| (1) | Carleton | 77 | ||||||
| (8) | Victoria | 66 | Carleton | 60 | ||||
| (4) | McGill | 72 | McGill | 66 | McGill | 66 | ||
| (5) | Regina | 62 | ||||||
| —–McGILL | ||||||||
| (2) | Saskatchewan | 59 | ||||||
| (7) | Laval | 69 | Laval | 78 | Laval | 55 | ||
| (3) | Queen’s | 60 | Queen’s | 67 | ||||
| (6) | Cape Breton | 51 |
SEEDING
1. Carleton Ravens (OUA champions: 18-1 regular season / 3-0 playoffs)
2. Saskatchewan Huskies (CWUAA champions: 15-5 regular season / 4-1 playoffs)
3. Queen’s Gaels (OUA finalists: 18-1 regular season / 2-1 playoffs)
4. McGill Martlets (Quebec champions: 9-7 regular season / 2-0 playoffs)
5. Regina Cougars (Canada West runners-up: 17-3 regular season / 3-1 playoffs)
6. Cape Breton Capers (AUS champs: 13-7 regular season / 3-0 playoffs)
7. Laval Rouge et Or (Quebec bronze, wild card: 14-2 regular season / 0-1 playoffs)
8. Victoria Vikes (Canada West, hosts: 12-8 regular season / 3-2 playoffs)
In the quarterfinals, the top-seeded Carleton Ravens clipped the 8th-seeded Victoria Vikes 77-66. The Ravens led 22-16 after one quarter. The Vikes led 37-30 at the half. The Ravens led 53-37 after three quarters. “We got into halftime and I just told the kids at halftime that we weren’t playing very well and that we were fortunate to be in the game,” said Carleton coach Taffe Charles. “We knew that if we went back to playing how we can play.” Vikes coach Dani Sinclair said “it was really special for (graduating seniors) Jenna Krug, Jenna Bugiardini and Nicole Karstein considering everything they have put into this program. For them to have an opportunity for them to go out like this, this weekend. It was amazing in here, it obviously hurts to lose but the crowd is one of the things our girls will never forget.” Charles said “I’m proud of the girls because it’s always hard to win. Victoria had a great crowd and it was a tough game.” Sinclair told the Victoria Times-Colonist that “we had our chances. The Ravens are obviously a great team and they capitalized on our dry spell in the third quarter. They have a great defence and took us out of our stuff. And they got easy shots and took the momentum. We got it to within six in the fourth quarter but it didn’t turn out our way. But this was a great atmosphere and I am proud of our players.” Elizabeth Leblanc was chosen player of the game for the Ravens, while Jenna Krug earned the laurels for the Vikes. Catherine Traer paced the Ravens with 23 on 8-16 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 5-5 from the line, 6 boards, 2 assists and 3 blocks. Elizabeth Leblanc added 16 on 5-9 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 5-6 from the line and 3 boards. Stephanie Carr added 12 on 4-8 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Heather Lindsay added 11 on 4-5 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 6 boards. Jenjen Abella added 6 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Nicole Gilmore scored 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 assists. Cynthia Dupont added 2 on 1-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 2 boards. Alexandra Trivieri scored 1 on 0-1 from the floor and 1-1 from the line, while Nicole Istead, Brianne Hamilton, Karyne Jolicoeur and Amanda Niyonkuru were scoreless. The Ravens hit 26-61 (.426) from the floor, 5-16 (.313) from the arc and 20-24 (.833) from the line, while garnering 37 boards, including 7 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 4 steals, 4 blocks, 15 turnovers and 15 fouls. Jenna Krug paced the Vikes with 18 on 9-16 from the floor, 5 boards and 4 assists. Kristy Gallagher added 14 on 4-9 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc and 4-4 from the line. Nicole Karstein added 13 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-9 from the line and 6 boards. Jenna Bugiardini added 10 on 3-6 from the floor, 4-4 from the line and 8 boards. Amira Giannattasio added 9 on 4-12 from the floor and 1-4 from the arc. Marissa Dheensaw added 2 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 5 boards, while Calli McMillan and Paige Thomson were scoreless. Thompson nabbed 3 boards and dished 2 assists. The Vikes hit 26-61 (.426) from the floor, 3-10 from the arc and 11-17 (.647) from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 8 assists, 4 steals, 1 block, 20 turnovers and 19 fouls. The Vikes (coach Dani Everitt Sinclair, assistant Leanne Evans, assistant Brett Westcott, manager Gen Simmons, assistant manager Allison Ilg) also included Morgan Roskelley, Krysten Mullen, Aleah Ashlee, Katie Langdon, Andrea Psotka, Aiden Kilcommons, Jasmine De Vries, Claire De Mug and Ashley McGinnis.
