Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

I thought I would provide a brief re-cap of the fall season, but first, congratulations to Robyn Pearson, who was named the Queen’s Athlete of the Week last week for her record-breaking performance (rebounding) in our win against Algoma.  She has cracked the OUA All-time Top 10 list for rebounding and has her sights on climbing the list in the second semester.

We are 6-0 in league play with wins:

at York, 85-54

at Guelph, 63-47

vs. Laurier, 84-78

vs. Waterloo, 93-63

at Lakehead, 68-61

vs. Algoma, 73-33

The U-Sports (formerly CIS) keeps track of team (and individual) statistics across the 47 teams in the country, rating 23 different categories related to on-court performance.  Here’s a quick run-down of some of the highlights:

We are currently ranked #1 in the country in 5 of the 23 categories:

·         Points per game (77.7)

·         Field Goals made per game (28.8)

·         Field Goals attempted per game (72.2)

·         Offensive Rebounds per game (20.5)

·         Blocks per game (5.2)

Other categories where we are in the Top 10 in the country:

·         Field Goal % (9^th)

·         3 Point Field Goal % (9^th)

·         Free Throws made per game (10^th)

·         Free Throws attempted per game (8^th)

·         Total Rebound per game (3^rd)

·         Rebound margin per game (4^th)

·         Steals per game (10^th)

·         Personal fouls per game (9^th)(least)

·         Points allowed per game (7^th)

·         Opponent’s Field Goal % (2^nd)(least)

·         Opponent’s 3 Point Field Goal % (10^th)(least)

Our biggest area requiring improvement is the turnover category.  We rank 23^rd in the country with a whopping 18.8 turnovers per game.  While this is somewhat a product of the fast-paced game we play, it is still an area that needs to be improved significantly as we move into the second semester……..a semester that will feature some much tougher games.

Up Next on the Road:

Thunder Selects Tournament (at St. Mary’s University) – Halifax, NS

Wednesday, December 28 vs. St. Mary’s  6pm (local time)

Thursday, December 29 vs. Acadia  7pm

Friday, December 30 vs. Dalhousie  2pm

As this will be my last Newsletter prior to the holiday break, on behalf of our entire team, I would like to wish you and your family a very safe and enjoyable holiday season.

All the best.

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We finished out the fall portion of our season with a win over Algoma to remain the only undefeated Ontario team in league play (6-0).  Also of note, Marianne Alarie was selected as the Queen’s Athlete of the Week last week, following her dominant performance against Lakehead.

Queen’s 73 – Algoma 33

Algoma came into the game as the country’s 2^nd best 3-point % shooting team (37%) and 2^nd in 3-point shots made per game (8.6).  One of our primary defensive goals was to chase them off the 3-point line.  Algoma came out very aggressive in the first quarter, beating us to loose balls and forcing us into 7 turnovers.  They went 3 for 9 from the 3-point line, but struggled from the 2-point line.  We ended the quarter with a 16-12 lead.  We settled down in the second quarter, and did a better job of forcing them off the 3-point line, going 0 for 3 and only generating 5 points to our 14.  We led 30-17 at the break with only 2 turnovers in the quarter.  Our defensive pressure continued to intensify in the second half and we dominated both the third and fourth quarters, 22-9 and 21-7 respectively to finish with the 73-33 win.  We did hold Algoma to 26% from the 3-point line, while shooting 42% ourselves.  I thought we shared the basketball very well (17 assists), with all 12 players scoring.  Veronika Lavergne topped the scoring list with 14 points and 7 rebounds, while Robyn Pearson had another double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.  With those rebounds (now totaling 738), Robyn has now entered the OUA Top 10 for all-time career rebounding – outstanding!  Emily Hazlett also hit double digits as she scored 10 points to go along with her 6 assists.

Q’s SID report:  http://www.gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/12/3/WBB_v_Algoma.aspx

Our league schedule resumes on the road in January against Western (January 6^th) and Windsor (Jan 7^th).  However, we do have 3 exhibition games in Halifax prior to New Years.

Up Next on the Road:
Thunder Selects Tournament (at St. Mary’s University) – Halifax, NS
Wednesday, December 28 vs. St. Mary’s  6pm (local time)
Thursday, December 29 vs. Acadia  7pm
Friday, December 30 vs. Dalhousie  2pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Just a single game to report on this week as we headed to Thunder Bay to take on the Lakehead Thunderwolves.  In a hard fought battle, we maintained our undefeated season, prevailing 68-61.  With the lower scoring, we have dropped to 2^nd in the country in that department, while holding on to the 6^th spot in the National Top 10 ranking (and 2^nd on the OUA ranking).  We finish out our fall schedule at home this coming Saturday (December 3).

Queen’s 68 – Lakehead 61

We were a little slow out of the gates in this one, only connecting on 5 of 14 first quarter shots.  However, our defence was quite good, only surrendering 8 points to our 12.  The game opened up considerably in the second quarter, as we built on our 4-point lead, only to have Lakehead respond near half time to reduce the lead back to 4.  Each team finished with 21 in the quarter, giving us a 33 – 29 lead at the break.  Once again we built the lead to double digits in the third, and once again Lakehead answered back.  We outscored Lakehead 17-15 to take a 7-point lead into the fourth.  Once more we built a double digit lead, only to have Lakehead claw their way back, getting the margin to 3 points with 3 minutes to go.  We closed out the last 3 minutes well to win the quarter 18-17 and the game 68-61.  We were very much buoyed by the resurgence of our 3-point game, going 6 for 12 on the evening, but were held back by our turnovers – a whopping 28.  Marianne Alarie led all scorers with 22 points, while Abby Dixon had 14 points and 4 steals.  Veronika Lavergne came up big, especially in the fourth quarter, scoring 7 of her 11 points in the frame, to go along with 6 rebounds, and Andrea Priamo continued her solid play with 10 points and 8 boards.

Last call for our annual ID/Training Camp this Sunday, December 4th).  It will involve on-court sessions with the Q’s coaching staff from 9:30-11:45am and again 1:30-3:30pm, along with a facility tour and Q&A session in between.  It is intended for student athletes in Grades 10-12 who may have an interest in Queen’s down the road.  There is no cost for the Training Camp, but please drop me an email if you would like to attend, so I can prepare for the numbers.

Up Next at Home:

Saturday, December 3 vs. Algoma  6pm

Up Next on the Road:

Thunder Selects Tournament (at St. Mary’s University) – Halifax, NS

Wednesday, December 28 vs. St. Mary’s  6pm (local time)

Thursday, December 29 vs. Acadia  7pm

Friday, December 30 vs. Dalhousie  2pm

Have a great week.

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Our league home opening weekend proved successful with a pair of wins over two previously undefeated teams, Laurier and Waterloo, moving us to 4-0 on the season, and sitting 7^th in the national polls.  We also lead the nation is points per game (81.3), offensive rebounding (22.5) and in blocked shots (5.8) in the young season.

