Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

After going 47 days without a game (November 28), it took a little while to get back to form, but we managed to win both games on the weekend, beating Toronto 57-33 and Ryerson 80-74 to capture sole possession of first place in our division with an 8-1 record.

Queen’s 57 – Toronto 33

It took a while to get comfortable with our movements in this one.  We were a little sloppy with the ball, 4 turnovers, and struggled to finish, shooting only 23.5% in the first quarter to lead 12-7.  We continued to struggle handling the ball (6 turnovers), but our shooting improved to 40% in the second quarter to take a 27-20 half time lead.  The third quarter was a repeat of the first, with our shooting percentage dropping to 21%, while our defence and rebounding kept us in the game.  We led 38-29 after 3.  Finally in the fourth quarter, we started to get untracked, primarily because of our defense.  We forced a number of turnovers, leading to run-outs and high percentage shots.  We outscored Toronto 19-4 in the final frame to win 57-33.  Robyn Pearson had a monster game grabbing 20 rebounds to go along with her 11 points.   Abby Dixon had 13 points and 5 boards, while Jenny Wright added a double-double of her own with 12 points and 10 boards. 

Queen’s 80 – Ryerson 74

This was a battle between two nationally ranked teams (Q’s 10, Ryerson 2) and a battle for first place in the East Division.  Scoring was not a problem in this game, it was more a question of who could get stops when needed, but more importantly, who controlled the boards.  Ryerson came into the contest as the number 1 rebounding team in the country, but we have Robyn Pearson, the number 1 rebounder in the country.  Both teams opened with good pace leading to a 19-18 first quarter, with us holding the slight edge.   Our shooting was fine (50%), but we had 6 turnovers in the quarter.  It was the second quarter where we inflicted the most damage.  Committing only 1 turnover, while forcing 10 (with our changing defenses – props to Olympic coaches Allison & Mike McNeill), we outscored Ryerson 22-10 to lead 41-28 at the half.  Ryerson grabbed 2 of those points back in the third quarter, 19-21, before heading into the fourth.  We stretched our lead in the fourth, before Ryerson clawed their way back, in what would become a bizarre finish.  They got to within 4 points, primarily on foul shots, when there was confusion on a call, first reported to be against Ryerson, then changed to be against Jenny Wright of Q’s – her 5^th.  Jenny was forced to the bench, although was nowhere near the play when the foul was called.  After the Ryerson player shot 1 foul shot, further discussion ensued about the foul, and a change in the call occurred.  They assessed the foul to Andrea Priamo, instead of Jenny, and allowed Jenny to return to the game – then awarded the Ryerson player 2 more foul shots (because of the delay).  Fortunately, she missed the shots and we secured the ball.  Eventually, Andrea Priamo hit two foul shots to preserve the 6 point win.  Five players hit double digits in scoring with Jenny Wright leading the way with 20, followed by Robyn Pearson with another double-double, 14 points & 12 rebounds.  Emily Hazlett finished with 12 points and 6 assists, while Andrea Priamo had 12 points and 5 boards.  Marianna Alarie added 10 points and 4 boards of her own from the guard position.  We also out-rebounded Ryerson 47-43.   Also of note, Jenny Wright has now scored 1,055 points in her career and is now tied for second place (with Kingston-native and childhood friend, Liz Boag) in the all-time scoring race.  Brittany Moore (current scrimmage partner for the team) sits comfortably in first place with 1,652 points.

With the Harlem Globetrotters coming to town again, our local (CKWS) television broadcaster, Bill Welychka, has enlisted the help of our players in preparing him to play against the Globetrotters.  There will be some live filming going on today, along with some interviews with our players and Globetrotter, Zeus.  It should be a lot of fun for the players.
 
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!

NBAtickets.com is the place to go for our league game against Windsor being played at the Enercare Centre in Toronto as part of the NBA All-Star weekend.  We are part of the “Centre-Court” festivities in the afternoon session (2pm on the website) on Saturday, February 13^th, with game slated for 4:00pm.

Up Next on the Road:

Saturday, January 23 @ York (1pm) NOTE: afternoon start time

Friday, January 29 @ Ottawa  6pm

Saturday, January 30 @ Carleton  6pm

Lastly, if you can’t make it to a game, please follow us on OUA.TV, as all of our league games are streamed live on this site.  We are also on Facebook at:  https://www.facebook.com/Queens-University-Womens-Basketball-410735072319684/

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball Update

Hi Folks,

Happy New Year!

