| (1) | Simon Fraser | 79 | ||||||
| (8) | Wilfrid Laurier | 55 | Simon Fraser | 61 | ||||
| (4) | Winnipeg | 92 | Winnipeg | 68 | Winnipeg | 51 | ||
| (5) | McMaster | 70 | ||||||
| —–VICTORIA | ||||||||
| (2) | Laval | 63 | ||||||
| (7) | Queen’s | 54 | Laval | 30 | Victoria | 60 | ||
| (3) | Memorial | 64 | Victoria | 60 | ||||
| (6) | Victoria | 72 |
In the quarterfinals, held in Hamilton, the 6th-seeded Victoria Vikings upset the 3rd-seeded Memorial Sea-Hawks 72-64. Victoria took an early 25-13 lead before Memorial rallied with a late 11-4 run to take a 36-35 lead into the lockers. All-Canadian Jenine Browne missed her first seven shots before hitting three of her last four to give the Sea-Hawks the late lead. All-Canadian Lindsay Anderson took command in the second half as she hit 6-10 from the floor to notch 16 of her team-high 21 points. Dani Everitt added 18 on 3-6 from the arc and six assists. Rookie Beckie MacDonald scored 11 on 3-4 from the arc and Krystal O’Byrne 10 on 9 boards and 3 steals. Browne paced Memorial with 28 points on 8-20 from the floor. Kate Flynn added 14 on 6-7 from the floor. Victoria shot 26-56 (.464) from the floor, while Memorial was 23-48 (.479). The Vikes out-rebounded the Sea-Hawks 34-27. Anderson and Browne were chosen players of the game for their respective squads. Memorial coach Doug Partridge took the blame for the loss. “The bottom line is we weren’t prepared to play that game. We didn’t come to play in our opening game last year and I thought that was on our kids. Put this one on me. If I’m the coach of the year, I’ve got to be able to get my team through the first-round game. We did not look prepared. We looked confused . . . out of it. I’ve got to take this one on me. My team wasn’t ready to play.” Memorial looked nervous, picking up cheap fouls, throwing the ball away, missing layups and being outhustled from the start. They trailed by 11 early but rallied to take a 36-35 lead as Jenine Browne got hot. Victoria opened the second half with a 9-0 run and although Browne hit several treys to cut the margin to 64-62, the Vikes aggression proved the difference down the stretch. Vikes coach Brian Chen said Memorial “was a tough team. We’d get up on them and they’d keep coming back. Basically, I think it was our defence that came through. This team has a lot of character and they find a way to win all the time.” Fifth-year guard Kerri Highmore said the Sea-Hawks didn’t play their “normal game. It seemed like we came out a little bit flat-footed. I don’t know what happened. We had spurts of comeback but not enough.” Kate Flynn noted that the team seemed “uptight. … We were a bit shaky in the first 10 minutes. We just weren’t handling the ball.” Vike guard Krystal O’Byrne said “we just played together. There were nerves at the beginning … we played through them.” The Vikes lit up the gym, starting from their first possession, when Dani Everitt dropped in a three-point shot. Both teams made jittery mistakes to begin with, but the Vikes defence, led by O’Byrne and Anderson, gave Victoria the edge in play. The Vikes bobbled a few passes, and missed some easy shots, but were able to maintain their aggression. With another three-pointer by Everitt, and two more from MacDonald, the Vikes pulled away with a 25-13. Memorial’s All-Canadian forward Jenine Browne rallied the Sea-Hawks to a 36-35 lead at the break. It was Anderson’s turn when the second half got under way. The Vikes only fifth-year player, Anderson scored seven in a nine-point Vikes run to start the half, before Browne replied with two three- pointers and two free throws, and the game was tied 46-46. Browne gave the Sea-Hawks a 51-48 lead with just over 10 minutes to play, but the Vikes kept coming. O’Byrne refused to be out-muscled under the hoop, and a feisty team effort finally overpowered the ‘Hawks. Guard Amy Dalton fouled out with three minutes left in the game, which didn’t help Memorial’s late desperation onslaught. MacDonald nailed an NBA-qualify left-handed hook shot to give the Vikes a 69-62 lead with two minutes to go. Soon after, Anderson drove through the paint to score, O’Byrne captured another couple of rebounds and the Vikes prevailed. The Sea-Hawks (coached by Doug Partridge, assisted by Andrea Hutchens, Erica Coultas and Elizabeth Cohey) also included Kate Flynn, Erika Stokes, Joanne McNeil, Krista Singleton, Nikki Rogers, Julie Dunphy, Alicia Bird, Sheena Fleming, Theresa Butler, Hanine Hewitt and Julie Dunphy