Queen’s 84 – Laurier 78

Although we jumped out to an early lead, this game became like most of our games over the last few years with Laurier; a tightly contested, back and forth battle.  The game was tied on 7 occasions and featured 11 lead changes.  Despite grabbing an early 14-1 lead, Laurier closed the opening quarter on a 10-0 run, leaving us with a 24-21 lead.  After shooting 45% in the first quarter, we dropped to 32% in the second, but still managed to outscore Laurier by 1, 18-17 to take a 4-point lead into half time, 42-38.  Laurier’s shooting percentage jumped in the third quarter to 47%, while ours rose to 39%.  Laurier erased the 4-point deficit and the game was tied at 62 heading into the fourth.  Shooting percentage was key in the fourth as ours raised to 41.2%, while Laurier’s dropped to 37%, allowing us the 6-point margin, 22-16, finishing with the 84-78 win.  Laurier played almost 35 minutes of zone defense – our first real test against a prolonged zone.  I am pleased with our point production against their zone.  Our defence, however, is allowing too many points and requires some improvements.  Marianne Alarie continued her stellar offensive production with 22 points, along with 7 boards, 4 assists and 4 steals.  Robyn Pearson recorded another double-double with 14 points and 15 rebounds.  Emily Hazlett, in addition to her tenacious defense, continues to shine on offense, with 11 points and 4 assists.  Gemma Bullard showed signs of why she was an All-Star, dropping an efficient 11 points on 3 of 5 shooting.  Andrea Priamo also recorded a double-double with 10 points and 10 boards.

Queen’s 93 – Waterloo 63

Waterloo came out strong (following their wins over York and Toronto) and kept pace for the first 5 minutes of the quarter, before we started to pull away.  We shot a very efficient 11 of 19 (58%) to grab a 28-15 quarter lead.  Although our shooting percentage dropped in the second quarter (41%), our defense tightened, outscoring Waterloo, 15-7, to lead 43-22 at half.  We opened the third quarter with a good run, and never let up, outscoring Waterloo, 27-18, while shooting 44% from the floor.  Waterloo found their range in the fourth and matched our scoring at 23 to finish with the 93-63 final.  Our 30-point game margin was also matched by our rebounding margin, 54-24. Marianne Alarie finished with 17, while Emily Hazlett dropped 11.  Andrea Priamo and Bridget Mulholland each had 11 points, while Veronika Lavernge just missed a double-double with 9 points and 9 boards. 

Just over a week away for our annual ID/Training Camp in early December (Sunday the 4th).  It will involve on-court sessions with the Q’s coaching staff from 9:30-11:45am and again 1:30-3:30pm, along with a facility tour and Q&A session in between.  It is intended for student athletes in Grades 10-12 who may have an interest in Queen’s down the road.  There is no cost for the Training Camp, but please drop me an email if you would like to attend, so I can prepare for the numbers.
 
Up Next on the Road:
Friday, November 25 @ Lakehead  6pm

Up Next at Home:

Saturday, December 3 vs. Algoma  6pm

Have a great week.
 
Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

League play opened this past weekend with us on the road at York on Friday and Guelph on Saturday.  We came into league play ranked 7^th in the country, and came away with two wins.

Queen’s 85 – York 54

We opened the scoring in this game and never relinquished the lead, although York was very solid in the opening quarter.  We finished the quarter up 18-15 on the difference of shooting percentage: 39% to 26% -- neither of which are impressive numbers.  It was the second quarter where our pressure defense began to force York into more errors, leading to runouts.  We outscored York 25-12 to take a 43-27 half time lead.  We opened the third quarter the same way we finished the second, blowing the game wide open.  On the back of our defence work, and runouts, we outscored York 24-13 in the quarter.  With the game out of reach, I thought we still stayed quite focused in the fourth, not allowing York to gain any momentum.  We scored 18 to York’s 14 to finish with the 85-54 win.  Both our scoring and rebounding were spread amongst our 12 active players – despite scoring 85 points our leading scorer only had 14, and despite out-rebounding York 52-31, our leading rebounder had 9.  Kat Holt and Marianna Alarie led the way in scoring with 14 points apiece, while Robyn Pearson was 1 rebound away from a double-double, with 12 points and 9 boards.

Queen’s 63 – Guelph 47

This was a very different style of game, as Guelph did a very good job of slowing the pace and bogging down our interior play.  It was also a game of short runs, 6 or 8 points in a row by us, followed by 6 or 8 by Guelph.  Once again, we scored first in the game and never relinquished the lead.  However, both teams also had difficulty with shooting accuracy.  We had our mini-run to go up 12-5, only to have Guelph score the final 6 points of the quarter – we led 12-11 after one, shooting only 28%.  We got untracked a little more in the second quarter, again our defense forcing a number of turnovers.  Our shooting % climbed to 38%, still well below our targets, but allowed us to outscore Guelph 19-16 and hold a 31-27 half time lead.  The mini-runs continued in the third quarter, with us going on an 8 point run to grab a double-digit lead, only to have Guelph come back with a 6 point run of their own.  We finished the quarter with a short 4 point run to outscore Guelph 16-11 in the third.  Neither team could find the bottom of the net for the early going in the fourth.  The spread was only 8 with 2 minutes to go in the quarter.  However, our best execution of the day came in those last 2 minutes, finishing with a 10-2 run to outscore Guelph 16-9 to finish with the 63-47 win.  Our shooting % from the floor was quite dismal (29.6%), but we did have a bright spot from the foul line, going 15 for 18 (83.3%).  Robyn Pearson, despite a very slow start to the game, finished with an impressive double-double, 16 points and 13 rebounds.  Emily Hazlett (who had a terrific weekend running our offenses and creating enormous problems for the opposition’s point guards) finished with 12 points on 4 of 9 from the floor and 4 of 4 from the line.  Veronika Lavergne, like Robyn, was able to overcome some of Guelph’s physical play to finish with 10 points.

Numbers continue to climb for our annual ID/Training Camp in early December (Sunday the 4th).  It will involve on-court sessions with the Q’s coaching staff from 9:30-11:45am and again 1:30-3:30pm, along with a facility tour and Q&A session in between.  It is intended for student athletes in Grades 10-12 who may have an interest in Queen’s down the road.  There is no cost for the Training Camp, but please drop me an email if you would like to attend, so I can prepare for the numbers.

Up Next at Home:

Friday, November 18 vs. Laurier  6pm

Saturday, November 19 vs. Waterloo  2pm (note afternoon time)

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, November 25 @ Lakehead  6pm

Have a great week.

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We wrapped up our pre-season exhibition play on the weekend with games in Montreal (UQAM) on Friday, and Ottawa (Ottawa U.) on Saturday.  Both were very physical, tough battles, leaving us with one win and one loss.  Our exhibition schedule has provided us with great competition, with a variety of styles of play.  Hopefully, this will help us be better prepared as we move into league play.  We have this weekend off and then open on the road the following week at York.

