| (1) | Simon Fraser | 89 | ||||||
| (8) | Ottawa | 42 | Simon Fraser | 78 | ||||
| (4) | Alberta | 84 | Alberta | 62 | Simon Fraser | 68 | ||
| (5) | Laval | 64 | ||||||
| —–SIMON FRASER | ||||||||
| (2) | Regina | 66 | ||||||
| (7) | Cape Breton | 51 | Regina | 86 | Regina | 62 | ||
| (3) | Windsor | 63 | Windsor | 68 | ||||
| (6) | Saskatchewan | 55 |
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan clubbed the 8th-seeded Ottawa Gee-Gees 89-42 as five players scored in double figures. The victory ended a three-year dry spell for No. 1 seeds in the opening round of the tournament. The Clan were upset by Laval 71-68 as tourney favourites in 2008 in Saskatoon, while UBC and Saskatchewan suffered the same fate in 2007 and 2006, respectively. The game was close for about five minutes, with the heavily-favoured Clan leading 15-12 midway through the first quarter. The Canada West champions ended the opening stanza on a 14-2 run for a 29-14 advantage after 10 minutes, and never looked back. SFU was ahead 44-25 at halftime and 64-34 after three periods. Courtney Gerwin was chosen game MVP for the Clan, while Hannah Sunley-Paisley earned the laurels for Ottawa. “We needed to come out and dictate tempo and once we settled into the game we were able to do that,” said Matteke Hutzler of the team’s first-quarter run. “It’s the CIS national championship, and everyone on the team understands how we need to approach each game, and keep our intensity and focus up at all times.” Sunley-Paisley said “it was a good experience playing them. I left everything on the floor and I hope the other girls did too.” The Clan’s aggressive defence forced numerous turnovers. SFU finished with a 17-8 assist-to-turnover ratio. Gee-Gees head coach Andy Sparks said his troops “didn’t compete. If they and others don’t want to play we’ll find other kids who do want to play.” The Gee-Gees ran to a 4-0 lead early before the Clan went on a tear, scoring a diversity of points from the paint and beyond the three-point line for a 29-14 after one quarter. The pace slowed to start the second quarter but the Clan resumed its methodical pace for a 40-20 lead with 4:35 remaining, ending with a 44-25 advantage at the half. ‘“In the third quarter we just gave up,” said Gee-Gees fifth-year post Katie Laurie, “We’ve got to be ready to come out hard for the entire game.” Simon Fraser, seeking a fourth national title since the 2001-02 season, largely used substitutes to take a 30-point lead (64-34) after three quarters. Sparks said the Clan “might not win the national championship but they are the most talented by quite a long-shot.” “We want to show people we’re No. 1 for a reason,” Hutzler said. “It doesn’t matter what your ranking is because you’re playing teams you’ve never seen before. You haven’t seen them, you don’t know their calibre, you don’t know how they play. We just need to prove ourselves, especially after what happened last year.” Courtney Gerwing said “last year is always on our minds, but basically we just wanted to win our first game here. Rankings only get you here; you still have to finish.” Sunley-Paisley said “going into the third quarter, everybody still thought we had a chance to come back. But we didn’t do the things we had to do, the things we did to beat Carleton and Toronto (in the OUA playoffs) to get here.” Matteke Hutzler paced the Clan with 15 on 7-11 from the floor, 10 boards, 2 blocks and 3 steals. Robyn Buna added 14 on 6-13 from the floor and 2-6 from the arc. Laurelle Weigl notched 14 on 5-6 from the floor, 4-7 from the line and 2 boards. Courtney Gerwing added 12 on 6-12 from the floor, 7 boards and 6 assists. Kelsey Horsting scoring 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 steals. Kate Hole scored 8 on 3-6 from the floor, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Katie Miyazaki notched 4 on 2-8 from the floor. Anna Carolsfield scored 4 on 2-2 from the line. Lisa Tindle notched 3 on 1-3 from the arc and 6 assists. Brea McLaughlin added 2 and Carly Graham 2, while Brittany Fraser was scoreless. The Clan shot 38-76 from the floor, 5-20 from the arc and 8-11 (.727) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 12 fouls, 17 assists, 8 turnovers, 6 blocks and 12 steals. Hannah Sunley-Paisley paced Ottawa with 17 on 8-16 from the floor and 10 boards. Katie Laurie added 10 on 4-13 from the floor and 5 boards. Courtney Berquist notched 4 on 2-3 from the floor and 4 boards. Melina Wishart scored 3, Emilie Morasse 2, Kelly Weir 2, Allison Forbes 2 and Kyrie Love 2, while Kaitlin Long, Kaytlyn Faucon, Jade Fair and Marie-Eve Caouette were scoreless. The Gee-Gees shot 19-69 (.275) from the floor, 1-11 (.091) from the arc and 3-5 from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 21 on the offensive glass, 16 fouls, 5 assists, 23 turnovers, 1 block and 2 steals. The Gee-Gees (coached by Andy Sparks, assisted by Ian MacKinnon, Moriah Trowell, Mario Gaetano, Kim Swenson and Adam Elgazzar) also included Danielle Ranger, Carley Bokor and Lauren Carey.
