REGULAR SEASON
| Laval | 14-2 | 26-5 | Guillaume Giroux | ||
| McGill | 9-7 | 23-9 | Ryan Thorne | ||
| UQAM | 8-8 | 14-12 | Albena Branzova-Dimitrova | ||
| Concordia | 7-9 | 15-13 | Tenicha Gittens | ||
| Bishop’s | 2-14 | 7-16 | Craig Norman | ||
Playoff non-qualifier Bishop’s Stingers: Edith Noblecilla, Metchline Gabelus, Ashley Milhomme, Eliane Potvin, Eva Kuhar, Noemie Hamel-Petit, Maude Archambault, Catherine Guay, Mara Lis Marcizotti, Tania Garcia, Ashley White, Charlene Pettigrew, Maeva Dinalle, coach Craig Norman, assistant Steve Cassivi, assistant Laura Emilie Cyr, graduate assistant Diane Andreville, director of operations Keith Kobelt, therapist Katrina lambert, student therapist Elisavet Gkorou
In the semis, the 4th-seeded Concordia Stingers stunned the top-seeded Laval Rouge et Or 69-65. Stingers coach Tenicha Gittens said she kept calling on veteran forward Marilyse Roy Viau to find answers. “I kept calling her name on offence and she came through. So did the rest of the team. Jazlin Barker had big game. The bench came in and gave us good minutes. … We believed in ourselves. We followed our game plan. We were prepared. We were ready for this game.” The Stingers led 15-9, 33-27 and 49-46 at the quarters. The only scare came at 5:40 of the fourth quarter when the Rouge et Or tied the game at 55-55. But Concordia quickly regained the lead on a jumper by Aurelie d’Anjou Drouin. “We could’ve easily folded when that happened,” Gittens said. “We have in the past, but we didn’t.” Rouge et Or coach Guillaume Giroux said “they played better. We turned the ball over 31 times and they made 26 points off our turnovers. You can’t win a game like that. I give them credit for the pressure they put on us. … Our physical game was disadvantaged against Concordia. They have been beaten four times this season, but once in overtime, and another time, with three minutes to play. The probabilities began to play against us. Their best players were their best, quite simply.” Laval knotted the score at 55 in the fourth quarter on a trey by Claudia Émond and a bucket by Jane Gagné. But the Stingers ripped off a 7-0 run to take command with two minutes to play. Marilyse Roy-Viau was chosen player of the game for the Stingers, while Sarah-Jane Marois earned the laurels for Laval. Marilyse Roy-Viau paced the Stingers with 18 on 6-17 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 9 boards, 4 assists and 2 steals. Jazlin Barker added 18 on 7-15 from the floor, 3-4 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 5 assists. Caroline Task scored 13 on 2-11 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 8-8 from the line, 6 boards and 2 assists. Richelle Gregoire notched 10 on 5-16 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 5 boards and 3 assists. Aure D’Anjou-Drouin added 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 2 steals, while Tamara Pinard-Devos, Jessika Joly and Ladonna Lamonth were scoreless. Pinard-Devois nabbed 5 boards and pilfered 5 balls. The Stingers hit 24-71 (.338) from the floor, 5-16 (.313) from the arc and 16-18 (.889) from the line, while garnering 32 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 14 assists, 12 steals, 1 block, 12 turnovers and 20 fouls. Sarah-Jane Marois paced the Rouge et Or with 20 on 6-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 7-7 from the line, 5 boards and 4 assists. Claudia Emond added 15 on 5-11 from the floor, 3-5 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 6 boards. Jane Gagne scored 11 on 5-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 6 boards and 2 steals. Genevieve Derome added 10 on 3-8 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 4-6 from the line and 3 boards. Gabrielle Girard scored 6 on 2-8 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 5 boards. Raphaelle Cote added 3 on 1-7 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 13 boards, while Justine Guay-Bilodeau and Laurie Marchand were scoreless. Marchand nabbed 2 boards.
