Ryerson knocks off top ranked McGill for trip to ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS women’s basketball championship final
FREDERICTON (CIS) –Keneca Pingue-Giles, with 20 points, Mariah Nunes with 20, and Silvana Jez with 16, combined for most of the Ryerson University Rams offence, and had 18 of the team’s 33 rebounds, as the Rams upset the top ranked McGill Martlets in the second semi-final of the 2016 ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS Women’s Basketball Championship.
FREDERICTON (CIS) –Keneca Pingue-Giles, with 20 points, Mariah Nunes with 20, and Silvana Jez with 16, combined for most of the Ryerson University Rams offence, and had 18 of the team's 33 rebounds, as the Rams upset the top ranked McGill Martlets in the second semi-final of the 2016 ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS Women's Basketball Championship.
McGill trailed 45-28 at half, and just could not keep up with the triple threats of the fifth seeded Rams. Ryerson Rams now advance to the finals, thanks to the 87-72 final score.
Rams coach Carly Clarke was pleased with her team's game management. "We wanted to play with this tempo, and we set a good pace with rebounding off the boards, and defensive quickness to steal the ball," she said. Her coaching strategy worked, as the Rams forced 18 turnovers and scored 30 more points against McGill than the Martlets had allowed all year.
Still Clark had great respect for McGill. "They're a great team. They were a tough challenge," she said.
Ryerson University has never won a medal in woman's basketball, so the history of the moment was not lost on Clarke. "It 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."
Silvana Jez, who had 16 points and six rebounds, was emotional about the win. "It's hard to speak, right now," she said. "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."
The Ryerson Rams will meet the University of Saskatchewan Huskies in Sunday's final at, at 1:00PM Atlantic. The Huskies defeated Saint Mary's University 65-58, to earn the other spot in the national women's basketball final.
While the emotions were high for the Ryerson team, the McGill players and coach were not happy. The Martlets' player of the game, Jennifer Silver, scored 21 points in a losing cause. "I'm disappointed," said Silver. "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."
Silver, who is in her last year and has aspirations to get into medical school, said the team was excited to be in the national championship tournament, but wanted to win it too.
McGill coach Ryan Thorne was also disappointed. "We lost some tough battles in the first half," he said. "The little things hurt us, and we did not execute or made some mistakes and Ryerson exploited them."
McGill will play one more game, the bronze medal game, against Saint Mary's, on Sunday at 10:00AM Atlantic. "We came here to represent the university," said Thorne. "We have a chance to play for a medal, and we are going to play hard for a win."