It’s been a long haul since our last game, so the players are very anxious to get the games this weekend in Toronto.  We did, however, have an excellent training camp with Olympic Coaches, Allison & Mike McNeill.  In addition to being brilliant coaches, they are also excellent teachers and our players (and coaches) were thrilled to have the learning opportunity.

With the NBA All Star weekend about a month away, tickets for our game against Windsor will go on sale tomorrow (Tuesday) at NBAtickets.com at 10:00am.  They have not released to us the ticket prices (sorry about that).  Please see our SID release for as much detail as has been provided to us by the NBA:

http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2016/1/11/WBB_0111160923.aspx?path=wbball

Our 2016 Alumni weekend dates have been announced:  October 14-16, 2016.  For the first time in a number of years, this date coincides with the University’s Homecoming Weekend, meaning this will be a very exciting a busy time.  We will be hosting our Tindall Tournament on the weekend, along with our Alumni game, and our Reception & Silent Auction.  This year we will be honouring our team members from the 2000-01 to 2004-05 teams.  Of course, Alumni from all years are invited to attend.

With the Harlem Globetrotters coming to town again, our local (CKWS) television broadcaster, Bill Welychka, has enlisted the help of our players in preparing him to play against the Globetrotters.  There will be some live filming going on next Monday, along with some interviews with our players and Globetrotter, Zeus.  It should be a lot of fun for the players.

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.  Andrea, along with 5 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

And finally, Queen’s is once again the proud host of the JUEL & JUEL Prep League Championships, this year scheduled for the May 13-15, 2016 weekend.  The premiere girls basketball event in the country, 28 teams from across the province will be on-site for the 3-day event.  If anyone would like to volunteer for the weekend (scorers/timers/shot clock operators, event supervisors, etc.) please let me know – and event this size is not possible without the great support we have had from the community over the past two years.

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, January 15 @ U of Toronto  6pm

Saturday, January 16 @ Ryerson  6pm

Saturday, January 23 @ York  1pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

I thought I would send out a newsletter even though we have not played since the last issue.

After sitting in the 11^th spot in the National poll since it was first published in November, last week’s edition moved us into the Top 10 (albeit at the 10^th spot).  Here’s a re-cap of our fall league schedule:

W Q’s 64 – York 47

W Q’s 61 – Laurentian 51

W Q’s 71 – Nipissing 42

W Q’s 60 – McMaster 53

L Q’s 50 – Brock 69

W Q’s 64 – Laurier 61

W Q’s 84 – Waterloo 69

With that, we sit atop of the Eastern Division with a 6 – 1 record.  Ryerson has a game in hand, with a 5 – 1 record, followed by Toronto, 2 – 4 and York, 2 – 5.  The top 3 teams in each Division make the playoffs.

As mentioned in the previous newsletter, the NBA All-Star game is being hosted by the city of Toronto in February and our basketball team has been invited to be part of the weekend festivities.  We have moved our home league game with Windsor on Saturday, February 13^th to the Enercare Centre in Toronto, the venue for the NBA All-Star Fanfest.  Game time will be 4:00pm.  Please see the Q’s press release for further information:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/12/3/WBB_1203152546.aspx

We are still investigated the possibility of getting block tickets set aside and will update you when the information becomes available.

In other exciting news, our former Physical Education Centre (PEC), which was our home before building the Queen’s Centre which houses the Athletic & Recreation Centre (ARC), is getting a complete over haul.  As you may know, we opened and refurbished portions of the PEC a few years ago, mainly the 3 gymnasiums.  This has provided us with a total of 6 basketball courts between the ARC & the PEC.  The next phase of refurbishment (actually gut-job) will be on the lower level, where a new High Performance Training Facility will be built, including state of the art strength & conditioning equipment, aerobic, anaerobic and functional testing facilities, and many more aspects designed to train, test and educate our high performance athletes.

I would like to take this opportunity, on behalf of our entire basketball family, to wish you and your family a very safe and enjoyable holiday season!

Cheers,

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We had a very successful weekend to finish off the fall portion of our schedule, recording road wins against Laurier and Waterloo.  Further, we hosted our ID/Training Camp on Sunday, with more than a dozen highly skilled athletes in attendance. 

Congratulations to Andrea Priamo who was selected as the Queen’s Athlete of the Week for her performances against McMaster and Brock (info was released just after my last Newsletter).

