Author: Casey Dulson

The Concordia men’s basketball team defeated UQÀM at home in a close match on Jan. 16

The Stingers entered their home game on Saturday, Jan. 16 against the UQÀM Citadins with a chance to earn a sweep in their home-and-home series.

On Jan. 14, the Stingers defeated the Citadins 74-61 and were eager to defeat them for a second time. Saturday afternoon’s game proved to be exciting as the back and forth pace between the two teams created an electric atmosphere. In the end, the Stingers prevailed 71-66 to win the last leg of the home-and-home.

Earlier in the game, the level of intensity was quickly elevated, with both teams matching each other after each basket. The Stingers took control of the match in the middle of the first quarter because of back-to-back three-point shots by forward Ken Beaulieu and guard Jaleel Webb. The score was 21-10 after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, the Citadins got a hot start from forward Henrilo Londole as he scored the quarter’s first six points. The Stingers started the quarter cold which allowed the Citadins to cut the lead to five points at 21-16.  Concordia then rebounded as Beaulieu increased the Stingers lead to 16 points. The Citadins got a late three-pointer by guard Charles Miller in the quarter which cut the Stingers lead to 11 points.

The start of the third quarter was similar to the second quarter as the Citadins scored five unanswered points to cut the Stingers lead to six points. Late in the quarter, after the Citadins ended up cutting the Stingers lead to six points, Stingers forward Schneiders Suffrard took control of the game and scored six straight points to end the quarter. The Stingers led 50-45 after the third quarter.

The fourth quarter started with a Citadins basket by guard Kewyn Blain. The Stingers responded with a basket scored by Suffrard. In the middle of the quarter, the Citadins ended up taking their second lead of the game off of a three-pointer by guard Greishe Clerjuste. Both teams continued to trade shots in the last few minutes of the game. Stingers forward Michael Fosu’s basket with 45 seconds left was the turning point as the Stingers scored six straight points after that to ensure the victory.

“I was very happy about how the guys responded after [UQÀM] took the lead, they stuck to the game plan and made big shots down the stretch,” Stingers head coach Rastko Popovic said.  

Fosu, who was a large part of the team’s victory, and said that the game was a tale of two halves.

”In the first half, I felt like we were imposing our will on them and then in the second half, we were acting casual and thinking this game was going to be easy,” Fosu said. “Luckily we were able to bounce back and hold them down.”

Up next, the Stingers will play the 6-1 McGill Redmen who are currently ranked second in the country in a home-and-home series starting on Jan. 21.

Concordia fails to win in home-and-home against the Rouge et Or

The Concordia Stingers hosted the Laval Rouge et Or on Jan. 7. These were the first games of the second half of the RSEQ regular season and the first home-and- home of the year. Both Stingers teams lost, with the women losing 66-60 and the men losing 68-60.

The women’s basketball team started the game off well with great three-point shooting. The team got two three-pointers by forward Richelle Gregoire and shooting guard Marie-Ève Martin to give the Stingers a 17-8 lead midway through the first quarter. The Stingers lead dwindled late in the quarter as the Rouge et Or went on a 7-0 run, which brought the Stingers lead down to two points.

The second quarter saw the two teams trading baskets between one another. The Stingers took a 28-19 lead halfway through the quarter after another three- pointer by Martin. Later on in the quarter, the Rouge et Or cut the Stingers lead to 30-29 at halftime.

In the third quarter, the Rouge et Or took their first lead of the game with three minutes left in the quarter thanks to guard Claudia Emond. Emond hit back-to-back threes to give the Rouge et Or a 41-38 lead.

The fourth quarter saw the Stingers commit quite a few turnovers at key times in the quarter. The Rouge et Or ended up winning the game because of excellent three-point shooting from Geneviève Derome and guard Raphaëlle Côté. The Stingers did tie the game at 54 on a three-pointer by Martin, however Derome came back with a three-pointer of her own which was the turning point in the game.

