Author: Casey Dulson

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Concordia captures home opener

The Donovan era is off to a perfect start following the first win of the season

The Concordia Stingers football team played their home opener on Saturday, Sept. 6, against the Bishop Gaiters and came away with a 25-15 victory.

The Stingers fans and players were hoping to forget about last year’s 0-8 season and a win was just the way to do it. Under new head coach Mickey Donovan the team came out ready to play with a new attitude and noticeable energy.

The game started perfectly as Stingers linebacker Travis Bent recovered a fumble by Bishop’s running back Ron Lee King-Fileen on the Gaiters’ first drive. Stingers kicker, Keegan Treloar kicked a 24-yard field goal to cap off the drive and give the Stingers the early 3-0 led. By the end of the first, the scored would be 6-3 Concordia.

Halfway through the second quarter, Bishop scored the first touchdown of the game on a one-yard run by King-Fileen after a seven-play drive of 75 yards. By halftime, the Stingers would head into the locker room trailing 13-6.

The best player on the field was Concordia’s rookie running back, Gunner Tatum. By the end of the first half, Tatum had already racked up 144 rushing yards on 20 carries. Unfortunately for Bishop’s defense, he was just getting started.

The Stingers came out flying in the second half on defense as they stopped the Gaiters three times on third down plays. They also picked-off Bishop’s quarterback Shane McDonald three times in the second half.

With less than five minutes left in the third quarter, the Stingers regained the lead with a touchdown run by Tatum, putting Concordia up 16-13. Although Canadian football is typically a passing game, Concordia relied on Tatum who finished the day with 192 yards on the ground.

Midway through the final quarter, Concordia ended Bishop’s hopes of a comeback. Stingers quarterback Francois Dessureault connected with wide receiver Jamal Henry. Dessureault had a quietly productive day as he went 9/15 through the air and ended the day with 114 yards and one touchdown. Henry was Dessureault’s go-to receiver as he led the Stingers with five catches. Along with his touchdown reception, Henry had 82 yards in the game.

Whenever a team wins, everyone is happy. However, under Donovan, Dessureault noticed differences right away between this team and previous squads.

“In the past, people would do their own thing. This year, everyone [is] supporting each other. [It’s] just a global family-effort, which is awesome.”

Although he is new to the team, Tatum also commented on the team’s chemistry.

“The team feels like a family and [the] coaching staff loves their players, just like they love their own children”.

The Stingers will travel to McGill this Friday, Sept. 12, to play the Redmen in the annual Shaughnessy Cup at 7 p.m.

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The rise of basketball in Canada

Concordia Stingers guard Kyle Desmarais represented his country and is now ready to lead the Stingers to a successful season. Photo by Navneet Pall

Some of the biggest names in the NBA and NCAA now wear a maple leaf

In the last couple of years, Canada has become a basketball factory. In such a hockey-dominated country, Canada has seen many of its basketball players succeed in the time leading up to their NBA draft year.

The hype actually reached its height over the past two years. Last year marked a historic year for Canadian basketball as the Cleveland Cavaliers selected Canadian forward Anthony Bennett from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas with the first pick at the NBA draft. Toronto-native Andrew Wiggins is projected to be a high draft pick in this year’s draft, after playing only one season at the University of Kansas.

In the Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) league, the Carleton Ravens won their fourth consecutive national championship and 10th overall. The Ravens started their season in late August as they took on the Syracuse Orange, one of the top university teams in the U.S.. The next day, they beat the Wisconsin Badgers, a team that made NCAA’s March Madness’ Final Four this year.

In this year’s NCAA tournament, there was a record 25 Canadians participating in the annual event. In the first round of the tournament, universities which had Canadians playing for them went 14-2.

Some of the Canadian stars who participated in this year’s March Madness were Syracuse‘s point guard Tyler Ennis, who has a good shot at being a top 10 pick in this year’s NBA draft and Michigan Wolverines’ shooting guard, Nik Stauskas, who led his Wolverines to the Elite Eight where they lost to the Kentucky Wildcats. Stauskas finished the game with 24 points.

The surprising team of the tournament was the underdog Dayton Flyers, who marched to the Elite Eight in the tournament before losing to Florida.The Flyers were led by forward Dyshawn Pierre, a native of Whitby, Ont. Pierre established that he can be a star in the near future.