The 2nd-seeded
host Regina Cougars clipped the 7th-seeded Cape Breton Capers 66-51 before a
standing-room only crowd of 2,212. Regina jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead and never
looked back. The Cougars were ahead 23-8 after the opening quarter, 38-17 at
the half and 52-33 after 30 minutes of play. Cape Breton closed the gap to 10
points with a 12-3 run to open the final quarter, making it 55-45 with 6:00
left on the clock, but couldn’t get any closer. Fifth-year post Chelsea Cassano,
who was named game MVP for the victors, said “there were nerves before the game
started, but once we settled in, we were able to take advantage of our size and
strength inside, and control the game in the first half. I have to credit our
coaches, they did a lot of scouting and with their help we were able to win.”
The Cougars kept AUS MVP Kelsey Hodgson scoreless in the first half, going 0-10
from the floor, and finally got on the board 2:24 into the third frame with a
two-point bucket and a free throw. Hodgson finished the third quarter with 10
points and had 14 points on 3-of-19 shooting for the game, including 1-of-10
from three-point range. “We are a young team and we came out and played like a
young team, and they have an experienced group and that was the difference
early,” said Cape Breton coach Fabian McKenzie. “In the second half we had a
goal to cut their lead to 12 points, and we were able to do that, but it was
just a little too big of a lead and too late in the game to complete a
comeback.” Cougars forward Jessica Lynch befuddled Hodgson. “She’s the best defender that had me all year for sure. No one in the
(Atlantic University Sport conference) can touch her. I can say that because
obviously I didn’t have 26 points tonight.” Regina coach Dave Taylor said “I’m
not sure I can remember anybody scoring over their season average against her. I’ll
give the Canada West coaches credit: That’s why she was a first-team all-star.
She averaged about nine points and eight rebounds, but when you throw in what
she does on defence, she’s an impact player.” Lynch collided with myriad Capers
as they set screens and double-screens for the elusive Hodgson. “I was just
trying to do what I could to stay with her,” Lynch said. “I depend hugely on my
teammates, I’m not going to lie. I get caught on a lot of screens and they help
me out. That definitely helped tonight.” Taylor said “Jess works so hard. As
long as her teammates gave her that extra second to get there, she was right
there.” Hodgson said “she did great. I didn’t really get in my groove. I barely
made anything.” Hodgson didn’t make anything in the first half, going 0-for-10
from the floor. After one of her shots rimmed out, she smirked as she ran down
the court. “That was the rim I liked the best in practice this week,” Hodgson
said, “and I couldn’t make a damn thing on it.” She scored her first basket at
the 2:24 mark of the third quarter, stealing a pass and making a layup despite
being fouled. Ironically, her first five points were scored when she wasn’t
being covered by Lynch. Chelsea Cassano paced Regina with 15 on 7-12 from the
floor, 1-2 from the line, 10 boards and 2 assists. Rebecca Schmidt notched 14
on 5-8 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 2 steals. Megan
Cherkas added 9 on 4-5 from the floor, 5 boards, 6 assists and 4 steals. Jessica
Lynch notched 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 5 assists.
Jacquie Kenyon added 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 assists.
Maja Kralovcova added 5, Gabrielle Gheyssen 4, Stacey Walker 2, Brittany Read 2
and Carmen Stewart 1, while Meryl Jordan and Lindsay Ledingham were scoreless.
Kelsey Hodgson paced Cape Breton with 14 on 3-19 from the floor, 1-10 from the
arc, 7-7 from the line, 3 assists and 2 steals. Kari Everett added 10 on 4-11
from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 20 boards and 2 assists. Karmen Brown
notched 10 on 2-5 from the floor, 6-9 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Caitlin
Ulrich added 4, Jahlica Kirnon 4 and Stephanie Toxopeus 4 on 2-3 from the
floor, 5 boards and 4 blocks. Nicole Works added 3 on 3-4 from the line, 2
assists and 2 steals. Julie Frappier added 2. The Capers hit 15-48 (.313) from
the floor, 1-12 (.083) from the arc and 20-30 from the line, while garnering 28
boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 18 fouls, 10 assists, 23 turnovers,
4 blocks and 7 steals. The Capers (coached by Fabian McKenzie, assisted by Doug
Connors) also included Brittany Morrison, Jelena Vujovic, Luciann Lahey, Sandra
Chahine, Megan Topalovic and Katie McGarrigle.