According to Stingers coach Tenicha Gittens turnovers and bad shooting from the free throw line were key to the Stingers loss.

“They got six points off second-chance points and another seven off of when we went 7-13 from the free-throw line. We gave up 13 points where we shouldn’t have,” said Gittens.

On the Men’s side, the Stingers led 19-13 after the first quarter because of clutch three-point shooting from forward Jaleel Webb who scored six of his seven points in the first quarter.

The Stingers opened up the second quarter with an 8-0 run led by forward Jean Daniel Mathieu who scored four of his six points on the run to increase their lead. The Rouge et Or made a comeback to make the game interesting as forward Thibaud Dezutter took control of the game scoring 11 of his 18 points during the quarter. The Stingers led 33-29 at halftime.

The Rouge et Or started the third quarter with a bang as guard Karl Demers-Bélanger hit a three-pointer which led to a 7-0 run and the lead. The Stingers shooters went cold for the first four minutes of the quarter up until forward Ken Beaulieu got a basket. The Stingers rebounded and made it a one point game, 43-42 after point guard Ricardo Monge got a three-pointer. The Rouge et Or went on a 6-0 run to regain their lead. The quarter ended with the Stingers trailing, 52-47.

The fourth quarter started with a Rouge et Or three-pointer by Dezutter and a 9-0 run. The Stingers ended up scoring nine unanswered points to make it a one-point game halfway through the quarter. In the last five minutes of the game, the Stingers were not able to score a single point.

After the game, Stingers coach Rastko Popovic said his team lacked in terms of offensive rebounds and precise free- throw shooting. For Popovic, those were the reasons why the team failed to put up the win.

The following night on Jan. 8, the Stingers played Laval in Quebec City. The women’s team got blown out by a score of 57-31. The Stingers had a shooting percentage of 16.1 per cent and only made 10 field goals. The Stingers leading scorer was forward Marilyse Roy-Viau who had 11 points. On the other side, the men’s team lost 71-62. The team lacked three-point shooting as they only made four out  of 25 tries. Stingers forward Ken Beaulieu had 17 points in the loss.  

The women’s team is now 1-5 on the year and the men’s team is 2-3 on the year. Next week, the Stingers basketball teams will participate in a home and home with the UQÀM Citadins.

 

Looking back at the best games and memories from the last season of Concordia sports

The 2015 season was a fantastic year for Concordia’s teams and its athletes.

Several of the teams picked up huge wins over big opponents, while a few athletes picked up impressive accolades. Among the award-winning athletes were Stingers quarterback Trenton Miller and women’s rugby centre Frédérique Rajotte who both won RSEQ MVP honours in their respective sports.

Without further ado, here are the top eight moments from the 2015 season.

8. Stingers quarterback Trenton Miller wins the RSEQ MVP. Miller led the RSEQ in passes as he threw for 20 touchdowns and passed for 2384 yards this season. He became the first Stingers player to get the MVP honors since former quarterback Scott Syvret won it in 2005. 

7. Frédérique Rajotte, third-year center on the women’s rugby team, wins the RSEQ MVP. She had 12 tries in seven games. Rajotte continued the trend of Stingers women’s rugby players winning the award. Last season, it was third-year center Alex Tessier who won MVP honors.

6. The women’s hockey team defeated the Université de Montréal Carabins 1-0. The Carabins were ranked No. 1 in the CIS top 10 poll at the time. This was also the first victory for interim head coach Julie Chu.

5. The men’s basketball team won the Concordia Classic tournament for the first time since 2010. The team defeated the UPEI Panthers 82-70 on Oct. 10 to clinch the championship. The tournament championship was important because it gave the team momentum during the first half of the season as they finished with a record of 9-4.

4. The women’s basketball team had the rare opportunity to host the defending CIS champions Windsor Lancers in a preseason tilt at home on Oct. 16. The Stingers pulled the upset by beating the Lancers 70-63. They scored 40 points in the first half, which played a huge role in the win. The Stingers last win against the Lancers was on Dec. 29 of 2012.