Many people have been questioning the rise in interest in Canadian basketball. Dwight Walton, a former member of the Canadian national team said that it is in part due to the Internet establishing a role in Canadian players getting more notice south of the border.

“Being able to show off your talent to coaches and scouts via YouTube is much quicker than sending a videotape via the mail service,” Walton said.

Walton also believes that a certain NBA team had an impact on kids wanting to play.

“The Toronto Raptors are the major reason that basketball has taken off in this country,” he said. “They’ve exposed the game to our youth.”

Sites like Basketball Buzz and On Point Basketball have been doing a good job raising awareness for CIS and NCAA basketball to Canadians.

Concordia Stingers men’s forward, Mukiya Post, is very hopeful about the success of Canadian basketball players this year.

“[Canadian] basketball is getting better from [a] young age,” he said.

Canada now must continue on to build on their success. The development of recent Canadian stars, like Wiggins and Bennett, is a step in the right direction, in order for a chance at a berth in the 2016 Summer Olympics.

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Sports

Seasons end earlier than expected for Stingers

Photo by Brianna Thicke

The men and women’s basketball teams fall in the RSEQ semi-finals

Both Concordia Stingers basketball teams didn’t end their seasons the way they had hoped, as both teams failed to make the finals after strong seasons the year before.

Men’s basketball season review

Photo by Brianna Thicke

Last season, the men’s basketball team lost to the Bishop’s Gaiters in their semi-final, ending a two-year RSEQ championship winning streak. This season, the Stingers finished in third place with a record of 8-8, losing to the Gaiters in the semi-finals.

The men’s basketball team had a regular season that brought them some highs and then some lows. However, these highs and lows taught them what it means to be a team. The Stingers lost two great players from last year’s squad in Evens Laroche and Kyle Desmarais. The team added eight new players this year which included Mukiya Post and Mike Fosu.

The Stingers opened the RSEQ regular season with three losses to UQÀM, McGill and Bishops. They never gave up though, as they then won six straight league games, beginning with their first win over Laval by a score of 77-70 on Nov. 29.

These victories also included a nail-biter victory over their rivals, the McGill Redmen. The Stingers went 2-5 after the win which included two losses to end the regular season.

“We were a young team that started immature and young and developed in personal growth as a team throughout the season,” said head coach John Dore.

Post, who ended the season leading the RSEQ in scoring, will be looked upon next year along with teammate Adam Chmielewski to lead the Stingers to a RSEQ championship.

My men’s basketball MVP is Adam Chmielewski. He was the heart and soul of the team — if he had a bad game, then the team usually had a bad game.

 

Women’s basketball review

Last season, the women’s basketball team made it to the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) finals only to lose to their rivals, the McGill Martlets. This year they finished in second place with a record of 11-5 but lost in the semi-finals to the UQÀM Citadins.

The Stingers opened the RSEQ season, in a matchup against the Citadins. They had the lead for the first two quarters but blew it in the second half and only scored 13 points. They were unfortunately upset by their opponents by a score of 53-42. The Stingers’ best player was forward Marilyse Roy-Viau who scored 18 points in the defeat. After the defeat to the Citadins, the Stingers would win their home opener versus Bishops and also win over Laval, however they lost to the McGill Martlets. The Stingers found their winning way during the annual Concordia Adidas Tournament back in December, where they faced Memorial, Laurier and Queens. The Stingers won the tournament, which included a beat down of Queens University by a score of 86-34. Keith Pruden, the Stingers head coach, thought it was their best game of the season.

The Stingers faced UQÀM at home to start the second half of the season in the Breast Cancer Awareness game and pulled a 67-54 win. However, the next day, they lost to UQÀM on their homecourt 57-43. After that loss, the Stingers went on a six-game winning streak and then lost two games to UQÀM and Laval. The Stingers ended the RSEQ regular season with two wins before losing to UQÀM in the semi-finals by a score of 59-48.

This season for the Stingers saw them have success against the McGill Martlets as they beat them three out of four times. However, they were not so lucky with the Citadins, as they had a 1-4 record against them.