The 2nd-seeded Laval Rouge et Or survived a 63-54 dust-up with 7th-seeded Queen’s. The Gaels took an early 7-4 lead before the veteran Rouge et Or calmed down and responded with a 7-0 run and built a 15-12 lead midway through the half. Savvy Queen’s forward Erin McDiarmid responded with a series of tough offensive putbacks and a pair of free throws as Queen’s regained a 40-36 lead at the half. Both teams struggled to find the range in the second half, at point going without a field goal for over six minutes as Queen’s built a 50-44 lead. But Isabelle Grenier finally broke the Laval drought with a trey and Laval rallied back slowly to take a slim lead. In the ensuing free throw fest, both shot poorly but Laval prevailed by converting more than the Gaels. The Rouge et Or hit 10-25 from the line on the night. Queen’s mustered a mere four points in the final six minutes of play. Grenier led Laval with 15 points, eight steals and five boards. Fourth-year guard Marie-Helene Pedneau finished with 11 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Third-year forward Jennifer Bittner led Queen’s with 15 points and four rebounds, while third year post Amy Goodday recorded a double-double with 13 points and 10 boards. McDiarmid finished with 12 points and nine rebounds. Goodday and sophomore guard Caroline D’Amours were chosen players of game. D’Amours scored only eight but all came down the stretch when the Rouge et Or offence struggled. The Golden Gaels (coached by Dave Wilson, assisted by Tim Orpin and Sam Miller) also included Kyla Burwash, Nathalie MacNeil, Lindsay Rogers, Casey Pratt, Sharilyn Roud, Andrea Hanson, Claire Meadows, Erin McDiarmid, Lindsay Robb and Erika Einarson.
The 4th-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen whipped the host and 5th-seeded McMaster Marauders 92-70. Winnipeg took and early 15-13 and then exploded the Marauders as freshman Uzoma Asagwara began hitting everything and the Wesmen took total command of the boards. They quickly extended their lead to 52-31 at the half. The second half proved a total romp as Winnipeg’s superior depth wore down the Marauders. The Wesmen extended their lead to as many as 30. Asagwara, chosen player of the game, finished with 17 points. Fourth-year forward Janet Wells added 16 and sophomore guard Charmaine Izzard 13. Alana Shaw, chosen player of the game for McMaster, finished with 20 points. Fiona Cheng added 14 and second-team all-Canadian Sarah Sterling 10. The Marauders (coached by Theresa Burns, assisted by Kelly Dunham, Anne Marie Thuss and Jay Johnston) also included Katie Coulson, Heather Gowan, Christin Dickenson, Shannon Cope, Christine Kerr, Jessica Shelley, Susanne Burr, Kristine Salmon, Arethea Harris and Andrea Venner. Coulson told the Hamilton Spectator that “we came up against such a hot team. I think we have proven we can compete (against Canada West teams).”
In the last quarterfinal, the top-seeded Simon Fraser University Clan whipped the 8th-seeded Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks 79-55. The Hawks hit a trio from beyond the arc as they took an 11-4 lead before the wheels fell off. Although national player of the year Jessica Kaczowka was forced to the bench with two quick fouls, the Clan rallied to knot the score at 20 and then ripped-off a 12-2 run to open a double-digit lead. Third-year guard Dani Langford added a pair from beyond the arc as SFU built its lead to 44-31 at the half. Kaczowka scored at will early in the second half and Langford hit her fourth trey of the night as the Clan expanded their lead to 22 early in the second half. Laurier briefly cut the margin to 57-48 but missed a trey that would have cut the margin to six before SFU put the game away with a decisive 8-2 run. Kaczowka led all scorers with 24 points, in only 22 minutes of game action. Langford finished with 14 points, and dished off 15 assists. Morgan McLaughlin had 17 points and 9 rebounds, while Maren Corrigal added 14. Robin Roszell came off the bench to lead Laurier with 14 points and 8 rebounds. Kerri Jilesen and Dee Channer each scored 8 points and added 5 rebounds. Langford and Roszell were chosen players of the game for their respective squads. The Golden Hawks (coached by Stu Julius, assisted by Ann Weber and Kevin Duffy) also included Rebecca Williams, Julie Roantree, Sarah Zagorski, Sarah Barnes, Meaghan McGrath, Maire Guinney and Heather Sutherland.
