At the start of the season, Assiniboine CC, Providence CC and the University of Winnipeg join the loop.
Final regular season standings (5): University of Winnipeg College (14-2); Red River (13-3); Canadian Mennonite (7-9); Providence College (6-10); Assiniboine CC (0-14)
In the semis, held at Providence College in Otterburne, the University of Winnipeg College Wesmen defeated the Providence College Freemen 58-34. The underdog Freemen came out confident, taking an 8-5 lead on a 3-pointer by freshman guard Genadyne Charr. The Wesmen responded quickly with a 7-0 run to take a 12-8 advantage, but the Freemen fought back to tie it late in the second quarter. A Julia Anning trey in the final minutes gave the Wesmen the lead again headed into the break. From the opening whistle of the third, the Wesmen displayed why they were the top tournament seed as they burst out to a 12-point run with several steals and breakaway layups. A deep trey from freshman forward Kate Dorrian gave the Wesmen a commanding 37-19 lead that proved to be a dagger. Julia Anning’s 11 points earned her player of the game recognition for the Wesmen, while Genadyne Charr’s 9 points earned her the Freemen nod.
In the other semi, the Red River Rebels defeated the Canadian Mennonite Blazers 46-44. The perennial rivals battled hard early, with CMU committing 5 fouls in the first quarter before Red River was charged their initial infraction. A Tia Ruddock three sparked a 7-2 Red River run to start the second quarter. Late in the half, third-year Rebel veteran Ashley Tolentino drove the lane strong, getting the hoop and the harm. Her three-point-play helped give her team a 33-25 lead over the defending champion Blazers headed into the break. The second half saw the Rebels jump out quickly with a jumper from 6’1” post Kristen Young within seconds of the whistle. Her offensive success down low and rebounding on both ends gave Red River an 11-point lead after three. The start of the fourth proved to be a lot like the first, with both teams committing several fouls and turnovers as CMU crawled back to within five with two minutes remaining. A Blazer steal and breakaway bucket by Laura Tait, followed by another from Meghan Kjartenson got the Blazers within one with only seconds to go. Another Tait steal resulted in a chance for her to take the lead at the line, but two missed free throws sealed the Blazers’ fate. The Rebels hung on to win 46-44. Kristen Young finished the game with 15 rebounds and 4 blocks, earning her Red River’s player of the game. Fourth-year centre Jaime Semchuk’s 8 points and strong defensive play earned her CMU’s nod.
In the final, the top-seeded University of Winnipeg College Wesmen defeated Red River 57-55 in overtime. Wesmen rookie forward Shawna Solarchuk scored 20, including six points in the final 13 seconds of overtime, as the Wesmen captured the crown. Trailing by four with 14 seconds to play, Solarchuk nailed a three pointer and was fouled at the same time, giving her a chance for the very-rare four-point play to tie the game. “I just heard someone say Shawna we need a three,” said Solarchuk. “I looked down at the ground, made sure my foot wasn’t over the line and took it. I was excited but had to stay calm and make the free throws.” And not only did she drain that free throw to tie the game, but after two missed free throws from Rebels Kaytlin Waddell, Solarchuk got the ball back, charged up the court and was fouled with two seconds left. She calmly dropped both free throws and sealed the Wesmen victory. Not only did the Wesmen battle back from that late overtime deficit, but they trailed by five late in the fourth quarter and stormed back with Tournament MVP Julia Anning banking one in for three to tie the game with 15 seconds to play. “We said during the timeouts, we have to put the last five months in the last couple of possessions and that’s what they did,” said Wesmen coach Suki Chhoeun. “They decision-made, the kids made great shots, and you can’t ask for more as a coach.” The Rebels, meanwhile, had a rough start scoring only 15 points in the first half, but came out firing in the second half scoring 33 points to force overtime. In the end, the mistakes caught up to the Rebels. Red River coach Heather Hildebrandt said “we have a lot of young players, and it was a lot of young mistakes, like fouling on a shot (the trey by Solarchuk). We were up by a couple of points, we were comfortable and just had to be smart, but we were just too excited, and over compensating for things.” Shawna Solarchuk was chosen player of the game for the Wesmen.
The silver medalist Red River Rebels: Kaytlin Waddell; Tia Ruddock; Ashley Tolentino; Kristen Young; Shelby Strange; coach Heather Hildebrandt
The champion University of Winnipeg College Wesmen: Shawna Solarchuk; Julia Anning; Keiko Kobayakawa; Kate Dorrian; coach Suki Chhoeun