January 23, 2012

W-BASKETBALL ROUNDUP: Five teams post 2-0 weekend records

RMC Paladins @ Ottawa Gee-Gees

The OUA East first-place Gee-Gees improved to a 12-2 record with tonight’s 88-27 win over the visiting RMC Paladins.

A 16 point run in the first quarter opened the Gee-Gees up to a 29-4 point lead after 10 minutes, but RMC held their own in the second frame, narrowly outscoring the home Garnet and Grey. The Gee-Gees continued to get things done in the third and fourth frame, holding the Paladins to their lowest scoring game of the season.

“I think we started okay, but we actually missed some easy shots early. It was 29-4 at the quarter, but our usual scorers weren’t producing so much early. That does show the sign of our depth that other girls can pick it up,” commented head coach Andy Sparks.

The Gee-Gees finished the game with 29 steals on 44 RMC turnovers and shot a sharp 91% from the free throw line. Leading the way for the bench, rookie forward Maddie Stephen (Toronto, Ont.) notched a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds, going a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line.

“Maddie was solid throughout, an excellent game,” said Sparks, also noting the consistency of second-year guard Émilie Cyr (Montréal, Qué.) and first-year point guard Kellie Ring (Ottawa, Ont.), “Émilie and Maddie played well in first half, and Kellie was okay. I thought the rest of the girls were a little bit lethargic.”

“Towards the end of the game we had much better execution on the plays,” noted Stephen, “And we ran through some of our sets we’d been trying to work on in practice; and we had some really great finds and ball movement.”

Stephen also commented on her positive experience so far as a rookie on this successful Gee-Gees team, “It’s been great. We have such amazing leaders on the team. Being a first year it’s amazing been able to look up to them, like big sisters. We have great team chemistry and I love playing on the same team as them.”

“I still don’t think we’re not playing our best,” concluded Sparks, “But we get a chance to move forward in this type of game and get some players who we know deserve court time some good court time. Overall it is a nice result.”

Source: Gee-Gees Athletics

Queen’s Gaels @ Carleton Ravens

The Carleton University Ravens women’s basketball team was quick to recover from its Capital Hoops Classic disappointment with a 59-27 win over the Queen’s University Gaels Friday night at the Ravens’ Nest.

Ashleigh Cleary (Kemptville, Ont.) opened the scoring with a two-point basket for Carleton early in the first quarter as the Ravens rolled to a 19-4 lead after just ten minutes of play, with nine points coming from Alyson Bush (Ottawa).

The second quarter left the Gaels trailing by 20 points. They got new life in the third, outscoring the Ravens 15-11. But the Ravens turned it on again in the fourth, holding the Gaels to just two points in the quarter and scoring 18 of their own.

Kendall MacLeod (Brockville, Ont.) was the star of the game with 13 points and nine rebounds for Carleton. Three other Ravens reached double digits. Jessica Resch (Ottawa) had 12 and Bush finished with 11, while Cleary had 10. Liz Boag (Kingston, Ont.) was the Gaels’ top scorer with 11 points.

Queen’s was out-rebounded 40-35.

With the win, Carleton is now four points ahead of Queen’s in the OUA East standings.

Source: Ravens Athletics

Toronto Varsity Blues @ Laurentian Lady Vees

The Varsity Blues women’s basketball team held the Laurentian Lady Vees to single digits in two quarters to come away with a 68-49 win on Friday, January 20 in Sudbury, Ont.

Toronto’s win is their second straight, and improves their record to (9-5), just six points back of the Ottawa Gee-Gees for first in the East.

Sophomores Jill Stratton (Etobicoke, Ont.) and Kristina Menton of Manotick, Ont. led the way offensively with 12 points each. Stratton now has 215 points on the season, which places her ninth among CIS point-leaders. Stratton also picked up seven rebounds, while Menton had five.

Fifth-year guard and Toronto native Joanna Medri had five steals, helping the Blues cause 39 turnovers from the Lady Vees.

The Blues got off to a quick start, leading 22-7 after the first quarter, and 38-24 at the end of the half.

The Lady-Vees bounced back in the second-half, going on a nine-point run that included two three-pointers to cut Toronto’s lead to four, at 40-36.