What does the NBA All-Star weekend have to do with our basketball team?  See below for details.

Queen’s 64 – Laurier 61  (Jenny Wright tops the 1,000 point marker)

Continuing in what seems to have become a tradition of very close games against Laurier, this game featured 17 lead changes, 9 tied scores, and neither team ever gaining more than a 5 point advantage.  The pace of the game was more to our liking as we ended up with 82 shots from the floor – the first time we have topped 80 shots in a while.  However, our finishing was still not where we would like it to be, converting only 29 of those shots (35%).  We lost the opening quarter 17-19 but then narrowly won the next three, 17-14, 17-16 and 13-12 for the 3 point win.  We had a very balanced scoring attack with 5 players in double digits, led by Robyn Pearson with 12 points and 13 rebounds. Jenny Wright, Emily Hazlett, Abby Dixon and Marianne Alarie all had 10 points.  Jenny finished the game with 1004 points to her credit over her 4 ½ seasons with the Gaels, securing third place on the Queen’s all-time scoring list.

Q’s SID Report: http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/27/WBB_v_Laurier.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 84 – Waterloo 69

We opened the game with what appeared to be a more relaxed shooting form leading to a 24 point quarter (to Waterloo’s 18) on 9 of 19 shooting (47%).  Our concern, however, was in surrendering the 18 points.  While our shooting percentage dropped to 30% in the second quarter, and Waterloo rose, we still managed to outscore them 16-14 to go into half with an 8 point lead, 40-32.  It was the third quarter (which had caused us some problems in the past) that actually blew the game wide open as we converted 13 of our 16 shots from the floor (81%) en route to a 31 point outburst, essentially sealing the game.  Four players hit double digits with Jenny Wright finishing with a game high 19 points, followed by Abby Dixon with a double-double of 16 points and 10 boards.  Emily Hazlett and Marianne Alarie each added 13 points.  With her 19 points Jenny now has 1023 on her career, just 32 points shy of Liz Boag (2010-2015) who sits in second place with 1055.  Brittany Moore (2007-2012) sits comfortably as the all-time leading scorer in Queen’s history (men or women) with 1,652.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/28/WBB_v_Waterloo.aspx?path=wbball

Congratulations to Jenny Wright as she was selected as the Queen’s Athlete of the Week for her performances this weekend.

Queen’s to be a part of the NBA All-Star Weekend in Toronto

As you may know, Toronto is the site of this year’s NBA All-Star weekend, and we have been selected to be a part of the festivities.  We will play our league game against the Windsor Lancers on Saturday February 13, 2016 at the Enercare Centre in Toronto as part of the activities surrounding the 2016 NBA All-Star Game.  Game time is 4:00pm. More details to come in the next few weeks.

Our fall schedule is now complete and we sit atop the East Division with a 6-1 record.  We return to league play in mid-January on the road against division rivals, Toronto and Ryerson.

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

It was a very high and a very low weekend as we split the two games, beating the 4^th ranked team in the country, and then losing to the 7^th ranked team in the country – our first regular season loss.  We came into the weekend ranked 11^th.

Queen’s 60 – McMaster 53

We opened the game fairly well, shooting 6 of 14 in the first quarter (43%) while employing a new defence to disrupt McMaster’s main scoring threat.  Mac shot 4 of 20 in the first quarter, only scoring 9 points to our 14.  The second quarter, however, was almost the reverse, as we went ice cold (1 of 14) and only managed 5 points in the quarter to Mac’s 13.  We trailed 19 -22 at the half.  Our execution returned in the second half, as we shot 47% in the third quarter, outscoring Mac 17 – 11, and 62.5% in the fourth quarter, outscoring Mac 24 -20 to grab the 60 – 53 win.  We had a very balance attack, with 4 players in double digits scoring.  Emily Hazlett finished with 13 points and 6 boards, while Abby Dixon added 12 points and 4 assists.  Jenny Wright contributed 11 points, while Andrea Priamo was 1 rebound shy of a double-double, with 10 points and 9 boards.  Robyn Pearson also hit double digits with her 11 boards to go along with 8 points and 3 steals.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/20/WBB_v_McMaster.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 50 – Brock 69