Queen’s 78 – UQAM 74

Our defense was severely lacking in the opening quarter of this game, as UQAM continually found ways to score in the paint.  In fact, they scored 23 points in the opening frame (to our 20), with all of the points scored from within the key (20) and from the foul line (3).  Sometimes I should be careful what I wish for, as we closed down the inside a little better in the second quarter, only to have them shoot 3 of 6 from beyond the arc, and outscore us 16-19 in the quarter to take a 36-42 lead at the half.  Rebounding at the half was pretty close to even, but that was about to change in the second half.  Although we only put up 14 points in the third quarter, we held UQAM to just 6.  With a two point lead, heading into the fourth, we managed to widen the gap to 8 points at one point, only to have UQAM bring it back to 4, but never any closer.  Offense for both teams got rolling in the fourth as we put up 28 points to UQAM’s 26, to finish with the 78-74 win.  We out-rebounded UQAM 56-35 in the game, which also helped us get to the foul line 30 times in the game (converting on 21).  Andrea Priamo had another outstanding game with a double-double, 15 points, 12 boards and 4 steals. Marianne Alarie finished with 14 points, Robyn Pearson 13, and Abby Dixon with 10.  Emily Hazlett had another fine showing at the point guard position, with 9 points and 7 assists.

Queen’s 52 – Ottawa 59

Well this was the usual slug-fest we have come to expect with a game with Ottawa.  It is not the prettiest of games to watch (relayed to me many times from those in attendance), but Ottawa’s highly disciplined defense makes it difficult to get good looks.  And when we got a decent look, often we rushed more than necessary.  All this to say, we only scored 5 points in the first quarter (1 Field goal, and 3 foul shots), and still we only trailed by 6.  The game continued to be a grind in the second quarter as we only managed 5 field goals (13 points) to Ottawa’s 4 field goals (16 points), but Ottawa converted on 8 of 12 foul shots.  This left us down 18-27 at the half.  Our scoring picked up a little more in the third quarter (16) to Ottawa’s 19 to trail 34-46.  We made a little run in the fourth quarter to cut into Ottawa’s lead, but only outscored them by 5 overall to leave us with the 52-59 loss.  Turnovers plagued us badly in the game (21), and poor 3pt. shooting (16.7%).  The only double digits we hit were in the Rebounding category, with Andrea Priamo grabbing 12 and Robyn Pearson 11.

Re-cap of our Pre-Season Games

Queen’s 93 – St. Lawrence 35

Queen’s 76 – Acadia 69

Queen’s 66 – Alberta 63

Queen’s 51 – Laval 65

Queen’s 85 – Thompson Rivers 57

Queen’s 73 – Concordia 65

Queen’s 60 – Carleton 67

Queen’s 78 – UQAM 74

Queen’s 52 – Ottawa 59

We will be hosting our annual ID/Training Camp in early December (Sunday the 4th) once again this year.  It will involve on-court sessions with the Q’s coaching staff from 9:30-11:45am and again 1:30-3:30pm, along with a facility tour and Q&A session in between.  It is intended for student athletes in Grades 10-12 who may have an interest in Queen’s down the road.  There is no cost for the Training Camp, but please drop me an email if you would like to attend, so I can prepare for the numbers.

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, November 11 @ York  6pm (League opener)

Saturday, November 12 @ Guelph  6pm

Up Next at Home:

Friday, November 18 vs. Laurier  6pm

Saturday, November 19 vs. Waterloo  6pm

Have a great week (or two)!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Another very tough and relatively successful weekend in Ottawa, at the Carleton Invitational tournament, featuring Thompson Rivers (TRU), Concordia and Carleton.

Queen’s 85 – Thompson Rivers 57

We started a little slowly in this one – looking like we were trying to get a feel for the game and for Thompson Rivers’ style.  Mid-way through the quarter we started to get rolling, racking up 22 points in the frame.  TRU kept themselves in the game with their 3pt. shooing, going 4 of 6 to finish with 16 points.  Our defense tightened significantly in the second quarter and TRU went cold hitting on only 2 of 16 shots (0 of 6 from 3), while we hit on almost 69% of our shots to dominate the quarter, 24-4.  The game, now out of reach, levelled off in the third quarter, although we added to our 26 point lead by 4, 19-15.  TRU outscored us 20-22 in the fourth to finish out the game.  Three players finished in double figures, led by Marianne Alarie with 17 points, going 6 for 7 from the 2pt. line, 1 of 1 from the 3pt. line, grabbing 6 rebounds, 5 assists and 1 steal in 17 minutes of play.  Abby Dixon finished with 15 points (on 7 of 12 shots), while Veronika Lavergne added 13 points and 9 boards.

Queen’s 73 – Concordia 65

This, as expected, was a very physical game against a very good ball club.  After scoring the first basket of the game, we never relinquished the lead, although we never managed a double digit lead either.  We shot 7 of 15 from the floor in the opening quarter, to Concordia’s 6 of 16, and also went 6 of 8 from the line to hold a 20-15 first quarter lead.  The second quarter was almost a repeat of the first, going 8 of 15 from the floor and growing our lead by 3, 18-15 to lead 38-30 at the half.  This proved to be the margin of victory as the next two quarters couldn’t have been more evenly matched: 18-18 in the third and 17-17 in the fourth to finish with the 73-65 win.  By quarter, our shooting % was: 46.7%, 53.3%, 45.5% and 47.5% -- probably the most whole-game consistency I can recall.  Again, three players finished in double digits, with Marianne Alarie having another outstanding game.  She finished with 20 points on 8 of 11 shooting.  Robyn Pearson finished with 11 points on 5 of 6 shooting and grabbed 9 boards.  Emily Hazlett was the engine behind our offence scoring 10 points, grabbing 5 boards and 3 assists.

Queen’s 60 – Carleton 67

This was the usual, tough, grind-out style of game we expect when playing Carleton.  Despite shooting 47% in the opening quarter, it was the in-close misses that prevented us from building a substantial lead.  We finished up 2 at the quarter 17-15.  Things bogged down in the second quarter, with neither team able to make a run, finishing 12-12.  Carleton began to pull away in the third quarter, before we tightened up late in the quarter to end up down 3, 42-45 heading into the fourth.  Once again, Carleton began to open a lead (as much as 11 points) before we closed the gap once again to 4.  Foul shots stretched the deficit back to 7, 60-67.  Carleton’s shooting % improved in the second half (47%), while ours fell to 30%.  Andrea Priamo finished with 11 points and 6 boards, while Abby Dixon and Emily Hazlett each added 10 points.