Pruden thought the team was “good overall” this season, but had a “disappointing result in [the] playoffs.” He stated that they have to improve on their shooting next year, something that weakened them this season.

The Stingers bid adieu to point guard Ashley Clarke and guard Alex Boudreau, who are graduating this season.

My MVP for the women’s team is a Kaylah Barrett who led the RSEQ in scoring and steals.

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Weak fourth quarter leads to loss vs. McGill

Photo by Keith Race

The Concordia Stingers men’s basketball team played their season ending game on Saturday afternoon against the McGill Redmen. On this day, it looked like it was going to be a Stingers victory, once again, but a couple turnovers and missed shots in the fourth quarter allowed for McGill to come back and get the 63-56 win.

Photo by Keith Race

Both teams missed many shots to start the game. However at the 7:07 of the first quarter, the Redmen scored first on a basket by guard Simon Bibeau. A couple of seconds later, the Stingers got their first basket by point guard Adam Chmielewski. Later in the quarter Redmen’s, guard, Vincent Dufort, and Stingers guard, Jean Andre-Moussignac, each got two field goals in the quarter.

The Stingers would end the quarter scoring 11 straight points to take a 21-14 lead after the first quarter.

The Redmen scored the first basket of the second quarter by guard Dele Ogundokun. The Stingers would score on a basket by centre Brisebois. The Stingers would then add three three pointers to their lead, scored by guards Inti Salinas and Jonathan Mirambeau and forward Mukiya Post.

The Redmen ended the quarter on a 7-0 run which included a three pointer by forward Nathan Joyal. The Stingers led 32-27 going into half time.

The Redmen started the second half with a 5-0 run, led by a three pointer by Ogundokun. The Stingers got their first basket at the 6:05 mark of the quarter scored by forward Zander Jean. The Redmen responded with two straight baskets by forward François Bourque to make only a one point lead for the Stingers.

The Stingers extended their lead late in the quarter with two straight baskets by forward Mike Fosu. Redmen’s guard, Regis Ivaniukas, then hit a three pointer. The Stingers responded with another three-point shot by Salinas. Stingers took a 47-39 lead into the fourth quarter.

The Redmen like the other previous three quarters would score first on a two-pointer by guard Jenning Leung. The Stingers got their first basket by Garner to give the Stingers a 49-42 lead. By 5:52 of the fourth quarter, the Redmen tied the game at 53 with a basket by Leung and then broke the tie with a basket by forward Rodrigo Imperador.

The Stingers would tie it up again with two free throws by Chmielewski.

Photo by Keith Race

With 54 seconds left, the Stingers were down two after a basket by Moussigniac. But a perfect 4-4 record on the free throw line by Joyal would seal the deal for the Redmen. The Stingers were outplayed in the fourth quarter as the Redmen scored 24 points while Concordia only had nine points.

“A couple of dumb plays on our part that caused us the game,” said head coach John Dore. “[But] there [has been] a lot of personal development and growth in the group from the season.”

The Stingers end the season with a record of 8-8 and finish in third place in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RESQ). They now head to Quebec City for the RESQ playoffs, where they will be playing the Bishop Gaiters on Saturday afternoon. The Stingers were 0-4 against them this season.

“We have to play smart and control what we are able to do, like limit the turnovers,” Dore said about the game.

Concordia bid farewell to centre Zach Brisebois, guard Jean Andre Moussigniac and forward Taylor Garner who are all graduating this year.

 

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The Stingers end their regular season with a win vs. Martlets

Photo by Keith Race

The Stingers hosted the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RESQ) division leaders, the McGill Martlets, on Saturday to close out their 2013-2014 season. The Stingers were coming into the game having beaten the Martlets twice, handing McGill their only losses of the season. Saturday was no different as Stingers beat the Martlets 61-54.

Photo by Keith Race

The Stingers dominated the turnover game which proved to be a difference-maker. The Martlets committed 26 turnovers, which led to 26 points scored by the Stingers. Another strong factor in Concordia’s game was their free throw attempts. The Stingers made the Martlets pay for their fouls, hitting 19 out of 22 shots from the line.

The Martlets would grab the first points of the game with a basket by guard Carolann Cloutier. The Stingers would respond a couple of seconds later with a basket by forward Marilyse Roy-Viau.