In the other semi, the 2nd-seeded McGill Martlets edged the 3rd-seeded U.Q.A.M. Citadins 51-48. UQAM broke to 12-9 lead and held a 16-11 advantage after the opening quarter. The Citadins took a 25-22 edge at the half but McGill outscored them 15-6 in the third quarter to lead 37-31. The game was essentially won at the free throw line. “I don’t think our ball movement was great,” said Martlets coach Ryan Thorne. “We did okay in the third quarter but other than that we were a little stagnant and tried to force things a bit too much. When we got some good, open looks we made the best of them and knocked down a few big shots which helped us turn the corner. They (UQAM) seemed a little tight – we saw that from the first two teams today and from both teams that played this evening as well – so it kind of opened up in the second half and we’re happy about that.” Gladys Hakizimana, who was chosen player of the game for the Martlets, was exceptional, Thorne added. “Gladys is a strong guard. She’s only in her second year and can still make some little mistakes but she’s a gamer and she’ll come through in tight situations. She started up on a roll in the third quarter and then made a couple key passes in the fourth. She’s definitely someone that we need and it’s great. She got us into overtime in our last game against Laval, so she’s just got that game mentality where the moment’s never too big for her, she can play through it.” Jessica Lubin was chosen player of the game for the Citadins, injured her leg in the final quarter and was forced to the bench. “Lubin is a very good player,” said Thorne. “She’s tough and physical. The reality about our team is Alex (Kiss-Rusk) is probably our best player, however we’ve got a lot of other players who we can play to. They kind of took (Alex) away and we just went in other directions to be successful.” Gladys Hakizimana paced the Martlets with 11 on 2-9 from the floor, 1-2 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 2 boards and 4 assists. Frederique Potvin added 9 on 3-12 from the floor, 1-3 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 3 boards and 4 assists. Jennifer Silver added 9 on 4-14 from the floor, 1-1 from the line, 8 boards and 2 steals. Alex Kiss-Rusk notched 8 on 3-10 from the floor, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards, 2 assists and 2 blocks. Marie-Love Michel scored 7 on 2-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 10 boards. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante scored 4 on 1-3 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 4 boards. Marika Guerin added 3 on 0-4 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3-4 from the line and 4 boards, while Ruth Tshikudi-Tshila and Fredericke Laflamme were scoreless. The Martlets hit 15-58 (.259) from the floor, 2-10 from the arc and 19-21 (.905) from the line, while garnering 47 boards, including 18 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 4 steals, 3 blocks, 24 turnovers and 16 fouls. Queteline Celestin led the Citadins with 18 on 6-14 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 5-6 from the line, 8 boards, 4 assists and 3 steals. Jessica Lubin added 17 on 6-18 from the floor, 5-6 from the line, 10 boards and 2 blocks. Sarah Cabana scored 4 on 2-6 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc and 4 steals. Bianca Morris added 3 on 1-9 from the floor, 0-3 from the arc, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards. Roxanne Boulianne-Douaire added 3 on 1-4 from the floor and 1-3 from the arc. Veronique Boivin added 2 on 1-4 from the floor, 0-2 from the line, 2 boards and 2 steals. Alexe Dufresne added 1 on 0-3 from the floor, 1-2 from the line and 4 boards, while Andreanne Jean, Eve Labissiere, Manon Coquelin, Annabelle Baku and Clara Blachier were scoreless. The Citadins hit 17-58 (.293) from the floor, 2-11 (.182) from the arc and 12-18 (.667) from the line, while garnering 36 boards, including 11 on the offensive glass, 7 assists, 10 steals, 4 blocks, 14 turnovers and 19 fouls.