3. This season, the women’s rugby team advanced to the CIS nationals for the first time since 2012. The team only had two losses in the regular season, both of which were against the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, including one in the RSEQ championship game. The Rugby team ended up finishing fourth at the CIS national championship after they lost to the Gee-Gees in the bronze medal game.

2. The Stingers men’s hockey team hosted the Windsor Lancers on the weekend of Oct. 16 and 17. The Stingers had not beaten the Lancers since November of 2006. The Stingers lost the first game with a score of 6-5. The following day, the Stingers finally beat the Lancers 6-5 in a thrilling shootout.

1. The Stingers football team went to the Percival Molson Memorial Stadium to play the McGill Redmen on Oct. 24. The winner of the game would get the last remaining spot in the RSEQ playoffs. The Stingers were in full control of the game and had a huge lead for the majority of  the match. The Redmen ended up taking a 41-40 lead with two minutes left. Stingers quarterback Trenton Miller led the Stingers offense down the field for 70 yards. This led to Stingers kicker Keegan Treloar kicking a 30-yard field goal to win the game.  While the Stingers lost the first game of the playoffs, this game will never be forgotten.

The Stingers women’s basketball team won their first game of the season on Nov. 28.

The Concordia Stingers women’s and men’s basketball teams hosted the Bishop’s University Gaiters on Nov. 28 in their last games before the winter break. The Stingers women’s basketball team was looking to capture their first win in league play, while the men’s team was looking for their third win of the season. In the end, the women were victorious with a 69-43 blowout win. The men’s team lost their game 66-60 after having the lead for the first three quarters.

On the women’s side, the Stingers dominated the Gaiters in the first quarter. Midway through the first quarter, the Stingers were boasting a 12-1 lead. Stingers shooting guard Marie-Eve Martin was a big reason why the Stingers were up as she knocked down back to three-point shots. By the end of the first quarter, the Stingers were up 16-6.

In the second quarter, the Stingers continued their dominance as point guard Tamara Pinard-Devos gave the Stingers the first points of the quarter. Pinard-Devos would score five more points in the quarter. The Stingers went into the locker room at halftime leading by 18 points, 36-16.

“We knew that this was a must win game,” Stingers coach Tenicha Gittens said. “No one wants to go 0-4 heading into the Christmas break.”

The Gaiters got the first points of the third quarter on a basket by guard Noemie Hamel-Petit. Martin of the Stingers then scored the first points for the team in the quarter with a three-pointer. The Stingers played great defense and caused turnovers and shot clock violations. The Gaiters did not score a basket for five minutes in the quarter which was the turning point in the game.  The Stingers led by a score of 50-28 after three quarters.

The Gaiters scored the first points of the fourth quarter on a basket by forward Charlene Pettigrew. The Stingers responded with a 7-0 run including another three-pointer by Martin to seal the win.

Marie-Eve Martin had 23 points and eight rebounds in the victory.

“They were not guarding me,” Martin said. “It gets easier for me. I guess usually I have someone on my shots all the time.”

“We need to improve on our effort for four quarters,” Gittens said about the team’s goal for the second half of the season.

On the Men’s side, the Stingers started the game off by dominating for the first five minutes. The team led 10-0 after guard Jaleel Webb hit back-to-back threes. The Stingers ended the first quarter in full control of the game, leading 25-13.

The Gaiters got on the board first to start the second quarter as forward David Belanger drained a jump shot. The Stingers big lead began to diminish late in the quarter as the Gaiters cut it down to nine points. In the last minute of the half, the Gaiters cut the Stingers lead to seven on a three-pointer by guard Jonathan Bermillo. The score was 33-26 at halftime.

“We had two good stretches for about eight minutes where we took a 10-13 point lead,” Stingers coach Rastko Popovic said. “But we were very inconsistent in our intensity and our defense did not follow the game plan like earlier.”