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, October 28 @ University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM)  6pm

Saturday, October 29 vs. Ottawa U (game at Ashbury College in Ottawa)  2pm

Friday, November 11 @ York  6pm (league opener)

Saturday, November 12 @ Guelph  6pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

For our Canadian readers, I hope you had a great Thanksgiving weekend (our American readers can look forward to Thanksgiving in a couple of weeks).

I am very pleased to announce that Emily Hazlett has been awarded the Catherine Gertrude (Milliken) Smith Scholarship for this season.  Established in March 2007 by Sherwood H. Smith, Jr. of Raleigh, North Carolina, in memory of his mother Catherine Gertrude (Milliken) Smith, B.A. 1924, who, while attending Queen's, played for and managed the varsity women's basketball team. Awarded to recognize academic achievement and athletic excellence to a student-athlete who is on the competition roster of the Gaels interuniversity women's basketball team.  Emily, a fifth year Kinesiology student,  is the current Captain of the Gaels and starting point guard, having received recognition as an Academic All-Canadian last season.

We will be hosting our annual ID/Training Camp in early December (Sunday the 4^th) once again this year.  It will involve on-court sessions with the Q’s coaching staff from 9:30-11:45am and again 1:30-3:30pm, along with a facility tour and Q&A session in between.  It is intended to student athletes in Grades 10-12 who may have an interest in Queen’s down the road.  There is no cost for the Training Camp, but please drop me an email if you would like to attend, so I can prepare for the numbers.

Our Tindall Tournament/Homecoming/Alumni Weekend/Reception & Silent Auction are on tap for this weekend, beginning with our game on Friday at 6pm against Acadia University.  This will be followed by a reception with hot & cold hors d’oeuvres and cash bar at the Confederation Place Hotel on Ontario St. in downtown Kingston (approximately 8:00pm).

Important Information about the weekend:

Please register on-line for the event so we can plan for numbers (and you can receive a discount on game tickets):  https://advevents.queensu.ca/cgi/page.cgi?_id=3&action=viewdetail&event_id=2052

Alumni vs. Alumni game is open to ALL Alumni

We will be recognizing team members from 2000-01 to 2004-05 at the Reception Friday evening.  Jen Oliver (nee Bittner) has a Facebook page set up regarding the event. Please check it out at:  https://www.facebook.com/groups/queenswbballalumni/

All family and friends of Queen’s basketball are welcome and encouraged to attend the reception

$10 ticket for the Reception includes a drink ticket and appetizers (along with the opportunity to bid on the Silent Auction items).

A tournament pass can be purchased for the weekend for $20 - ONLY on our web site (instead of $10 per day at the door)

If anyone would like to donate something to our Silent Auction Table, please contact me directly.  Donations gratefully accepted as this is our major fundraising effort of the year.

Up Next at Home: Tindall Tournament

Friday, October 14

6:00pm Queen’s vs. Acadia  - Main Gym

8:00pm Alumni Reception/Silent Auction – Confederation Place Hotel (Ontario St.)

Saturday, October 15

12:00n Alumni vs. Alumni game/contests – Upper Gym (ARC)

6:00pm Queen’s vs. Alberta – Main Gym

Sunday, October 16

2:00pm Queen’s vs. Laval

Up Next on the Road: Carleton Tournament (Ottawa)

Friday, October 21 vs.  Thompson Rivers  6pm

Saturday, October 22 vs. Concordia  4pm

Sunday, October 23 vs. Carleton  2pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,
 
My first official Game Report of the season!  I should preface this by saying that when I write my game reports, I try to be honest and objective (as objective as I can be in a coaching role :)).  Some readers have commented on my writing surprised that it is not a little more “sugar-coated” when we play poorly or lose a game, etc.  Suffice it to say – “not my style.” 
 
Queen’s 55 – Abilene Christian University 85
The final score is certainly not very flattering, but also not indicative of the overall competitiveness of the game (at least for the first 3 quarters).  In fact, we started the game very well – particularly our shooting , going 7 for 13 in the opening frame.  After we opened up a 21-8 lead, Abilene scored the final 7 points of the quarter to close to 21-15.  It was Abilene’s turn to shoot well in the second quarter, converting 11 of their 18 attempts, outscoring us 25 -14 to lead 35-40 at the half.  The third quarter saw each team shoot in the mid to upper 30s (%) with Abilene increasing their lead by 3 (16-19).  Trailing by 8 points heading into the fourth quarter, the first few minutes of the quarter went by with neither team able to find the bottom of the net.  However, is was the final 7 minutes that saw Abilene shoot the lights out, while we continued to come up empty.  We were outscored 26-4 in the fourth, turning that 8 point deficit into an ugly 30 point loss. Rebounding and turnovers caused us the most grief, being outrebounded 28-46, along with 28 turnovers to Abilene’s 16.
 
Because of injuries, we were only able to dress 9 of our 15 players, but, we still had 3 players in double digits (Marianne Alarie with 14, Andrea Priamo and rookie, Emma Ritcey, each with 10), another player with 9 (Sarah Saftich), and another with 8 (Myriam Fontaine). 
 
We will be heading into Training Camp on August 28^th, in preparation for the season and our next exhibition play, September 28^th at St. Lawrence College, our cross-town competitors.
 
Our Alumni/Homecoming weekend follows that on the October 14-16 weekend.  We will be hosting our Tindall Tournament with Alberta, Laval and Acadia in attendance, along with our Alumni vs. Alumni game.  Our Reception to honour our team members from the 2000-01 to 2004-05 will follow our game on the Friday evening, complete with Silent Auction.  More details will be forthcoming, but it should be an incredibly exciting weekend, as the University will be celebrating its 175^th anniversary, and the official opening of our new George Richardson Stadium.
 
Enjoy the rest of your summer!
 
Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

Welcome to summer!

I have some incredible news to share:

Megan Saftich, Emily Hazlett, Sarah Saftich, Abby Dixon, Kat Holt, Marianne Alarie, Nicole Morse, Robyn Pearson & Jenny Wright all achieved the Academic All-Canadian standard (over 80% average).  Outstanding!

I am pleased to announce that Adriana Conti will be joining our basketball family.  A tough 5-9” combo-guard, Adriana is a former teammate of Myriam Fontaine at La Citadelle HS and on the Ottawa JUEL team.

We hosted the JUnior ELite (JUEL) championships in the middle of May.  Congratulations to Hamilton Transway as they beat the defending champions, Tri-County Thunder in a very exciting final.  Robyn Pearson was the keynote speaker at the JUEL Banquet delivering a very informative and impassioned speech which was very well received by the over 600 young female basketball players in attendance.   In conjunction with the JUEL Championships, we also hosted the OUA All-Star Game, featuring 3 Queen’s players: Jenny Wright, Robyn Pearson & Myriam Fontaine.