The 4th-seeded McGill Martlets dumped the 5th-seeded Regina Cougars 72-62. “The girls worked hard,” said Martlets coach Ryan Thorne. “What was really important for us was just our rotation-defence and our ball-screen defence. Offensively we had (a height) advantage inside with Alex (Kiss-Rusk) so we were trying to pound it in there where we could. They doubled her, so we found some open shooters and we shot the ball well, so that was (the key).” Regina coach Dave Taylor said “I said to Ryan Thorne after the game that if they shoot like that they’re going to be a tough, tough out in this tournament. They’re healthy and they can defend, so if they can score they’re going to be really tough. … I actually thought we played well. I certainly can’t fault our team for what we did. They played well and executed a game plan, and we just lost to a team that hit some good shots out there.” Taylor added that 6-4 McGill post Alexandra Kiss-Rusk posed a serious challenge. “What (Kiss-Rusk) does, you have to game-plan it. You saw tonight our plan was to try and collapse down on her a little bit, but when you surround her with shooters she changes it. There’s players who you have to game-plan around and she’s the kid you have to game-plan. When they take advantage of the weaknesses in your game plan, this is what happens.” The teams were knotted 16-16 after the opening quarter but McGill went on a 9-2 run over a span of five minutes in the second, taking a lead that they would never relinquish. Pittsburgh transfers Frederique Potvin and Marika Guerin hit treys on back-to-back possessions late in the half and got another from Guerin with a minute to go before halftime, helping McGill take a 36-30 lead into the break. In the third quarter, McGill reeled off an 11-4 run over 6.5 minutes as the Cougars struggled to generate offence. That gave the Martlets their largest lead of the game at 49-38, but Katie Polischuk spun her way into the paint and scored a tough bucket to bring the Cougars within 49-40 after three quarters. The Cougars shifted to a full-court press and began to push the face in the fourth, which ignited a 12-2 run highlighted by a transition three by Polischuk that brought the Cougars to within one at 51-50. But Potvin hit a trey to start a quick 7-0 run that put the Martlets back up by eight, and they never led by fewer than 6 until time expired, with the Martlets hitting 8 free throws in the final minute to ice it. “This was just a case of a team that’s been in this situation before,” said Thorne. “It’s been a long road for us getting back — we had a lot of injuries all season — so probably our record doesn’t reflect how strong mentally those girls are. They’ve been there before so it wasn’t a tough situation for them.” Alexandra Kiss-Rusk was chosen player of the game for the Martlets. Fredericque Potvin paced the Martlets with 20 on 7-15 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 5 assists. Alexandra Kiss-Rusk added 12 on 5-11 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 11 boards and 6 assists. Marika Guerin added 12 on 4-7 from the floor, 4-5 from the arc, 2 boards and 3 assists. Jennifer Silver added 12 on 3-7 from the floor, 6-6 from the line and 4 boards. Gladys Hakizimana added 6 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante added 5 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 assists. Fredericke Laflamme added 3 on 1-2 from the floor and 1-2 from the line. Marie-Love Michel scored 2 on 1-3 from the floor and 4 boards. The Martlets hit 25-60 (.417) from the floor, 10-19 (.526) from the arc and 12-14 (.857) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 18 assists, 3 steals, 4 blocks, 14 turnovers and 14 fouls. Katie Polischuk paced the Cougars with 17 on 7-19 from the floor, 2-8 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 2 assists. Michaela Kleisinger added 9 on 3-5 from the floor, 2-2 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 6 boards. Kyanna Giles added 8 on 2-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 5 boards. Christina McCusker added 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-3 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Sara Hubenig added 6 on 3-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 4 boards and 2 assists. Avery Pearce added 4 on 2-4 from the floor and 2 boards. Kyia Giles added 4 on 1-2 from the floor and 2-2 from the line. Ainsley Macintyre added 4 on 1-3 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 2 boards. Angela Bongomin scored 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 5 boards. Alexi Rowden added 2 on 1-1 from the floor and 2 boards, while Britton Belyk was scoreless. The Cougars hit 23-65 (.354) from the floor, 4-16 from the arc and 12-14 (.857) from the line, while garnering 39 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 13 turnovers and 17 fouls. The Cougars (coach Dave Taylor, assistant Fatih Akser; assistant Carly Graham, assistant Lindsay Ledingham) also included Charlotte Kot, Michaela Kleisinger, Caitlin Zacharias, Kaitlyn Tonita and Erin Taylor.
