| (1) | McGill | 58 | ||||||
| (8) | New Brunswick | 52 | McGill | 72 | ||||
| (4) | Regina | 70 | Ryerson | 87 | Ryeson | 71 | ||
| (5) | Ryerson | 73 | ||||||
| —–SASKATCHEWAN | ||||||||
| (2) | Saskatchewan | 73 | ||||||
| (7) | Ottawa | 62 | Saskatchewan | 65 | Saskatchewan | 85 | ||
| (3) | St. Mary’s | 53 | St. Mary’s | 58 | ||||
| (6) | Alberta | 52 |
SEEDING
1. McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions: 15-1 regular season / 2-0 playoffs, 22-2 v CIS foes)
2. Saskatchewan Huskies (CWUAA champions: 18-2 regular season / 4-0 playoffs, 28-3 v CIS)
3. Saint Mary’s Huskies (AUS champions: 19-1 regular season / 2-0 playoffs, 27-2 v CIS)
4. Regina Cougars (CWUAA finalists: 17-3 regular season / 3-1 playoffs, 27-5 v CIS)
5. Ryerson Rams (OUA champs: 16-3 regular season / 3-0 playoffs, 26-4 v CIS)
6. Alberta Pandas (CWUAA bronze medalists, wildcard: 17-3 regular season / 3-1 playoffs, 24-5 v CIS)
7. Ottawa Gee-Gees (OUA finalists: 17-2 regular season / 2-1 playoffs, 26-5 v CIS)
8. New Brunswick Varsity Reds (AUS semis, hosts: 12-8 regular season / 1-1 playoffs, 17-10 v CIS)
In the quarterfinals, held at the Richard J. Currie Centre in Fredericton, the top-seeded McGill Martlets defeated the 8th-seeded New Brunswick Varsity Reds 58-52. The Martlets led 20-14, 34-32 and 47-45 at the quarters. Both defences buckled down in the final quarter. UNB managed only seven points but found themselves with a surprising 52-51 lead and only 3:58 remaining. Marian Sylla then took the game into her own hands, scoring six of McGill’s last seven points including a pair of clutch free-throws with a minute remaining and a foul-line jumper with just 21 seconds left. Martlets coach Ryan Thorne said Dianna Ros was outstanding. “That’s veteran leadership out there, that’s maturity. There were some key decisions that changed the momentum of the game and that’s why you need her out there in crunch time. … UNB is a well-coached team, and they got the crowd behind them, that helps too, like a 6th player. A team like UNB brings lots of grit. The turning point for us was when we went back to grinding it out. We didn’t follow all the details in our game plan and UNB took advantage of that. But our key players like Diana Ros took over, and showed leadership and maturity. It’s her last year, and she just has no desire to quit. … They are a good team who never stop hustling. Jeff Speedy does a great job with them and they had the crowd (as a) sixth man behind them who made it tough on us.” Varsity Reds guard Grace Wade said “I’m disappointed, of course, but in this game, we knew we belonged in this tournament. The crowd was a spark, for sure, a good thing to have behind us. At halftime, all our comments were positive, we knew we were in this and could win this.” Ros said “the intensity of the game was no surprise. It’s a hostile environment, and we were nervous. It is great to get this win. We never take any team lightly. And UNB brought a good game tonight.” Mariam Sylla paced the Martlets with 12 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 9 boards and 2 blocks. Dianna Ros added 11 on 5-14 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 5 assists and 4 steals. Alexandra Kiss-Rusk added 10 on 5-15 from the floor, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Gabriela Hebert notched 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 steals. Marie-Love Michel added 5 on 2-3 from the floor and 1-1 from the arc. Stephanie Blais added 5 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Marika Guerin added 4 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Jennifer Silver added 2 and Geraldine Cabillo-Abante 2, while Gladys Hakizimana was scoreless. Hakizimana dished 3 assists and pilfered 3 balls. The Martlets hit 23-62 (.371) from the floor, 5-13 (.385) from the arc and 7-8 (.875) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 5 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 13 steals, 5 blocks, 15 turnovers and 16 fouls. Grace Wade paced the Varsity Reds with 15 on 5-16 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 4-5 from the line and 6 assists. Laura Kaye added 11 on 4-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-3 from the line and 3 boards. Hannah Currie added 8 on 4-14 from the floor, 0-2 from the line and 6 boards. Kiley DeLong added 6 on 3-6 from the floor and 5 boards. Nicole Lafleur notched 4 on 1-5 from the floor, 2 boards and 2 steals. Caroline Healy added 4 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 2 boards. Rachel Cleary added 2 on 1-5 from the floor and 3 boards. Katelyn Mangold scored 2 on 2-2 from the floor, 9 boards, 2 assists and 4 blocks, while Jane Boyle and Chelsey Collette were scoreless. Boyle nabbed 3 boards. The Varsity Red hit 21-62 (.339) from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 9-12 from the line, while garnering 34 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 7 steals, 6 blocks, 19 turnovers and 14 fouls. The Varsity Reds (coach Jeff Speedy, assistant Leah Bowers, assistant Rick Cotter) also included Melissa Gottschall, Laura Fox, Annika McConaghy, Eva Tumwine, Megan Campbell, Nailah Jones and Grace Simpson.
