CIS women's basketball Sunday roundup

The StFX X-Women travelled to St. John's this past weekend for a pair of games against the Memorial Sea-Hawks and were able to come home with a weekend split of the eight points of for grabs. Saturday night they upended the Sea-Hawks 83-78 and despite a valiant effort on Sunday, the X-Women fell 83-59 to the host Memorial squad.

In Saturday's victory, Vanessa Pickard played one her best games this season in an X-Women uniform, cashing in on 30 points and adding five rebounds, eight assists and eight steals.

The game was back and forth in the first half as Memorial held the edge in points in the first quarter by a 28-22 margin but the X-Women paced the second quarter outscoring the Sea-Hawks 23-6. The score was 45-34 in favor of the X-Women at half-time. Memorial was able to outscore the X-Women in the remaining two quarters but by only slim margins of 22-17 and 22-21 as it was not enough to catch the blue and white. StFX hung on for the 83-78 victory.

Providing secondary scoring for the visiting X-Women was Rebecca Sheehan and Kolbi Roper who both chipped in with 14 points each. Sheehan also dished 10 assists and had five rebounds and one block in the game while Roper added three assists and three steals. Kirsten Jones contributed 11 points as she returned to play from a brief injury.

Alexandria Forsey was very good for the hometown Sea-Hawks as she scored a team-high 26 points and had eight rebounds and four blocks. Kim Devison provided 17 points and five rebounds and Emily Jameson scored 12.
The X-Women shot 54.2% from field goal range, 40% from the three point line and 65.2% from the free throw line, while the Sea-Hawks numbers were 55.6% from field goal range, 47.1% from three point range and 62.5% from the free throw line.

The same two teams met the following morning when the Sea-Hawks were able to exact some revenge on the X-Women as they beat the blue and white 83-59 in a game that saw a variety of players hit the score sheet.
Grace Fishbein netted 15 points for the Sea-Hawks while Emily Jameson collected 14 points in the victory for the home side, along with four steals. Alexandria Forsey scored 13 points and had eight rebounds and four assists for Memorial. Robyn O'Reilly scored 12 and had seven boards and Kim Devison added 11 points.

Vanessa Pickard continued her strong weekend play for the X-Women, picking up 15 points for the blue and white while Donisha Young chipped in 10 points and six rebounds. Rebecca Sheehan and Jocelyn Moore each scored nine points.

Memorial came to play in this second match of the weekend; they outscored the X-Women in all four quarters. The score was 15-12 after one quarter as Fishbein had six points to lead her team. The Sea-Hawks continued their attack on the X-Women, holding a 37-29 lead at half time.  Anne Kiberd connected on a pair of three pointers for the X-Women in the second frame. The Sea-Hawks then doubled the X-Women in the third quarter, outscoring StFX by a 24-12 margin. Kim Devison was very solid for the Sea-Hawks in the quarter, collecting 11 points. The fourth quarter was closer as the hosts held a 22-18 advantage to finish off the game with an 83-69 win, avenging their 83-78 loss the previous night against the X-Women.

Looking at the numbers, Memorial shot 50% from field goal range, 47.1% from the three point line and 76.5% from the free throw line. StFX was 35.5% from field goal range, 22.2% from the three point line and 72.2% from field goal range.

After the weekend the X-Women move into fifth place in the AUS conference with a 9-10 record and 22 points. Memorial (10-8) remains solidly entrenched in fourth spot with 30 points. The X-Women will finish off their regular season next Saturday, February 25th at 6:00 pm in Antigonish when they will host the third place Saint Mary's Huskies (11-7).

Source: StFX Sports Info

QUEBEC CITY – A three-pointer by Marjorie Ferland with 40 seconds left gave the Laval Rouge et Or a come-from-behind victory, 58-54, over the Bishop's Gaiters in CIS women's basketball action at the PEPS gymnasium on Sunday afternoon. Ferland's trey capped a 24-point fourth quarter for the hosts, who overcame a 40-34 third-quarter deficit to pull into a tie for third place in the Quebec conference with the Gaiters.

Laval took the lead on a 13-2 run midway through the fourth quarter, as the Gaiters went more than five minutes without a field goal, and a pair of layups by Ferland put Laval up 51-46, matching their largest lead of the afternoon. The run provided the eighth and final lead change in the back-and-forth contest.

The Gaiters trailed 14-11 after the first quarter, and took their first lead of the day early in the second quarter, after Gabrielle Chamberland (Sherbrooke, Que.) scored nine points on an 11-0 Bishop's run. The Gaiters led 22-16 at that point, but Laval responded with an 8-0 run of their own to take the lead back at 24-22 with two minutes to play in the second. A three-pointer by Annick Stephanny Charles (Laval, Que.) gave the Gaiters a slim halftime lead, 25-24. The Gaiters extended their lead to 40-34 after three quarters, as they ended the period on a 9-2 run.

Laval (13-11, 13-11 CIS, 6-8 Quebec) was led by Ferland's 15 points, while Jannie Jacques came off the bench to score ten.

For the Gaiters (11-16, 11-15 CIS, 6-8 Quebec), Charles led with 15 points, while Chamberland scored 12 and Jessy Roy (Val d'Or, Que.) added 10.

Laval outrebounded the Gaiters 32-26 and held a slight edge in shooting, 37% to 36%. Laval went 7-for-18 from three-point range, while the Gaiters were only 5-for-24.

The win moves Laval into a tie for third place with the Gaiters, with both teams having two games remaining. With the loss, the Gaiters can finish no higher than third in the conference. They would clinch a playoff berth with a win in either of their last two games, or a loss by fifth-place UQAM in either of their last two games.

The Gaiters return to action on Thursday, as they visit the McGill Martlets in Montreal. They close out the season on Friday night at the Mitchell Gym at home to Laval. Both games tip off at 6 p.m.

Source: Bishop's Sports Info