The 7th-seeded Laval Rouge et Or stunned the 2nd-seeded Saskatchewan Huskies 69-59. The Rouge et Or led 21-5, 37-26 and 56-46 at the quarters. “We hit a lot of really good shots down the stretch when they were coming back slowly,” said Laval coach Guillaume Giroux. “We shot the ball well like we have done all year, so we are really happy about the result. … We are small, so we need to shoot the ball well,” said Giroux. “That opens lanes for us to drive the ball. Our speed also helps us to get open shots.” Saskatchewan coach Lisa Thomaidis said “credit to them, we knew that we were going to have to guard the three-point line and I think we did a pretty good job in our half-court defence. We forced a number of shot-clock violations but it was the broken plays that were a back-breaker for us. … We did not lose to a bad team by any stretch of the imagination—they were ranked No. 1 for a majority of the season and for us, we are still a young team. We are ecstatic to have won the Canada West banner and to be at nationals. This loss is a part of the process for us to gain the experience we need further down the road.” Gabrielle Girard was chosen player of the game for the Rouge et Or, while Megan Lindquist earned the laurels for the Huskies. Gabrielle Girard paced the Rouge et Or with 17 on 6-17 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists and 4 steals. Genevieve Derome added 16 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 7 boards and 3 assists. Raphaelle Cote added 13 on 5-8 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc and 9 boards. Claudia Emond added 9 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 3 boards. Jane Gagne added 6 on 3-10 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 blocks. Sarah-Jane Marois added 6 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Justine Guay-Bilodeau added 2 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 7 boards, while Laurie Marchand, Naomi Lavallee and Laurie Pelletier were scoreless. The Rouge et Or hit 28-63 (.444) from the floor, 11-24 (.458) from the arc and 2-3 (.667) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 4 steals, 2 blocks, 19 turnovers and 20 fouls. Summer Masikewich paced the Huskies with 17 on 8-12 from the floor, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 blocks. Megan Lindquist added 13 on 5-12 from the floor, 2-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 6 boards. Sabine Dukate added 13 on 5-16 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 3 boards. Libby Epoch notched 9 on 3-6 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 4 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Megan Ahlstrom added 4 on 1-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-3 from the line and 4 boards. Brianna Fehr added 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 2 boards. Madeline Humbert scored 2 on 1-2 from the line and 2 boards, while Vera Crooks was scoreless. The Huskies hit 23-56 (.411) from the floor, 3-16 (.188) from the arc and 10-17 (.588) from the line, while garnering 35 boards, including 10 on the offensive glass, 6 assists, 3 steals, 4 blocks, 15 turnovers and 9 fouls. The Huskies (coach Lisa Thomaidis, assistant Allison Fairbrother, assistant Megan Pinske, assistant Jacqueline Lavallee) also included Maya Olynyk, Christy Fehr, Sascha Lichtenwald, Kassidy Konkin, Kelsey Lalor and Janaya Brown.