The 5th-seeded Ryerson Rams edged the 4th-seeded Regina Cougars 73-70 as Keneca Pingue-Giles demonstrated why she was chosen national player of the year. The Rams led 18-17, 36-34 and 61-48 at the quarters. Pingue-Giles told CIS that “I had a good night, I guess, but it wasn’t only me. It was a team effort. We got stops at key moments, which got them a bit frazzled and we were able to execute our game plan. Getting to the Final 4 is a big deal. It feels great. We were at the finals last year, and that makes a difference today. We know the level of the competition, we know what to bring. We have never played McGill, but they are a top team for a reason. We know we have confidence in ourselves to deliver at key moments.” Rams coach Carly Clarke said “this is the second year in a row, and we move again to the medal rounds. It was a team effort today. Our 5th year players were composed and determined, and they passed that confidence on to the younger players. Now we will face McGill. They are number 1 for a reason, and we have to learn a lot about them, in the day off. It will be an interesting battle.” Cougars coach Dave Taylor said Pingue-Giles “came as advertised. We took away the key, but then she shot 6 for 10 at the 3-point line. On the whole, we gave Ryerson too much of a cushion.” Pingue-Giles was chosen player of the game for the Rams, while Charlotte Kot earned the laurels for the Cougars. Keneca Pingue-Giles paced the Rams with 29 on 10-16 from the floor, 6-10 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 6 boards, 5 assists and 3 steals. Sofia Paska added 18 on 7-12 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 10 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Silvana Jez added 12 on 5-17 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 7 boards and 3 steals. Cara Tiemens added 8 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Mariah Nunes added 4 on 1-7 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 7 assists. Mckenzie Sigurdson added 2, while C’Airah Gabriel-Robinson, Jaime Hills and Katherine Follis were scoreless. Follis nabbed 6 boards, while Gabriel-Robinson dished 2 assists. The Rams hit 26-68 (.382) from the floor, 9-23 (.391) from the arc and 12-18 from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 9 steals, 2 blocks, 10 turnovers and 18 fouls. Charlotte Kot paced the Cougars with 18 on 8-16 from the floor, 2-5 from the line and 5 boards. Kehlsie Crone added 14 on 4-10 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards and 4 assists. Sara Hubenig added 12 on 4-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Alyssia Kajati added 10 on 5-11 from the floor, 3 boards and 3 assists. Katie Polischuk added 8 on 2-12 from the floor, 2-10 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 3 assists. Sidney Dobner added 4 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 7 boards, 5 assists and 2 blocks. Britton Belyk added 2 and Christina McCusker 2 on 2-4 from the line and 4 boards, while Michaela Kleisinger was scoreless and nabbed 2 boards. The Cougars hit 26-66 (.394) from the floor, 6-21 (.286) from the arc and 12-20 (.600) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 19 assists, 4 steals, 4 blocks, 15 turnovers and 13 fouls. The Cougars (coach Dave Taylor; assistant Carly Graham; assistant Lindsay Ledingham) also included Avery Pearce; Caitlin Zacharias; Jayda Watson; Tefa Vilela and Alexi Rowden.