It was a competitive first quarter, but the Martlets would take the early lead on a three-pointer by forward Helene Bibeau. Concordia centre, Tina Mpondani, would make it a two-point shot heading into the second as the Stingers trailed the Martlets 16-14.

The Stingers would strike first in the second quarter with a bang, taking the lead with a three-pointer by point guard Ashley Clarke. The Martlets however would respond in a big way, going on a 9-0 run to lead 25-17. The Stingers refused to be outdone as they stormed back late in the quarter, as Concordia guard, Kaylah Barrett, scored four free throws to tie the game 27-27 heading into halftime.

Barrett, a two-time RESQ MVP and two-time all-Canadian, went down in the fourth quarter with a high ankle sprain. According to Stingers head coach Keith Pruden, Barrett won’t be able to practice this week.

As the game continued to be an up-and-down battle, the Stingers would grab the lead with two three pointers by guards Alex Boudreau and Clarke. The Martlets would end the quarter with a three-pointer by point guard Dianna Ross, which cut the Stingers lead to three. The third quarter ended 43-40 for the Stingers, setting up an exciting finish.

A turning point came early in the fourth quarter when the Stingers stated the fourth with a 7-0 run. The Martlets only would score at the seven-minute mark of the quarter on a basket by forward, Jennifer Silver, which would start a 6-0 run by the Martlets. McGill would tie the game 52-52 with a minute left, but Barrett would get four points late in the quarter to preserve the victory for Concordia.

The Stingers ended the season with a record of 11-5, which put them in second place in RESQ. Concordia is now off to Quebec City to play in the RESQ playoffs. They will be playing the ‘’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins on Friday night. Concordia hasn’t had that much success against UQAM as they posted a 1-3 record against them in the regular season.

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Post leads the Stingers high-scoring win vs UQAM

File photo by Brianna Thicke
File photo by Brianna Thicke

Going into their matchup vs. the Université de Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins on Thursday night, the Stingers had lost three games in a row. On Thursday night, the Stingers pulled through in a high scoring game of 88-87, giving them a 4-1 record on the season against the Citadins.

This was the most points the Stingers had scored all year, but on this night, the Stingers did not have an answer for UQAM’s dual attack of guard Richard Addai and forward Alexandre Bernard, who had great games. Addai scored 30 points in the loss while Bernard had 26 points. Conversely, UQAM did not have answer for forward Mukiya Post who had his best game of the season scoring 33 points. The Stingers dominated in the rebound game as they had 39 rebounds while UQAM had 25. Both Post and centre Zach Brisebois had seven rebounds in the victory.

The Stingers opened the scoring with a basket by Brisebois who would have two early baskets to start the game. The Citadins would respond with a three pointer by Bernard. Bernard scored his team’s first seven points. Addai would reduce the Stingers lead to three points with a three pointer. The Stingers would have an 8-0 run to end the quarter, leading 25-14 after the first quarter.

Concordia once again would open the scoring in the second quarter with a two pointer by Post. UQAM would get their first basket of the quarter within seconds as Bernard would hit a two pointer. UQAM’s guard Alan Pivovar would hit one of his two three pointers in the quarter after the Stingers took a ten-point lead. Addai would then hit two back to back threes to make it a three point game for the Stingers.

Addai would later tie the game at forty. But that didn’t last long as Post broke the deadlock with a three pointer. The Stingers would take a two-point lead into half-time, 45-43. Addai had 19 points going into halftime while Post had 15 points.

The Stingers opened the scoring in the third quarter with a slam dunk by guard Jean-Andre Moussignac. UQAM would score three straight baskets, including a three pointer by a Philippe Tamba, giving the Citadins a three-point lead. Stingers point guard Adam Chmielewski would hit a three pointer to tie the game at fifty. UQAM then responded by scoring 18 points in row

The Stingers would end the quarter with a three pointer by Chmielewski.

Concordia would be down nine points going into the fourth quarter, losing 71-62.

The Stingers, like in the other previous three quarters, opened the fourth quarter with a two pointer by Chmielewski. The Stingers would score six straight points before UQAM would get its first basket of the quarter at the seven minute mark, a field goal by Addai.