But the Blues regained their composure in the final quarter, restoring a 20 point lead before a Laurentian free throw would make the final score 68-49.

The Lady-Vees were led by Erin Simpson, who recorded a double-double of 16 points and ten rebounds.

Source: Varsity Blues Athletics

Ryerson Rams @ York Lions

TORONTO - Ashley MacDonald scored a game-high 30 points and hit a three-pointer in the final seconds to give her team the lead for good, as the Ryerson Rams women's basketball team defeated the host York Lions 60-59 on Friday night.

The Rams trailed 22-13 after the opening quarter and 33-25 at the break. Ryerson rallied in the third quarter, outscoring the Lions 18-9, while the final frame was even at 17-17.

Pioneer Energy OUA Athlete of the Week Angela Tilk continues to roll, recording another double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Tilk has five double-doubles this season and three in the last three weeks.

Courtney Osbourne led York with a team-high 18 points, while Lyandra Kerr had nine points and 11 rebounds.

Source: Rams Athletics

McMaster Marauders @ Lakehead Thunderwolves

Thunder Bay, Ont. - The McMaster Marauders women's basketball team traveled up north to Thunder Bay to take on the Lakehead Thunderwolves on Friday night. In the first of two games against the Thunderwolves this weekend, the Marauders came out on top 74-57 with five Marauders hitting double-digit numbers on the night.

Up 25-13 after the first quarter, the Marauders would score another 17 and going into the second half would lead 42-30. In the third is when McMaster would really turn up the defence and pull away and they allowed the Thunderwolves to score just seven points to their 18. Despite Lakehead's 20 points in the fourth, the Marauders would be able to close out the win 74-57 for their sixth win of the season.

Taylor Chiarot was the game-high scorer with 14 points and eight rebounds. Liz Burns would score another 13 for McMaster and Stephanie Truelove would add another 11 points and five rebounds to the Marauders win. Hailey Milligan and Vanessa Bonomo would score another ten each for McMaster.

Lakehead's Ayse Kalkan scored a team-high 12 points for the home team and Lindsay Drurey added another nine points and nine rebounds.

Source: Marauders Athletics

Guelph Gryphons @ Waterloo Warriors

The Warriors put forth a valiant effort against a stingy Guelph Gryphons squad but came up short in the end losing by a score of 79-61 on Saturday afternoon as part of Fantastic Alumni Day at the PAC.

Both teams were shooting lights out to open the game as the score was tied 16 all before the Gryphons would go on a 10-1 run to outscore the home squad 29-19 in the first quarter.

From there the Gryphons would not look back going hoop for hoop with the Warriors before gaining separation once again in the final quarter by a 20-12 margin.

Centre Jasmine Douglas (Guelph, Ont.) was unstoppable on the afternoon knocking down a game high 24 points going 5-for-7 from the field and an astounding 14-of-15 (93.3%) from the line. Rookie forward Katherine Mactavish of Waterloo also led the Guelph attack with 15 points of her own while Ali Dzikowski (Brantford, Ont.) chipped in with 11.

As a team the Gryphons shot 41.5% from the field compared to Waterloo's 37.1% while reaching the free throw line 25 times, good on 21 of those. Waterloo was not as busy in the paint, awarded free throws only nine times in the game.

Laura Burnett (Heidelberg) was once again a consistent offensive threat for Waterloo with 13 points going 4-for-12 from the field and adding two three pointers. Mackenzie Lougheed (Owen Sound) was another solid player for the Warriors with 10 points, all coming off of field goals.

Waterloo dropped to 1-13 with the afternoon loss while Guelph kept their playoff hopes alive with a 6-8 record on the season.

The Warriors next action is this Wednesday in London as they face the Western Mustangs.

Source: Warriors Athletics

Laurier Golden Hawks @ Western Mustangs

LONDON, Ont. – The Western Mustangs’ women’s basketball team used a second quarter offensive surge at Alumni Hall Saturday afternoon en route to a 67-64 upset win over the visiting Laurier Golden Hawks, who entered the day in third place in the OUA West.

A pair of free throws by Katelyn Leddy with 41 seconds remaining put the Mustangs ahead by three and served as the final points of the game, as the Hawks were unable to connect on the other end.