The 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies clipped the 7th-seeded uOttawa Gee-Gees 73-62. “We have a lot of experience on our team this year, lots of us have been to national championships,” said Emmerson, a fifth-year Huskie who notched a double-double, told CIS. “We just had to settle in on defence. Once we made some adjustments down there we were able to pull away on the offensive end.” The Huskies opened with a 10-2 run but the Gee-Gees countered with a 14-2 run to take a 16-12 lead after one quarter. With leading scorer and conference MVP Laura Dally on the bench with three fouls, Huskie guard Kelsey Trulsrud stepped up, nailing a trey, and Saskatchewan began pounding the ball inside to Emmerson and were able to take a seven-point lead in the opening minutes of the frame. Saskatchewan led 32-28 at the half. The Huskies expanded their lead to double digits in the first 90 seconds of the second half but the Gee-Gees rallied to take a 49-48 lead after three quarters. Emmerson took command in the final quarter as the Huskies pulled away down the stretch. Gee-Gee guard Kellie Ring said “we fought hard but we had a few defensive lapses. Emmerson was hard to defend against. Our game plan was to get their best players in foul trouble, and we did with Laura Dally, but we just could not control Emmerson. We are perceived as being underdogs, but we worked hard. We led the score at the third, but in the fourth the shots we took were just not going in.” Emmerson was chosen player of the game for the Huskies, while Ring earned the laurels for the Gee-Gees. Dalyce Emmerson paced the Huskies with 25 on 6-7 from the floor, 13-16 from the line, 17 boards, 2 assists and 3 blocks. Desarae Hogberg added 14 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Sabine Dukate added 11 on 4-10 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 4 boards and 6 assists. Kelsey Trulsrud added 11 on 4-11 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 2-6 from the line and 8 boards. Laura Dally notched 10 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Madeline Humbert added 1 and Taya Keujer 1, while Megan Ahlstrom and Megan Lindquist were scoreless. Lindquist nabbed 2 boards. The Huskies hit 20-47 (.426) from the floor, 6-21 (.286) from the arc and 27-38 (.711) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 15 turnovers and 13 fouls. Kellie Ring paced the Gee-Gees with 19 on 9-22 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 8 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Sarah Besselink added 10 on 3-10 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Catherine Traer added 9 on 4-12 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 2 assists. Julia Soriano added 8 on 3-12 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 3 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Brooklyn McAlear-Fanus added 5 on 2-4 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Isabelle Dion added 4 on 1-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 steals. Kellie Forand added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 steals. Krista Van Slingerland added 2 on 1-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Anne Wagar added 2 on 1-1 from the floor. The Gee-Gees hit 25-76 (.329) from the floor, 4-20 (.200) from the arc and 8-9 (.889) from the line, while garnering 27 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 11 steals, 2 blocks, 9 turnovers and 24 fouls. The Gee-Gees (coach Andy Sparks, assistant Mario Gaetano, assistant Ian MacKinnon, assistant Patrick Flynn, strength & conditioning Allan Horton, student trainer Lynae Cooper, student trainer Camille Richard) also included Emilie Lamarche, Danielle Marion, Julia Dostaler, Ariana Lefebvre, Jennifer Crowe, Katherine Lemoine, Brianne Elbers, Jacynthe Gratton and Aliisa Heiskanen.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Saint Mary’s Huskies edged the 6th-seeded Alberta Pandas 53-52. “We knew we were down by 11 at the half, and we knew we could bring it on in the second half,” Rachelle Coward told CIS. “The turning point for us came in the third quarter, when we sped up our pace, and then eventually took the lead. When we did get that lead, we knew we could pull it off.” Huskies coach Scott Munro said “we were on our heels a bit at the start. Alberta was fresher, they had just come of their western finals so were ready to go. And when we had a couple more go in the net in the third, we started to feel a lot more confident. We went with only 6 kids in the second half, and they got the job done.” The Pandas led 15-12, 27-16 and 42-37 at the quarters. Pandas coach Scott Edwards said “we came here to win this game. We’ll deal with the loss now, and discuss the consolation later with the team. We are the youngest team in the tournament, so we expected to be in tough, and for the most part, we took the game to the Huskies. But when St. Mary’s came out strong in the third quarter, we didn’t handle their change of tactics well. We didn’t adjust to the post up by their guards and that got us rattled.” Rachelle Coward was chosen player of the game for the Huskies, while Elle Hendershot earned the laurels for the Pandas. Rachelle Coward paced the Huskies with 21 on 9-25 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 1-3 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Laura Langille added 11 on 5-11 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 10 boards and 4 assists. Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse added 9 on 3-10 from the floor, 3-8 from the line, 11 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Angelina Carvery added 9 on 3-12 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Shanieka Wood added 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-4 from the line and 8 boards, while Jenny Lewis, Emma Valikoski and Katrina Murrell were scoreless. Murrell nabbed 3 boards. The Huskies hit 21-64 (.328) from the floor, 4-16 from the arc and 7-18 (.389) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 4 steals, 4 blocks, 9 turnovers and 14 fouls. Maddie Rogers paced the Pandas with 16 on 5-9 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Elle Hendershot added 12 on 6-7 from the floor, 16 boards and 4 assists. Megan Wickstrom added 10 on 3-16 from the floor, 3-10 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 9 boards. Jessilyn Fairbanks added 6 on 3-14 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 4 boards and 7 assists. Megan Tywoniuk added 4 on 0-1 from the floor and 4-4 from the line. Brooklyn Legault added 2 on 1-3 from the floor and 4 boards. Renee Byrne added 2, while Briana Carlyon, Tess Heinricks and Arianne Sakundiak were scoreless. Carlyon nabbed 4 boards. The Pandas hit 19-61 (.311) from the floor, 7-21 from the arc and 7-8 (.875) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 17 fouls. The Pandas (coach Scott Edwards; assistant Kelly Haggstrom; assistant Shavaun Reaney; assistant Robyn Fleckenstein; assistant Drew Hanson; assistant Amy Kobzey; fitness coach Michael Cook; therapist T.J. Mussbacher; therapist Alex Yaworski; therapist Stacey Sick; therapist Quinton Lam; therapist Brennan Mahon) also included Vanessa Wild, Sydney Kumar, Mackenzie Cook and Marinya Marcichiw.
In the semis, the 5th-seeded Ryerson Rams whipped the top-seeded McGill Martlets 87-72 after leading 23-14, 45-28 and 68-48 at the quarters. Rams coach Carly Clarke told CIS that her team’s game management was exceptional. “We wanted to play with tempo and set a good pace with our transition break-outs and full-court pressure. … For us, it was all about pace and rebounding to establish pace and I thought we did a great job on the boards which allowed us to get out and run. We wanted to play in the 70s, they wanted to play in the 50s, and we managed to do that through our defensive rebounding. … They’re a great team. They were a tough challenge.” Rams player of the game Silvana Jez said the win “means so much to the players, to the team, and the university administration and the community. I feel lucky to be part of this kind of success. … It’s hard to speak, right now. We have been building and building, getting stronger year after year. Last year we had players with not too much experience at this level. This year, we bring a lot more versatility. I’m really glad to be here, now.” Martlets player of the game Jennifer Silver said “I’m disappointed. We didn’t do the little things that we were prepared to do, we didn’t execute, and we got hurt on the things we were trying to avoid.” Martlets coach Ryan Thorne said “we lost it in the first half. We weren’t focused and disciplined and they took advantage of that creating turnovers and getting transition baskets. I’m proud of our effort in the second half, the girls never gave up and kept battling but every time we made a run, Ryerson just seemed to have an answer.” Jez said “we were confident; we’ve gained a whole bunch of confidence and I don’t think we were scared at all. We came, we were ready, we knew what we had to do and we got it done. … We were very versatile so we were able to score from anywhere from the floor…and we were able to stretch them out and our shooters shot very high percentage today.” Clarke said “we were in control score wise most of the game but we knew they (McGill) weren’t going to go away and I’m just really proud, too, of our kids and their composure, their heart and their passion – they showed all of it today.” Keneca Pingue-Giles paced the Rams with 20 on 8-15 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 8 boards, 7 assists and 3 steals. Mariah Nunes added 20 on 7-12 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 6-8 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 4 steals. Silvana Jez added 16 on 5-15 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 2-3 from the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Sofia Paska added 10 on 3-8 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 7 boards. Katherine Follis added 7 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 