The Stingers started the third quarter with a bang as Jaleel Webb hit a three pointer to put the lead back to ten. Things began to unravel for the Stingers with three minutes to go as the Gaiters mounted a comeback led by Abdul Kamane. Kamane scored seven points to end the quarter which saw Bishop’s cut the Stingers lead to just five points, at a score of 48-43.

The fourth quarter was filled with dramatics from both sides. The Gaiters started the quarter with a 7-0 run to take the lead which was capped off by a three-pointer from Bermillo. The Stingers retook the lead on a three-pointer by Webb. The Gaiters took the lead for good with four minutes left as Bermillo hit back to back three-pointers. Stingers forward Ken Beaulieu did make things interesting late as he cut the Gaiters lead to three after a three-pointer. However, the game would end 66-60 in Bishop’s favour.

“We should have won this game,” Stingers forward Schneiders Suffrard said. “There was a lack of discipline.”

“We have to get mentally tougher and some of our young guys need to learn how to compete for forty minutes,” said Popovic.

Both Stingers teams lost to the higher ranked Martlets and Redman

The Stingers women’s basketball team and the men’s basketball team fell to the McGill Martlets and the McGill Redman respectively on Nov. 19. The Martlets who are ranked second in the CIS narrowly beat the women’s team 59-54 and the Redmen who are ranked third in the CIS blew out the men 75-53.

In the first game of the night, which saw the women’s team take on the Martlets, the Stingers came out rocking and took an early 5-2 lead after a three pointer by shooting guard, Marie-Eve Martin. Despite being down early, the Martlets picked up their game and came out of the first quarter with a 14-7 lead.

The Stingers started the second quarter with a few baskets, which cut the Martlets lead down to three points. After failing to score in the first three minutes of the quarter, the Martlets racked up back-to-back three pointers by forward Stephanie Blais and guard Dianna Ros. The Martlets took a commanding 31-17 lead into the locker room at half-time.

The Stingers came hot out in the third quarter as they started with a 12-0 run. Stingers forward Richelle Gregoire scored five points during the streak. Late in the third quarter, the Martlets lead was down to three points. The score was 41-38 heading into the final quarter.

“We did a much better job sticking with it in the second half,” Stingers coach Tenicha Gittens said. “Our girls fought. Usually they succumb to being down to a big deficit.”

The Martlets started the fourth quarter with a bang as Martlet forward Gabriela Hebert hit a three pointer. McGill continued to hit shots and free throws and the Martlets were able to give themselves a 12 point lead in the quarter. The game then got close with 34 seconds left when the  Stingers came storming back and scored three straight three pointers to cut the Martlets margin of victory down to five.

Stingers forward, Marilyse Roy-Viau had 16 points and seven rebounds in the lost.

“We are building something here and getting better each game but we did not come out with the win,” Viau said. “We should have made our free throws and kept our temper at some points but overall we did a good job.”

On the Men’s side, the third ranked Redmen were the dominant side in the opening quarter due  to their consistent three point shooting. The Redmen scored three times on three pointers including their first which opened the scoring. The three pointer was scored by Redman forward François Bourque, which helped the Redman create their 15-11 lead after the first quarter.

The Redman started the second quarter with a bang as shooting forward Michael Peterkin went airborne for a slam dunk. The Stingers led by forward Xander Jean, cut the Redmen lead to  17-16 after he scored on a free throw and a jump shot. The Redmen then took full control in the quarter as guard Dele Ogundokun scored two free throws which gave the Redman a six point lead. The Redmen led the Stingers 34-26 at half-time.

The Redmen got the first basket of the third quarter as guard Jenning Leung hit a three pointer. The Redmen halfway through the quarter took an 11-point lead but the Stingers crawled back and cut their lead to seven. To end the quarter, the Redman increased their lead to 12 points and led 54-42.

Redmen guard Tychon Carter-Newman scored six straight points to open the fourth quarter. The Stingers could not muster any points for the first five minutes of the quarter which saw the Redmen score eleven points. The Stingers were not able to find their footing late in the quarter and lost by 22 points.

