The women’s basketball team met with the Carleton Ravens and suffered an unfortunate defeat after a delay of over an hour due to a lack of referees last Friday.
Concordia’s Anne-Marie Prophete sank two points to start the game with a lead for the Stingers. A foul by Concordia awarded two free throws to the Ravens and gave them the opportunity to tie the game. Concordia’s Kaylah Barrett made two foul shots, got the ball back in Stingers possession and then made two more points, securing the four point lead at 6-2.
A strong defence by the Stingers caused the Ravens to miss under the basket several times. An additional three-pointer by Magalie Beaulieu and two more points from Prophete gave the Stingers hope for a strong lead at 11-4. The Ravens made four baskets, but couldn’t manage to catch up to the Stingers thanks to a basket by Tina Mpondani and a beautiful three-pointer. The first quarter ended with a score of 16-12 for Concordia.
The second quarter started out with a booming entrance to the basket by Nekeita Lee, who sank the ball for two points while completely covered by Ravens. A bit over two minutes into the quarter, Carleton managed to score five times, giving them the lead. After a foul on a Ravens player and a three-pointer by Kendra Carrie, the Stingers had a one point lead. By mixing good passing under the basket and a strong defence, the Stingers forced the Ravens to run down the clock and regained possession of the ball, making the score 27-24.
Two fouls by Concordia, two baskets and four points later, Carleton regained their lead with a bit over one minute left in the half. The Stingers’ defence tried to break the Ravens, but a three-pointer and another basket proved to be enough to finish the first half in the Ravens’ favor with 37-29 lead.
Prophete challenged the Ravens at the beginning of the second half with four points, and teammate Yasmin Jean-Philippe matched her with a three-pointer and free throw three minutes into the quarter. Two free throws by Barrett and a basket by Beaulieu before a time out brought the score to 41-39 for Concordia. Prophete sank a three-pointer and held the lead at 44-42, for a few seconds until the Ravens got across the court to score again, tying the game. The Ravens made four more points, but also made some mistakes. Three fouls in a row on the Stingers gave Prophete and Andreanne Gregoire-Boudreau a chance to score a collective five points, ending the third quarter with the Stingers ahead by one at 49-48.
The final quarter began with a three-pointer for Carleton, giving them back the lead early on. Fouls to each team and two more baskets from Carleton ping-ponged the score. With six minutes left in the game, Prophete’s valiant efforts and resulting basket left the Stingers lagging by one point. The next two points from Carleton were challenged by a basket each from Carrie and Prophete, leaving the Ravens down by one point. A basket and two fouls gave the Ravens a five-point lead with a bit over a minute left in the game.
After a time out, Carleton sank one more basket and suffered a foul, making both free throws, which allowed them to hold the ball and run down the clock. When the final buzzer sounded, the score was a heartbreaking 71-63, with the close win going to Carleton. The team finished the pre-season with a 4-5 record.
The Stingers’ first regular season game will be Nov. 12, at Laval in Quebec City.