With the win, Western (6-8) improved to 3-3 in the new year. The loss dropped Laurier to 9-5, but the Hawks remain in third place in the division. The Mustangs, meanwhile, sit in a tie for fifth.

Trailing by eight, 20-12, after the first quarter, the Mustangs exploded for 29 points in the second to take a 41-33 lead into the half. Laura Dally had 11 of those 41 first-half points on 5-of-9 shooting. As a team, the Western women shot 48.5% (16-for-33) in the opening two quarters. That number dropped to 41.7% in the second half, but it was still enough to hold off the Golden Hawks, who were held to 37.3% shooting overall.

Some of Western’s fist-half success can be attributed to their work on the boards. Despite facing the number two rebounding team in the conference, the Mustangs outrebounded the Hawks 24-15 in the opening half Saturday afternoon.

Dally finished 7-for-17 from the floor, including 3-for-8 from three-point range for 17 points. The second-year guard added seven rebounds in a team-high 36 minutes. Jenny Vaughan, who went 6-for-9 from the field, also had 17 points to go along with four assists. Rebecca Moss led the Mustangs on the boards, hauling in nine rebounds on the afternoon.

Christa Mancino was the top scorer for the Golden Hawks, finishing with a game-high 23 points on 11-of-21 shooting. She also added nine rebounds in the contest, second only to Kimberley Yeldon, who posted a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Felicia Mazerolle, who entered the day as Laurier’s leading scorer, struggled from the floor and finished with just six points on 2-of-10 shooting, although she did manage a game-high five assists and a pair of steals.

The Mustangs (6-8) are back in action at Alumni Hall this Wednesday, Jan. 25, when they will welcome the Waterloo Warriors (1-12) for a 6:00 p.m. game.

Source: Mustangs Athletics

Queen’s Gaels @ Ottawa Gee-Gees

Ten weeks, 70 days, 1680 hours. With tonight’s 73-51 win over the visiting Queen’s Gaels, that’s how long it’s been since the Gee-Gees last lost a game.

The Gee-Gees maintained control of the lead the entire game against the fourth-place OUA East Gaels, slowly building their lead as the first half winded down. Queen’s made a strong push in the third quarter, coming within four points of uOttawa, outscoring the Gee-Gees in the frame.

Second-year guard Sarah Nolette (Edmonton, Alta.) came flying out of the gate for the Gee-Gees in the fourth, opening up with back to back threes followed by a steal with another basket. Nolette finished with 10 points in three minutes in the fourth, leading the charge in the Gee-Gees' dominant fourth quarter.

“I know I’m a shooter, and sometimes I just have to prove it. And we needed the run, we needed the points,” said Nolette on her fourth quarter run.

“If we’d made our lay-ups, we’d say it was quite a big improvement [from last night],” said head coach Andy Sparks, “They’re a much stronger team than last night’s team [RMC]. But they hurt us with their transitions, and I think that was part of the problem. We got the shots we wanted to get, but we missed 19 easy stick-backs in the first half. We have to clean-up that a bit. But the fourth quarter was solid.”

Fifth-years Hannah Sunley-Paisley (Toronto, Ont.) and Bess Lennox (Ottawa, Ont.) both finished with a double-double in tonight’s win, Sunley-Paisley leading the way with 16 points and 13 rebounds with Lennox not far behind at 15 points and 11 rebounds.

Tonight was the Gee-Gees' fifth game in nine days, but the Gee-Gees didn’t let the fatigue pull them down. “The fact that we had a food fourth quarter probably means we pushed through on [the fatigue],” said Sparks, “The bench strength that we have allowed us to get through these games and play this one at a reasonable level.”

“Our team overall is so positive, and so supportive of each other,” highlighted Nolette as a key factor in the Gee-Gees' overall confidence. Nolette also noted the development of the Gee-Gees bench, “Our second-year players are taking it a step further and working hard at every practice and every minute on the court they earn. In the games we go in, we’re not scared. We’re just going in with our head straight and know what we want. ”

The Gee-Gees will return home next weekend to host Laurentian (3-11 OUA) and York (6-9 OUA) on Friday and Saturday night respectively, both games at Montpetit Hall at 6:00 p.m.