The 4th-seeded Alberta Pandas whipped
the 5th-seeded Laval Rouge et Or 84-64 with a dominant second half. Laval led
12-10 after the opening quarter but Alberta went into the locker room ahead
29-27 at halftime after Rouge et Or fifth-year senior Karine Bibeau missed a
wide-open layup at the buzzer that would have tied the affair at the break.
Holding on to a slim 40-38 advantage early in the third frame, the Pandas ended
the quarter on a 14-6 run to open a 10-point gap, at 54-44, after 30 minutes.
Fifth-year guard Ashley Wigg made it 58-44 early in the fourth with a nice
drive to the hoop, and all but sealed the win with a three-point bucket that
sent Alberta ahead 65-49 with seven minutes remaining on the clock. The Rouge
et Or never got closer after that point. The Pandas led by as much as 23 late
in the contest. “I think in the first half it was a matter of facing a team we hadn’t
played this season, trying to get to know them a little better,” Wigg said. “We
really got it going in the second half. Everything just started falling into
place.” Pandas coach Scott Edwards said “I’m really proud of our effort. I
thought we were very consistent on defence all day, especially in the first
quarter when we couldn’t seem to score.” Kristin Jarock was chosen game MVP for
Alberta, while Myriam Lamarre earned the laurel for the Rouge et Or. Laval
coach Linda Marquis said “we had a huge letdown on defence in the second half.
Once they started to pull away the girls tried to do too much in order to get
some quick points, which is a normal reaction. We didn’t respect the game plan
in the second half and a talented team like Alberta will make you pay for that.”
The Rouge et Or were playing without Elyse Jobin, a rookie who broke her leg
with 2.1 seconds left in Laval’s victory over the UQAM Citadins in the Quebec
Students Sports Federation championship on Feb. 28. On Friday, her teammates
all wrote Jobin’s No. 6 on their left shoulders as a tribute. “It’s hard not to
have her here, but that’s part of the game,” said fellow rookie guard Chanelle
St-Amour. “We all wanted her to make the trip, but it was for her own good that
she had to stay.” Kristin Jarock paced Alberta with 16 on 7-11 from the floor,
2-3 from the line and 2 boards. Marisa Haylett added 15 on 6-10 from the floor,
3-3 from the line and 2 assists. Ashley Wigg notched 14 on 6-11 from the floor,
1-1 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 4 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Katie
Barrett scored 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 4 boards and 2
steals. Nicole Clarke notched 10 on 3-18 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 4
boards and 3 steals. Alysia Rissling notched 6 on 3-4 from the floor. Anneka
Bakker added 4 on 2-6 from the floor and 4 boards. Meghan Knowles scored 4 on 2-2
from the floor. Melanie Schlichter added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 9 boards.
Kaitlyn Arbuthnot added 2, while Emily Bolduc and Megan Vande Kraats were
scoreless. The Pandas shot 34-77 (.442) from the floor, 4-12 from the arc and
12-13 (.923) from the line, while garnering 46 boards, including 16 on the
offensive glass, 14 fouls, 19 assists, 15 turnovers and 10 steals. Myriam
Lamarre paced Laval with 17 on 6-18 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 9 boards
and 2 blocks. Karine Bibeau added 12 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc,
2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Marie-Michelle Genois added 11 on 3-11
from the floor, 5-8 from the line, 11 boards, 5 assists and 3 steals. Chanelle St-Amour
notched 10 on 4-17 from the floor, 1-8 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 6
boards, 3 assists and 4 steals. Sandrine Ducruc added 8 on 4-6 from the floor
and 4 boards. Julie Chapados notched 4 on 2-8 from the floor and 6 boards.
Veronique Lamarre added 2, while Marjorie Ferland and Maude Jacob-Tardif were
scoreless. Laval shot 24-72 (.333) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and
13-17 (.765) from the line, while garnering 48 boards, including 20 on the
offensive glass, 17 fouls, 13 assists, 21 turnovers, 2 blocks and 10 steals.