Our Elite Training & Scrimmage Camp is well underway, having sold out many weeks prior to its start.  It is a very skilled group that promises to provide exciting basketball in Kingston for years to come.  Up next are our ½ Basketball/ ½ Volleyball Camps starting up in early & mid-July for girls & boys entering Gr.2-5.  (The first week is already sold out). Registration for our end of summer Basketball Camp andBasketball Academy have already exceeded last year’s registrations and are nearing capacity.
Check out the camp details at:  http://rec.gogaelsgo.com/sports/2016/2/23/SummerCamp2016.aspx

Our basketball schedule is very near complete and is posted on our web site:www.queensbasketball.net
In addition to hosting the Tindall Tournament (with Alberta, Laval & Acadia), we will be travelling toCarleton’s Tournament, and to the Thunder Select Tournament in Halifax (Dec. 28-30).  We also have individual exhibition play scheduled at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM) and Ottawa U (to be played at Ashbury College in Ottawa).  We have also added a late summer home game againstAbilene Christian University, a Division I school out of Texas on Tuesday, August 9^th at 7:00pm.

In conjunction with our Tindall Tournament (October 14-16) we will be hosting our annual Alumni Game, along with a Reception and Silent Auction.  While the Alumni Game is open to all alumni, we will be honouring the team members from the 2000-01 to 2004-05 teams, with keynote speakerJen Oliver (nee Bittner).  A tentative run-down of the weekend is as follows:
 

Friday, October 14
6:00pm Queen’s vs. Acadia
8:00pm Reception & Silent Auction – University Club

Saturday, October 15
12:00n Alumni Game
6:00pm Queen’s vs. Alberta
7:30pm Social activity tbd

Sunday, October 16
2:00pm Queen’s vs. Laval

Please click on the following to join a Facebook group created by Jen Oliver: https://www.facebook.com/groups/queenswbballalumni/

Enjoy!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

A quick update as we are working our way through a very busy Spring.

We just finished eight 2-hour practise sessions over the last four days with Canada’s Olympic Coaches, Allison and Mike McNeill.  The sessions were outstanding and will help set the course and tone for our team moving forward.  In addition to their extensive knowledge, Coaches Allison & Mike are excellent teachers and motivators.  Between our on-court practise sessions, Bob, James and I had the opportunity to sit and chat hoops for 3 hours each day with the McNeills  -- fantastic learning opportunity.

Out of the pan and into the fire – we are preparing to host the OUA All-Star Game this weekend in conjunction with the JUEL and JUEL-Prep Championships.   Jenny Wright, Robyn Pearson and Myriam Fontaine will be featured in the All-Star game set for Saturday, May 14 at 7:30pm in the Main Gym of the ARC.  Admission is free.  Last year the gym was packed for the game, creating a great atmosphere!

The JUEL Championships get underway on Friday (May 13) with games starting at 10am.  The banquet will be held Friday evening, with Robyn Pearson as a Keynote Speaker, before games resume on Saturday at 9am.  The Championship final is scheduled for Sunday at 2:30pm.  JUEL charges $6 per day or a $10 weekend pass.

Our basketball camp season is set to get underway later this month with the Elite Training & Scrimmage Camp first out of the blocks on May 26^th.  The very popular camp registered full prior to hitting May, with our other camps following in a similar vain.  In July we have two sessions of our Half Basketball/Half Volleyball Camps (girls & boys entering Grs. 2-5) and in August we have our Basketball Camp (Grs. 2-5) and Basketball Academy (Grs. 6-8).  September 10 marks our Jr. Girls Team Camp.  For details on all of our camps, please visit:  http://rec.gogaelsgo.com/sports/2016/2/23/SummerCamp2016.aspx

Updates on some exciting developments with the Alumni Weekend (October 14-16) will come in the next Newsletter.

That’s it for now.  Enjoy the rest of Spring!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

Time for a mid-Spring update. 

As mentioned in my previous newsletter, we are very excited to be having Veronika Lavergne  join us for next season.  Here is the link to her press release:

http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/4/7/basketball-w-6-4-post-lavergne-commits-to-gaels-basketball.aspx

We are busy preparing to host the JUEL & JUEL-Prep Championships on the May 13-15 weekend where 52 games will be played over the 3 days.  The JUnior ELite of Ontario is comprised of 14 teams (Gr. 11 & 12s) from across the province, with the same number of teams for the Prep division (Gr.9 & 10s).  We are still in need of scorers, timers or shot clock operators if anyone is interested in helping out – the calibre of basketball will by very high.

The OUA All-Star game is being played in conjunction with the JUEL Championships again this year.  The game will feature 3 Queen’s players:  Jenny Wright, Robyn Pearson and Myriam Fontaine and will be played on the Main court at Queen’s, with a 7:30pm tip off on Saturday, May 14.  Admission is free!

The Alumni Weekend is shaping up nicely – October 14-16 (also the University’s Homecoming Weekend).  We will be hosting our Alumni Game on the Saturday, followed by our Reception & Silent Auction, honouring team members from the 2000-01 to 2004-05 teams.  The Tindall tournament will feature teams that were all in the Top 10 this past season: Alberta, Laval, Acadia and, of course, Queen’s!

Lastly, the first of our Basketball Camps gets underway in late May – the Elite Training & Scrimmage Camp for female players entering Gr. 9 and those entering Grs. 10-12 (two divisions).  Both camps are near full.  Girls and Boys entering Grs.2-5 are well serviced with our Half Basketball/Half Volleyball Camps in July (2 camps) and our Basketball Camp in mid-August.  The Basketball Academy (girls & boys divisions) follows the Basketball Camp in August.  Lastly, our Jr. Girls Team Camp is slated for the 10^th of September (coaches can contact me directly about the Team camp).  Please see the Sport Specific Camps section:

http://rec.gogaelsgo.com/sports/2016/2/23/SummerCamp2016.aspx

That’s it for now.

Cheers,

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

Spring has sprung (and sputtered again) in this neck of the woods, with lots of things on which to report. 

Thanks to the generosity of Robyn Pearson’s parents, our team was treated to another Toronto Raptor game (against Charlotte) at the Air Canada centre.  The team enjoyed the comfort (and luxury) of a Corporate Suite, with full food and beverage service, as the Raptors pulled out a late win over the Hornets.

Speaking of Robyn Pearson, I am very pleased to report that the graduating Commerce student has signed on to return to Queen’s for next season.  The OUA 1^st team All-Star and Canada’s leading rebounder did not want to pass up the opportunity to return for her fifth and final season and would like to take a few extra courses to further her gifted talents in the videography world.  She returns with high expectations and goals: to help lead our team to the National title!

Our athletic banquet (Colour Awards) was held last Wednesday with a very nice dinner affair.  Our team awards were handed out, including: Myriam Fontaine was named Rookie of the Year after her season which saw tremendous growth from the fall through the winter season.  Emily Hazlett received the Coach’s Award for her all around leadership and play.  She was really the spark plug to our team, both offensively and defensively.  Jenny Wright captured the MVP award for her stellar play and leadership.  The 4-time All-Star finished her career as the 2^nd all-time leading scorer in Queen’s history.