“We just did not play for 40 minutes,” Stingers coach Rastko Popovic said. “[The Redman] did play a full game and that’s why they are the number three team in the country.”

Some of the Stingers best players are now among the RSEQ’s most valuable

American-born quarterback Trenton Miller of the Concordia Stingers was awarded the Jeff Russel Memorial Trophy on Nov. 13 which is a honour given to the most outstanding player in the RSEQ division.

“It feels great, but I want everyone to feel great about it because Concordia is a family and when someone wins an award, we all do,” Miller said

Miller is now the Quebec representative for the Hec Crighton Trophy which is given to the best player in the CIS. Miller is the second Concordia Stingers athlete to win Quebec MVP honours this fall as Stingers women’s rugby third-year center Frédérique Rajotte captured the RSEQ MVP award last month.

Miller, a native of Buffalo, New York, dazzled the RSEQ division this season after leading the Stingers to a 4-4 record. He is the fourth Concordia Stinger player to win the award and the first since quarterback Scott Syvret won it in 2005.

In his first season in Canada, Miller led the RSEQ in passing with 2,384 yards and 20 touchdown passes. He also completed 204 passes which was second-best in the CIS. Miller was able to break the Stingers record for most touchdowns and completions in a season which belonged to former Stinger quarterback Rob Mackay. Miller played in all eight games this season but only started in six.

Miller said that his favourite moment from the season was when the Stingers clinched a playoff berth against their rivals, the McGill Redmen, on a last-second 30-yard field goal by Keegan Treloar.

“The celebration on the field was pretty special and something I’ll never forget,” Miller said.

Miller is in his first year as an MBA student at the John Molson School of Business, which is something he admits is quite difficult when combined with football.

“It’s more of a thing where you just have to do it, don’t complain and just get your work done. No excuses,” Miller said.

The Stingers ended their season with a playoff loss to the Laval Rouge et Or. Miller will now head to Quebec City for the CIS awards ceremony to see if he wins the Hec Crighton Trophy. He will be up against Calgary Dinos quarterback Andrew Buckley who captured it last year, as well as St. Francis Xavier running back Ashton Dickson and Western Mustangs quarterback Will Finch.

Rajotte, who won the MVP award for women’s rugby, is a third-year communications major and a native of Markham, Ontario. Rajotte led the Stingers to a 6-1 record this season and became the second straight Stingers player to win MVP. Last year it was Alex Tessier who took home the coveted prize.

“I feel extremely honored and proud to be a part of the Stinger family and receiving this award,” Rajotte said. “I have to give credit to my teammates. We’ve had an unbelievable season together.

Rajotte’s season is still not over as her and her teammate Tessier will be touring England in December as members of Team Canada.

The women’s basketball team fell to the Citadins while the men were victorious

Both the men’s and women’s basketball teams kicked off their season on Nov. 7 against the Université du Québec à Montréal Citadins on their home courts.

After impressive pre-seasons by both teams, the women’s team lost to the Citadins by a 64-49 score while the men came away with a 69-56 win.

On the women’s side, the game started with a quick 11-3 run by the Citadins. The Citadins early success in the match was led by guard Quételine Célestin who scored six straight points including a three-pointer. In the last few minutes of the first quarter, the Stingers were able to cut the UQÀM lead to five after rookie point guard Jessika Joly hit a three-pointer. After the first quarter the score was 20-10 for the Citadins.

“We were playing selfish by doing one-on-one,” Stingers forward Richelle Gregoire said. “We are supposed to be playing with five girls on the court.”

In the second quarter, the Stingers were able to cut the Citadins lead to five points after point guard Tamara Pinard-Devos scored a basket. Célestin of the Citadins would then come up big and stop the Stingers momentum with back-to-back three pointers. By half-time, the score was 38-23 for the Citadins.