The Rouge et Or (coached by Linda Marquis, assisted by Monique Parent and Sonia
Ritchie) also included Elyse Jobin, Sandrine Ducruc, Eve Marquis-Poulin,
Melodie Laniel Dion and Kathryn Bariault.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Windsor Lancers, in their first appearance in the CIS tourney, rallied from a 16-point deficit to defeat the 6th-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies. Trailing 17-10 after the first quarter, 32-21 at halftime and 46-41 after 30 minutes of play, the Lancers caught up with Saskatchewan with 7:02 remaining in regulation when a three-point shot from fourth-year forward Alisa Wulff made it 47-47. The Ontario champions went ahead for the first time since an early 6-4 lead, at 54-53, when Roc hit a three-pointer of her own with 3:49 left on the clock. Windsor never trailed again, ending the game on a 10-2 run, and outscoring its rivals 22-9 overall in the final frame. “It wasn’t that we weren’t playing well in the first half, we were taking good shots but they just weren’t falling,” said Dranadia Roc, who was named Windsor’s game MVP. “In the second half, we just had to hit the boards hard, our shots started to fall and we were able to generate a run.” Lancers coach Chantal Vallee said “I talked at halftime about our intensity. I wasn’t happy with our intensity, we were being outrebounded and we needed to change that statistic and if we could change that statistic we could change the game. I still felt that we were shooting the ball well, our shots just weren’t going in, but if we kept working they would start to fall and they did.” The Huskies held their biggest lead of the night, at 31-15, with three minutes to go in the first half and were still comfortably ahead, 37-24, early in the third stanza. Saskatchewan never led by more than five points in the fourth however. The Huskies regained the advantage three times after Windsor tied the affair at 47-47, 49-49 and 51-51, before the Lancers went on their game-winning 10-2 run. “We were able to build up a lead, but they started to come on in the second half and we started playing tighter and tighter and they were able to take advantage,” said fifth-year Saskatchewan guard Amy Prokop of Saskatoon. Dranadia Roc paced Windsor with 21 on 8-15 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 2 assists and 3 steals. Alisa Wulff added 14 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards and 3 steals. Iva Peklova scored 10 on 3-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 8 boards and 3 blocks. Emily Ross scored 6 on 3-6 from the floor and 5 boards. Marissa Bozzetto scored 6 on 3-5 from the floor. Shavaun Reaney notched 3 on 3-6 from the line and 4 boards. Emily Abbott added 2 and Raelyn Prince 1, while Bojana Kovacevic was scoreless. The Lancers shot 23-62 (.371) from the floor, 6-19 (.316) from the arc and 11-18 (.611) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 15 fouls, 12 assists, 18 turnovers, 4 blocks and 10 steals. Jill Humbert paced Saskatchewan with 12 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-3 from the line and 4 boards. Jana Spindler added 12 on 6-10 from the floor and 4 boards. Alicia Wilson notched 6 on 2-7 from the floor, 4 boards and 2 steals. Kim Tulloch scored 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 assists. Lauren Whyte added 5 on 2-8 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Kara Lackie scored 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 7 boards. Lindsay Copeland notched 4 on 2-10 from the floor and 4 boards. Amy Prokop scored 3 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 assists. Marci Kiselyk added and Mary Hipperson 2, while Amy Lackie and Meagan Koroll were scoreless. The Huskies shot 24-69 (.348) from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 4-10 from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 13 fouls, 16 assists, 18 turnovers, 1 block and 7 steals. The Huskies (coached by Lisa Thomaidis, assisted by Jacqueline Lavalee, Ali Fairbrother and Nick Jordan) also included Julia Schmidt, Brittany Bodnar and Sarah Thiesson.
In the semis, the 2nd-seeded host Regina Cougars coasted to an 86-68 win over the 3rd-seeded Windsor Lancers before a standing-room-only crowd of 2,378. The Lancers fell behind early, trailing 18-9 after the opening quarter and 43-24 at the half. The Cougars led by as much as 20 in the first half after a Meryl Jordan trey made it 42-22 with 1:27 left before the break. Despite a better third quarter, the visiting Lancers could only cut the deficit by four points and were still trailing by 60-45 after 30 minutes of play. “We told everyone at the half that they had come back in the second half against Saskatchewan, so we kept that in the back of everyone’s minds,” said Regina coach Dave Taylor. “And the reality is they played a much better third quarter and were only able to cut it to four.” Windsor coach Chantal Vallee said “Regina is a very good team, and unfortunately you can’t play only 20 minutes of a 40-minute game against a very good team. It was two games in a row where we started very slow, and against Regina that just can’t happen.” Jessica Lynch, who was chosen player of the game for Regina said “we wanted to be aggressive in the first half, our coach told us that if we were aggressive and took the ball to the hoop we would get the calls. It’s a credit to our posts who were able to create space for our wings so that we could get to the basket.” Regina coach Dave Taylor said “we went in a half time and we said, ‘This is not Saskatchewan.’ We’re a veteran team and we’re not going to fold.” Alisa Wulff was chosen player of the game for Windsor. Jessica Lynch led Regina with 16 on 3-11 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 9-11 from the line, 7 boards and 3 steals. Carmen Stewart added 13 on 3-11 from the floor, 7-9 from the line, 7 boards and 5 assists. Brittany Read scored 12 on 5-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 8 boards and 2 steals. Stacey Walker added 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Chelsea Cassano notched 9 on 4-6 from the floor, 1.3 from the line and 5 boards. Megan Cherkas notched 8 on 3-4 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 3 boards and 4 assists. Meryl Jordan scored 8 on 2-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Gabrielle Gheyssen added 5, Jacquie Kenyon 2 and Maja Kralovcova 2, while Lindsay Ledingham and Rebecca Schmidt were scoreless. The Cougars shot 28-60 (.467) from the floor, 7-15 (.467) from the arc and 23-33 (.697) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 23 fouls, 19 assists, 18 turnovers, 2 blocks and 8 steals. Alisa Wulff paced Windsor with 18 on 7-12 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc and 5 boards. Iva Peklova notched 13 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 6-10 from the line, 5 boards, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Raelyn Prince added 10 on 2-5 from the floor, 6-7 from the line, 4 boards and 2 blocks. Shavaun Reaney added 9 on 3-8 from the floor, 3-6 from the line, 3 assists and 2 steals. Dranadia Roc scored 9 on 3-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Emily Abbott added 4, Marissa Bozzetto 3 and Emily Ross 2, while Kristy Chute and Bojana Kovacevic were scoreless. The Lancers shot 20-55 (.364) from the floor, 6-14 (.429) from the arc and 22-32 (.688) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 25 fouls, 8 assists, 19 turnovers, 6 blocks and 8 steals.
In the other
semi, the top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan routed the 4th-seeded Alberta Pandas
78-62. “We had a very good first half offensively, I thought defensively we
could have played a little better, but we were able to get the shots and looks
we wanted,” said SFU coach Bruce Langford. “The key to any national final is defence,
we need to play our best defensive game to earn a win. … We played great in the
first half and it was a nice clean win for us.” Three-point shooting again
proved to the be one of the keys to the Clan’s success, connecting on six of their
first eight attempts from outside in the first half, while the Pandas went 0-2
from beyond the arc to start the game, and didn’t hit their first three-pointer
until 1:10 into the fourth quarter. “We really like playing against Alberta
because we know it’s going to be a strong and physical game,” said Robyn Buna. “[Langford]
has given us confidence all season long in practice to shoot [the three] and we
know we can hit those shots when we get open.” SFU came out firing, with Buna
and Lisa Tindle each connecting from three-point range during a 10-0 run to
open the first quarter. Fifth-year senior Ashley Wigg didn’t register the
Pandas first points of the game until 3:56 into the first period with a driving
lay-up. Three times during the first stanza the Clan led by as much as 11
points (16-5, 18-7, 20-9), however a 6-2 run by the Pandas to close out the
quarter brought Alberta back within 22-15 heading into the second. The Canada
West champion Clan really put the game away in the second quarter, which they
dominated 30-16, including an 11-2 run before halftime that increased their
advantage to 52-31 at the break. Alberta coach Scott Edwards said “our goal was
to be in the game by that first TV timeout. But credit to them, they are a deep
and talented team.” It was more of the same in the third and fourth quarters,
as the Clan led 62-42 after 30 minutes. In the fourth, the Pandas used a 7-2
run to open the frame and were able to get within 13 points until a Buna
three-pointer ended their run. Buna said “we never know who’s going to be the top
scorer on our team in each game. We have such a balance (between) our inside
and outside game.” Robyn Buna paced Simon Fraser with 21 on 7-12 from the
floor, 4-7 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 5 boards and 4 steals. Laurelle
Weigl added 15 on 5-10 from the floor, 5-8 from the line and 5 boards. Courtney
Gerwing notched 11 on 4-12 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 7 boards, 6 assists
and 3 steals. Kelsey Horsting scored 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-5 from the
arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 assists. Matteke Hutzler scored 9 on 4-7 from the
floor, 1-4 from the line, 11 boards, 2 assists and 4 steals. Kate Hole notched
5 on 2-4 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Lisa Tindle scored 3 on 1-3 from
the arc and 4 assists. Katie Miyazaki scored 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 8
boards. Brea McLaughlin added 2, while Anna Carolsfield and Carly Graham were scoreless.
The Clan shot 28-63 (.444) from the floor, 7-17 (.412) from the arc and 15-24
(.625) from the line, while garnering 44 boards, including 12 on the offensive
glass, 20 fouls, 17 assists, 19 turnovers, 4 blocks and 15 steals. Nicole
Clarke paced Alberta with 19 on 8-14 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from
the line and 2 boards. Ashley Wigg added 12 on 3-6 from the floor, 6-10 from
the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Melanie Schlichter added 8 on 3-6 from the
floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Kristin Jarock scored 7 on 2-9 from the
floor, 2-4 from the line and 2 boards. Marisa Haylett scored 7 on 2-6 from the
floor and 3-3 from the line. Anneka Bakker notched 4 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-1
from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Katie Barrett scored 4
on 1-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals. Emily Bolduc added 1,
while Alysia Rissling, Megan Vande Kraats and Meghan Knowles were scoreless.