In the semis, the sixth-seeded Victoria Vikings whipped the 2nd-seed Laval Rouge et Or to advance to the national final for the second time in four years. Victoria opened with a 15-0 run as Laval struggled to contain their jitters. The Rouge et Or went more than seven minutes without registering a point before rookie Marian Fortier finally hit a layup. The Vikings extended their lead to 31-15 at the half. It was more of the same in the second half as Laval mustered a mere two points in the first 10 minutes of play, while the Vikings built their lead to 32 and coasted to the easy win. Fifth-year guard Lindsay Anderson, chosen player of the game for Victoria, scored 17 points and six rebounds, four assists and three steals. Fourth-year guard Dani Everitt scored 10, grabbed 10 boards, dished seven assists and pilfered 2 balls. Beckie MacDonald netted 11 points on a trio of three-point shots, and Krystal O’Byrne, who has been a defensive stalwart, scored 10 points and had eight rebounds. Isabelle Grenier, chosen player of the game for Laval, scored a team-high nine points on 4-14 from the floor, six assists and four rebounds. Everitt noted that “we didn’t have any expectations coming in. There’s no pressure on us and I think that’s positive. We said we’re not going to worry about the final result. We’re just going to try and play the best we can.” Laval shot .245 from the floor, committed 18 turnovers and were out-rebounded 40-25. Everitt was solid, said Victoria coach Brian Cheng. “She gives us stability and leadership at the point. She’s really flourished at the position.” Cheng added that O’Byrne “had a tremendous game. “She was there from the start of the tip-off to the final buzzer.” Victoria post game dominated the first half and their perimeter game, the second. Lindsay Hewson, Anderson and MacDonald hit treys to extend the Viking’s margin. “I told the girls (at the half), ‘Don’t you guys dare take a break. Don’t you dare rest,’” said Cheng. “We played sound defence – one of our best games of the season.”
In the other semi, the fourth-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen stunned the top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan 68-61. It was all Clan early as SFU exploded to a 12-0 lead. Winnipeg scored their first bucket with 12:40 on the clock as they rallied back with a 9-2 run and then finally knotted the score at 24. The Wesmen defence proved formidable as they clawed to a 32-29 lead at the half. The teams traded the lead early in the second half until Winnipeg moved ahead for good at 43-42 with eight minutes to play. The ensuing minutes were a fabulous battle between CIS First team All Star JoAnne Wells and CIS MVP Jessica Kaczowka. A Kaczowka 2-plus-one tied the score at 55 all at 5:31 and two Kaczowka free throws tied it again at 57 at 4:23, all after JoAnne Wells got two from the line. JoAnne Wells got a 2-plus-one, a steal and a transition layup to seal the game for the Wesmen with 3:04 left. The Clan got some more points but were forced to foul to stop the clock. Steady Winnipeg free throw shooting put the game away. Third-year guard JoAnne Wells led Winnipeg with 21 points. Wesmen player of the game Charmaine Izzard added 17 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists. Janet Wells scored 12 and Sally Kaznica 13. Kaczowka was chosen player of the game for SFU after scoring 31 points and grabbing 11 boards. Dani Langford added 12 points and Maren Corrigal 11. The Clan shot .270 from the floor and committed 9 turnovers. “It feels good because its Simon Fraser,” said JoAnne Wells. “They’re the team everyone wants to beat, definitely. … The adrenaline was just pumping. Our motto coming in tonight was ‘no fear’.” The Clan had thrashed Winnipeg 76-50 in the Canada West final but the Wesmen’s mix of zone and man-to-man defence appeared to confuse them in the semis. “Winnipeg played well, but we didn’t,” said Clan coach Bruce Langford. “We need all of our kids to play well to win.”
In the bronze medal match, Laval whipped Simon Fraser 79-62 as Josee Lalonde scored 27. Marian Fortier added 13, while Isabelle Grenier scored 22, dished 7 assists and pilfered 4 balls. The Clan (coached by Bruce Langford, assisted by Karen Edgell and Lani Kramer) included Jessica Kaczowka, Morgan McLaughlin, Jennifer Macleod, Dani Langford, Maren Corrigal, Kelsie Thu, Jennifer McElgunn, Laura van den Boogaard, Julia Wilson, Courtney Brown, Devon Campbell and Lara Monk.