Once again, we opened the game reasonably well offensively, shooting 7 of 19, but struggled somewhat on the defensive end.  We led 17 -16 after the first.  The second quarter seemed to grind to a halt, with neither team effective at finding the basket.  Only 19 points were put up in the quarter, 9 by Queen’s and 10 by Brock to leave the game tied at 26 going into the break.  Things went sharply downhill from there as Brock came out and scored the first 8 points enroute to an 18 – 4 run, from which we never recovered.  We were outscored 11 – 28 in the third, and again 13 – 15 in the fourth.  The difference in the game was basically shooting percentage (Q’s 30%, Brock 43.5%) and rebounds (Q’s 36, Brock 47).   Scoring was again spread amongst the same 4 players with Emily Hazlett chalking up 13 points and 7 assists and 6 rebounds.  Abby Dixon also had 13 points, with Jenny Wright adding 11 points and 2 steals, followed by Andrea Priamo completing her double-double this time with 10 points and 10 boards, along with 2 steals and 2 assists.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/21/WBB_v_Brock.aspx?path=wbball

Our league record is now 4 – 1 and we sit tied with Ryerson atop our division.  Toronto is in third with a 2 – 3 record and York in fourth at 0 – 5.

Quick shout out to Gaels former standout player, Claire Meadows (2002-2007), now in her first season as Head Coach of UBC Okanagan.  After dropping their first game, her team is now on a 5 game winning streak and sit atop their division (Explorer) in Canada West.

Last call for our ID/Training Camp – Sunday, November 29th

On court sessions will be from 9:30-11:45am and again from 1:30-3:30pm.  During the break in between, we will conduct a facility tour and a question and answer session (for players and parents).  The camp is designed for players in Grade 10-12 that may be interested in Queen’s as a university destination.  There is no charge for the camp, but please drop me an email so I can keep track of the numbers.

We have confirmed dates and times for former Canadian Olympic Coaches Allison and Mike McNeill to come and work with our players and coaches in December.  They will be in Kingston from December 27 to the 31^st and will work daily with the team, and additionally in smaller breakdown groups (by position).  We are thrilled to be able to provide our players (and coaches) with such a high level of professional development.  It should be a great week.

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, November 27 @ Laurier  6pm

Saturday, November 28 @ Waterloo  6pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,
 
A very successful road weekend left us with two wins, although we still have much to improve upon heading into a very tough home stand this weekend.
 
Queen’s 61 – Laurentian 51
We got off to a decent start in this game opening up a 5 point lead by the end of the quarter, 15-10.  The second quarter was much the same as the first, again adding 5 points to our lead to be up 34-24 at the half.  Our shooting percentage is still below where we would like it to be (43-45% or better), sitting around the 34% mark.  Having said that, our third quarter was pretty dismal as we only managed 9 points to Laurentian’s 14.  Laurentian continued to close the gap in the fourth, eventually tying the game at 47 mid way through the frame.  We then went on a 12-0 in the next 2 minutes to take the game out of reach, finishing with a 14-4 run and the 61-51 win.  Jenny Wright finished with a game high 20 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.  Robyn Pearson continued her dominance on the boards, grabbing a season high 18, to go along with her 4 steals and 3 blocked shots.
 
Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/13/WBB_vs_Laurentian.aspx
 
Queen’s 71 – Nipissing 42
While the final score was a wide margin, this game started out very competitive.  Our shooting percentage continued to hover around 35% for the first quarter, while Nipissing executed very well and converted on 70% of their shots, leaving us tied at 17 after the first quarter.  Our shooting improved to over 40%, while Nipissing dropped to 27%, resulting in a 19-10 quarter, and a 36-27 half time lead.  We came out in the second half with heavy defensive pressure, initiated by some superb on-ball defence by Emily Hazlett.  We outscored Nipissing 16-8 and then continued to wear them down in the fourth, outscoring them 19-7 to finish with the 71-42 win.  Robyn Pearson had a very dominant game with 18 points and 12 rebounds, while Andrea Priamo and Marianne Alarie each chipped in with 10 points.
 
Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/14/WBB_v_Nipissing.aspx?path=wbball
 
As previously reported, we are very pleased to have signed combo guard, Emma Ritcey to our program for next fall.  Here is the press release for Emma:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/13/WBB_1113155454.aspx?path=wbball
 
ID/Training Camp – Sunday, November 29^th
On court sessions will be from 9:30-11:45am and again from 1:30-3:30pm.  During the break in between, we will conduct a facility tour and a question and answer session (for players and parents).  The camp is designed for players in Grade 10-12 that may be interested in Queen’s as a university destination.  There is no charge for the camp, but please drop me an email so I can keep track of the numbers.
 