In the last quarterfinal, the 3rd-seeded Queen’s Gaels dispatched the 6th-seeded Cape Breton Capers 60-51. “I thought our first half was an issue, certainly with our shooting and for us to get relaxed playing here because it’s a hyped-up environment so it does take a little bit of time to relax,” said Queen’s coach Dave Wilson. ”But we certainly don’t want to go into games giving up that much of a lead at the start—not often are we going to be able to come back like that.” Capers coach Fabian McKenzie said “we followed the game plan pretty well—we took some things away from them. They adjusted later on but I think in the first half we were pretty good.” McKenzie added that Colleen Keane was “pretty solid for us. She is our leader—wherever she goes we go. She’s the heart and soul of our group.” The Capers led 17-6, 30-21 and 42-39 at the quarters. But the Gaels rallied behind what amounted to a 33-5 run. “There were a couple things that we wanted to do on defence to disrupt their offence a little bit and that seemed to give us a little spark but the main thing we talked about was to relax and play our game,” said Wilson. Colleen Keane said “I think our team came out pretty strong in the beginning and then towards the end we lost our steam. It’s our first time here so it’s just a learning experience overall.” Marianne Alarie was chosen player of the game for the Gaels, while Keane earned the laurels for the Capers. Marianne Alarie paced the Gaels with 14 on 6-10 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc and 3 boards. Andrea Priamo added 10 on 5-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the line and 6 boards. Robyn Pearson scored 9 on 4-13 from the floor, 1-3 from the line, 10 boards and 2 steals. Emily Hazlett added 8 on 4-14 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 4 assists. Abby Dixon added 7 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-3 from the line, 10 boards, 5 assists and 2 steals. Veronika Lavergne scored 5 on 1-5 from the floor, 3-3 from the line and 3 boards. Gemma Bullard added 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Bridget Mulholland added 2 on 2-2 from the floor, while Sarah Saftich, Emma Ritcey, Katharina Holt and Myriam Fontaine were scoreless. The Gaels hit 25-66 (.379) from the floor, 2-7 (.286) from the arc and 8-14 (.571) from the line, while garnering 43 boards, including 17 on the offensive glass, 11 assists, 6 steals, 4 blocks, 12 turnovers and 16 fouls. Colleen Keane paced the Capers with 15 on 6-9 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Alison Keough added 12 on 4-7 from the floor, 4-6 from the line, 9 boards and 2 blocks. Jalynn Skeir added 7 on 3-6 from the floor and 1-2 from the arc. Hannah Brown scored 6 on 2-6 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 7 boards. Valentina Primossi added 5 on 2-7 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Natasha Roach added 4 on 2-6 from the floor and 0-3 from the arc. Timea Peter added 2 on 0-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-4 from the line 2 steals, while Madison Munro and Sandra Amoah were scoreless. Amoah nabbed 2 boards. The Capers hit 19-46 (.413) from the floor, 2-10 from the arc an d11-18 (.611) from the line, while garnering 31 boards, including 3 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 2 steals, 3 blocks, 17 turnovers and 19 fouls. The Capers (coach Fabian McKenzie, assistant Doug Connors, manager Aunalee Robinson) also included Karina Kuchta, Toni Bianchini, Rasheeka Gunn, Kristin Schilz and Mariona Calvo-Aubareda.
In the semis, the 4th-seeded McGill Martlets upset the top-seeded Carleton Ravens 66-60. “It’s a great statement for the Quebec conference,” said McGill coach Ryan Thorne. “We’ve (Laval and McGill) played each other four times in the regular season (with a 2-2 record) and this is the ultimate Game 5. They understand us and we understand them. It’s just going to come down to who executes better, who shoots better and who takes greater advantage of their opportunities.” Alexandra Kiss-Rusk, who notched a double-double while being chosen player of the game, said “I’m excited. We don’t have a lot of time to prepare so it’s nice that we know our opponent. We’ve been playing them all season, we are both going to be well-prepared and it’s going to be a battle tomorrow.” Kiss-Rusk notched 4 as the Martlets took an 11-4 lead, while star Carleton post Heather Lindsay picked up two quick fouls in three minutes. But Catherine Traer notched a left-handed hook shot and Cynthia Dupont nailed a bucket to cut the lead to three before McGill scored a late bucket to take a 15-10 lead after one quarter. Guard Marika Guerin notched a four-point play after being fouled on a triple to push the Martlets ahead 23-12 with 7:43 to play in the quarter. Alex Kiss-Rusk put the Martlets up by 14, but Elizabeth Leblanc’s trey at the buzzer capped a 15-2 run to end the half, as Carleton rallied within 29-28 at the break. Carleton took its first lead of the game on a Catherine Traer jumper to go up 32-31, but Frederique Potvin caught fire