REGULAR SEASON

NORTH       CENTRAL            
  Ottawa 17-2 26-7 Andy Sparks McMaster 15-4 21-9 Theresa Burns      
  Carleton 14-5 19-13 Taffe Charles Guelph 11-8 17-15 Christin Dickenson      
  Laurentian  3-16  5-25 Jason Hurley Brock 10-9 14-13 Si Khounviseth      
  Nipissing  3-16  3-23 Marg Jones Lakehead 7-12 13-16 Jon Kreiner      
  EAST       WEST            
  Ryerson 16-3 29-5 Carly Clarke Windsor 15-5 22-10 Chantal Vallee      
  Queen’s 14-5 29-9 Dave Wilson Western 14-6 20-13 Brian Cheng      
  Toronto  8-11 13-19 Michele Belanger Laurier  9-11 11-19 Paul Falco      
  York  3-16  3-23 Erin McAleenan Waterloo  4-16  5-23 Tyler Slipp      
          Algoma  1-19  2-23 Ryan Vetrie      
                       

Playoff non-qualifiers:

Algoma Thunderbirds: Jordan Milos, Carrera Lamoureux, Mackenzie Robinson, Sydney Resch, Alyssa Dovigi, Karissa Kajorinne, Karly Fracalanza, Mairead Dunn, Carlie Manners, Marlee Ball, Laura Meadows, coach Thomas Cory, assistant James Tusingwire, assistant Kirk Reid, manager Garnet Cory

        Lakehead Thunderwolves: Rachel Webber, Katelyn Zen, Cassandra Soulias, Maggie Murphy, Kylee Kuchta, Lindsay Edward, Katelyn Andrea, Amanda Miller, Jerika Baldin, Blair McNaughton, Essa Jacobsen, August Ricketts, Bridget O’Reilly, Gillian Lavoie, Emily Lerette, coach Jon Kreiner, assistant Lou Pero, assistant Ray Foster, assistant Carolyn Fragale

        Nipissing Lakers: Shaelyn Poulin, Marla Corney, Claire Abbott, Heidi Smith, Rachel Jaworowicz, Jamie Soffer, Mackenzie Bahm, Samantha Rota, Ali Czich, Samantha Therrien, Maeve Therriault, Alexe Galipeau-Wilson, Emma Vanderlee, Devanee Dewey, Samantha Kordez, Kelly Dunk, Michaela Branker, Taylor Rae Cote, Kelsey Balog, Rachel Van Woezik, Taylor Wells, coach Marg Jones, assistant Rick Vanderlee, assistant Tim Lowe

Waterloo Warriors: Elizabeth Holmes, Caitlin MacLeod, Swetha Kulandaivelan, Nicole Schlick, Fran Smith, Jenel Ulman, Ally Vonk, Jacqui Rodrigues, Emily Wilk, Kristen Osborne, Amy Jarvis, Julia Pavlik, Hilary Ferguson, Ella Mahler, coach Tyler Slipp, assistant Andy Hairsine, assistant Derek Linwood, strength & conditioning Tommy Gingras, strength & conditioning Braden Southern, student therapist Claudia Martin Calderon, student therapist Savannah Jeavons, student therapist Roxanne Morin, student therapist Tess Zehr

York Lions: Hayley Bowie, Jacqueline Koudys, Erin Sarapnickas, Erika Diloreto, Ishanaa Seupersadsingh, Katrina Collins-Samuels, Nina Guzina, Sandra Nagowska, Sijia Liu, Jennah Rampersaud, Anastasia Lovatsis, Shauney Fischer, Emma Thompson, Taylor McAlpine, Taylor Ross, coach Erin McAleenan, assistant Lexie Sananes, assistant Erica Gavel, assistant Victor Herbert, assistant Sheldon White, student therapist George Grammaneopoulos, assistant student therapist Christina Vassiliou

