Tag: women’s basketball

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.

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.

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..

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].”

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.

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.”

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.

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.

In a battle between the Canadian Interuniversity Sports (CIS) league number eight-ranked, Concordia Stingers and the number nine-ranked, Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks, the Stingers women’s basketball team won the first game in their annual Concordia-Adidas tournament, 59-47.

Laurier entered the game with a winning record of 9-1 in the season play, good enough for first place in the tough west division of the Ontario University Athletics conference. The Stingers last played a month ago when they defeated Laval to get their second win of the season, but proved that a long break did not mean anything as they played great defence, which caused the Golden Hawks to have 25 turnovers, including 15 steals.

Laurier won the tip-off and scored the first points on basket by forward Alexandra Spadaro.  Concordia would respond within seconds as centre Serginha Estime got the team’s first basket.  The Golden Hawks would respond with a basket by guard Laura Doyle.

The last basket of the quarter showed the athleticism of Stingers’ guard Daphne Thouin, who got her basket as she was falling down to the ground. This quarter provided back and forth chances by both teams, but the Stingers took a 13-11 lead.

Laurier got the first points of the second quarter, a three-pointer by Doyle. Concordia replied with a 5-0 run.

The Golden Hawks fouled Stingers guard Kaylah Barrett three times in the quarter and she was 4-for-6 from the free-throw line. Concordia’s point guard Ashley Clarke added a three-pointer to extend the Stingers’ lead. Golden Hawks guard Samantha Jacobs would get a late two-pointer. The Stingers great defensive play in the quarter held their opponents to just seven points in the quarter. The Stingers led 31-18 at halftime.

The Stingers capitalized early with baskets from Estime and Marilyse Roy-Viau. At the six minute mark, Laurier got their first points of the quarter on two foul shots by Jacobs. Laurier guard Kaitlyn Schenck then added a three-pointer. However, the Stingers led 47-32 at the end of the third quarter.

The Golden Hawks started with the ball in the fourth quarter and capitalized on a 5-0 run. Clarke answered with a three-pointer, which gave some momentum to the Stingers. Roy-Viau added to the Stingers lead with a three-point play (a basket plus foul shot). Golden Hawks forward Heather Payne got a late three-pointer to decrease the margin of victory for the Stingers.

Estime was the Stingers’ player of the game. She had 11 points and 11 rebounds. Barrett was the game’s leading scorer with 14 points.

Pruden said the team’s victory was a  “pretty good effort considering the long break and only two practices.”

In search of their second win of the regular season on Friday night, the Stingers played a solid defensive game in the second half to beat the Laval Rouge et Or 49-39 at home.

Laval won the tipoff but was called back because the ball went out of bounds. Concordia won the next tip-off and drew first blood with a two pointer by point guard Ashley Clarke, followed by a basket by guard Kaylah Barrett.

The Stingers and Rouge et Or traded baskets at the four minute mark of the fourth quarter. A couple of foul shots also helped the Stingers extend their lead before the end of the quarter. The score after one quarter had the Stingers up by seven.

The Stingers started with the ball in the second quarter and struck first with a two pointer by Clarke, where she was wide open in Laval’s court. Under a minute later, Clarke stole the ball and passed to forward Tamara Pinard-Devos, who scored the basket to give the Stingers an 18-7 lead.

After centre Tina Mpondani made it 21-10 for the Stingers on two free throw attempts, the Rouge et Or, who had six unanswered baskets to go into the halftime, were only down by five points. The score at halftime was 21-16 for the Stingers.

The Stingers had many missed opportunities in the first half as they took 37 shots and only connected on seven.

Both teams combined for 31 points in the third quarter. Laval started with the ball and quickly went on a 4-0 run only a minute into the quarter.

Stingers responded to the early run by Laval with a basket by Barrett, which gave the Stingers a 23-20 lead. However, Rouge et Or tied the game up with a three pointer by centre Veronique Fortin-Tremblay. The Stingers broke the tie with a basket by Marilyse Roy-Viau.