Source: Gee-Gees Athletics

RMC Paladins @ Carleton Ravens

The Carleton University Ravens women’s basketball team put an exclamation point on its dominant weekend in OUA action with a 58-34 win over the visiting RMC Paladins at the Ravens’ Nest on Saturday.

Alyson Bush (Ottawa) had a game-high 18 points and added an impressive five steals, while Kendall MacLeod (Brockville, Ont.) and Ashleigh Cleary (Kemptville, Ont.) each had 11 rebounds as the Ravens finish the weekend with a 2-0 showing.

After hanging with the Ravens in the first quarter down just three points, the Paladins came undone in the second quarter, outscored 24-2. That put the game out of reach for RMC by halftime, with Carleton ahead 34-9.

The Paladins fought back hard in the second half, particularly defensively, holding the Ravens to just 10 points in the third quarter and ultimately winning the second half.

But a valiant second-half effort wouldn’t be enough, as the Ravens dominated the Paladins in shooting and rebounding to cruise to a 24-point edge. The Ravens had as many rebounds as they did points, winning on the glass, 58-39.

The Paladins, meanwhile, weren’t able to find their groove, shooting 21.2 per cent from the field. Sandy Edmison (Carleton Place, Ont.) was RMC’s top performer, with 14 points and 11 rebounds in 30 minutes.

With the win, the Ravens improve to 10-5 on the season, keeping pace with Toronto for second place in the OUA East. The Paladins meanwhile are still looking for their first win of the season, dropping to 0-14 this year.

Next up for Carleton will be another home affair on Friday, Jan. 27, when the York University Lions visit the Ravens’ Nest. Tip-off is at 6 p.m.

Source: Ravens Athletics

Toronto Varsity Blues @ York Lions

Fifth-year guard Joanna Medri tallied a career-high 25 points in leading the Varsity Blues women’s basketball team to a 77-64 victory over the York Lions on Saturday, January 21 at Tait McKenzie Centre.

Tied at 48-48, the Blues had a monster fourth quarter, outscoring the Lions 29-16 en route to their 10th win of the season. The Blues remain tied with the Carleton Ravens (10-5) for second place in the OUA East, behind the first-place Ottawa Gee-Gees (12-2).

Medri was 9-of-16 from the floor, draining five three-pointers, to better her previous career-best (24 points, vs Windsor, 11/26/11). The Toronto native also added seven boards and five steals on the night.

Jill Stratton of Etobicoke, Ont., had 16 points, while fellow sophomore Liane Bailey (Montreal) had nine points and a team-high eight boards. Veteran forward and Mississauga, Ont., native Megan Stoncius also notched nine points in the win.

"We had a great defensive team effort in the fourth, found our legs and Joanna had an amazing offensive and defensive game for us," said Varsity Blues head coach Michele Belanger. "I'm really proud of the way the team fought and they never stopped working defensively. Everyone made great contributions."

York was led by Llyandra Kerr’s double-double of 22 points and 18 rebounds, while Samantha Ernest drained four three’s in a 17-point display in the loss.

The Varsity Blues return to the court next Friday, January 27 as they host the Queen’s Gaels at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Source: Varsity Blues Athletics

Ryerson Rams @ Laurentian Lady Vees

SUDBURY, Ont.- Angela Tilk continues to be unstoppable in the New Year. The Welland, Ont. native was dominant for the second night in the row on Saturday, recording a game-high 23 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Ryerson Rams women's basketball team to a 63-62 overtime victory against the Laurentian Lady Vees.

With the win, the Rams (7-8) leapfrog the York Lions into fifth-place in the OUA East division, and are just a half-game back of Queens (7-7) in fourth. The Lady Vees (3-12) are stuck in seventh after the weekend's matches.

Kelsey Wright (Brampton, Ont.) picked up 12 points and seven rebounds, while Ashley MacDonald (Port Colborne, Ont.) added nine points and five boards.

Erin Simpson also tallied 23 points to tie Tilk for the game-high in a losing cause for the Lady Vees.

Tilk now has tallied double-doubles in three straight contests and four in her past five games, and has been one of the top players in the OUA over the 2012 half of the season. Including tonight's contest, she is now sixth in the conference with an average of 15.5 points per game and third with 9.7 rebounds per game. Her rebounding is also fourth in the CIS.