In the opening round, the 6th-seeded Windsor Lancers defeated the 11th-seeded Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 82-76. The leach changed 14 times and the game was tied eight times. The Golden Hawks led 17-14 after one quarter and 42-40 at the half. The Lancers led 69-66 after three quarters. Emily Prevost paced the Lancers with 2 1on 9-19 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists. Carly Steer added 17 on 5-10 from the floor, 5-9 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Cheyanne Roger added 15 on 7-13 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 9 boards and 3 blocks. Caitlyn Longmuir notched 15 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 5 boards and 5 assists. Tyra Blizzard added 3 and Alyssa Cerino 3, along with 5 boards and 2 blocks, while Orian Amsalem was scoreless. The Lancers hit 32-75 (.427) from the floor, 9-21 (.429) from the arc and 9-10 from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 17 assists, 4 steals, 7 blocks, 9 turnovers and 16 fouls. Kaitlyn Schenck paced the Golden Hawks with 19 on 7-17 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Nicole Morrison added 17 on 6-15 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 5-7 from the line and 3 assists. Sarah Dillon notched 17 on 6-11 from the floor, 5-8 from the arc and 5 boards. Courtney Bruce scored 14 on 5-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Amanda Milanis added 4, along with 2 assists, Irena Rynkiewicz 3, along with 4 boards, and Heather Payne 2, along with 9 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals, while Lauren Jamieson was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. The Golden Hawks hit 28-65 (.431) from the floor, 11-24 (.458) from the arc and 9-13 (.692) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 5 steals, 1 block, 10 turnovers and 13 fouls. The Golden Hawks (coach Paul Falco, assistant Cal Keil, assistant Megan Grant, assistant Grace Fishbein, skills development coach Lee Anna Osei, strength & conditioning Andrew Dietrich, manager Lydia Horton, student trainer Lindsay Graham, student trainer Julia Chambers) also included Hannah McGurk, Alanna Martin, Alexandra Spadaro, Melissa Pare and Cori Marshall. …………………………………………………… The 7th-seeded Western Mustangs dusted the 10th-seeded Toronto Varsity Blues 91-51. “I thought it was a full, complete team effort,” said Mustangs coach Brian Cheng. “We saw contributions from everyone. We executed the game plan, we played hard, we played smart, and we played together.” Meredith McLeod, playing in place of injured starter Maddy Horst, dominated the floor. “I took advantage of being moved up into a spot that I’m not used to,” said McLeod. “And once I hit my first two shots I felt like I was hot out there, so I just kept on shooting it.” Western led 26-11, 57-20 and 77-37 at the quarters. Meredith McLeod paced the Mustangs with 26 on 8-11 from the floor, 5-6 from the arc, 5-7 from the line, 2 boards, 3 assists and 4 steals. Caroline Wolynski added 17 on 7-12 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Laura Graham notched 13 on 4-10 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Julia Curran scored 9 on 4-6 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Victoria Heine added 8 on 2-5 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Mackenzie Puklicz scored 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3 boards and 4 assists. Sam Loucks scored 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Cassidy Crowe added 2, along with 3 boards, and Sonja Mijatovic 2, while Sasha Samardzija, Alex Van Heeswyk and Mandy Cosentino were scoreless. Consentino nabbed 3 boards. The Mustangs hit 33-63 (.524) from the floor, 12-21 (.571) from the arc and 13-17 (.765) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 11 steals, 13 turnovers and 22 fouls. Abena Addo paced the Varsity Blues with 14 on 4-7 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 6-9 from the line and 4 boards. Rahshida Atkinson added 12 on 4-18 from the floor, 2-10 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Diedre Edwards added 5 on 0-3 from the floor, 5-8 from the line and 4 boards. Maddy Baker scored 5 on 2-5 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Charlotte Collyer added 4, along with 3 boards, Keyira Parkes 4, along with 5 boards, Emily Piccini 3, Yanique Smith 2, along with 5 boards, and Sarah Bennett 2, along with 3 boards, while Alanna Garner was scoreless, nabbed 2 boards and pilfered 2 balls. The Varsity Blues hit 16-61 (.262) from the floor, 3-25 (.120) from the arc and 16-29 (.552) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 1 assists, 5 steals, 18 turnovers and 15 fouls. The Varsity Blues (coach Michele Belanger, assistant Ian Morse, assistant Valentin Crainic, assistant Aleksandra Kancheva, assistant Andrew Kay, assistant Kyra Kristensen-Irvine, assistant Jill Stratton, strength & conditioning Adrian Lightowler, strength & conditioning assistant Alanna Veerman, nutritionist Katherine Ahokas, therapist Angela Song, student therapist Laura Difrancesco, student therapist Amanda DeLuca, student therapist Alexandra Boran, student therapist Jenny Choo) also included Mahal De La Durantaye, Sophie Cation, Jay Gaunt, Carly Evans, Selali Acolatse, Jada Dunn and Connie Harris. …………………………………………………… The 5th-seeded Queen’s Gaels whipped the 12th-seeded Laurentian Voyageurs 70-44. The Gaels hit three of their first four shots but both teams struggled from the floor in the first quarter, after which Queen’s led 16-6. They built their lead to 15 before the Voyageurs responded with a 7-0 run. Adrienne Moreau hit a three, which was followed by a Queen’s turnover and two more points in transition, prompting a timeout from Queen’s coach Dave Wilson with 5:23 left in the half. Moreau drained her second jumper in a row for three coming out of the Gael break. Emily Hazlett and Moreau then exchanged baskets, and the fifth-year Voyageur dropped her third three of the quarter with just over a minute remaining, cutting the once 15-point deficit to just two. Queen’s added four points in the last minute of play to take a 29-23 at the half. The Voyageurs went on a mini-streak midway through the third quarter to again pull within a jump shot but Moreau missed an open lay-up, and the momentum quickly swung the other way after Hazlett nailed a corner three. Abby Dixon dropped a mid-range baseline jumper, and another basket from beyond the arc by Jenny Wright capped a 12-2 run. Queen’s led 48-40 after three quarters. Quene’s pulled away in the final frame.  ”I’m more pleased with how we finished the game than how we played in the first half,” said Wilson. “The first half we were careless and a bit sloppy. I’d like to say we came out in the third quarter and did what we wanted to do but we didn’t really get to them until later in the game when they got tired and a little bit exposed. …  However, the second quarter lacked intensity and was fraught with mental mistakes.  We were outscored 13-17, but still held the 29-23 half time lead.  We did a better job of converting our chances in the third quarter, but still struggled with our defence, particularly with our fouling. … We did a very good job of finishing in both transition and in quarter court offence to close out the game.” Jenny Wright paced the Gaels with 15 on 4-12 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 6-10 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Emily Hazlett added 14 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Andrea Priamo notched 12 on 4-11 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 11 boards. Robyn Pearson scored 8 on 4-11 from the floor, 15 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Nicole Morse added 6 on 2-2 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Myriam Fontaine added 5 on 2-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 5 boards. Marianne Alarie scored 4 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 5 boards. Abby Dixon added 4 on 2-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 7 boards and 3 assists. Katharina Holt added 2, while Sarah Saftich and Zoe Cotton were scoreless. Cotton nabbed 2 boards. The Gaels hit 26-80 (.325) from the floor, 4-20 (.200) from the arc and 14-20 (.700) from the line, while garnering 60 boards, including 23 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 6 steals, 6 blocks, 13 turnovers and 18 fouls. Adrienne Moreau paced the Voyageurs with 15 on 5-14 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 2 steals. Emily Tinnes added 9 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 5-5 from the line and 3 boards. Danielle Harris added 8 on 1-11 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 6-6 from the line and 4 boards. Mackenzie Robinson notched 8 on 4-9 from the floor, 4 boards and 2 assists. Rachel McLean added 2, along with 3 boards, and Nicole Eccles 2, along with 7 boards, while Adriane Bruni, Andrea Zulich, Meghan Forestell, Claire Fawcett, Emily Fisher and Olivia Hazlett were scoreless. The Voyageurs hit 13-62 (.210) from the floor, 3-21 (.143) from the arc and 15-15 from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 5 assists, 7 steals, 3 blocks, 18 turnovers and 15 fouls. The Voyageurs (coach Jason Hurley, assistant Shirlene McLean, assistant Bill Gordon, assistant Lisa Carruthers, assistant Katie Goggins) also included Darby Heenan-van Horn, Charlotte Case and L’Ashante Henry. …………………………………………………… The 8th-seeded Guelph Gryphons dumped the 9th-seeded Brock Badgers 69-51. “This was probably our greatest team effort of the entire season” said Gryphons coach Christin Dickenson. “The support tonight from our fellow student-athletes and fans was unbelievable and we wanted to make sure that the last game here [W.F. Mitchell Centre] was a win.” The Badgers led 21-19 after one quarter. The Gryphons led 33-32 at the half. In the third quarter, the Gryphons led the Badgers to just six points. “Their post players did some damage in the opening half, but in the third, Kate [MacTavish] and Vanessa [Rampado] made it very difficult for them to get entry into the post and our defensive play on the perimeter by our guards was terrific all night.” The Gryphons led 45-38 after three quarters. Bridget Atkinson paced the Gryphons with 19 on 8-15 from the floor, 3-3 from the line, 2 boards and 5 assists. Dana Van Balkom added 16 on 6-14 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 3 assists. Kate MacTavish added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 13 boards and 2 assists. Quincy Sickles-Jarvis added 9 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 blocks. Barbara Inrig-Pieter added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 4 steals. Vanessa Rampado added 4 on 2-7 from the floor, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Megan Brenkel added 3, along with 2 boards, while Ashley Wheeler and Haley Belyk were scoreless. The Gryphons hit 27-66 (.409) from the floor, 7-15 (.467) from the arc and 8-9 (.889) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 8 steals, 10 blocks, 14 turnovers and 17 fouls. Kira Cornelissen led the Badgers with 14 on 6-17 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Kayla Santilli added 13 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 7-8 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists. Kate Harpur added 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 11 boards and 2 steals. Jenalyn Yumol added 8 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 steals. Aryn Finley added 4 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 5 boards. Chrissy Sirignano added 3, along with 2 assists, while Becky Ralph and Alexandra Symonds were scoreless. The Badgers hit 18-66 (.273) from the floor, 1-14 (.071) from the arc and 14-16 (.875) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 8 steals, 5 blocks, 16 turnovers and 16 fouls. The Badgers (coach Si Khounviseth, associate Rob Anderson, assistant Todd Naby, assistant Michaela Jezdikova) also included Dayna Howlett, Allie Columbus, Nikita Chappell, Baelie Campbell, Melissa Tatti, Adonaelle Mousambote and Karly Ruetz.