As I alluded to in my last newsletter, we were in the midst of something big, very big, that we needed to get some paperwork completed, before going public.  The paperwork is now in order and I am thrilled to announce that Veronika Lavergne will be joining our team starting with the 2016-17 season.  You may recall, Vee, a 6’4” post player, was a highly sought after recruit out of St. Peter’s High School in Orleans, graduating in 2015.  She was part of our pre-season ID/training camp the summer prior to her graduation (along with current players, Kat Holt & Myriam Fontaine), but was lured away by a Division I scholarship to the States.  After experiencing some good success as a rookie, Vee found the camaraderie she experienced at Queen’s was significant enough to reconsider her university choice --  a decision we were more than happy to accommodate!  A press release will be issued in the coming weeks – stay tuned to www.queensbasketball.net for the release.

That’s it for now, but there are lots of things in the works.  I’ll be back in touch in the not-too-distant future.

All the best.

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

I thought I would send out a Newsletter as a number of things are on the horizon and a quick look back at the season.

Highlights of the 2015-16 season

August

* Trip to Barcelona, Spain in August – played 2 games against professional teams – spent 9 days touring the city

September

*Weekend Team Retreat at a cottage in the Thousand Islands – great team building

October

*Won the Tindall Tournament beating Carleton, Memorial and UQAM

November

*Went 6-1 in League Play

December

*Held a team training camp with Canadian Olympic Coaches, Allison & Mike McNeill

February

*Raised almost $6,000 for Breast Cancer Research (Shoot for the Cure game)

*Participated in the NBA All-Star Weekend in Toronto – beating Windsor 60-41

OUA All-Stars Announced

I am very pleased to announce that Jenny Wright and Robyn Pearson were selected as 1^st Team OUA All-Stars, and that Myriam Fontaine was selected to the OUA All-Rookie Team.  This is Jenny’s third consecutive selection to the 1^st Team All-Stars, after being select to the All-Rookie team in her first year.  Robyn finished the season leading the country in rebounding.  Myriam’s game grew dramatically over the course of the year, increasing her minutes from 7/game in the fall to over 15/game in the second half of the season.

Speaking of All-Stars, Queen’s standout, Gemma Bullard (2013-14 OUA All-Star), will be making her return to the team for the 2016-17 season.  Having successfully navigated surgery on her wrist this past season, she is already working hard in the weight room and anxious to get back on the court.  Her talent and maturity will have an instant positive impact on the team.

Stayed tuned for another exciting player announcement coming shortly.  Just need to get the (i)s dotted and the (t)s crossed.

Spring/Summer Camps

We will be offering our usual array of basketball camps again this summer as follows:

Elite Training & Scrimmage (for girls entering Gr. 9, 10, 11, 12 in September)

May 26 – July 28 (Thursday evenings from 7 – 9pm)

½ Basketball ½ Volleyball Camp (for girls & boys entering Gr. 2, 3, 4, 5)

July 4 – 8 (Week 1) (8:30-4:30 daily)

July 18 – 22 (Week 2) (8:30-4:30 daily)

Basketball Camp (for girls & boys entering Gr. 2, 3, 4, 5)

August 15 – 19 (8:30-4:30 daily)

Basketball Academy (for girls & boys {separate} entering Gr. 6, 7, 8)

August 22-26 (8:30-4:30 daily)

For details on these camps and how to register, please visit:

http://rec.gogaelsgo.com/sports/2016/2/23/SummerCamp2016.aspx

We will also be holding our Junior Girls Team Camp on Saturday, September 10^th.  Interested teams should contact me directly.

Cheers,

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

My least favourite newsletter of the year – meaning our season has come to a close with a loss to McMaster, 55-65.  They will move on to the Final Four against Ottawa, while Ryerson will play Windsor.  The games will be held at Ottawa U. this Friday and Saturday.

Queen’s 55 – McMaster 65

This game started pretty much as we expected – a tough grind at both ends of the floor.  Despite good scoring opportunities (for both teams), the ball was not falling resulting in a 10-12 point quarter in favour of McMaster.  The game “loosened up” a little in the second quarter, but shooting percentage favoured Mac as they outscored us 15-20 to take a 25-32 lead into the half.  The game became a grind again in the third quarter as we only managed 9 points (to Mac’s 13) as our shooting percentage dropped below the 20% mark.  We trailed 34-45 heading into the final quarter.  Things got worse before getting better as Mac built a 15 point lead by the 6 minute mark.  We were then able to turn up the heat and go on a run for the first time in the game and closed the score all the way down to 3 points with 57 seconds left in the game.  Unable to convert on our next possession we were forced to foul – eventually increasing the deficit back to 10.  Jenny Wright finished off her CIS career with a double-double, 14 points, 12 boards and 3 steals.  Robyn Pearson had another excellent game with 16 points, 15 boards and 3 blocked shots.

So our season has come to a close.  While this is the last Game Report of the season, I will be sending out another Newsletter in the not-too-distant future with a season re-cap, All-Star selections and other exciting news.

Thanks to all for such great support, in the gyms, via email, and especially to our families who welcomed us into their homes (and sometimes at the gyms) for team meals.  We consider ourselves extremely fortunate to have such a caring, loyal and supportive fan base.

Cheers,

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Not the weekend we were looking for to close out our regular season: losing by 5 points to both Ryerson and Toronto, to finish with a 14-5 regular season record.  The losses dropped us from the 2^nd ranked team in the province to 5^th, one spot away from an opening round bye in the playoffs.  Instead of hosting a second round game next Saturday, we will host an opening round game on Wednesday against Laurentian.  The winner will travel to Hamilton on Saturday to take on McMaster.