For the first six minutes of the third quarter, the Stingers were struggling with their shooting game and couldn’t get any shots to go in.  The Stingers first basket was then scored by shooting guard Aurelie d’Anjou Drouin. The Stingers had a tough quarter and found themselves down by 18 going into the final quarter.

In the final quarter, Joly hit another three-pointer which was able to start a 10-0 run for the Stingers. The run proved to be too little too late though as the Citadins ran away with the 64-49 win.

Citadins centre Jessica Lubin had a double-double in her team’s victory with 10 defensive rebounds and 10 points.

“I was trying to do my best at keeping the players in front of me so that I could work on my feet,” Lubin said. “I did a pretty good job at that.”

On the men’s side, the team fared better in their opening quarter against the Citadins thanks to some accurate shooting and a three-pointer by Stingers guard Jaleel Webb. The Stingers were able to finish up the first quarter with a 20-13 lead.

Midway through the second quarter, the Stingers were up by 12, but with two minutes left in the quarter, the Citadins came storming back and cut the Stingers lead to one at a score of 31-30. The run was started by UQÀM guard Greishe Clerjuste who hit some clutch free throws. The Stingers then hit a few more baskets to escape with a 37-32 lead at half-time.

“I thought we played pretty well defensively especially in the second half where we held them to only 24 points in the half,” said Stingers coach Rastko Popovic.

In the last two minutes of the third quarter, the Stingers extended their lead to 10 points as point guard Ricardo Monge hit back-to-back free throws. His teammate, forward Michael Fosu, then drained another pair of free throws to give the team a 54-41 lead going into the final quarter.

The Citadins did not give in easily as the team scored six straight points to start the fourth quarter, which cut the Stingers lead to seven points. Stingers guard Ken Beaulieu then sealed the win with a three-pointer.

Both the men’s and women’s teams will be in Quebec City on Nov. 13 to take on the Laval Rouge et Or where the women will get the chance to earn their first win of the season.

The men’s football team lost to Université de Montréal on Saturday in a tight 22-17 game

The Concordia Stingers football team marched onto the Carabins home field on Oct. 31 hoping to upset the reigning Vanier cup champions. Despite having a lead with only one quarter to go in the game, the Stingers fell to the Carabins by a score of 22-17.

After a Stingers safety early in the game, the Carabins scored the first touchdown during their first drive of the second quarter. The Carabins started the drive on the Stingers 27-yard line. It was there that Carabins quarterback, Gabriel Cousineau connected with wide receiver, Philip Enchill for a 15-yard touchdown.

With nine minutes left in the first half, the Stingers got their offense in gear and marched themselves down the field. After reaching the Carabins eight-yard line, Stingers kicker, Keegan Treloar came out to kick a 15-yard field goal and put it right through the uprights. As a fifth-year player, the field goal was Treloar’s last in his regular season career.

The key play in the scoring drive was a 44-yard pass from Stingers quarterback Trenton Miller to slotback Jahlani Gilbert-Knorren. Gilbert-Knorren was Miller’s favourite target in the game as he ended the day with 10 catches for a total of 100 yards.

Just before half-time, the Carabins scored on a 37-yard field goal to go up by a score of 12-3.

The Stingers would then start strong in the second half with a dominant third quarter. Miller scored back to back touchdown passes in the quarter which gave his team a 17-12 lead. The first of those touchdowns would be a two-yard pass to runningback Jean-Guy Rimpel. Miller’s second touchdown was a 19-yard pass to wide receiver, Daniel Skube.

In the fourth quarter, the Carabins turned it up a notch and came roaring back into the game. To bring the team’s deficit within two points, the Carabins scored on a 23-yard field goal early in the quarter. The Carabins defense then caused the game’s turning point when they forced Miller to thrown an interception. The Carabins would then capitalize off of the mistake and score on a two-yard rushing touchdown by running back Sean-Thomas Erlington.