        In the quarterfinals, the 4th-seeded McMaster Marauders clipped the 5th-seeded Queen’s Gaels 65-55. The Gaels led 9-4 early but the Marauders rallied to a 12-10 after one quarter and extended the margin to 32-25 at the half. The third quarter saw McMaster increase its lead, holding the Gaels to just nine points in the period and getting a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Siobhan Manning to make the lead 45-34 after three quarters. Queen’s rallied to within 57-54 down the stretch with an 11-0 run before Danielle Boiago hit 6-6 from the line in the final minute to ice the Marauders win. Danielle Boiago paced the Marauders with 22 on 7-22 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc, 7-7 from the line, 9 boards and 4 steals. Hilary Hanaka added 17 on 7-18 from the floor, 3-9 from the arc, 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Linnaea Harper added 12 on 3-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Siobhan Manning added 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3-6 from the line. Ally Schweitzer added 4 on 2-4 from the floor and 6 boards. Clare Kenney added 2 on 1-5 from the floor and 12 boards. Rachael Holmes added 2, along with 2 boards and 2 assists, while Andrea Polischuk, Lexie Spadafora and Jelena Mamic were scoreless. Polischuk nabbed 3 boards. The Marauders hit 22-72 (.306) from the floor, 5-26 (.192) from the arc and 16-19 (.842) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 10 steals, 4 blocks, 16 turnovers and 15 fouls. Robyn Pearson paced the Gaels with 16 on 7-13 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 15 boards and 3 blocks. Jenny Wright added 14 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 12 boards and 3 steals. Abby Dixon added 8 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 4 assists. Andrea Priamo added 7 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 4 boards. Emily Hazlett added 5 on 2-16 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 1-3 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Marianne Alarie notched 5 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 1-2 from the line, while Sarah Saftich, Myriam Fortune and Nicole Morse were scoreless. Fontaine nabbed 4 boards. The Gaels hit 22-75 (.293) from the floor, 1-13 (.077) from the arc and 10-17 (.588) from the line, while garnering 49 boards, including 19 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 6 steals, 5 blocks, 18 turnovers and 20 fouls. The Gaels (coach Dave Wilson, assistant James Bambury, assistant Bob Freeman, therapy coordinator Vicky Wiltshire, strength & conditioning Colin McAuslan, recruiting coordinator Alex Dominator, athlete services coordinator Sara Ali) also included Megan Saftich, Brittany Roberto, Katharina Holt, Zoe Cotton and Maddie Morris.