She was named the OUA Female Athlete of the Week for the period ending January 15.

The women will return to Kerr Hall Gym next weekend, hosting the RMC Paladins and Queen's Gaels on Friday and Saturday respectively.

Source: Rams Athletics

McMaster Marauders @ Lakehead Thunderwolves

Thunder Bay, Ont. - The McMaster women's basketball team took down the Lakehead Thunderwolves for the second time this weekend on Saturday night by a score of 73-44. Captain Taylor Chiarot scored a game-high 23 points in the win.

In the low scoring first quarter with the Marauders leading 13-9, the visiting team would pick it up in the second, scoring 23 points and allowing Lakehead to score just nine of their own. Despite the Thunderwolves outscoring the Marauders in the third, McMaster's 19 points in the fourth quarter would be more than enough to overtake Lakehead. The Marauders now hold a 7-7 record.

Chiarot's 23 points and nine rebounds are accompanied by 12 points and six rebounds from Liz Burns. Hailey Milligan and Stephanie Truelove added ten more each for McMaster in the win.

For Lakehead, no one reached double digit numbers, but Aysa Kalkan recorded eight points and eight rebounds and Lindsay Druery added nine more for the Thunderwolves.

McMaster hosts the Guelph Gryphons on Wednesday night at 6:00 p.m.

Source: Marauders Athletics

Brock Badgers @ Windsor Lancers

On a night when CIS Player of the Year Jessica Clemencon reached the 1,000 point career milestone, the Lancer Women's Basketball team completely overwhelmed the Brock Badgers 80-52 at the St. Denis Centre.

Clemencon finished with 16 points and 9 rebounds while Bojana Kovacevic had a game-high 22 points on 8 of 10 from the field including 6 of 8 from three-point range in the victory.

With the win, the #2 ranked Lancers now move to 13-2 in conference play and remain in first place on the OUA West Division.

On Saturday night, after a tight first quarter that saw Windsor lead 20-18, the home team blew the game wide open in the second as they outscored the Badgers 22-7 to take a 42-25 halftime lead.

The second half was more of the same, as Brock had no answer for Kovacevic outside or Clemencon inside. The Lancers extended their lead to almost 30 points as they led 64-38 after three quarters.

With the game well in hand, the Lancers were able to get everyone some minutes in the fourth as the cruised to the 80-52 win.

Windsor was dominant on the glass as they outrebounded Brock 46-29 on the night. The also shot 55% from three-point land (11-20) as opposed to the Badgers were finished 2 of 9 for 22% shooting.

In addition to Clemencon and Kovacevic, Miah Langlois added 13 points, 4 assists and 4 steals while Bethany Wachna added 10 points and 8 rebounds. Laura Mullins also had strong showing as she went 3 of 3 from long range for 9 points.

The Lancers will be back at home next weekend when they host the Lakehead Thunderwolves for a pair of games at the St. Denis Centre. Tip-off is set for 6pm on both Friday and Saturday night. Saturday is also Breast Cancer Awareness Day for the Lancers as they'll be raising funds that night in support of Breast Cancer Research.

Source: Lancers Athletics

OUA SCHEDULE & RESULTS

January 20, 2012
RMC, 27 @ Ottawa, 88
Queen’s, 27 @ Carleton, 59
Toronto, 68 @ Laurentian, 49
Ryerson, 60 @ York, 59
McMaster, 74 @ Lakehead, 57

January 21, 2012
Guelph, 79 @ Waterloo, 61
Laurier, 64 @ Western, 67
RMC, 34 @ Carleton, 58
Queen’s, 51 @ Ottawa, 73
Toronto, 77 @ York, 64
Ryerson, 63 @ Laurentian, 62 (OT)
McMaster, 73 @ Lakehead, 44
Brock, 52 @ Windsor, 80

January 25, 2012
6:00 pm – Laurier @ Brock
6:00 pm – Guelph @ McMaster
6:00 pm – Waterloo @ Western

January 27, 2012
6:00 pm – Laurentian @ Ottawa
6:00 pm – York @ Carleton
6:00 pm – RMC @ Ryerson
6:00 pm – Queen’s @ Toronto
6:00 pm – Lakehead @ Windsor