2 boards. McKenzie Sigurdson notched 6 on 3-3 from the floor, 2 boards and 2 assists. Cara Tiemens added 4 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. C’Airah Gabriel-Robinson added 4 on 2-4 from the floor, while Savannah Hamilton, Jaime Hills, Nicole Didomenico and Tashana McDonald were scoreless. The Rams hit 33-71 (.465) from the floor, 5-14 (.357) from the arc and 16-21 (.762) from the line, while garnering 33 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 20 assists, 11 steals, 1 block, 12 turnovers and 11 fouls. Jennifer Silver led the Martlets with 21 on 8-13 from the floor, 5-5 from the line and 4 boards. Gabriela Hebert added 14 on 5-9 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Mariam Sylla added 10 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Alex Kiss-Rusk added 10 on 4-14 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 3 blocks. Marika Guerin notched 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Dianna Ros added 6 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards, 6 assists and 3 steals. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante added 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 2 steals, while Gladys Hakizimana, Marie-Love Michel, Stephanie Blais, Stephanie Guinois-Cote and Fredericke Laflamme were scoreless. Hakizimana nabbed 2 boards and dished 3 assists. The Martlets hit 28-68 (.412) from the floor, 4-18 (.222) from the arc and 12-13 (.923) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 18 turnovers and 16 fouls.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies dispatched the 3rd-seeded Saint Mary’s Huskies 65-58. The Huskies led 20-13, 36-23 and 50-41 at the quarters. But Saint Mary’s battled back to within one point several times in the fourth quarter before the Huskies pulled away down the stretch. Saskatchewan coach Lisa Thomaidis told CIS that “they did some things differently in the second half, scored in transition and had too many good scorers to be taken lightly. We are happy to escape with the win. And it was an escape. They made a run, and we had to find ways to get those mismatches.” Part of the mismatch was the size and strength of 6-3 Dalyce Emmerson, Thomaidis added. “Emmerson is a once in a career kind of player. She pushes through a lot of pain, just grinds it out.” Saint’s Mary’s guard Laura Langille said “it was a tough game. They used their size and speed, and we knew they would but it is not something we are used to here in Atlantic University Sport league action. They have that front 5, all big. I’m proud of our team, we never quit. We trailed by 17 and came back to within 1, but we didn’t have enough time on our side.” Emmerson called it a physical battle in the blocks. “I took a lot of pressure, for sure, but if they have to work to control me, then it leaves someone else open, and they can take their shots. It was a physical game today, not unlike what we see in the Canada West, so we were used to it, and ready for it.” Emmerson was chosen player of the game for Saskatchewan, while Katrina Murrell earned the laurels for Saint Mary’s. Laura Dally led Saskatchewan with 24 on 9-18 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Dalyce Emmerson added 17 on 6-13 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 18 boards and 3 blocks. Kelsey Trulsrud notched 11 on 5-13 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 13 boards. Desarae Hogberg scored 9 on 3-10 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2 boards and 4 assists. Sabine Dukate added 4 on 2-14 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 4 boards and 4 assists, while Madeline Humbert, Megan Ahlstrom, Taya Keujer and Vera Crooks were scoreless. Keujer nabbed 2 boards. Saskatchewan hit 25-69 (.362) from the floor, 5-15 from the arc and 10-12 (.833) from the line, while garnering 45 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 2 steals, 8 blocks, 8 turnovers and 9 fouls. Rachelle Coward paced Saint Mary’s with 19 on 7-23 from the floor, 1-7 from the arc and 4-4 from the line. Angelina Carvery added 10 on 4-16 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse added 9 on 4-15 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Katrina Murrell added 8 on 4-8 from the floor an d9 boards. Laura Langille added 7 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Shanieka Wood scored 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 9 boards. Jenny Lewis added 2, while Emma Valikoski and Belinda Ndaye were scoreless. Valikoski nabbed 2 boards. Saint Mary’s hit 24-78 (.308) from the floor, 3-13 (.231) from the arc and 7-9 (.778) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 5 steals, 5 blocks, 3 turnovers and 14 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, the 3rd-seeded Saint Mary’s Huskies clocked the top-seeded McGill Martlets 56-43 after leading 24-14, 32-29 and 48-37 at the quarters. Huskies coach Scott Munro told CIS “it’s a good way to finish up. We rallied today, after our loss earlier. We have been to four