        It’s a simple rule of thumb in OUA women’s university basketball these days: Never look past the Windsor Lancers. The third-seeded Carleton Ravens may have had home-court advantage, while the sixth-seeded Lancers were coming off what, for them, was a mediocre regular season heading into the quarterfinal. But as winners of the past five CIS crowns, and six of the past seven OUA titles, the Lancers have definite post-season pedigree and poise, which they used to their advantage while knocking off the Ravens 63-48 at the Ravens’ Nest. Both the Ravens and the Lancers sought to pound the ball to their bigs in the paint early but struggled to hit the bunny layups and putbacks. Carleton didn’t hit its first field goal until five minutes had elapsed, when Natasha Plaskacz drove for a layup. But Lindsay Shotbolt drained a 15-foot jumper and backed down her opponent in the blocks, while Lindsay Suprunchuk notched a putback and a layup off a wing entry, and then Nicole Gilmore drove for a bucket as the buzzer sounded to give Carleton a 14-10 lead after one quarter. Though the Ravens continued to shoot the ball poorly, their stifling defence continued to give Windsor fits, and forced their ballhandlers into miscues (17 turnovers in the half) and shot-clock violations, as Carleton painstakingly took a 26-24 lead into the lockers. Heather Lindsay notched a pair of buckets in the blocks to open the second half but Emily Prevost kept working free off screens and Caitlyn Longmuir and Carly Steer drained treys as Windsor countered with a 13-0 run. Suprunchuk stemmed the bleeding with a pair of free throws but it took Carleton another seven minutes to notch another field goal, when Shotbolt collected a putback to draw the Ravens within 43-38 after three quarters. The long Carleton drought continued though, while Steer hit her third trey on the night and Prevost collected another post bucket on a crisp entry pass from Kyra Blizzard to give Windsor a double-digit lead. Gilmore twice attacked off the dribble for layups but Prevost had the answers down the stretch, including a layup off a baseline cut and 14-foot pull-up as Windsor buried Carleton’s hopes. Prevost said the Lancers were determined to avenge an 80-63 loss to the Ravens during the regular season. ”We’ve grown a lot since then. … We knew that coming in, it was going to be a battle in the post and we focused on shutting them down in the post,” she said. “We always peak at the right time and playoffs is our time.” Windsor coach Chantal Vallee said the Lancers’ post defence was far better than in their regular season match-up with Carleton. ”We spent a lot of time working at how we were going to defend the post and I’m very proud of my players’ execution. … My veterans, the girls that played earlier in national championships, they get excited. They’ve been there and I’m sure they’d like a taste of it again.” Ravens coach Taffe Charles said.  “I thought that we had some opportunities early, but we gave them too much life. We had some opportunities early and we just didn’t take them.” Carly Steer paced Windsor with 19 on 6-15 from the floor, 5-11 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Emily Prevost added 17 on 7-11 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 9 boards and 3 assists. Cheyanne Roger added 17 on 4-8 from the floor, 9-10 from the line, 10 boards and 5 blocks. Caitlyn Longmuir added 3 on 1-10 from the floor, 1-9 from the arc, 2 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Alyssa Cerino added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 assists. Kaylee Anagnostopoulos added 2, along with 6 boards, and Tyra Blizzard 2, along with 2 boards, while Orian Amsalem and Jaylin Vandebovekamp were scoreless. The Lancers hit 20-51 (.392) from the floor, 7-22 (.318) from the arc and 16-20 (.800) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 8 steals, 6 blocks, 28 turnovers and 16 fouls. Lindsay Shotbolt paced the Ravens with 8 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 2 steals. Heather Lindsay added 6 on 3-12from the floor, 8 boards, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Elizabeth Leblanc notched 6 on 2-12 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Stephanie Carr scored 6 on 0-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 2 assists and 3 steals. Nicole Gilmore added 6 on 3-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Abeer Farhat added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Lindsey Suprunchuk added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals. Natasha Plaskacz added 4 on 2-2 from the floor, while Brianne Hamilton, Cynthia Dupont-Letourneau and Amanda Niyonkuru were scoreless. The Ravens hit 17-67 (.254) from the floor, 0-5 from the arc and 14-15 (.933) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 4 assists, 12 steals, 6 blocks, 16 turnovers and 20 fouls. The Ravens (coach Taffe Charles, assistant Dave Malowski, assistant Sarah Kennedy, assistant Eric Parthenais, strength & conditioning Herb Thompson, therapist Gabrielle Leger) also included Kristina Malone, Alexandra Trivieri, Nicole Istead, Alicia Racine and Celina Sabourin.

        The top-seeded uOttawa Gee-Gees clipped the 8th-seeded Guelph Gryphons 55-43. Both teams struggled against the tenacious defence of their foes. “Definitely a real solid defensive effort,” said Gee-Gees coach Andy Sparks. “Full credit to Guelph, they really scrapped hard and made some good plays.” Gryphon post Kate McTavish and Gee-Gee post Katherine Lemoine battled for control of the blocks throughout the match. Kellie Ring notched a critical and-one down the stretch as the Gee-Gees took command in the final quarter. The Gee-Gees led 8-2, 24-11 and 41-28 at the quarters. Gryphons coach Christin Dickenson said “at the start of the season we set the goal of ‘changing the story’ around this program, and by making it back into the playoffs and reaching the ‘quarters, we feel like we did that on a few different levels. We got off to a slow start tonight, but in the second half really proved that we can play with the best this conference has to offer. While it wasn’t the result we wanted today, we still have plenty of positives to take away. I’m just proud of this team, especially the five seniors who gave so much to this program.” Katherine Lemoine paced Ottawa with 16 on 6-15 from the floor, 4-7 from the line and 8 boards. Kellie Ring added 13 on 5-12 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 9 boards. Catherine Traer scored 7 on 3-13 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 8 boards and 2 blocks. Kellie Forand added 7 on 3-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2 steals. Isabelle Dion scored 7 on 3-5 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 4 boards. Krista Van Slingerland added 4 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4 boards and 3 steals. Sarah Besselink added 1, along with 5 boards, while Julia Soriano, Emilie Lamarche, Brooklyn McAlear-Fanus and Anne Wagar were scoreless. Soriano nabbed 5 boards, dished 2 assists and pilfered 2 balls. The Gee-Gee shit 22-67 (.328) from the floor, 2-13 (.154) from the arc and 9-14 (.643) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 5 assists, 11 steals, 2 blocks, 14 turnovers and 20 fouls. Kate MacTavish paced the Gryphons with 14 on 6-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Dana Van Balkom added 12 on 4-17 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards and 4 steals. Bridget Atkinson scored 9 on 2-15 from the floor, 5-8 from the line, 10 boards and 3 steals. Barbara Inrig-Pieterse added 5 on 1-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Vanessa Rampado added 2, along with 3 boards, and Quincy Sickles-Jarvis 1, along with 10 boards, while Megan Brenkel, Ashley Wheeler and Kate Yallin were scoreless. The Gryphons hit 14-59 (.237) from the floor, 3-15 (.200) from the arc and 12-16 (.750) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 3 assists, 10 steals, 1 block, 18 turnovers and 15 fouls. The Gryphons (coach Christin Dickenson, assistant Joe Polizzi, assistant Jenny Vaughan, assistant Alexis Heit, director of operations Howard Kiel, strength & conditioning Josh Ford, recruiting coordinator Justin Tornabuono, community coordinator Emma Cain) also include Haley Belyk, Sarah Holmes, Ivana Vujadinovic, Julia Kokonis, Abbey Clark and Regan Duff.