Queen’s 61 – Ryerson 66

To say we started this game poorly would be an understatement, going a full 7 minutes without recording a point.  Five turnovers in that span and our inability to convert on any of our shots, left us down 13 before we found the bottom of the net.  We did finish the quarter on an 11-6 run to trail 11-19 after one quarter.  The second quarter was not much better, converting on only 5 of 17 shots and failing to get to the foul line once.  We were outscored 10-13 in the quarter to trail 21-32 at the break.  The third quarter we converted 6 of 18 shots, but were more aggressive, getting to the foul line 7 times (making 5) to score 18 in the quarter.  Unfortunately our defense could not contain Ryerson as they matched that output, so we trailed 39-50 heading into the fourth.  We came to life in spurts in the fourth quarter scoring 22 points, while holding Ryerson to 16, but could not overcome the 11 point deficit.  Emily Hazlett finished with 19 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists.  Robyn Pearson chalked up another double double with 14 points and 13 rebounds, while Marianne Alarie added 10 points.  Jenny Wright also hit double digits with 10 rebounds.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/26/WBB_v_Ryerson.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 70 – Toronto 75

Another slow start to the game saw us miss 11 of our first 12 shots, despite having very good looks.  Fortunately Toronto struggled to put the ball in the hoop as well.  We then went on a good scoring spree, but Toronto managed to find their rhythm as well.  First quarter ended with us leading 16-13.  Toronto’s Rahshida Atkinson took control in the second quarter scoring 11 of her team’s 17.  We put up 13 to trail 29-30 at the half.  The pace picked up in the third quarter and we were unable to contain Toronto’s offence and with less than a minute and a half to go in the quarter, they were up 10.  We managed to score 6 straight points to cut the lead to 4 at the end of 3, 50-54.  Turnovers became the story of the fourth quarter.  We had opportunities to control the game, but 18 second half turnovers killed any momentum we tried to establish.  Jenny Wright finished with a season-high 28 points, along with 9 boards, 5 steals and 4 blocked shots. Emily Hazlett had 13 points, while Robyn Pearson & Andrea Priamo each hit double digits in rebounding, finishing with 13 and 12 respectively.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/27/WBB_v_Toronto.aspx?path=wbball

Up Next at Home - Playoffs:

Wednesday, March 2 vs. Laurentian  6pm*

* Please note that, as per OUA regulations, complimentary tickets are not accepted for playoff games.  Tickets can be purchased at our Customer Service Desk.

Cheers,

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Just one game to report on this week as we completed our last league road trip at Algoma University with a convincing 67-34 win despite being only able to dress 10 players due to injuries.  We climbed to # 9 in the National rankings thanks to our wins over Western & Windsor last week.  Currently, our playoff picture has us ranked #2 in the province (behind Ottawa), with the final weekend of league play to come.  Finishing in the top 4 of the province would provide a first round bye, followed by a home game.  Finishing first in the province allows you to host the Final Four (must win your quarter final game).

Queen’s 67 – Algoma 34

We got off to a good start in this game, exerting solid pressure against Algoma’s offense and forcing a number of turnovers or highly contested shots.  This led to a number of run outs and 22-6 first quarter lead.  The second quarter, however, left much to be desired, as defensive breakdowns led to a number of open 3s for Algoma, and they took full advantage outscoring us 8-15.  Our lead was cut to 9 by half, 30-21.  We regrouped at half and executed much better in the third, outscoring Algoma 24-6 effectively taking the game out of reach.  We led 54-27 after 3.  We continued to play solid defense in the fourth, allowing only 7 points to our 13 to finish with the 67-34 win.  Jenny Wright led all scorers with 16 points in only 19 minutes of action.  Marianne Alarie pumped in 14 points to go along with her 4 boards and 4 steals.

Our last two league games are at home this coming weekend, with Ryerson and Toronto visiting Kingston.  The games have significant playoff implications.  Ontario is divided into 4 Divisions, with the top 3 teams in each Division qualifying for the playoffs.  Those 12 teams are then seeded 1 through 12 (regardless of divisional standing), with the top 4 teams receiving a first round bye.  The first round would see the 5^th seed hosting the 12 seed, the 6^th seed hosting the 11^th seed, etc.  on Wednesday, March 2^nd .  The quarter finals would then be played on Saturday, March 5^th at the sites of the top 4 finishers.  The highest remaining seed after those games will host the OUA Final Four on Friday/Saturday, March 11, 12.

With this weekend being our last regular season home games, we will be honouring our graduating players, Nicole Morse, Robyn Pearson & Jenny Wright immediately following our game on Saturday evening against Toronto.  At half time of the game, we also have a small presentation for the parents of the players.

Up Next at Home:

Friday, February 26 vs. Ryerson  6pm

Saturday, February 27 vs. Toronto  6pm (Graduating Athlete Night)

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We had another very successful weekend with wins over Western and Windsor.  The Western game was at home on Friday night – followed by a trip to Toronto immediately after the game.  Of course, the Windsor game was played in conjunction with the NBA All-Star Weekend activities.  It also allowed us some time to explore the facility and meet some of the NBA legends.

We moved up one spot to 11^th in the country last week (after beating Guelph & Lakehead), and will likely move back into the Top 10 with the two wins this past weekend.  We sit atop our Division with a 13-3 record (Ryerson is 12-3 with a game in hand).  Also of note, Robyn Pearson was named Queen’s Athlete of the Week for the second time, this past week.

Queen’s 69 – Western 64

We had a very good start in this game, dominating the first quarter on the glass (15-5) and shooing the basketball (12/20 vs. 2/14) to grab a 26-9 first quarter lead.  It would prove to be the difference in the game, as Western went on to win all 3 of the remaining quarters.  In the second, Western found their shooting touch, converting on almost 64% of their shots, while our percentage dropped to 32%.  We were outscored 13-20, to leave us with a 39-29 half-time lead.  The third quarter was fast-paced and played basically even, 19-20.  The fourth quarter saw Western chip away at our lead, eventually taking the lead and going up as much as 3 points with just over 4 minutes to play.  Their lead was short-lived, however, as we recaptured the lead and then held them without a field goal for the last minute and a half of the game, to win 69-64.  Abby Dixon led the way with 17 points and 3 steals, while Robyn Pearson had another double-double with 14 points and 10 boards.  Marianne Alarie continued her fine play with 10 points.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/12/WBB_v_Western.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 60 – Windsor 41

Unlike the Western game, we were unable to find our range in the opening quarter against Windsor.  Adjusting to the new surroundings proved difficult for both teams as we shot 3/23 and Windsor 5/19 from the floor, leading to a 9-12 first quarter score.  We began to get our touch in the second (and Windsor’s faltered further) as we outscored them 15-7 to take a 24-19 half time lead.  The third quarter was a bit of a wash, both teams struggling to finish, ending in an 11-10 quarter.  It was the fourth quarter that saw our defense take over, forcing numerous turnovers and creating easier scoring opportunities on the run outs.  We outscored Windsor 25-12 in the fourth for the 60-41 win.  Jenny Wright finished with a game-high 14 points and 8 boards.  Andrea Priamo, was named Player of the Game, thanks to her double-double of 12 points (on 6 of 9 shooting) and 10 boards.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/13/WBB_0213162840.aspx?path=wbball

Up Next on the Road:

Saturday, February 20 @ Algoma  6pm

Up Next at Home:

Friday, February 26 vs. Ryerson  6pm

Saturday, February 27 vs. Toronto  6pm (Graduating Athlete Night)

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We got back on track this weekend with wins over Guelph and Lakehead, outscoring our opponents in each of the 8 quarters.  With last week’s losses in Ottawa, we dropped to 12^th in the country – we’ll have to see what impact the two wins have this weekend.  Our league record is now 11-3, good enough for a first place tie in our division with Ryerson.