With 5:32 left in the quarter, Post scored seven straight points to make it only a two-point lead for UQAM. Pivovar would hit back-to-back threes to increase the Citadins’ score to eight points.

With two minutes left in the quarter, Post once again struck for the Stingers, getting nine straight points including the game-tying three pointer.

UQAM would make a costly mistake, fouling Chmielewski with five seconds left in the quarter. He would then make the game winning free throw.

“It was a gusty team win and I’m really proud of the team,” assistant coach Rastko Popovic said.

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Citadins stun the Stingers again

File photo by Brianna Thicke.
File photo by Brianna Thicke.

Coming into Thursday night’s game against the Université de Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Citadins, the Concordia Stingers women’s basketball team were riding a six game winning streak. However, the Citadins handed the Stingers their third loss in four contests between the two teams, winning 64-54.

Both teams committed many turnovers, with the Stingers committing 20 and UQAM, 19. The Stingers had 44 rebounds in the loss, led by guard Kaylah Barrett and forward Marilyse Roy-Viau, with five each.

The Citadins opened up the scoring in the game with a two pointer by centre Camille Michaud. Concordia would respond two minutes later with a two pointer by Roy-Viau. Later in the quarter, after the Stingers were down 8-4, Barrett hit a three pointer to make it a one-point lead for the Citadins. UQAM would score five of the next seven baskets in the quarter, led by Michaud, who got two more baskets late in the quarter. Centre Jessica Lubin would put away another basket to give UQAM a five point lead,16-11, to end the first quarter.

The Citadins opened the scoring in the second quarter with a bang, a three pointer by guard Valerie Gauvin. The Stingers would get their first point of the quarter at the 6:12 mark with a free throw by Barrett. UQAM continued their dominance in this quarter as they got a couple of baskets by Michaud and guard Queteline Celestin. The Stingers first non-free-throw basket came with 38 seconds left in the quarter, which was scored by Roy-Viau. UQAM took a ten point lead, 29-19, into half-time. Stingers scored only eight points in the second quarter, six of them were from the free-throw line.

UQAM once again opened the scoring in the third quarter with a basket by Celestin. Concordia would respond with a three pointer by Barrett. Lubin had four straight baskets to help increase the Citadins lead to 39-26.

Celestin would get six straight points (four free throws plus a jump shot), which gave UQAM a 45-30 lead at 3:08 of the quarter. The Stingers would get a 6-0 scoring drive to end the quarter. However, they were still down by 14 points as the Citadins led 50-36 after the third quarter.

The Stingers would open the scoring in the fourth quarter with a two pointer by Shannah Ernest, followed by two free throws by Barrett to cut the Citadins’ lead to ten. Every time the Stingers got a basket,Lubin would get another one to increase the Citadins’ lead.

The Stingers did hit two threes by point guard Ashley Clarke and Barrett near the end of the game. Roy-Viau would get a two pointer with 27 seconds left in the game to decrease the margin of the UQAM victory to ten.

Barrett led all scorers in the game with 21 points.

“Kaylah always has a nice game offensively,” head coach Keith Pruden said of Barrett’s performance. “[But] I’m not happy with our effort, we were sloppy offensively, we turned the ball over way too much.”

Stingers also lost on Saturday night to the Laval Rouge et Or in Quebec City, which brings their record to 9-5. The Stingers next play the Bishop Gaiters in Lennoxville on Friday, Feb. 21. Their next home game will be their last of the 2013-2014 regular season, where they will be playing against their rivals, the McGill Martlets on Saturday, Feb. 22 at 2 p.m..

 

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Stingers lose in nail-biter against Gaiters

Photo by Brianna Thicke
Photo by Brianna Thicke

It’s been an up and down season for Concordia’s men’s basketball team. They once had a six-game winning streak in Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) league play, but have quickly dropped their last three. Concordia’s latest defeat came Saturday afternoon at the hands of the Bishop’s Gaiters, 64-61.

The Stingers are .500 as their record now sits at 6-6, third in the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) conference. On Saturday, the Stingers battled hard and won 40 of the rebounds. Stingers centre Zach Brisebois dominated the paint and had nine rebounds in the loss. The Stingers are ranked eighth in CIS total rebounds per game.