        In the last quarterfinal, the 2nd-seeded Ryerson Rams clocked the 7th-seeded Western Mustangs 83-64. The Rams took command quickly, leading 21-6 after the first quarter. “I thought the start was really good,” said Keneca Pingue-Giles. “We really prepared for (their) zone (defence) because they zoned U of T on Wednesday for the full 40 minutes…and we were able to find the open gaps.” Rams coach Carly Clarke added that “all week we had been emphasizing the defensive end of the floor and preparing that way and I thought we had great energy and discipline defensively early and that really set the tone for the game.” The Rams defence continued to give the Mustangs fits as they expanded the lead to 43-23 at the half. Western opened the third quarter with a 9-2 run and started to whittle the deficit down, rallying within 58-43 after three quarters. Western cut the margin to 74-64 with 1:40 remaining but after a timeout, Ryerson ripped off a 6-0 run to take an 80-64 lead with 50 seconds on the clock and romped to the win. “I like where we are; I think we’re playing confident, we’re playing together. There’s no easy games anymore…we just have to take it one game at a time,” said Clarke. Silvana Jez paced the Rams with 22 on 10-17 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 8 boards. Keneca Pingue-Giles added 21 on 8-12 from the floor, 4-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards, 8 assists and 4 steals. Katherine Follis added 12 on 6-7 from the floor. Mariah Nunes notched 11 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 0-3 from the line, 2 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals. Sofia Paska added 6 on 2-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. McKenzie Sigurdson added 4 on 2-3 from the floor. Cara Tiemens added 3 on 1-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 6 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. C’airah Gabriel-Robinson added 3 on 1-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Savanna Hamilton added 1, while Jaime Hills and Nicole DiDomenico were scoreless. The Rams hit 35-69 (.507) from the floor, 7-17 (.412) from the arc and 6-12 from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 23 assists, 14 steals, 16 turnovers and 19 fouls. Victoria Heine paced the Mustangs with 16 on 7-13 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line and 10 boards. Mackenzie Puklicz added 16 on 5-15 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 8 boards and 7 steals. Caroline Wolynski added 13 on 4-15 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3-6 from the line and 5 boards. Meredith McLeod notched 9 on 3-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 5 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals. Alex Van Heeswyk scored 6 on 2-2 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Julia Curran added 4 on 2-10 from the floor, 7 boards and 5 assists, while Laura Graham, Sasha Samardzija, Sonja Mijatovic, Cassidy Crowe and Amanda Cosentino were scoreless. Graham nabbed 2 boards. The Mustangs hit 23-65 (.354) from the floor, 2-12 (.167) from the arc and 16-22 (.727) from the line, while garnering 49 boards, including 22 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 12 steals, 2 blocks, 23 turnovers and 17 fouls. The Mustangs (coach Brian Cheng, assistant Tim Doherty, assistant Scott Shadick, director operations Rob Angione) also included Maddy Horst, Jayme Muir and Sam Loucks.

        In the semis, after two years of being the poster girls for the modern plagues of women’s basketball –torn ACLs, hip injuries and concussions—the top-seeded uOttawa Gee-Gees were able to add a new billing to their resume: Canadian Interuniversity Sport tournament qualifiers, after spanking the 4th-seeded McMaster Marauders 56-42. And it was two Gee-Gee poster girls, Catherine Traer and Kellie Ring, both of whom sat out a year because of injury, and both of whom missed several games during the season because of concussion, who carried them to their first appearance in the nationals since 2013. Traer busted loose for 25, while Ring notched a double-double. “We ran their sets all week and we knew them by heart,” making it easier to shut them down, Traer told the Ottawa Citizen. In the second half, “I had a mismatch. They put a big on me, so I just kept attacking.” Ring said “the first half, our defence was awesome. We only gave up 13. We really executed the game plan. … Going to nationals is awesome. All season, we seemed to fight through adversity and show our character.” Katherine Lemoine backed down Clare Kenney in the blocks for a bucket and then fed Traer for a layup as the Gee-Gees sought to establish their superiority in the paint. But McMaster quickly began doubling her in the blocks and the Gee-Gees kept rushing their shots and missing open looks, while the undersized Marauders took control of the offensive glass as they rallied within 10-9 after the first quarter, in which neither team topped 24% of their shots. Ring drove for a layup and pitched the ball to Traer for a trey against an expiring shot clock, and then Krista Van Slingerland found Traer on a backdoor cut as the Gee-Gees built their lead to 17-9. Although uOttawa’s help defence denied the Marauders anything in the way of an open look, and held McMaster without a field goal for nearly nine minutes, when Danielle Boiago accomplished the task, the Gee-Gees continued to force bad shots – even shooting an air ball on a layup– or fumble the ball away, and as a consequence, clung to just a brutal 19-13 lead at the half. Julia Soriano, the smallest player on the floor, kept scrapping for weak-side boards (10 on the night) to create second-chance opportunities for the Gee-Gees as they built their lead to 32-23 on a trey by Traer. Ring promptly drained a mid-range jumper, Sarah Besselink a trey and then Kellie Forand found Traer on a cut as uOttawa took its biggest lead at 39-26. Hilary Hanaka answered with a trey and Boiago drove for a layup but Brooklyn McAlear and Traer hit critical treys as uOttawa took a 43-31 lead with five minutes to play. Traer then ripped down two enormous boards and blocked her second shot of the night as the Gee-Gees thoroughly buried the dagger in Marauder hopes with a 15-foot pull-up by Krista Van Slingerland against an expiring shot clock and a pair of free throws, from, who else but Traer? McMaster never recovered. Gee-Gees coach Andy Sparks says team defence proved the difference. “And in the second half, we stopped rushing things and found the right match-ups.” Traer, who was chosen player of the game, said “as soon as we had a little bit of a lead, we kept pushing and never let down.” McMaster coach Theresa Burns said “we defended well, contested the shots, and forced them to take maybe a bad shot, but we didn’t do the rest of the job and clean it up giving the team second and third chances.” Gee-Gees coach Andy Sparks said “the execution got better once we stretched Catherine Traer out to the perimeter and brought their big outside. It gave us some lanes to attack which was a positive.” Catherine Traer paced the Gee-Gees with 25 on 9-25 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 4-5 from the line, 6 boards, 4 steals and 2 blocks. Kellie Ring added 12 on 5-15 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 13 boards, 5 assists and 4 steals. Krista Van Slingerland added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. Julia Soriano notched 4 on 0-10 from the floor, 0-8 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 10 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Kellie Forand added 3 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Sarah Besselink added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Katherine Lemoine added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 6 boards. Brooklyn McAlear-Fanus added 2, along with 2 boards, while Anne Wagar was scoreless. The Gee-Gees hit 20-68 (.294) from the floor, 4-21 (.190) from the arc and 12-17 (.706) from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 25 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 11 steals, 4 blocks, 13 turnovers and 12 fouls. Danielle Boiago paced the Marauders with 19 on 6-17 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 5-5 from the line, 8 boards, 3 assists, 3 steals and 2 blocks. Hilary Hanaka added 9 on 3-13 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc and 2 boards. Clare Kenney notched 6 on 1-3 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 5 boards. Andrea Polischuk added 4 on 2-5 from the floor. Ally Schweitzer scored 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 6 boards. Linnea Harper added 2 on 1-2 from the floor, 6 boards and 3 assists, while Rachael Holmes, Siobhan Manning, Lexie Spadafora, Erin Burns and Jelena Mamic were scoreless. Spadafora and Manic each nabbed 2 boards. Manning dished 2 assists and Spadafora pilfered 2 balls. The Marauders hit 14-59 (.237) from the floor, 5-22 (.227) from the arc and 9-9 from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 6 steals, 6 blocks, 21 turnovers and 15 fouls.