The Pandas shot 20-54 (.370) from the floor, 2-9 (.222) from the arc and 20-27
(.741) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 6 on the offensive
glass, 17 fouls, 7 assists, 19 turnovers and 10 steals.
In the bronze medal match, the
4th-seeded Alberta Pandas edged the 3rd-seeded Windsor Lancers 64-62. Alberta
jumped to a quick 10-4 lead and was ahead the entire first half, 20-16 after
the opening quarter and 30-27 at the break. Windsor scored the first four
points of the second half to take its first lead at 31-30 and led 46-45 after a
third quarter that featured seven lead changes. Alberta regained the advantage
early in the fourth and opened its biggest cushion of the final frame at the
midway mark when freshman Anneka Bakker drove to the basket to make it 56-51. Four
lead changes later, Alberta went ahead for good with 1:19 left when a Kristin
Jarock jumper made it 60-59 Pandas. Trailing 62-59, the Lancers missed two
three-point shots that would have tied the affair. Dranadia Roc hit the rim
with 19 seconds on the clock and, after Ashley Wigg missed a pair of free throws
for Alberta, Shavaun Reaney missed from beyond the arc with eight seconds
remaining. Rissling hit two free throws to seal the win, with Lancer forward
Alisa Wulff rounding out the scoring with a three-pointer at the buzzer. “It
was a nail-biter down the stretch. Our kids were kind of nervous at the end, they
missed a few free throws, but ultimately we were able to pull it off,” said Alberta
coach Scott Edwards. “We didn’t get the defensive rebounds early in game but we
got a couple of key ones when it counted.” Roc said “it’s disappointing to lose,
especially when we were so close in the fourth quarter. But it was our first
time here, the whole tournament was a good experience. Hopefully we can build
off of this for next year.” Clarke was chosen player of the game for Alberta, while
Iva Peklova earned the laurel for Windsor. “Our team struggled emotionally to
get up to this game. They were devastated by losing (in the semis,” said
Edwards. “They found a way to find enough emotion and enough intensity to come
out play hard tonight and I’m very proud of them. They (Windsor) are an
outstanding team. They had a great season and we just wanted to represent out
school and our program and our conference really well and put up a good fight.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence at all (that the West dominated). I think we’re
the strongest conference in the country year-in, year-out.” Nicole Clarke paced
Alberta with 16 on 6-14 from the floor, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards and 5
assists. Katie Barrett added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 2-2
from the line, 4 boards and 3 steals. Anneka Bakker added 10 on 4-9 from the
floor, 2-4 from the line and 6 boards. Alysia Rissling notched 10 on 3-3 from
the floor, 4-6 from the line and 11 boards. Kristin Jarock noted 6 on 3-7 from
the floor and 2 boards. Ashley Wigg scored 4 on 4-8 from the line and 4 boards.
Emily Bolduc added 2, Meghan Knowles 2 and Marisa Haylett 2, while Melanie Schlicter
and Kaitlyn Arbuthnot were scoreless. The Pandas shot 22-54 (.407) from the floor,
2-15 (.133) from the arc and 18-28 (.643) from the line, while garnering 43
boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 14 fouls, 17 assists, 21 turnovers,
2 blocks and 9 steals. Iva Peklova paced Windsor with 17 on 6-16 from the
floor, 1-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 15 boards and 2 steals. Alisa Wulff
added 12 on 5-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards
and 3 assists. Dranadia Roc notched 10 on 5-16 from the floor, 6 boards and 2
steals. Shavaun Reaney added 8 on 4-15 from the floor, 3 boards, 3 assists and
4 steals. Raelyn Prince added 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 4
boards. Emily Ross scored 4 on 2-5 from the floor and 6 boards. Marissa
Bozzetto added 4 on 1-4 from the floor and Bojana Kovacevic 2 on 1-7 from the
floor and 10 boards. Emily Abbott was scoreless. The Lancers shot 26-86 (.302)
from the floor, 3-18 (.167) from the arc and 7-11 (.636) from the line, while
garnering 54 boards, including 29 on the offensive glass, 25 fouls, 13 assists,
18 turnovers, 1 block and 12 steals. The Lancers (coached by Chantal Vallee,
assisted by Nate McKibbon, Tom Foster and Josh Leeman) also included Kristy
Chute, Amy Bakos, Samantha Hislop and Laura Mullins.