Queen’s 75 – Guelph 61

This game had a very sloppy start, for both teams, as we turned the ball over 7 times and Guelph turned it over 5 times.  Despite that, the pace allowed us to get up 19 shots, converting on only 6, but still managing a 16-13 lead.  Unfortunately, our ability to take care of the ball did not improve in the second quarter, coughing it up 8 times, but still managing to outscore Guelph 17-13 to build a 33-26 half-time lead.  Despite reducing our turnovers to just 2 in the third quarter, we could not create much separation from Guelph, only adding one point to our lead, 19-18.  It wasn’t until late in the fourth quarter that we began to separate, eventually building a 15 point lead, while holding Guelph without a field goal for the last 2 minutes of the game.  We had a good spread in scoring with 5 players hitting double digits, two of whom had double-doubles.  Robyn Pearson led the way with 20 points (on 9 of 16 shooting) and 15 boards.  Emily Hazlett had 14 points and 8 assists, while Marianne Alarie continued her fine play with 13 points.  Abby Dixon chipped in with 11 points and 5 boards, while Jenny Wright had the other double-double with 10 points and 11 boards.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/5/WBB_v_Guelph.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 69 – Lakehead 51

Lakehead did a very good job of keeping us off balance in the first half of this game, using a variety of combination defenses (box & 1, matchup zone).  Our shooting percentage (21%) was not helping any either, but the pace of the game allowed us to get up 28 shots in the first quarter, and a 15-11 opening quarter lead.  The second quarter was not any prettier, as we committed 6 turnovers and shot 31% to outscore Lakehead 15-12 for a 30-23 halftime lead.  We made significant improvements in the second half, and began to pull apart their defenses, outscoring them, 20-14 in the third and 19-14 in the fourth, shooting 42% and 43% respectively to finish with the 69-51 win.  Abby Dixon recorded a double-double, with 15 points and 11 boards, while Emily Hazlett almost matched her with 13 points and 9 boards.  Andrea Priamo finished with 11 points and 7 boards, while Robyn Pearson added another double-double to her belt, with 10 and 10.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/2/6/WBB_v_Lakehead.aspx?path=wbball

The Lakehead game also marked our “Shoot for the Cure”, Breast Cancer Research game, where 6 of our team members provided locks of their hair to make wigs for cancer patients.  Donations have topped their $5,000 goal, currently at $5,350.  Additionally, all of our players sold tickets to the game to raise another $375, bringing the total to $5,725.  Donations can still be made at:

 http://tinyurl.com/ShootforaCureQueens

Congratulations and thank you to team organizer, Andrea Priamo, and the 6 hair-donating volunteers: Marianne Alarie, Kat Holt, Maddie Morris, Megan Saftich, Chris Booker (team athletic trainer), and Stephanie Edmunds (team strength trainer).

NBA All-Star Weekend Update

Our game time on Saturday, February 13 against Windsor is at 4:30pm (was originally 4pm), and now there is a $5 discount available for students by:

For student tickets only:

1)            www.nbatickets.com

2)            Select Saturday, February 13, 2pm

3)            Select # of tickets

4)            Click “OUA Offer”

5)            Enter code: 5OFFOUA

Up Next at Home:

Friday, February 12 vs. Western  6pm

Up Next on the Road:

Saturday, February 13 vs. Windsor @ EnerCare Centre (NBA All-Star weekend – Toronto)

Saturday, February 20 @ Algoma  6pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

Our trip to the Nation’s Capital proved inhospitable at best.  Facing the 9^th ranked Ottawa GGs (we had dropped to 10^th) we lost a 2 point game, followed by a sound beating at the hands of Carleton by 16.  We are looking forward to playing at home this weekend (first time since November 21).

Queen’s 44 – Ottawa 46

As the score would indicate, this was not a pretty game.  Ottawa jumped on us right from the start building a 14 point lead six and a half minutes into the quarter.  We held them scoreless the rest of the quarter and managed 6 points of our own to cut the lead to 10-18 after the first.  We continued to chip away in the second quarter but could only muster 14 points, holding Ottawa to 10.  That left us down 24-28 at the half.  We had controlled the boards quite well, but surrendered 11 turnovers in the half.  The third quarter was much the same as the second, as we continued to chip away eventually taking a 1 point lead by the end of the third, 36-35.  We held the lead through most of the fourth quarter, but our shooting percentage abandoned us late in the quarter, finishing at only 14% in the second half and being outscored 8-11 in the final frame to lose 44-46.  Andrea Priamo had a very solid performance, recording a double-double with 11 points and 11 boards.  Jenny Wright was 1 rebound shy of a double-double with 10 points and 9 boards.  Robyn Pearson also hit double digits with 10 rebounds.

Queen’s 68 – Carleton 84

This was a case of a team that was very motivated and physically ready to play.  Carleton dominated us in all aspects of the game from the opening tip …… and shot the ball extremely well.  They had built a double digit lead very quickly, holding us to only 4 points mid-way through the quarter, en route to a 12-25 first quarter thrashing.  We settled and matched their physicality a little better in the second quarter, but Carleton was able to increase their lead by 2, 28-43, shooting 50% from the 3-point line and 53% overall.  We were unable to regroup at half, and suffered through the third quarter being dominated on the boards and surrendering another 20 points to our 11.  With the game well out of reach, we were able to convert a little better in the fourth, outscoring Carleton 29-21, to finish with the 68-84 loss.  Marianne Alarie led the way with 17 points, while Andrea Priamo added 15.  Sarah Saftich finished with 10 points.

NBA All-Star Weekend Update

Our game time on Saturday, February 13 against Windsor has changed slightly to a 4:30pm tip-off (was originally 4pm), and now there is a $5 discount available for students by:

For student tickets only:

1)            www.nbatickets.com

2)            Select Saturday, February 13, 2pm

3)            Select # of tickets

4)            Click “OUA Offer”

5)            Enter code: 5OFFOUA

Shoot for the Cure – Breast Cancer Research Update (over $4,000 raised to date)

Third year forward, Andrea Priamo, has taken the lead again this year in our Shoot for the Cure, Breast Cancer awareness game scheduled for Saturday, February 6 at 6pm against Lakehead University.  Six other team members will be cutting their hair following our game to donate for the purpose of making wigs for cancer patients.  If you would like to make a donation please click on the following link:  http://tinyurl.com/ShootforaCureQueens

You can donate to an individual or to the Team (which will be equally divided amongst the 6) – since they have a little friendly competition going on!

Up Next at Home:

Friday, February 5 vs. Guelph  6pm

Saturday, February 6 vs. Lakehead  6pm (Shoot for the Cure game)

Friday, February 12 vs. Western  6pm

Up Next on the Road:

Saturday, February 13 vs. Windsor @ EnerCare Centre  4:30pm (NBA All-Star Centre Court Event)

Have a great week!

Dave.