With just over two minutes left in the game, Miller led the Stingers down the field in a bid to retake the lead. The Stingers started on their own 24-yard line and picked up a total 41 yards off of several passes by Miller. The game ended when Stingers runningback, Rimpel was tackled on third down, meaning the team had to turn the ball over to the Carabins.

“We came up short again, we made too many mistakes but at least we battled till the end,” Stingers cornerback, Rashawn Perry said.

This was the Stingers second loss to the Carabins this season.

In the loss, Miller threw for 286 yards along with two touchdowns. The two touchdowns brought his season total to 20 which allowed him to break the Stingers single-season touchdown record.

“It doesn’t mean anything to me, it just shows that the offensive line and the receivers had a great season,” Miller said.

“It was a hard game, the Stingers played really well,” Cousineau said. “Defensively they stopped us for a majority of the game. They also have a very good offense that can drive down the field.”

The Stingers finished the season with a 4-4 record and will now head into the playoffs this weekend to play the Laval Rouge et Or in Quebec City. Despite losing to Laval in the playoffs last season, Stingers coach Mickey Donovan is excited about the game.

”It’s going to be a dogfight for sure, but we’re up to the challenge,” Donovan said.

Richelle Gregoire leads the Stingers in an 85-61 victory on Friday night

The Concordia Stingers defeated the Waterloo Warriors at the Concordia Athletic Complex Friday night by a score of 85-61.

Stingers forward and fourth-year player Richelle Grégoire had a double-double in the victory with 25 points and 14 rebounds. The Stingers were great on defense as they forced the Warriors to turn the ball over 25 times.

“We lacked energy and intensity in the first half but in the second half we made some adjustments and came out with intensity, especially in the first five minutes where we got a couple of quick steals and some easy layups,” said Stingers coach Tenicha Gittens.

The Warriors scored the game’s first few points on baskets that included a three-pointer by Warriors guard Emily Wilk. The Stingers had a slow start to the game but got their groove going after Grégoire scored the team’s first basket two minutes into the quarter.

With a 7-3 lead early in the game, it seemed as though the Warriors were in control. However, the Stingers came storming back and then hit a couple baskets which gave them a 10-9 lead. Marie-Éve Martin helped give the Stingers the lead with a three-point score. At the end of the first quarter, the Stingers had maintained their lead and the score was 21-15.

The second quarter started with a bang as Warriors guard, Elizabeth Holmes hit a three-pointer. Her score would be matched only a few seconds later by Martin of the Stingers. The Warriors had a 6-0 run led by free throws and jump shots by third year guard, Jacqui Rodrigues and Emily Wilk. The 6-0 run cut the Stingers lead down to two points. At this point in the game, the Stingers had a 29-27 lead. The Stingers would eventually increase their lead by going on a 5-0 run to end the first half which was capped off with a buzzer-beater by rookie guard, Latifah Roach. The Stingers led 36-29 at the end of the first half.

The third quarter started with the Stingers scoring two straight baskets by forward Shanica Baker and Martin. The Warriors got their first points of the second half a minute later with a basket by Rodrigues. Later on in the quarter, Stingers shooting guard, Aurélie d‘Anjou Drouin hit back to back shots in the quarter and finished the quarter with eight points. The Stingers scored an impressive 33 points in the third quarter which allowed them to take a commanding lead. Despite a late-quarter 5-0 run by the Warriors, they still found themselves down 69-51 going into the final quarter.

The Stingers put away the game at the start of the fourth quarter after baskets by d’Anjou Drouin and Grégoire. Grégoire scored 10 points in the final quarter and led the team to a 24-point margin of victory.

“Our coach put us in situations that played to our strengths so we just executed that,” Baker said when talking about the team’s strategy.

The team’s next match will be an away game against Carleton University on Oct. 30.

Underdog women’s basketball sting the Lancers, defending CIS champions

The Concordia Stingers defeated the defending five-time national champions, the Windsor Lancers, on Friday night in preseason action.

