a good team effort and received contributions from a lot of sources and from our seniors in particular.” The Thunderbirds hit five of their first six field goals to build a 12-4 lead in the opening quarter. Leanne Evans had six blocks in the first eight minutes for UBC, as defensively the ‘Birds held Regina to just 25 per cent shooting from the field in the first ten minutes to lead 23-12 after one frame. UBC continued their smooth shooting to start the second quarter, opening the frame on a 9-0 (32-12) run that included seven points from McGuinness to lead by 20. The gamely Cougars however battled back, cutting the lead to four points with a 20-4 run of their own, as Maja Kralovcova and Gabrielle Gheyssen began to rain three-pointers. A three-pointer by Candace Morisset in the final seconds however extended UBC’s lead to 41-34 at halftime. UBC extended their lead to as much as 13 points in the third quarter, and led by as much as 16 points in the fourth, utilizing 13 team blocks and nine team steals to shut down the high-powered Cougar offence. “UBC just played well, they shot the ball incredibly well,” said Regina coach Dave Taylor. “[McGuinness] really took over the game and demonstrated why she is an All-Canadian.” Erica McGuinness paced U.B.C. with 23 on 8-13 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 8 assists. Julie Little notched 14 on 6-14 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. Leanne Evans scored 12 on 4-11 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 14 boards, 4 assists and 9 blocks. Cait Haggarty scored 11 on 4-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Zara Huntley notched 6 on 3-6 from the floor and 3 boards. Candace Morisset added 4 and Alex Vieweg 1, while Kira Carre and Candace Morisset were scoreless. The Thunderbirds shot 26-62 (.419) from the floor, 4-10 from the arc and 14-18 (.778) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 12 fouls, 15 assists, 19 turnovers, 13 blocks and 9 steals. Jessica Lynch paced Regina with 20 on 7-11 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 4 boards and 2 steals. Maja Kralovcova added 14 on 6-15 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 blocks. Rebecca Schmidt notched 12 on 5-11 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 1-2 from the line. Gabrielle Gheyssen scored 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 7 boards. Chelsea Cassano notched 4 on 2-8 from the floor and 11 boards. Carmen Stewart scored 4 on 1-5 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Mega Cherkas was scoreless but ripped 4 boards. Stacey Walker, Jacquie Kenyon, Meryl Jordan and Brittany Read were scoreless. The Cougars shot 23-71 (.324) from the floor, 5-16 (.313) from the arc and 8-12 from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 16 fouls, 12 assists, 15 turnovers, 6 blocks and 5 steals.
In January,
2008, after 15 years of guiding the University of Alberta Pandas Basketball
team, Trix Baker, who has been on educational leave since 2006-07, has resigned
her position of head coach with University of Alberta Athletics.
Baker will remain in her current role as General Manager as will current interim
head coach Scott Edwards, the 2006-07 CIS Coach of the Year until April of 2008. Since
his appointment, Edwards has compiled a 51-15 overall record and a 28-8 record
in Conference play. In his first season the Pandas advanced to the CIS
championship final where they came away with a silver medal. “I will miss coaching
a great deal but it is time for me to refocus my energies, at least in the
evenings and weekends – on my family,” said Baker. I want to step back and
enjoy a slower pace of life with a different focus and different pressures. I
thank my lucky stars my son loves sports and allows me the opportunity to watch
him play and compete at a high level. My husband has been very supportive and
encouraging throughout my coaching career and it is time for me to give my
family the attention they deserve. Working as the General Manager of the Pandas
basketball program is providing me with a chance to stay involved with the
program and hopefully make it better, and I look forward to the opportunity to
continue to do so in the future.” While head coach, Baker and the Pandas made
three appearances at the CIS championship tournament, winning the program’s
only National title in 1998-99. She would add a fourth-place finish in
1999-2000 and a silver medal in 2000-01. Baker compiled a 256-238 (.518)
overall record and a 150-152 (.497) mark in
Canada West play, the toughest Conference in Canadian Interuniversity Sport. “University
of Alberta Athletics is both extremely grateful and thankful for the success
Trix earned and the foundation of success she has put in place during her
tenure as head coach for the Pandas basketball program,” said University of
Alberta Director of Athletics Dale Schulha. Baker also played for the Pandas
from 1976 until 1981, three times being named a CIAU All-Canadian and making
three trips to the National finals. She is the Pandas second all-time leading conference
scorer with 1,318 points (Jackie Simon 1,424). She has also been a coach
with University of Lethbridge (1987-91), the Alberta Junior Provincial team
(1986-89 and 1995) and Canadian National team (1993-95 and 1997-99).
The bronze
medalist Simon Fraser Clan: Kate Hole; Courtney Gerwing; Lani Gibbons; Katie
Miyazaki; Matteke Hutzler; Robyn Buna; Lisa Tindle; Laurelle Weigl; Brea McLaughlin;
Brittany Fraser; Kelsey Horsting; Carly Graham; Rakel Helboe; coach Bruce
Langford
The silver medalist Regina Cougars:
Jessica Lynch; Rebecca Schmidt; Chelsea Cassano; Gabrielle Gheyssen; Carmen
Stewart; Maja Kralovcova; Jacquie Kenyon; Megan Cherkas; Brittany Read; Stacey
Walker; Shalyn Kivela; Meryl Jordan; Ashley Wishira; Julia Schmidt; Danielle
Schmidt; coach Dave Taylor; assistant Steve Burrows; assistant Cymone Bouchard;
athletic director Dick White
The champion British Columbia Thunderbirds: Erica McGuinness; Cait Haggarty; Leanne Evans; Julie Little; Devan Lisson; Alex Vieweg; Zara Huntley; Candace Morisset; Montanna Dunmore; Kira Carre; Robyn Fashler; coach Deb Huband; assistant Carrie Watts; assistant Shaun McGuinness