and went on a personal 9-2 run which included a pair of triples as McGill regained control at 40-35, midway through the third. Traer countered with three buckets to cut the deficit to 3 but McGill rebuilt its lead to 49-44 after three quarters. Kiss-Rusk scored the Martlets first seven points in the quarter. And then a three-point prayer tossed up by Frederique Potvin with no time left on the shot clock gave McGill a 59-52 lead with under three minutes to play. Carleton made one final push to tie, closing the gap to three on a Heather Lindsay turnaround jumper in the key, but McGill’s defence denied the Ravens on their final offensive possessions to secure the win. Thorne said Kiss-Rusk “was strong inside, dominant. When there was something there for her she took it and when there was not, she kicked it out 9to the perimeter), so that’s what was very positive. We got some good open looks, Fred (Potvin) knocked down a couple shots based on that, and that’s what we’ve got to continue to do for at least one more game. … Carleton was able to shut us down in certain areas but then we were able to do the same to them,” said Thorne. “Everyone just made sure that they didn’t get good clean looks and I think that was important and sealed the deal for us.” Kiss-Rusk said “I had a lot of help from my teammates today. We had some great outside shooting. Frederique shot the ball really well, she had some really clutch moments so that definitely opened up things inside.” Charles said “they did a decent job of taking us out of what we wanted to do. They knew that if they let us catch the ball that they would have a tough time covering people. We had free-throws we didn’t make and and-ones we didn’t make and at this level you have to make those and we just didn’t. It’s a tough lesson to learn at this time of year. … We’ve had a good season; this is the first game we’ve lost in this calendar year, but we just didn’t get it done when we needed to.” Jenjen Abella was chosen player of the game for the Ravens. Alexandra Kiss-Rusk paced the Martlets with 24 on 9-18 from the floor, 6-7 from the line, 13 boards, 3 assists and 2 blocks. Frederique Potvin added 16 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 3-3 from the line, 4 boards and 4 assists. Jennifer Silver added 8 on 3-5 from the floor, 2-4 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Marika Guerin scored 8 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc and 3-3 from the line. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante added 4 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Gladys Hakizimana added 4 on 0-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-4 from the line and 3 boards. Marie-Love Michel scored 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 5 boards, while Ruth Tshikudi-Tshila was scoreless. The Martlets hit 21-52 (.404) from the floor, 4-13 (.308) from the arc and 20-23 (.870) from the line, while garnering 41 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 19 fouls. Catherine Traer paced the Ravens with 16 on 6-17 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 3-5 from the line and 3 boards. Heather Lindsay added 13 on 6-11 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 5 boards. Jenjen Abella scored 13 on 5-7 from the floor, 2-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals. Elizabeth Leblanc scored 7 on 1-14 from the floor, 1-6 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 4 boards. Nicole Gilmore added 7 on 2-6 from the floor, 3-4 from the line, 5 boards and 2 steals. Cynthia Dupont added 4 on 2-5 from the floor, 3 boards and 2 assists, while Stephanie Carr, Alexandra Trivieri and Amanda Niyonkuru were scoreless. The Ravens hit 22-60 (.367) from the floor, 41-5 (.267) from the arc and 12-19 (.632) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 14 on the offensive glass, 9 assists, 6 steals, 2 blocks, 12 turnovers and 19 fouls.
In the other semi, the 7th-seeded Laval Rouge et Or knocked off the 3rd-seeded Queen’s Gaels 78-67. “This group is really focused now, they want to win and are engaged in the game plan so we are happy,” said Laval head coach Guillaume Giroux. Forward Raphaëlle Côté, who notched a double-double, said “I’m a good shooter and in the first they let me shoot,” said Côté. “Those are shots I have to take and I did.” The Rouge et Or led 22-17, 45-29 and 62-51 at the quarters. “We struggled a bit more in the second half,” said Giroux. “We allowed 38 points too. We have to fix that and make sure that doesn’t happen tomorrow.” Queen’s coach Dave Wilson said “in the first quarter they burned us really badly from the three-point line and as we squeezed out they penetrated the whole second quarter to score at the rim or get fouled. It was a great adjustment by coach Giroux.” Wilson added that Gemma Bullard kept his team in the game. “That’s the beauty of having veterans … they remain calm in the face of the storm and bring the energy even when you’re getting crushed a little bit.” Giroux said “they took the gamble that we would have a more quiet evening