The Stingers stunned Windsor by beating the visiting team, 70-63. This was the second time in the last four years the Stingers have beaten number-one-ranked Lancers at home. They beat Windsor in 2013 at the Concordia-Reebok tournament.

A great game was played by forward Shanica Baker. She had a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds.

The Stingers had a strong start to the game as they knocked down four straight baskets scored by forward Richelle Gregoire, Shanica Baker, Marilyse Roy-Viau and point guard Tamara Pinard-Devos. The Stingers in the first quarter had 11-2 lead on the Lancers.

The Lancers, led by point guard Caitlyn Longmuir, hit back-to-back three-pointers to chip away at the Stingers huge lead. The end of the first quarter saw the Stingers ahead by four points, 18-14.

The Lancers scored the first points of the second quarter on a basket by center Cheyanne Rodger. The Stingers responded with a three-pointer by rookie point guard, Jessika Joly. Stingers’ Richelle Gregoire dominated the second quarter as she hit back-to-back three pointers at one point. Gregoire finished the quarter with ten points. The Stingers ended the second quarter leading 40-31.

The second half started with a bang as Richelle Gregoire got a three pointer. The Lancers halfway through the third quarter had an 8-0 run to tie the game at 45. The run was led by forward, Andrea Kiss who scored five out of the eight points including a three pointer.

Stingers’ shooting guard, Marie-Eve Martin, hit a late three pointer to increase the Stingers lead. The Lancers were unable to close the gap before the game ended.

Head coach Tenicha Gittens was extremely happy after the huge win. “It’s not every day you have the opportunity to knock off the number one squad in the country. I’m proud of these girls. They made the big shots and got the stops they needed,” Gittens said.

Lancers head coach and Montreal native, Chantal Vallée, was impressed with the Stingers.

“Concordia was well prepared, just wanted to congratulate their coaching staff on an outstanding job tonight,” Vallée said.

Stingers forward Marilyse Roy-Viau was happy about her team performance. “We played our butts off, it’s our best game so far,” Viau said.

Concordia pulls out overtime win against Queen’s Gaels

The Stingers brought their game to Friday night’s tilt where they defeated Queen’s University Gaels 77-76 during a thrilling overtime.

This was the Stingers first Canadian Interuniversity Sport opponent of the year.

The Gaels finished dead last last season in the OUA East Division with a record of five wins and 13 losses. The Stingers last year finished fourth in the RSEQ with a record of 8-8 and were knocked out of the playoffs by the McGill Redmen in the semi-finals.

The game started off slow for the Stingers who trailed 17-9. In the second quarter, the Stingers woke up and scored the quarter’s first four points.

The Stingers led the contest 23-22 at halftime and limited Queen’s to five points in the second quarter.

The third quarter saw Queen’s come back and dominate the game scoring 21 points, taking a 43-40 lead.

Critical mistakes with 16 seconds left in the game cost both teams a chance to win in regulation. Queen’s forward Ryall Stroud made the clutch free throws and then Stingers guard Jaleel Webb did the same to force overtime.

In overtime, the Stingers made the shots that mattered to win the game.

Webb, one of the new players on the team, had 19 points in the win.

New Stingers head coach Rastko Popovic was proud of his first win as a CIS coach.

“The win was due to our defense and with this team, we are going to need to play good defense for 40 minutes,” said Popovic.

The 2015-2016 Stingers team is very different than last year’s team. The good news is that there are eight returning players including last season’s star forward Ken Beaulieu, and point guard Ricardo Monge who was named to the RSEQ all-rookie team.

Popovic replaces coach John Dore who retired after 26 years of being behind the bench.

“The [season] goal is to get better as a team in every single game and practice so that we can compete in Feb. and March when the games matter,” said Popovic.

The Stingers also will not have their top scorer from a year ago, Mukiya Post, who has moved on from basketball.

A new player Stingers fans will love is Schneiders Suffrard, who last year was an RSEQ all-star with the Vanier Cheetahs.