The Stingers started the game with a bang as forward Zander Jean hit a three pointer to open the scoring. The Gaiters would respond and go on a roll of their own, scoring 20 unanswered points. The run included two three-pointers, by Gaiters forward Majid Naji and guard Sage Holder to end the quarter.

The Stingers only scored eight points in the first quarter and Concordia’s frustration began to show. Late in the opening quarter, the Stingers head coach, John Dore, received a technical foul for arguing with the refs.

The Gaiters scored first in the second quarter with a three-pointer by guard Jona Bermillo to extend their lead to 23-8. Within seconds, however, the Stingers would respond with a three-pointer of their own by guard Jean-Andre Moussignac. Stingers forward, Mukiya Post, would hit another three-pointer later in the quarter and cut the Gaiters lead to seven. Just as the Stingers seemed back in it, Bishop’s guard, Onnex Blackwood, hit back-to-back three pointers and extended the Gaiters lead to 10. By the end of the first half, the Stingers were slowly crawling back into the game, trailing 40-30.

The halftime pep talk seemed to work as the home crowd saw a different Stingers team emerge from the locker room in the second half. Brisebois and Concordia forward, Michael Fosu, made consecutive jump shots and quickly cut the Gaiters lead to six. The Stingers went on a 12-1 run  midway through the third quarter and were out in front 42-41. By the time the third quarter was over, the Stingers held a 48-44 lead, shocking the Gaiters.

As the fourth quarter began, the Gaiters were on a mission not to let the game slip away. Gaiters centre Mike Andrews got the first basket of the fourth quarter. The Gaiters would then take the lead with a basket by forward Dave Belanger, making it 52-50.

The game came down to the final three minutes of play. At the time, the score was tied 58-58 after a field goal by Stingers point guard Adam Chmielewski. Unfortunately, that was as close as Concordia got. Bishop’s went on 6-0 run to close out the game, handing Concordia their third straight loss.

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Sweeping away the competition in style

File photo by Brianna Thicke.
Photo by Brianna Thicke

The Concordia Stingers women’s basketball team continued its winning ways on Saturday as it swept a home-and-away series with a 68-41 win over the Bishop’s Gaiters at home.

The Stingers have gone 7-1 in the new year and have an overall record of 9-3. Coming into the game, the Stingers were ranked sixth in the Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) league.

The Stingers were able to cause some problems for the Gaiters on the defensive side of the ball as the Gaiters committed 27 turnovers, including 16 steals.

Guard Kaylah Barrett — the defending Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RESQ) MVP and two-time all-Canadian — played in limited minutes due to a back injury. She did not play on Friday at Bishop’s.

The game started off great for the Stingers as guard Alex Boudreau got a basket right off the tip-off. The Gaiters would respond within seconds as guard Marie-Michele Paquin shot a three-pointer to take the early lead for the Gaiters. But the Stingers would string together a couple of baskets, including several foul shots and a three-pointer by point guard Ashley Clarke to take a 16-11 lead in the first quarter.

The Stingers started off the second quarter with a basket by Barrett. Boudreau would continue to put points on the board as she hit four foul shots within a minute due to a technical foul given to the Gaiters head coach, Alex Perno, for arguing with the referee. Boudreau hit a three-pointer seconds after her free throws.

The Gaiters got their first points of the quarter with 4:43 left  with a free throw by guard Genevieve Onyeka. Stingers would go into halftime with a 19-point lead, up 35-16.

The Stingers did a great job shutting the Gaiters offence as they only scored five in the second quarter.

The Stingers scored the first points of the third quarter with a two-pointer by centre Serginha Estime. Concordia was putting on a clinic of field goal shots as they would hit three threes in a row by defender Marilyse Roy-Viau, forward Richelle Gregoire and Clarke.

The Gaiters only got their first basket with three minutes left in the quarter on a Charlotte Jorunn Matthiessen two-pointer. This would start a 9-0 run for the Gaiters. However, they were still down 51-27 at the end of the quarter.

The Gaiters then hit two three-pointers to open up the fourth quarter, one by Matthiessen and the other by guard Catherine Rondeau. After a couple of free throws and one basket by the Stingers, Clarke would put the dagger into the Gaiters loss as she hit a three-pointer with two minutes left in the game to make it 64-39 Concordia.