in our success percentages. From the way we started, they did not have the choice of going out on us to defend the three-point shot, and we were able to attack the basket with greater ease.” Claudia Émond was chosen player of the game for the Rouge et Or, while Gemma Bullard earned the laurels for the Gaels. Raphaelle Cote paced the Rouge et Or with 19 on 6-13 from the floor, 3-10 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 11 boards and 3 assists. Claudia Emond added 17 on 6-11 from the floor, 4-7 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 4 assists. Jane Gagne scored 14 on 6-9 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists. Sarah-Jane Marois scored 13 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 8-8 from the line and 3 boards. Gabrielle Girard added 6 on 3-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2 assists and 3 steals. Genevieve Derome scored 5 on 2-3 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 1-1 from the line. Justine Guay-Bilodeau added 2 on 0-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Laurie Marchand scored 1 on 1-2 from the floor. Naomi Lavallee added 1 on 0-3 from the floor and 1-2 from the line, while Laurie Pelletier was scoreless. The Rouge et Or hit 25-56 (.446) from the floor, 9-26 (.346) from the arc and 19-23 (.826) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 3 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 5 steals, 2 blocks, 16 turnovers and 21 fouls. Gemma Bullard paced the Gaels with 17 on 7-12 from the floor, 2-4 from the arc, 1-1 from the line and 3 boards. Emily Hazlett added 15 on 5-18 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 2-4 from the line, 3 boards and 3 assists. Andrea Priamo scored 9 on 3-4 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 2 boards. Robyn Pearson added 8 on 4-11 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 13 boards and 2 assists. Marianne Alarie scored 6 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Bridget Mulholland added 4 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Veronika Lavergne added 4 on 1-1 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Abby Dixon scored 3 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-4 from the line, 4 boards and 2 assists. Sarah Saftich added 1 on 0-2 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 1-2 from the line, while Emma Ritcey and Myriam Fontaine were scoreless. The Gaels hit 24-65 (.369) from the floor, 5-16 (.313) from the arc and 14-21 (.667) from the line, while garnering 40 boards, including 12 on the offensive glass, 10 assists, 3 steals, 16 turnovers and 21 fouls.
In the bronze medal match, the top-seeded Carleton Ravens defeated the 3rd-seeded Queen’s Gaels 53-43. “It was a very tough environment out there,” said Carleton coach Taffe Charles. “They were looking to get an upset and they played very well. They tested us, they changed things up on us and they were a desperate team.” The Gaels took an early 6-3 lead but Carleton countered with a 15-2 run to take an 18-8 lead after one quarter. The Ravens marksmanship went awry in the second, though, allowing Queen’s to knot the score at 23 before a late Catherine Traer trey gave them a 26-23 lead heading into the lockers. Traer hit back-to-back buckets to give Carleton a 30-23 lead but the Gaels clamped on defence and ripped off a 9-0 run capped by a Marianne Alarie jumper to take a 36-34 lead after three quarters. The Ravens got on track in the fourth quarter. Back-to-back jumpers by Traer re-established their lead and then Nicole Gilmore notched a personal 5-0 run to give Carleton a 46-38 lead. Jenjen Abella embedded the dagger with a trey at the 2:31 mark. “In the second quarter we kind of started to panic a little bit,” said Charles. “We kind of got in at halftime and I talked to the team about there being 40 minutes and they have to do this for 40 minutes.” Ravens player of the game Catherine Traer said “it was a really big character game… it shows really our character. Yesterday everybody was down (after losing in the semifinal) but we decided to unite as a team and bring our all today. We’ve played Queen’s. We know Queen’s and there is that rivalry. We wanted to do everything we could to make sure we would go out with a bronze medal.” Queen’s coach Dave Wilson said “there’s two things they have done all season long which is why they have been so good. Their defence is really tough, it’s difficult to get good looks and they do a great job of switching out on people and keeping pressure on the ball. … It was a great year for us overall. We set goals, made strides and were able to get almost all the way to the goal we set for ourselves. We look at this as an opportunity from which to build going forward.” Robyn Pearson was chosen player of the game for the Gaels. Catherine Traer paced the Ravens with 18 on 8-18 from the floor, 2-5 from the arc, 5 boards and 2 assists. Nicole Gilmore added 12 on 5-16 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 1-3 from the line and 11 boards. Elizabeth Leblanc scored 6 on 1-10 