In the final, the top-seeded Simon Fraser Clan overcame an erratic first half and a standing-room-only University of Regina crowd of 2,440 to capture their fourth CIS women’s basketball title in eight years with a 68-62 win over the tournament host and No. 2 Cougars. The Simon Fraser win extends the Canada West conference’s domination of CIS women’s basketball to 18 years (including Great Plains conference – Canada West and Great Plains merged in 2001-02). The Bronze Baby also remains in British Columbia and the Pacific Division for the eighth consecutive season following triumphs by Simon Fraser (4), UBC (3) and Victoria (1) since 2000-01. The Cougars, who were vying to become the first team to capture the national title on home court in the 38-year history of the Bronze Baby trophy, lost in the title match for the second straight campaign. “We went in at halftime and said this is the worst half of basketball we’ve played all season, and we’re only down by three,” said Robyn Buna, who was named Simon Fraser game MVP for the second straight night and was also selected to the tournament all-star team. “In the second half, we were just able to create better space, our shots started to fall, and that’s how we were able to get back in game.” Matteke Hutzler, who was chosen championship MVP, said that “we have an expression on in our change room that says ‘Confidence isn’t a right, confidence is earned’, and we’ve earned the right to be confident this season. We just needed to go out and do what we did all season in order to win.” Buna’s timely sharpshooting lifted the Clan to victory. The Kelowna, B.C., native sank a three-point shot with five seconds left in the third quarter that sent Simon Fraser ahead for good, at 43-41, and scored the first four points of the final stanza on a pair of layups, part of a decisive 12-0 run that gave SFU a 50-41 lead. Lisa Tindle did some sharpshooting of her own, opening the second half with a long three-pointer that tied the affair at 26-26, and connected once again from well beyond the arc with four minutes remaining in the third stanza to give the Clan their first lead of the game, at 36-34. After Regina came back to within 61-57 late in the fourth, Tindle all but sealed the victory when she nailed her third long three of the evening with 1:29 left on the clock. The Clan overcame an uncharacteristically sloppy first half to prevail. For the first time all season, the Canada West champions, who finish the year with a 33-1 record against CIS opponents, including 30 straight wins, didn’t hold a single lead in the opening 20 minutes. Simon Fraser was trailing 15-11 after one quarter and 26-23 at the break, marking its lowest-scoring first half of the season. “We came out and played them well defensively in the first half. In the second half, it just got away from us. It’s disappointing, we came so close,” said fifth-year Regina senior Jessica Lynch, who was her team’s game MVP. Regina coach Dave Taylor said “you’re disappointed in the moment, but as a coach, you have to deal with losing. It’s the ultimate test with this team in the last two years having four silver medals. We’re probably the poster child for how do you deal with that. For me, I’m proud of what we did these last two years. We battled longer and that was a process of us having been there last year — we fought them right down the line.” Cougars forward Jessica Lynch said “it feels a lot different because it was such a close game. The whole game we were working hard. We were winning (26-23) at the half. We were so close, it was the No. 1-ranked team, it was at home. All these emotions are flowing through you. My family from B.C. is all in the stands. It was my fifth year. Stuff like that makes it so much more emotional. … “You put everything into it and your heart was just ripped out. I know that might sound a little extreme, but to me that’s pretty much what I feel like right now.” Regina post Chelsea Cassano said “we knew they were a beatable team and we knew we were the people to do it. We were so close. It was just tough.” Simon Fraser coach Bruce Langford said “we were more focused on winning. We never worried about winning before. We always talked about the process. Last year we came into nationals and we got shoved around. That showed a lack of competitiveness. This year we tried to put more pressure on the kids to think their performance was more than just a process. They’re accountable for how well they played. It’s been a theme of the year.” Point guard Megan Cherkas, who fouled out with three minutes to play, said “it was painful — feeling that you let your team down. We looked in each other’s eyes and we knew we did everything we could,” said Lynch. “We win together and we lose together. When we looked at each other, we all wanted to tell each other how much we loved each other. That was probably the last time we’ll ever play together and it was amazing no matter whether we won or lost. I don’t have a year to come back to learn from my mistakes. I’ll never step on that floor again and I’ll never play with my teammates again.” As difficult as the situation was Sunday night, there were few who would have traded finishing their careers in Regina. Chelsea Cassano said “if I had to