Monday, October 20, 2014

Women's Basketball - Game Report


Hi Folks,

We have just returned from Vancouver where we played 3 games.  We opened on Thursday with a loss to UBC (50-58), then travelled to Abbottsford to beat Fraser Valley (75-61) and then to Langley to beat Trinity Western (74-70).  Game reports to follow.  The trip also included an excursion to the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Tree Top Walk and Cliff Walk, producing many great photos and lots of fun (check out our facebook page).  Other highlights included the great hospitality of Abby Dixon’s family (parents and grandparents) providing great pre-game meals and slide shows.

Queen’s 50 – UBC 58
It is possible that travelling from Kingston to Toronto by bus, then flying to Vancouver and playing the same evening, had an impact on our performance – at least at the start of the game.  Five minutes in, we were trailing by 14 and had failed to find the bottom of the net.  For the next 35 minutes we outscored UBC, 50-44.  We had good looks early, but failed to convert.  At the same time we did struggle with UBC’s size, as they had an inch or two at every position.  Robyn Pearson finished with a double-double, 13 points and 13 rebounds, while Jenny Wright had 14 points. 

Queen’s 75 – Fraser Valley 61
We struggled again in the first quarter of this one and ending up trailing 13-19 at the quarter.  Our defense picked up, forcing a number of turnovers and allowing us to score a few more points in transition.  We outscored UFV 26-15 to lead, 39-34 at the half.  We opened an even larger lead with a good start to the third quarter, but Fraser Valley battled back with an aggressive, attacking offense that led to many Q’s fouls.  Despite losing the lead at one point in the third, we responded to regain the lead before the end of the quarter.  Continuing to wear Fraser Valley down, our largest lead came at the end of the game, 75-61.  Liz Boag topped all scorers with 18, while Emily Hazlett added 14.

Queen’s 74 – Trinity Western 70
Our third game in 3 days (against a fresh opponent) was a great test for our team depth and conditioning (especially with Gemma Bullard, Jenny Wright & Sarah Saftich all sidelined with injuries).  Trinity Western took it to us early, using their team speed (fastest we’ve seen this year) to outrun us in transition and score early and often.  We started to make adjustments and pulled back to within one at the quarter 20-21.  However, Trinity Western was able to keep up the pace and increased their lead to 40-43 by half.  A great start to the second half saw us erase the deficit and grab our first lead of the game, going up by as many as 9 points.  It was short-lived however, as TWU regained the lead 54-55 by the end of the 3rd quarter.  It wasn’t until late in the fourth that we recaptured the lead.  Up 71-70 with just under 20 seconds to go, we made a defensive stop and were fouled.  With a time out, we advanced the ball to front court and ran a play for Abby Dixon (North Vancouver).  She quickly scored (much to the delight of the many family and friends on hand) to put us up 73-70.  TWU advanced the ball with a time out and ran an inbound play for their best 3-point shooter (and much to the dismay of me, they had a good look), but it bounced out and Liz Boag secured the rebound, was fouled, and finished the game hitting one of two foul shots to finish with the 74-70 win.  We don’t have complete stats from the game (technical difficulties), but Liz had a monster game, draining at least 4 3-pointers, and numerous drives.  Emily Hazlett had a very solid game with her usual defensive toughness and some great slashing drives to the hoop.  Robyn Pearson continued her stellar play around the rim and dropping 3 15-footers.

All in all, it was a great playing experience on the coast: 3 very different style teams gave us everything we could handle. I am quite pleased at how our team is playing at the moment.

A reminder, we will be holding our annual ID/Training Camp on Saturday, November 29, 2014.  This is an ideal opportunity for anyone in Grades 11 or 12 to display their talents and receive instruction from the Queen’s coaching staff.  The day’s schedule is as follows:

9:30-11:45am On-court session
11:45-12:15pm Lunch break (on own)
12:15-12:45pm Facility Tour (parent’s welcome)
12:45-1:30pm Q&A session with Q’s coaches (parent’s welcome)
1:30-3:30pm On-court session

There is no cost for the ID/Training Camp – just let me know so that I can prepare for the numbers.

Up Next on the Road:
@ Carleton Tournament*
Friday, October 24 vs. Memorial  6pm
Saturday, October 25 vs. UQAM  6pm
Sunday, October 26 vs. Carleton  2pm
*Note: with the new league structure, these are our only games in Ottawa this season

Up Next at Home:
Saturday, November 1 vs. Ottawa  6pm

Have a great week!

Dave.