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 4-4 from the line, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Jenjen Abella added 6 on 2-7 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 2 boards and 3 assists. Cynthia Dupont notched 5 on 1-2 from the floor, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards. Stephanie Carr added 3 on 1-5 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc and 2 boards. Brianne Hamilton added 2 on 2-2 from the line. Heather Lindsay scored 1 on 0-2 from the floor and 1-3 from the line, while Alexandra Trivieri, Nicole Istead, Karyne Jolicoeur and Amanda Niyonkuru were scoreless. Jolicoeur nabbed 2 boards. The Ravens hit 18-63 (.286) from the floor, 5-21 (.238) from the arc and 12-20 (.600) from the line, while garnering 52 boards, including 16 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 2 steals, 5 blocks, 21 turnovers and 16 fouls. Andrea Priamo paced the Gaels with 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Robyn Pearson added 6 on 3-9 from the floor, 6 boards and 2 assists. Marianne Alarie added 6 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc and 3 boards. Veronika Lavergne scored 6 on 1-5 from the floor, 4-6 from the line and 2 boards. Emily Hazlett added 4 on 1-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Abby Dixon scored 4 on 1-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Bridget Mulholland scored 3 on 1-2 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 3 steals. Emma Ritcey added 3 on 1-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2 boards and 2 assists. Katherina holt added 2 on 1-2 from the floor and 0-1 from the arc, while Sarah Saftich, Myriam Fontaine and Gemma Bullard were scoreless. The Gaels hit 15-58 (.259) from the floor, 2-9 (.222) from the arc and 11-14 (.786) from the line, while garnering 38 boards, including 9 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 7 steals, 5 blocks, 19 turnovers and 19 fouls. The Gaels (coach Dave Wilson, assistant James Bambury, assistant Bob Freeman, therapy coordinator Vicky Wiltshire, strength & conditioning Colin McAuslan, recruiting coordinator Alex Dominato, athlete services & retention Sara Ali) also included Megan Saftich, Adriana Conti and Maddie Morris.
In the final, held on the Ken and Kathy Shields Court in the University of Victoria’s CARSA gym, the 4th-seeded McGill Martlets dispatched the 7th-seeded Laval Rouge et Or 66-55 to capture the school’s first national basketball crown. “Our slogan this year was ‘Together we rise’ and now we have risen to the top, with a U Sports national championship,” Martlets coach Ryan Thorne told Canadian Press. Thorne added Alexandra Kiss-Rusk, who notched a double-double and was named player of the game as well as tournament MVP, was exceptional. “She was the MVP of our team and she brought that with her to this situation so this was definitely a great opportunity for her.” Kiss-Rusk, who’d transferred from Virginia Tech to McGill, told the Victoria Times-Colonist that winning the title was “an unbelievable feeling. “It was a wide-open tournament and we went after it. People underestimated us as a team and our conference, but we came through.” Thorne told CIS “we’ve got a big heavy trophy coming home with us. We’ve always had the winning mindset, we just haven’t had the opportunities as much nationally. We’ve done a good job overall in terms of Quebec. We knew how to win there but I think we had to learn how to prepare and win nationally, so that’s where we got to right now.” Kiss-rusk said “it’s been a long road to get here for sure but we did it, so it feels great! This one is for the girls who came before us, too. Nobody expected it from us this year and a lot of people underestimated us. I had some great shooters on the outside so we were able to play some really good inside-out basketball and it ended up falling for me today pretty good.” Thorne said “one of the things that we talked about was the fact that this was an experience that the veterans had a couple years ago,” explained Thorne. “We told them to think of all the little things they didn’t do and all the regrets they had in that final and to make sure they wouldn’t have any when they finished this one, and they all came through. All those girls that are in their third or fourth year — Kiss-Rusk, Jennifer Silver, Marika Guerin, Marie-Love Michel — they had all been through that loss to Windsor, so it gives them a little bit of vindication there.” Laval coach Guillaume Giroux said the Martlet’s dominance on the boards was a “huge factor. We managed to deal with that a bit better when we played them in the season but they killed us on the glass, on both (ends of the court).” Thorne said “our size is greater than theirs. If they want to look for a bunch of three-point shooting, they have to get smaller (i.e. less personnel under the boards), so I knew that if we did a good job on the glass we could be successful.” Laval led 16-14 after one quarter. McGill led 28-24 at the half and 42-41 after three quarters. Giroux said “we were a