nationals, and come away with 3 medals, so that says a lot about the players. They are an experienced group, and they knew what to do today.” Martlets coach Ryan Thorne said he was “disappointed, I think that’s the one word that can sum it all up. We didn’t play well at all through this whole tournament and having our best player out really showed today (Mariam Sylla was injured). For a team that battled and worked so hard all season long, it’s unfortunate the outcome but you have to look across the board. Players and coaches, we all could have done better. You battle all year, for the chance to be here, and we didn’t give our best today. We played the best teams in the country, and they took advantage of our gaps. It’s not disappointing to play for bronze, it is disappointing to lose in the bronze game. Our university sent us here, and today is not how we should have played. I feel badly for the team and our five graduating players. We should have done better. When you have a veteran team and a good nucleus you sometimes let things slide. That’s where I failed as a coach and could have had our girls better prepared.” The Huskies defence and transition game proved too much for the Martlets to handle. Rachelle Coward was chosen player of the game for the Huskies, while Alex Kiss-Rusk earned the laurels for the Martlets. The Huskies opened the second half with a 9-0 run and dominated the glass to put the game out of McGill’s reach. Rachelle Coward paced the Huskies with 18 on 7-18 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 0-1 from the line and 7 boards. Angelina Carvery added 10 on 3-8 from the floor, 3-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 3 boards, 3 assists and 2 steals. Laura Langille added 9 on 4-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 8 boards. Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse added 7 on 3-12 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 8 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals. Katrina Murrell added 5 on 1-3 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 3 boards. Jenny Lewis added 4 on 2-7 from the floor and 0-4 from the arc. Shanieka Wood added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 8 boards, while Emma Valikoski was scoreless. The Huskies hit 21-64 (.328) from the floor, 8-21 (.381) from the arc and 6-11 (.545) from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 9 steals, 3 blocks, 16 turnovers and 5 fouls. Alexandra Kiss-Rusk paced the Martlets with 16 on 7-16 from the floor, 2-4 from the line and 11 boards. Stephanie Blais added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 2 boards. Gabriela Hebert added 5 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 6 boards and 5 assists. Marie-Love Michel added 4 on 2-4 from the floor and 0-1 from the arc. Jennifer Silver notched 4 on 2-6 from the floor and 5 boards. Dianna Ros scored 3 on 1-4 from the floor and 1-2 from the arc. Gladys Hakizimana added 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 3 boards. Stephanie Guinois-Cote added 2, while Marika Guerin, Geraldine Cabillo-Abonte and Fredericke Laflamme were scoreless. Guerin dished 3 assists. The Martlets hit 18-56 (.321) from the floor, 5-18 (.278) from the arc and 2-4 from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 6 steals, 3 blocks, 19 turnovers and 12 fouls. The Martlets (coach Ryan Thorne, assistant Helen Magadalinos, assistant Rikki Bowles, assistant Bayonne Taty, manager Emilija Davidovic, physician Dr. Andrea Dolan, therapist Phedavril Racine) also included Chiso Ufondu, Carissa Tapia and Mariam Sylla.
In the final, the 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies rolled the 5th-seeded Ryerson Rams 85-71 to capture the program’s first CIS title. “I can’t be happier for this group of women,” Huskies coach Lisa Thomaidis told CIS. “The amount of time they dedicated to this program, I can’t thank them enough.” Huskies guard and player of the game Laura Dally, who hit four of her first five trey attempts, said “it feels awesome, it feels amazing. I couldn’t be happier to bring it back to Saskatoon, to the community there that supports us so much.” Thomaidis said the efforts of Dalyce Emmerson and Dally were key. “That’s what you want from your fifth-year All-Stars and All-Canadians, to bring it on the biggest night. They showed why they are so important to this team. They are all impressive individuals and I couldn’t be prouder.” The Huskies got out to a strong start in the final, opening up an early five-point lead. The Rams, led by CIS MVP Keneca Pinque-Giles closed the quarter with some efficient shooting to take a 22-18 lead after 10 minutes. Saskatchewan answered back in the second, using their three-point shooting to take a 42-40 halftime lead after trailing by nine during the period. Coming out of the locker room with a strong defensive focus, the Huskies were able to slow down Ryerson’s transition game. Saskatchewan’s 13-4 run near the end of the third helped the Huskies to a build up a 69-61 lead