The Stingers were able to pull away with a lead with the help of Barrett, who scored two free throws at 7:39 of the third quarter to make it 25-22 Stingers and then a three-point jump shot at the midway mark to make it 30-24. Four consecutive free throws by Roy-Viau and guard Cynthia Suissa gave the Stingers a 34-24 lead with three minutes left to play in the third quarter. But Laval responded late with two three pointers by forwards Gabrielle Girard and Raphelle Côté to cut the Stingers lead to four. The score was 36-32 for Stingers at the end of the third quarter.

The Stingers strong defensive play in the final quarter is what ultimately won them the game. Concordia stopped Laval from getting any baskets until there was 3:40 left in the game. Laval finally got their first points in the quarter at the 2:50 mark which was a three-pointer by Côté.

After Côté scored two free throws for Laval to reduce Concordia’s lead to 40-34 with 3:39 left in the game, Barrett scored the Stingers next eight points to give them a 48-39 lead. Clarke’s free throw in the dying seconds sealed the 49-39 Stingers win.

Barrett finished the game as the Stingers leading scorer with 20 points.

Next up, the Stingers will be hosting its annual Concordia Adidas Tournament which starts December 28.

With files from Samantha Mileto

The Concordia Stingers women’s basketball team took a quick and early lead against the Bishop Gaiters and never looked back, winning 66-40 in their home opener last Saturday afternoon.

The Stingers came flying out of the gate, taking a 5-0 lead 90 seconds into the game. After making it 6-0, Stingers point guard Ashley Clarke stole the ball from Gaiters guard Valerie Tremblay at centre court, leaving her alone for the easy basket, giving the Stingers an 8-0 lead just three minutes into the first quarter.

Concordia took a commanding 17-0 lead before the Gaiters got their first two points near the end of the quarter. The Stingers capped off a strong first quarter with a 20-2 lead.

Despite the Stingers coming out with such a big lead in the first quarter, head coach Kevin Pruden knew his team expected a closer second quarter.

“I expected us to slow down in the second quarter a little bit and we did. It’s really difficult to hold a team to no points in a quarter,” he said.

The Gaiters would score 13 points in the second quarter after scoring just two in the first. They started the quarter with four quick points, reducing the Stingers lead to 20-6. However, Clarke responded with a three-pointer, making it 23-6 for Concordia. The field goal was already Clarke’s 10th point of the game.

With the score 27-15 for Concordia with under two minutes to play in the second quarter, Stingers guard Cynthia Suissa doubled up Concordia’s lead. The Stingers added four more points to end the first half with a 34-15 lead.

Clarke scored her 11th and 12th point of the game on two successful free throws to give the Stingers a 36-15 lead early in the third quarter.

Halfway through the third quarter, Clarke picked up the rebound off Marilyse Roy-Viau’s three-point shot attempt, putting the Stingers up 47-21.

Gaiters forward Jenae Grayer picked up her team’s leading 10th point in the game, making the score 48-25 for the Stingers with just under three to go in the quarter. The Stingers held a 53-32 lead after three quarters, and had yet to fall behind.

Concordia would score the first two baskets of the final quarter, as guard Kaylah Barrett and centre Tina Mpondani each scored two points seconds apart, giving the Stingers a 57-34 lead.

Stingers guard Alex Boudreau’s three-pointer at the end of the game gave Concordia the 66-40 win. Clarke ended the game as the Stingers’ leading scorer with 16 points and she was named the team’s Most Valuable Player of the game.

“I’m much happier today with our effort than I was last week because we showed some energy, we played good defence throughout and we did a much better job executing offensively,” Pruden said. “It was good to see.”

After the loss against UQAM, Clarke said that “this game was huge for us, because now we got our confidence back.” “We came out more aggressive (this game). In our first game (against UQAM), our energy wasn’t there at all,” she added.

The Stingers held on to their lead in the fourth quarter in this game and were able to pull out a win, a big improvement from their season opener against UQAM on Nov. 6, where they blew a fourth quarter lead to lose 53-42 against the Citadins.