In the final, the 6th-seeded Victoria Vikes continued their magical run and edged the 4th-seeded Winnipeg Wesmen 60-51 to capture their second national crown in four years and third in six years. The teams had met three times during the season, splitting their regular season matches before the Wesmen prevailed in the postseason tourney semi-finals. The final proved just as close. The Vikes took an early 6-2 lead, the largest spread of the opening 20 minutes, until the Wesmen fought back to take a 27-22 advantage with three minutes to play in the first half. The teams entered the locker room tied 31-31. The second half was just as tight as neither asserted control. Winnipeg’s Kate Daniels hit her only her fourth trey of the entire season as the Wesmen took a 47-44 lead with eight minutes to play. But the Vikes rallied to knot the score at 51 and tightened their defence, forcing the Wesmen into a shot clock violation and scoring on the ensuing possession, while also holding Winnipeg scoreless over the final three minutes. Lindsay Anderson led the balanced Victoria attack with 18 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Jania Mynott, chosen player of the game for the Vikes, added a double-double with 13-point and 11-rebounds. Krystal O’Byrne also registered a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. Dani Everitt, a transfer from McMaster, scored nine points and dished eight assists. Heidi Schwartz led Winnipeg with 12 points, while Wesmen player of the game Uzoma Asagwara scored nine. Anderson was elated. “If you had told me at the beginning of this year that I would be standing here, I wouldn’t have believed it. I don’t even know if it’s real. We came in here ranked sixth and won three tough games. It just proves anything can happen if you’re in the tournament.” Winnipeg coach Tanya McKay noted that “this is the first time that we’ve played them that they’ve really crashed the boards like that. That was the key to the game right there.” Victoria coach Brian Cheng was at the helm only because Kathy Shields was on medical leave to fight breast cancer. The Vikes were coming off 9-15 campaign a year earlier. Cheng, an assistant on the previous two national championship units, said he often called Ken and Kathy Shields to troubleshoot. “Cathy and Ken taught me the game. Our offence is Cathy and Ken’s defence.” Tournament MVP Lindsay Anderson said “we just kept working away. We believed in ourselves and you never know what can happen.” Cheng said his troops “came out and just performed. … I think that we just came to play at this tournament.” Cheng added that boardwork and defensive toughness proved the difference, from the start of the season. “I never put it beyond us … it was baby steps. … You can’t say enough about Dani Everitt. We don’t have her, we are not here talking.” Mynott said the Vikings rebounding with a purpose. “We were so tough on the boards, and we wanted it more. We went out and got it.” The Vikings out-rebounded Winnipeg 35-25. During the half, Winnipeg coach Tanya McKay told her troops “you’re letting them do whatever they want, and at the other end you’re playing one on five.” The Vikes also held All-Canadian JoAnne Wells to 2 points. Cheng estimated the Vikes finally got every gap covered in the last three minutes, when a battering ram wouldn’t have dented their defensive wall. Three-point shots by Everitt, and rookie Beckie MacDonald, and two free throws by O’Byrne, helped push the Vikes to a 51-51 tie, with just over two minutes to play. The Vikes scored seven more points at the line, and barely allowed Winnipeg to touch the ball, much less score. Overall, the Vikes shot .300 from the field, compared with Winnipeg’s .460, but hit 19-27 free throws and had 11 turnovers to Winnipeg’s 19. Mynott said she was battered by nerves in the first half, which ended with the teams tied 31-31, but gave herself a serious lecture, and turned her game around. “I said, ‘Do what you think is right. Go hard to the hoop and rebound. I calmed myself down and let it flow.” Anderson called it an unbelievable win, particularly after suffering from a losing season a year earlier. “It was unbelievable. I couldn’t be happier.”
The all-tourney team featured: MVP Lindsay Anderson (Victoria); Jenine Browne (Memorial); Dani Langford (Simon Fraser); Charmaine Izzard (Winnipeg); JoAnne Wells (Winnipeg); and Dani Everitt (Victoria)
The bronze medalist Laval Rouge et Or: Annie Pouliot; Caroline St-Pierre; Mireille Karangwa; Chantal Forest; Christina Lacombe; Caroline D’Amours; Emilie Langevin; Anne Mailly; Caroline Roger; Andree-Anne Parent; Marian Fortier; Isabelle Grenier; Marie-Helene Pedneau; Josee Lalonde; coach Linda Marquis; assistant Monique Parent; assistant Genevieve Laporte; therapist Gilles Courchesne
The silver medalist Winnipeg Wesmen: JoAnne Wells; Janet Wells; Sally Kaznica; Angela Willerton; Heidi Schwartz; Catherine Peters; Val Carson; Uzo Asagwara; Melanie Talastas; Charmaine Izzard; Jae Pirnie; Kate Daniels; Heather Thompson; Pam Nowell; coach Tanya McKay; assistant Jamie Hickson; assistant Erin Soroko; assistant Deb May; trainer Lori Froese; manager Jim Schrofel; therapist Ben Trunzo; consultant Dale Bradshaw; academic councillor George Kennedy
The champion University of Victoria Vikings: Lindsay Anderson; Dani Everitt; Jania Mynott; Krystal O’Byrne; Beckie MacDonald; Lindsay Hewson; Jennifer Diana; Andrea Van Koll; Aimee Faulk; Jessica Breitenfeld; Jennifer Anderberg; Krystal O’Byrne; coach Brian Cheng; assistant Lindsay Brooke; assistant Tara McMillan; manager Karen Wainman; trainer Melanie Morgan; trainer Mike Veiveiros