The Stingers’ player of the game was Marilyse Roy-Viau who had 14 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Head coach Keith Pruden said that Viau has really matured as a player this year. Both Clarke and Boudreau also had double digit points for the Stingers. Clarke had 13 points in the win and Boudreau had 14 points.

Despite being player of the game, Viau thought she could have been better.

“[I] was okay but I was late on my defensive rotation,” she said.

Pruden said the game was a “good offensive effort from everybody.” He added that “all the games are big now, [we’re] trying to finish in first [place].”

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Stingers hand Martlets first loss of the season

File photo by Brianna Thicke.

The Stingers played host to one of their oldest rivals on Thursday night and came out on top, beating the McGill Martlets 63-53 win in a battle of two of the Canadian Interuniversity Sports League’s (CIS) top teams.

Photo by Brianna Thicke

Concordia was once again great on defence as they caused the Martlets to commit 30 turnovers, which included 17 steals. The Stingers shut down Mariam Sylla,the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec’s leading scorer, to just 10 points, most of which came in the fourth quarter. The Stingers also shot 87.5 per cent on their free throw attempts, which included a perfect four-for-four in the first half.

The Stingers started the game with a 5-0 run, which included a three-pointer by guard Alex Boudreau. The Martlets got on the board with a three-pointer by forward Gabriela Hebert at the 7:23 mark of the first quarter. McGill took a 7-5 lead at 5:41 of the quarter, but it was the Stingers who ended the quarter with a 16-13 lead on a jump-shot by forward Shannah Ernest in the final minute.

The Martlets started the second quarter with a 4-0 run, which put them in the lead, until centre Tina Mpondani hit a two-pointer and a free-throw shot for Stingers to give them a 19-18 lead.

The Stingers exploded with 26 points in the second quarter, including three field goals by guard Kaylah Barrett and forwards Marilyse Roy-Viau and Richelle Gregoire. Gregoire’s three-pointer came with one second left in the second quarter, which gave the Stingers a big lead of 42-27 at halftime.

Both teams combined for only 11 points in the third quarter, six of those from the Stingers. The Martlets started the third quarter with two straight baskets by guard Marie-Pier Bastrash. The Stingers would get their first points in the third minute of the quarter with free throws by Mpondani. Concordia held a 48-32 lead heading into the final quarter.

Barrett would give the Stingers the first points of the fourth quarter with a free throw. Hebert would put the Martlets on the board with a two-pointer less than a minute later. Barrett would give Concordia a 20-point lead, 54-34, at 7:18 of the quarter.

With a minute left in the game, Martlets guard, Carolann Cloutier, brought McGill within eight points, but it wasn’t enough as the Stingers took home the 63-53 win.

Barrett was the leading scorer in the game. She had 18 points and seven rebounds. Mpondani came in as a starter on Thursday because forward Serginha Estmie was serving a one-game suspension after being ejected against Laval.

“[I] was pleased with our performance [tonight],” said head coach, Keith Pruden. “I was also pleased [with] the composure we showed in the last three minutes [holding an 11-point lead].”

“[I’m] really proud of my team,” said Barrett. “They kept it up the whole game from first to fourth quarter.”

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Sports

Stingers upset Redmen in dramatic fashion

Photo by Brianna Thicke
Photo by Brianna Thicke

The Concordia Stingers men’s basketball team hosted the seventh-ranked McGill Redmen on Thursday in what turned out to be a wild game. The Stingers pulled off a comeback in the second half for a nail-biting, 69-67 win.

The Stingers entered the game on a five game winning streak which started at the end of November, while the Redmen lost their first game to Laval last week. The Stingers, led by centre Zach Brisebois, dominated the boards as they recovered 41 rebounds in Thursday’s game.

The Stingers also limited McGill’s forward Francois Bourque to only five rebounds in the game. Heading into Thursday, Bourque was sixth in the CIS, (Canadian Interuniversity Sports), in rebounding.

McGill started the game off with a slam dunk by forward Michael Peterkin. The Stingers responded with an impressive 9-0 run, which included a three pointer by guard Jean-Andre Moussignac.