choose an opportunity, I would do this again. Being at home, national final, in front of your own fans and family — it’s a pretty good situation to go out on.” Taylor said his troops would remember the season fondly: “Hindsight is going to allow us to look back on this group and what they accomplished — back-to-back national finals, two silver medals, two silver medals at Canada West. The teams we lost to are pretty good so it’s not like we were upset. Hindsight is going to allow us to look back and call this one of the great Cougar teams of all time.” Langford said the West’s domination of nationals was a function of the fact “this conference takes basketball seriously. We’re able to keep some of the better players in the country at home. (There’s also) the fact there are good teams among us and we play more competitive basketball all year long. I think it’s just better players (in the west). And better players make better basketball teams.” Western Canada has had at least one team in the national final in each of the past 33 seasons. Since 1972, 14 finals have featured two western teams. Ironically, the conference’s success at nationals has given it more chances to continue its streak. Canada West usually receives two automatic berths, but CIS regulations give an extra spot the next season to the conference to which the previous champion belongs. The notion of keeping the conference’s streak alive this season didn’t weigh heavily on the Clan. “I don’t think there’s any more pressure than it would be being any team coming in and saying, ‘Let’s win a national championship’,” said Clan guard Robyn Buna. “As a Canada West team, we know we have the skills to come and win a national championship. … It feels amazing. I can’t even describe it. We struggled in the first half hitting out shots. We just knew that in the second half we needed to come back and keep shooting.” Taylor said “obviously, we’re very upset. We had to play really well, close to perfect and we didn’t. We had some problems.” Robyn Buna paced the Clan with 20 on 6-14 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 5-8 from the line, 8 boards and 2 assists. Lisa Tindle added 11 on 3-8 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 6 assists and 2 steals. Matteke Hutzler added 11 on 5-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 6 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals. Kelsey Horsting notched 10 on 4-8 from the floor and 2-5 from the arc. Laurelle Weigl notched 8 on 1-5 from the floor, 6-8 from the line, 3 boards, 2 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Courtney Gerwing scored 3 on 1-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Katie Miyazaki added 3 on 1-4 from the floor and 9 boards. Kate Hole scored 2 on 1-3 from the floor, 2 boards and 2 steals. Carly Graham was scoreless. The Clan shot 22-59 (.373) from the floor, 9-22 (.409) from the arc and 15-26 (.577) from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 21 fouls, 21 assists, 16 turnovers, 6 blocks and 14 steals. Chelsea Cassano paced Regina with 16 on 7-13 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 7 boards. Jessica Lynch added 10 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 9 boards and 4 assists. Carmen Stewart added 9 on 2-4 from the floor, 5-5 from the line, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Brittany Read added 7 on 2-6 from the floor and 3-4 from the line. Rebecca Schmidt added 7 on 3-12 from the floor, 1-4 from the line and 4 assists. Lindsay Ledingham added 4 and Jacquie Kenyon 4 on 1-3 from the floor and 4 boards. Stacey Walker added 3 and Megan Charkas 1 on 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Maja Kralovcova scored 1, while Gabrielle Gheyssen and Meryl Jordan were scoreless. The Cougars hit 21-59 (.356) from the floor, 3-9 from the arc and 17-23 (.737) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 23 fouls, 15 assists, 25 turnovers and 7 steals.
The all-tourney team featured MVP Matteke Hutzler (Simon Fraser); Iva Peklova (Windsor); Robyn Buna (Simon Fraser); Jessica Lynch (Regina); and Chelsea Cassano (Regina)
The bronze medalist Alberta Pandas: Nicole Clarke; Kristin Jarock; Anneka Bakker; Ashley Wigg; Emily Bolduc; Katie Barrett; Marisa Haylett; Alysia Rissling; Melanie Schlichter; Meghan Knowles; Kaitlyn Arbuthnot; Megan Vande Kraats; Caitlin Stiksma; Josephine Peacock; Alexandra Keeley; coach Scott Edwards; assistant Cathy Butlin; assistant Kelly Haggstrom; assistant Carlie Paxton; assistant Doug Leong
The silver medalist Regina Cougars: Jessica Lynch; Megan Cherkas; Rebecca Schmidt; Chelsea Cassano; Carmen Stewart; Stacey Walker; Jacquie Kenyon; Gabrielle Gheyssen; Brittany Read; Lindsay Ledingham; Meryl Jordan; Maja Kralovcova; Ashley Wishira; Danielle Schmidt; Mallory Loire; Sarah Petrovitch; coach Dave Taylor; assistant Steve Burrows; assistant Christin Dickenson; athletic director Dick White
The champion Simon Fraser Clan: Matteke Hutzler; Robyn Buna; Laurelle Weigl; Kate Hole; Lisa Tindle; Katie Miyazaki; Courtney Gerwing; Kelsey Horsting; Brea McLaughlin; Carly Graham; Anna Carolsfeld; Rakel Helboe; Brittany Fraser; coach Bruce Langford; assistant Dani Langford; assistant Dan Nayebzadeh; athletic director David Murphy