In the final, the 2nd-seeded McGill Martlets defeated the 4th-seeded Concordia Stingers 63-51. “I think this is the sweetest (of the team’s six straight crowns),” said Martlets coach Ryan Thorne. The Martlets struggled early in the season and had a 2-5 record before rallying to win seven of their last nine and finishing second in the regular season, their lowest standing in eight years. “I heard a lot of talk this year about us not being the same team, that we were not that good. I thought there were a lot of disrespectful comments.” Alexandria Kiss-Rusk, a transfer from Virginia Tech, said “just because of the season we had, it was definitely a lot more unexpected. A lot of people counted us out, so that makes it a little nicer.” Thorne said Quebec teams “play each other so many times that we know each other’s offence like it’s our own. Now it’s just being in the right spot and the right time, so that’s what we did. We were able to challenge shots, we were able to take some people away and not allow them to attack us too much and that was good.” The Martlets led 11-5, 26-18 and 40-36 at the quarters. Kiss-Rusk dominated the floor. “I’ve played well against Concordia this season and last season as well so I was expecting to have a better game,” she said. “A lot of stuff didn’t fall for me but my team came through for sure.” Thorne said Kiss-Rusk is “six-four and they’re not, that’s the big difference. We’ve just got to move the ball to find her in an easier position, that’s all.” Gladys Hakizimana was chosen player of the game for the Martlets, while Richelle Gregoire earned the laurels for the Stingers. Thorne said his squad wasn’t familiar with the Centre Pierre-Charbonneau. “We made a conscious effort to try and close down some of those (running) lanes and not be out-denying everybody. This is a new venue for everyone so your shots aren’t going to be great — I don’t think we even hit a three today — so that’s it, you’ve got to rely on getting the ball inside. If we take away those lanes, they don’t have those tries so they’ve got to play outside. It makes it a little easier for us.” Alex Kiss-Rusk paced the Martlets with 18 on 8-15 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line, 7 boards and 4 blocks. Gladys Hakizimana added 13 on 3-12 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 7-9 from the line, 5 boards and 8 assists. Marie-Love Michel notched 10 on 4-8 from the floor, 2-6 from the line and 15 boards. Jennifer Silver added 9 on 4-7 from the floor, 1-1 from the line and 4 boards. Marika Guerin scored 6 on 0-7 from the floor, 0-4 from the arc, 6-6 from the line, 4 boards, 3 assists and 4 steals. Geraldine Cabillo-Abante added 6 on 3-9 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 3 boards and 2 steals. Frederique Potvin added 1 on 0-5 from the floor, 0-1 from the arc, 1-2 from the line, 5 boards and 3 assists, while Ruth Tshikudi-Tshila, Fredericke Laflamme and Stephanie Guinois-Cote were scoreless. The Martlets hit 22-63 (.349) from the floor, 0-11 from the arc and 19-26 (.731) from the line, while garnering 50 boards, including 15 on the offensive glass, 15 assists, 8 steals, 5 blocks, 15 turnovers and 13 fouls. Richelle Gregoire paced the Stingers with 21 on 8-17 from the floor, 2-6 from the arc, 3-4 from the line, 7 boards and 4 steals. Aure D’Anjou-Drouin added 11 on 4-4 from the floor, 1-1 from the arc, 2-2 from the line and 3 boards. Marilyse Roy-Viau scored 10 on 3-19 from the floor, 1-4 from the arc, 3-5 from the line, 5 boards, 2 assists and 2 steals. Caroline Task added 5 on 2-10 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc and 1-2 from the line. Jazlin Barker scored 4 on 2-9 from the floor, 0-2 from the arc, 0-1 from the line, 3 boards and 6 assists, while Tamara Pinard-Devos, Jessika Joly and Ladonna Lamonth were scoreless. Pinard-Devois nabbed 3 boards and dished 2 assists. The Stingers hit 19-60 (.317) from the floor, 4-15 (.267) from the arc and 9-14 (.643) from the line, while garnering 30 boards, including 6 on the offensive glass, 12 assists, 6 steals, 5 blocks, 14 turnovers and 21 fouls.
The co-bronze medalist 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 co-bronze medalist U.Q.A.M. Citadins: Queteline Celestin; Jessica Lubin; Sarah Cabana; Bianca Morris; Roxanne Boulianne-Douaire; Veronique Boivin; Alexe Dufresne; Andreanne Jean; Eve Labissiere; Manon Coquelin; Annabelle Baku; Clara Blachier; Anne-Florence Bastien; Marie-Eve Mercier; Claudia Riel; coached Albena Branzova-Dimitrova
The runner-up Concordia Stingers: Tamara Pinard-Devos; Marilyse Roy-Viau; Aurelie d’Anjou-Drouin; Richelle Gregoire; Jessika Joly; Latifah Roach; Elizabeth Khosravi; Caroline Task; Marvia Dean; Ashley Moss; Jazlin Barker; Ladonna Lamonth; coach Tenicha Gittens
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