        In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Ryerson Rams crushed the 6th-seeded Windsor Lancers 79-62. Although Ryerson struggled to contain Cheyanne Roger and Emily Prevost in the post, they alternately broke down the Lancers defence with the dribble, savvy pick-and-rolls off feeds from Keneca Pingue-Giles (13 assists) or quick offensive transitions while building 18-14, 41-30 and 51-38 leads at the quarters. The Rams effectively used their length, quickness and athleticism to press the Windsor guards and make the entry passes into the post problematic  in the second half, and led by as many as 22. “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Pingue-Giles told the Ottawa Citizen. “I’ve never beat Windsor in my five-year tenure. And to do it in the OUA semis is great.” Ryerson coach Carly Clarke said the Rams depth and balance were decisive. “Their post play is very strong and we wanted to make it as hard as possible for them to get to that and I thought we really did a good job.” Clarke told reporters that “we definitely hit some timely shots but I think they were the right shots, they were good shots. (Our players) were in rhythm so I had a lot of confidence in us shooting those shots. Some of those shots came from hustle plays where we went and got a loose ball, saved it out of bounds, gave ourselves an extra possession. We felt that was a pivotal thing in this game. Windsor’s an incredible rebounding team. We had to win some loose balls and rebounds to get the win.” Player of the game Silvana Jez said “we’re a very strong offensive team so we’re very versatile and we’re able to score from anywhere on the court. We were able to do that. But honestly I think what helped us win today was our defence. … We were able to stay focused from quarter to quarter. We didn’t let up or let them close the gap. As long as we keep our defensive side, I think we can win an OUA banner.” Lancers coach Chantal Vallée said “I don’t think we were really in it from the beginning to be honest. It seemed like Ryerson came in and they made their shots early from the high post. They were very aggressive. … I don’t think it was nerves. But we are very young. We have one fourth year player, eight first year players, one second and one third. We’re very happy to be in the final four. What a great experience. We did outstanding work with our program this year. I’m very proud of our players. For Ryerson, the pressure was on them, they rose to it. They were the better team. They played extremely well. It didn’t work out for us today.” Clarke said it “definitely a great win – a great team win; we had great efforts from everybody on the floor. I know our girls were fired up. There are some girls who haven’t beaten Windsor in five years, so for them to get a win over a program of that caliber is really satisfying.” Keneca Pingue-Gilles said winning an OUA banner was extraordinary motivation. “We have the opportunity to make history at Ryerson, and we’ve put ourselves in the best position to do it.” Jez said “as long as we keep our defensive mindset, like we have so far – staying resilient and tenacious, that’s what’s going to win us the game.” Clarke said a banner “wow, that just gave me chills. You know we (have) work to do to (accomplish) that, and these girls have worked so, so, so hard – lots of them for lots of years – so to (come home) with that banner, would make me so proud.” Silvana Jez led the Rams with 20 on 9-17 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 9 boards and 2 assists. Mariah Nunes added 18 on 7-12 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 2 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocks. Keneca Pingue-Giles added 9 on 4-11 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 13 assists and 4 steals. Cara Tiemens added 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 2 boards. McKenzie Sigurdson added 7 on 2-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 3 boards. Sofia Paska added 6 on 3-7 from the floor and 5 boards. Katherine Follis notched 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. C’airah Gabriel-Robinson added 4 on 2-3 from the floor, 2 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Nicole DiDomenico added 1, while Savanna Hamilton, Jaime Hills and Tashana McDonald were scoreless. The Rams hit 32-65 (.492) from the floor, 6-15 (.400) from the arc and 9-12 from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 12 steals, 6 blocks, 15 turnovers and 15 fouls. Emily Prevost paced the Lancers with 22 on 8-18 from the floor, 6-7 from the line, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Cheyanne Roger added 16 on 6-14 from the floor, 4-5 from the line, 4 boards, 2 assists and 3 blocks. Orian Amsalem added 6 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Alyssa Cerino notched 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 3 boards. Kaylee Anagnostopoulos scored 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 3 boards. Chout Angou added 4 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Carly Steer added 3 on 1-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 3 boards. Caitlyn Longmuir added 2 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists, while Tyra Blizzard, Jahnae Gyles and Jaylin Vandebovenkamp were scoreless. Blizzard dished 2 assists. The Lancers hit 23-59 (.390) from the floor, 2-11 (.182) from the arc and 14-16 (.875) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 7 steals, 5 blocks, 22 turnovers and 15 fouls.