heading to the fourth. Ryerson opened the fourth quarter with a 6-0 run but with the game looking like it might come down to the wire, rookie point guard Sabine Dukate took command, scoring 10 in the fourth quarter including back-to-back treys to extend the Huskie lead to eight with just over four minutes remaining. The Huskies closed it out with an 8-0 run. Tournament MVP Emmerson said “we were composed. Those emotions have been a factor when I have played in previous national finals, but this time, the senior girls led the way. … We were never in doubt. We weathered the storm, and kept coming. The turning point had to be going into the half by a one or two, and knowing we could keep the lead.” Thomaidis said “winning this makes you realize how special it is in this league, and how many things have to fall into place in order to win. This is different than international, where you are together for a summer or a season. This is big because we have a lot of time invested in the players, and the players have a lot invested in the program. In some cases, we have been together every day for the past five years.” At half-time Thomaidis said she told her players they had turned the corner. “I said, Ryerson has thrown their best at us in the first half, and in the second half we could lock it down. … The senior players showed their leadership. And the young players learned a lot from being here. You can’t win this tournament with first year players. You need those veterans to bring that.” Ryerson’s Keneca Pingue-Giles said “I shot a lot, but they weren’t falling for me, unlike other games in this tournament. They played us tough and things fell in for them.” Ryerson coach Carly Clarke said the Huskies “disrupted our flow. They brought a balanced attack and three or four players who could deliver. … I’m proud of winning the silver. It’s huge, but we were right in this game. The silver is a testament to the hard work our team has done. We held our own today, and all of us are proud of our time on the team.” Dally was chosen player of the game for the Huskies, while Pingue-Giles earned the laurels for Ryerson. Laura Dally paced the Huskies with 25 on 9-17 from the floor, 4-9 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Sabine Dukate added 22 on 7-16 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 7 boards, 7 assists and 3 steals. Kelsey Trulsrud added 14 on 5-13 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 12 boards and 3 assists. Dalyce Emmerson added 14 on 6-12 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 12 boards, 2 assists, 2 steals and 5 blocks. Desarae Hogberg added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Madeline Humbert added 2 on 1-3 from the floor and 0-2 from the arc. Megan Lindquist scored 2 on 2-4 from the line. The Huskies hit 30-67 (.448) from the floor, 10-23 (.435) from the arc and 15-19 (.789) from the line, while garnering 42 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 6 steals, 7 blocks, 10 turnovers and 12 fouls. Keneca Pingue-Giles paced the Rams with 26 on 11-28 from the floor, 1-9 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 6 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Sofia Paska added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 6 boards and 2 blocks. Cara Tiemens added 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Mariah Nunes added 8 on 3-16 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 7 assists and 2 steals. Katherine Follis added 8 on 4-6 from the floor and 5 boards. C’Airah Gabriel-Robinson added 4 on 2-4 from the floor. Silvana Jez scored 3 on 1-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 6 boards and 2 blocks. McKenzie Sigurdson added 2 on 1-1 from the floor, 3 boards and 2 assists, while Nicole Didomenico was scoreless. The Rams hit 29-79 (.367) from the floor, 4-18 (.222) from the arc and 9-11 from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 16 assists, 6 steals, 6 blocks, 9 turnovers and 15 fouls.
The all-tournament team featured MVP Dalyce Emmerson (Saskatchewan); Charlotte Kot (Regina); Silvana Jez (Ryerson); Keneca Pingue-Giles (Ryerson); and Laura Dally (Saskatchewan).
The bronze medalist Saint Mary’s Huskies: Alexandra Smye; Jenny Lewis; Emma Valikoski; Veronica Vaickus; Angelina Carvery; Katrina Murrell; Rachelle Coward; Carlie Nugent; Josie Gascoigne; Belinda Ndaye; Kennisha-Shanice Luberisse; Laura Langille; Shanieka Wood; Courtney Cain-Nordin; coach Scott Munro; assistant Mark Ross; assistant Tasia McKenna; assistant Les Berry
The silver 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
The gold medalist Saskatchewan Huskies: Desarae Hogberg; Madeline Humbert; Sabine Dukate; Sascha Lichtenwald; Megan Ahlstrom; Taya Keujer; Megan Lindquist; Kassidy Konkin; Laura Dally; Kelsey Trulsrud; Dalyce Emmerson; Vera Crooks; Janaya Brown; coach Lisa Thomaidis; assistant Ali Fairbrother; assistant Megan Pinske; assistant Jacqueline Lavalle; graduate assistant Kabree Howard; student trainer Molly Cox; student trainer Alyssa Mooney