There was four minutes left in the first quarter when some drama erupted as Stingers forward, Michael Fosu, was ejected from the game for fighting. Stingers forward, Mukiya Post, came off the bench to replace Fosu and had a superb game, scoring 21 points in the victory. By the end of the first quarter, the Stingers held a 20-17 lead.

Bourque scored the first basket of the second quarter for McGill, as the Redmen started to take over.

McGill scored 24 points in the quarter and took a commanding 41-28 lead heading into halftime. While the Stingers only had eight points in the quarter, the Redmen were knocking down threes all quarter, including a buzzer-beater by Redmen point guard, Regis Ivaniukas, to end the first half.

The third quarter was back-and-forth as both teams had chances to score. A difference-maker in the quarter, and the game, was Stingers guard Adam Chmielewski. Chmielewski had 13 points in the third quarter alone and helped the Stingers draw closer to tying the game. Chmielewski was the leading scorer in the game as he had 24 points in the win and eight assists.

The third quarter was a turning point in the game for Concordia as they outscored McGill 20-12. Heading into the final quarter, the Stingers had cut the Redmen lead down to five, trailing 53-48.

McGill point guard Vincent Dufort hit two free throws for the Redmen to kick off the final quarter. The Stingers then started their dramatic comeback in a fight to the finish. Post hit a three pointer, which put the Stingers within four. Then Chmielewski had a 4-0 run of his own to tie the game at 61-61.

McGill took the lead with 16 seconds left on the clock with a basket by Dufort, but the Stingers weren’t done yet. Concordia took the lead with seven seconds left, thanks to a driving layup by Chmielewski. Following a turnover and a foul, Moussignac hit both of his free throws to secure the win for Concordia.

There were seven lead changes in the last two minutes and the Stingers scored 41 points in the second half to pull off the exciting victory.

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Sports

Concordia pulls through in tight win against Rouge et Or

Photo by Brianna Thicke

Concordia’s women’s basketball team went into Saturday’s rematch against the Rouge et Or after a dominant 22-point win over Laval in Quebec City on Thursday night. The game on Saturday was a different story, as the Laval team proved to be a tougher test for Concordia, who edged out a 58-50 win.

Photo by Brianna Thicke

The Stingers dominated the backboards, getting 42 rebounds in an exciting game that provided 14 lead changes, The Stingers also won the battle of turnovers as the Rouge et Or committed 18 turnovers in the loss. Concordia shot just over 30 per cent from the field, which is one of their lowest of the season. The good news was that the Stingers were clutch from the free throw line as they made 10 out of 11 attempts.

The Stingers started the game with a 4-0 run thanks to two early baskets by forward Marilyse Roy-Viau. However, Laval quickly responded with three baskets of their own. The first quarter ended 8-7 for the Stingers, Concordia’s lowest scoring quarter of the season.

The Rouge et Or jumped out to a fast start in the second quarter with a three pointer by forward Genevieve Derome. The Stingers would take the lead back with a basket by Viau, and had a 5-0 run which also included a three-pointer by point guard Ashley Clarke. Laval would then get two late three-pointers by forward Justine Guay-Bilodeau to tie the game at 25-25 heading into halftime.

Concordia’s guard, Kaylah Barrett, would score the first basket of the third quarter with a layup. However, just like they had all game, Laval stormed back with two straight baskets by Rouge et Or forward, Jannie Jacques, giving Laval the two-point lead two minutes in. The two teams battled back and forth, setting up a thrilling finish. Barrett’s jump shot with 42 seconds left would be the difference maker at this point in the game, as the Stingers went into the fourth quarter up by just two points, 40-38.

It was three minutes into the final quarter before either team could score a basket. Laval finally scored first, tying the game from a basket by forward Raphaëlle Côté. Fortunately for the Stingers, that was as close as Laval got. Two straight three pointers by Roy-Viau and Stingers guard Alex Boudreau would put the Stingers out in front and eventually seal the victory.

“We did not play well but we found a way to get it done that’s all that really matters at this stage in the season,” said Concordia’s head coach Keith Pruden.

Things got a little rough at the end of the game as Stingers centre, Serginha Estime, was kicked out late in the fourth quarter for allegedly biting Laval forward, Gabrielle Girard, on the arm.

The next test for the 5-3 Stingers will be a big one as they host the 6-0 McGill Redmen on Thursday, at home.

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