        In the bronze medal match, the 6th-seeded Windsor Lancers dusted the 4th-seeded McMaster Marauders 68-58. Although both squads shot the ball like Ray Charles would shoot darts in the first half, both defended with tenacity, and Emily Prevost periodically broke free in the blocks to give Windsor a 28-24 lead at the half. Lancer guard Kaylee Anagnostopoulos continued to give Marauder star Danielle Boiago fits with her sticky defence in the second half, generally denying her the ball, which prevented McMaster from getting into any kind of offensive rhythm, and allowed Windsor to maintain a slim margin before pulling away down the stretch. Boiago “is easier to defend when she doesn’t have the ball,” Anagnostopoulos told the Ottawa Citizen. Lancers coach Chantal Vallee said Agnagnostopoulos’ defence and the team’s defensive rotations were exceptional. “I’m so proud of Kaylee. She’s been amazing for us. … She starts for us and she’s very raw. She’s going to have to shoot more and develop her skills but what she can do on defence is what keeps her on the floor. She’s only in first year, imagine what she’ll be able to do in fourth or fifth year.” Most of the affair was a battle of the blocks between Lancer Emily Prevost and Marauder Clare Kenney. The Lancers did an exceptional job on the glass to garner second- and third-chance opportunities, said coach Chantal Vallée. “We put a lot of emphasis on fifty-fifty balls, we really wanted to be the first one on loose balls and you saw more people dive on the balls than yesterday.” Both squads utilized full-court pressure to force turnovers. The Lancers led 12-9, 28-24 and 40-34 at the quarters. Emily Prevost paced the Lancers with 19 on 7-19 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 9 boards and 2 assists. Cheyanne Roger added 13 on 4-7 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 12 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Carly Steer notched 12 on 3-12 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 2 boards. Kaylee Anagnostopoulos added 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 5 boards and 4 steals. Caitlyn Longmuir added 6 on 3-5 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4 assists and 5 steals. Tyra Blizzard notched 6 on 3-3 from the floor and 2 boards. Orian Amsalem added 2 on 1-8 from the floor, 3 boards and 2 assists, while Alyssa Cerino was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. The Lancers hit 24-61 (.393) from the floor, 2-10 from the arc and 18-20 (.900) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 16 steals, 3 blocks, 15 turnovers and 24 fouls. Danielle Boiago paced the Marauders with 19 on 3-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 13-15 from the line, 5 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Clare Kenney added 17 on 6-11 from the floor, 5-7 from the arc and 7 boards. Linnaea Harper added 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 1-4 from the ac, 5 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Rachael Holmes added 7 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 3-4 from the line. Hilary Hanaka added 4 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc and 2 boards. Siobhan Manning added 2 on 0-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Erin Burns added 2, while Andrea Polischuk, Lexie Spadafora, Allyson Schweitzer and Michaela Ionni were scoreless. Spadafora nabbed 4 boards. The Marauders hit 17-53 (.321) from the floor, 1-13 (.077) from the arc and 23-28 (.821) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 8 steals, 5 blocks, 15 turnovers and 15 fouls. The Marauders (coach Theresa Burns, interim and associate coach Anne Marie Thuss, assistant Ed Grosel, assistant Carrie Zettel, assistant Andrew Baillie, assistant Kelly Dunham, student therapist Cassie Santoni, student therapist Teresa Ziegler, student manager Karen Leung, student manager Isabel Ormond) also included Evie Streight, Vanessa Pickard, Jelena Mamic, Adrienne Peters and Victoria Anderson.

        To the Ryerson Rams went the banner, the first to ever be hung in the rafters of the Mattamy Athletic Centre as an indicator of Ontario University Athletics women’s basketball supremacy. “It’s about time. It’s a little bare on the walls,” coach Carly Clarke told the Ottawa Citizen after the Rams dispatched the depleted uOttawa Gee-Gees 66-60 to capture their first OUA crown in history, wearing down the garnet & grey with their depth, superior size and relentless defensive pressure. With post Katherine Lemoine sidelined by a concussion, the Rams built an early 22-15 lead by pounding the ball inside to Sofia Paska. But Sarah Besselink drained a pair of treys to rally Ottawa to a 27-26 lead before Mariah Nunes began attacking off the dribble to give Ryerson a 35-29 lead at the half. Kellie Ring kept driving for layups to knot the score at 44 but Nunes drained a trey, Paska posted up in the blocks and Silvana Jez drained a long jumper as Ryerson responded with a 7-0 run. Still the Gee-Gees wouldn’t quit. Krista Van Slingerland drained two long jumpers and Catherine Traer found Ring in the paint for a layup as Ottawa again rallied within one. But the Rams again pounded the ball inside to Jez and Paska, before Keneca Pingue-Giles notched a putback with a minute to play to give Ryerson an insurmountable 62-55 edge, while the Gee-Gees ran out of gas. “Their big was out so I knew no one could guard me,” said player of the game Paska. “That was the main reason we worked it inside. My post and even our guards, no one could really guard us inside. They (uOttawa) did a great job double teaming me but my shots were falling today. We had all the right pieces this year to win the banner.” Gee-Gees coach Andy Sparks said “we had no answer to (the Rams post play). They’re throwing the lob pass. She keeps the ball high. We had to come off the perimeter to double (the post). And then Jez hit a couple of threes. But the fact that we didn’t have a post to defend their post was a big problem.” OUA player of the year Keneca Pingue-Giles, who spent most of the affair in foul trouble, said “it’s so crazy; five years ago when we were playing in Kerr Hall I don’t think I could have ever imagined (this). I remember our coach asking us ‘what’s your goals?’ and I wanted to be rookie of the year. That didn’t happen but fast forward five years later and I’m Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, and an OUA champion…that’s mind blowing. It could never have been possible without my teammates; it’s so fulfilling.” Clarke said “I think I’m still reeling about the game but it’s fun to watch these girls enjoy it; they’ve earned it and they deserve it. … (I am) so incredibly proud; they lived the fifth year veteran role to a ‘T’ this weekend. Some of them struggled today but Kenny came in and got some key rebounds, made some key buckets at key moments and Mariah was outstanding today at both ends. It’s just so fun to see them grow into leaders and be able to celebrate this today. … We knew we had an advantage inside today. We were emphasizing rebounding, we knew it would be a physical battle. Our rebounding especially in the second half was tremendous. We got our hands on the basketball in key moments. That’s what held on to the game for us. … I’m so incredibly proud of these girls and the work they put in. They’ve truly earned it. I’ve been working at it for four years with this program but there’s so many other people that deserve credit for helping putting it together. From our administration, the university support, they’ve made it a place that wants to win and be successful in all areas. I’m just privileged to be a part of it.” Sparks said “we really struggled to guard their posts cause we didn’t have any. They’re hurt so we really couldn’t contest with their post one-on-one so it was a double down match up for us. We had to come off the perimeter a little to defend the post and Jez hit a couple threes which hurt us. We should have come off the ball screen a little more, we were having success with that. … I’m really proud of those nine kids who were out there. They did a great job today. I don’t know if we will have anyone back next weekend (at the CIS championships) but we’ll be there.” Sofia Paska paced the Rams with 19 on 7-11 from the floor, 5-8 from the line and 12 boards. Mariah Nunes added 17 on 7-17 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 8 boards and 4 steals. Silvana Jez added 17 on 6-14 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 3-6 from the line, 8 boards and 2 steals. Keneca Pingue-Giles added 8 on 3-11 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 8 boards. McKenzie Sigurdson added 2 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Katherine Follis added 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 3 boards. Cara Tiemens notched 1 on 0-6 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals, while C’airah Gabriel-Robinson was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. The Rams hit 25-68 (.368) from the floor, 3-13 (.231) from the arc and 13-22 (.591) from the line, while garnering 54 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 9 steals, 11 turnovers and 16 fouls. Kellie Ring led the Gee-Gees with 14 on 6-16 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 8 boards and 6 assists. Catherine Traer added 14 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3-6 from the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Sarah Besselink scored 13 on 5-15 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Krista Van Slingerland added 12 on 5-13 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc and 5 boards. Julia Soriano notched 5 on 1-9 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Brooklyn McAlear added 2 on 1-5 from the floor and 8 boards, while Kellie Forand, Emily Lamarch and Anne Wagar were scoreless. Forand nabbed 5 boards and dished 2 assists. The Gee-Gees hit 23-75 (.307) from the floor, 7-24 (.292) from the arc and 7-10 from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 6 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 16 fouls.