little cold but you have to give them credit because our separation was not huge. They got on us a bit more and we had to do our layups through contact and we weren’t able to make those. We missed a couple of easy ones but they also forced us to rush some shots and that made it difficult.” Thorne said “there were times when it showed that we were nervous, and there were some times where the confidence and the experience of having been here before shone through and that’s what we got some great opportunities from. “The biggest thing was just not to panic and we didn’t do that. We knew that offensively if we went through Alex we’d get some great opportunities and defensively we just had to lock down and trust in our rotations. That’s what this team is built on, we’ve never focused in on one player. We have some strengths but overall, we were just unselfish. We like each other, work with each other and know that we can’t do it unless we work together.” Giroux said “we knew it was going to be a big challenge, because their 9-7 regular season record did not reflect what this team was capable of. We were dominated by the rebound, and it is a lot there that it was played. We also had difficulty taking quality throws, and we missed some that could have restored our confidence … The girls fought, they did everything they had to do and they have no regrets. We had a good preparation and we had a great weekend. It is disappointing, but one can be proud of the work accomplished.” Jane Gagné was named the player of the game for the Rouge et Or. Alexandra Kiss-Rusk paced the Martlets with 15 on 4-16 from the floor, 7-9 from the line, 20 boards, 5 assists and 3 blocks. Marika Guerin added 14 on 3-10 from the floor, 3-8 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Frederique Potvin added 12 on 4-9 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Jennifer Silver scored 10 on 5-7 from the floor and 7 boards. Gladys Hakizimana scored 8 on 3-7 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 1-1 from the line, 3 boards and 2 assists. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante added 5 on 1-4 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc and 2-2 from the line. Marie-Love Michel added 2 on 1-4 from the floor and 6 boards, while Fredericke Laflamme was scoreless. The Martlets hit 21-57 (.368) from the floor, 6-15 (.400) from the arc and 18-22 (.818) from the line, while garnering 52 boards, including 13 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 1 steal, 3 blocks, 18 turnovers and 12 fouls. Jane Gagne paced the Rouge et Or with 13 on 4-12 from the floor, 3-6 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Justine Guay-Bilodeau added 10 on 5-7 from the floor and 2 assists. Sarah-Jane Marois added 9 on 3-10 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Claudia Emond added 8 on 3-12 from the floor, 2-9 from the arc, 0-2 from the line, 6 boards and 3 assists. Gabrielle Girard added 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 5 boards and 2 assists. Genevieve Derome scored 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Raphaelle Cote scored 3 on 1-8 from the floor, 1-5 from the arc, 4 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals, while Laurie Marchand, Naomi Lavallee and Laurie Pelletier were scoreless. Marchand nabbed 2 boards. The Rouge et Or hit 20-66 (.303) from the floor, 8-29 (.276) from the arc and 7-10 from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 8 on the offensive glass, 13 assists, 7 steals, 1 block, 9 turnovers and 23 fouls.
The all-tournament team featured MVP Alexandra Kiss-Rusk (McGill); Catherine Traer (Carleton); Robyn Pearson (Queen’s); Jane Gagné (Laval); and Frédérique Potvin (McGill).
The bronze medalist Carleton Ravens: Jenjen Abella; Stephanie Carr; Alexandra Trivieri; Jaclyn Ronson; Nicole Istead; Kristina Maione; Catherine Traer; Brianne Hamilton; Nicole Gilmore; Cynthia Dupont-Latourneau; Karyne Jolicoeur; Amanda Niyonkuru; Elizabeth Leblanc; Heather Lindsay; coach Taffe Charles; assistant Dave Malowski; assistant Sarah Kennedy; assistant Eric Parthenis; therapist Caitlin Marshall; strength & conditioning Nick Westcott
The runner-up Laval Rouge et Or: Sarah-Jane Marois; Claudia Emond; Jane Gagne; Genevieve Derome; Gabrielle Girard; Raphaelle Cote; Justine Guay-Bilodeau; Laurie Marchand; Koralie Melancon; Marie-Pier Champagne; Naomi Lavallee; Sophie Boulanger; Gabrielle Raiche-Marcoux; Mathilde Geisser; Laurie Pelletier; Oulematou Sy; coach Guillaume Giroux; assistant Marie-Pascale Nadeau; assistant Francois Patenaud; assistant Justin Robert; trainer Leandre Gagne-Lemieux
The champion McGill Martlets: Gladys Hakizimana; Alex Kiss-Rusk; Frederique Potvin; Stephanie Mondou; Marika Guerin; Marie-Love Michel; Carissa Tapia; Geraldine Cabillo-Abante; Sarah Naderpour; Ruth Tshikudi-Tshila; Jennifer Silver; Fredericke Laflamme; Stephanie Guinois-Cote; Kim Lysius-Cote; Chiso Ufondu; coach Ryan Thorne; assistant Helen Magdalinos; assistant Rikki Bowles; assistant Bayonne Taty; physician Andrea Dolan; therapist Laura Abbatiello