        After the season, Brock University administrators dismissed Si Khounviseth after six years at the Badger helm, thought he made the playoffs five times and was chosen OUA West coach of the year in 2012-13. The decision was made after an analysis of where the program was at and what the program needed to do over the next three years to get to the next level, Brock athletic director Neil Lumsden said. “After some good hard looks and just assessing where we wanted to go, there just wasn’t a fit. So it was better to do it now than string him on or anybody else on; make the decision and move on.” Khounviseth had no comment. “You have to look at the coach’s history and a lot of the elements within what they do before you make a decision like this,” Lumsden said. “This is an examination that didn’t go back four or five days. It was a real hard look and assessing where you want the program to go. When you pull those two things together, you make the call.” Khounviseth had a 47-18 regular season record his first three seasons at Brock and then a 29-31 record in his last three years. Lumsden described Khounviseth’s five playoff appearances as deceiving. “There’s more than just performance that has to be examined.” Also dismissed were assistants Rob Anderson, Todd Nagy and Michaela Jedikova. Khounviseth was replaced by Windsor assistant Ashley MacSporran, who played at Laurentian before a knee injury ended her career. She moved into coaching, getting initial experience in B.C. before serving as head coach of the Concordia University College women’s team in Edmonton. She joined the Guelph Gryphons as assistant coach for two years and then moved to the University of Windsor as an assistant last season. “I understand where the players are coming from. I can relate to them,” said MacSporran, who describes her coaching style as enthusiastic and positive. ”I’ve found it easier to make calls and get the players to trust me a little bit better because I’ve been there and been through those experiences,” said MacSporran. “It’s definitely a fresh start. How we represent ourselves in the community, it’s going to be all fresh and brand new. I’ve got some great ideas to jump along with what Brock is already doing. The more you get these young women out in the community and get them involved, it just helps them excel and grow later in life. It’s not all about basketball.” Athletic director Neil Lumsden said “One of the keys is she has worked with some of the best coaches and programs in the country and therefore has learned what it takes to lead a solid, competitive and sustainable program. Based on her extensive plan that has to do with engaging our students, reaching out to alumni, and maintaining a focus on Brock University, she has basically encompassed all the elements that are required to build a championship program both on and off the court.”

The bronze medalist Windsor Lancers: Caitlyn Longmuir; Erica McFadden; Tyra Blizzard; Andrea Kiss; Alyssa Cerino; Jahnae Gyles; Chuot Angou; Kashawnna Sampson; Cheyanne Roger; Kaylee Anagnostopoulos; Orian Amsalem; Carly Steer; Jaylin VandeBovenkamp; Chidera Ifearulundu; Emily Prevost; Logan Sims; coach Chantal Vallee; assistant Tom Foster; assistant Mike Gibala; assistant Tony Hitchcock; assistant Ashley MacSporran; strength & conditioning Bobby Tran,

The silver medalist Ottawa Gee-Gees: Julia Soriano; Emilie Lamarche; Krista Van Slingerland; Kellie Forand; Danielle Marion; Julia Dostaler; Ariana Lefebvre; Kellie Ring; Jennifer Crowe; Catherine Traer; Isabelle Dion; Anne Wagar; Katherine Lemoine; Sarah Besselink; Brianne Elbers; Jacynthe Gratton; Aliisa Heiskanen; Brooklyn McAlear; coach Andy Sparks; assistant Mario Gaetano; assistant Ian MacKinnon; assistant Patrick Flynn; strength & conditioning Allan Horton; student trainer Lynae Cooper; student trainer Camille Richard

        The gold medalist Ryerson Rams: Faatimah A; Cara Tiemens; McKenzie Sigurdson; Keneca Pingue-Giles; Sofia Paska; C’airah Gabriel-Robinson; Jaime Janssen; Savanna Hamilton; Mariah Nunes; Jaime Hills; Nicole DiDomenico; Katherine Follis; Tashana McDonald; Sarah Ghali; Silvana Jez; Devenae Bruce; coach Carly Clarke; assistant Sherwyn Benn; assistant Jodi Gram; assistant Kareem Griffin; assistant Jason Sealy; assistant Kaitlyn Taylor-Asquini