Up Next at Home:
Friday, November 20 vs. McMaster  6pm
Saturday, November 21 vs. Brock  6pm
 
Up Next on the Road:
Friday, November 27 @ Laurier  6pm
Saturday, November 28 @ Waterloo  6pm
 
Have a great week!
 
Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,
 
Just one game to report on this week as we opened league play at home against York.  We start the season ranked 12th in the country.
 
Queen’s 64 – York 47
This was very much a game of inconsistencies.  We opened the game on a tear, scoring 8 points on our first 3 possessions in just over 1 minute of clock time, to lead 8-0.  Then we went 6 minutes without scoring, before dropping another 9 points in the last 2 minutes of the quarter to lead 17-10 after the first.  Our floor shooting was a dismal 27%, although we were 2-5 from the 3 point line.  The second quarter was much the same as the first – our shooting improving marginally to 32% to build a 33-21 half time lead.  The third and fourth quarters saw little change in the style or consistency of play as we outscored York 16-13 in the third and 15-13 in the fourth to finish with the 64-47 win.  Our shooting percentage finished at a poor 32%, although our 3-point shooting was fine at 38%.  Jenny Wright finished with 15 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists.  Abby Dixon had 12 points, 7 steals and 3 assists.  Robyn Pearson had 13 boards and 9 points.  One very positive note, we had 16 assists on our 24 made field goals.
 
Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/11/7/WBB_1107152643.aspx?path=wbball
 
McLean’s magazine survey:  Queen’s Ranks 1^st in student satisfaction 
Queen’s leads in student satisfaction among Canada’s medical-doctoral universities according to Maclean’s 2016 university rankings.
 
Results from a student satisfaction survey are a new part of the Maclean’s rankings this year. Queen’s ranked among the top three in all of the survey’s categories, including satisfaction with course instructors, extracurricular activities, mental health services, and residence living, as well as administrative and student life staff.
 
ID/Training Camp – Sunday, November 29^th
On court sessions will be from 9:30-11:45am and again from 1:30-3:30pm.  During the break in between, we will conduct a facility tour and a question and answer session (for players and parents).  The camp is designed for players in Grade 10-12 that may be interested in Queen’s as a university destination.  There is no charge for the camp, but please drop me an email so I can keep track of the numbers.
 
Up Next on the Road:
Friday, November 13 @ Laurentian  6pm
Saturday, November 13 @ Nipissing  6pm
 
Up Next at Home:
Friday, November 20 vs. McMaster  6pm
Saturday, November 21 vs. Brock  6pm
 
Have a great week!
 
Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We finished a 3 game, 3 city road trip on Saturday, with stops in St. Catherine’s (Brock), Hamilton (McMaster) and Guelph.  We finished with only 1 win and 2 losses – a disappointing result.

Queen’s 56 – Brock 68

Our first stop was in St. Catherine’s to face Brock where we jumped out to an early lead and grew it to as much as 10 late in the first quarter.  We finished the quarter up 19-11, shooting almost 50% from the floor.  For an unknown reason (at least to me), our shooting touch left us for the rest of the game, dropping into the low 20s.  We were outscored 14-20 in the second and 10-25 in the third.  The fourth quarter wasn’t much better, although we did outscore Brock 13-12, but still only shooting in the low 30s.  We were unusually cold from the 3pt. line, finding the mesh only 3 times in 22 attempts (13.6%).   Marianne Alarie was the only player to hit double digits, dropping 18 point.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/10/22/WBB_v_Brock_EX.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 54 – McMaster 79

No question our shooting woes continued on Friday night in Hamilton shooting only 23% and scoring only 8 points in the opening quarter to trail 8-18.  While our shooting improved somewhat in the second, our defense was unable to stop the Marauders as they outscored us 17-23 to take a commanding 25-41 halftime lead.  Mac continued to execute offensively outscoring us by 4 in the third quarter (19-23) and 5 in the fourth quarter (10-15) to rack up the big spread.  Not surprisingly they beat us in every significant statistical category (shots taken, shooting percentage, rebounding, turnovers, steals, and assists).  Marianne Alarie led the way in scoring, again with 18 points, followed by Emily Hazlett with 13.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/10/23/WBB_v_McMaster_EX.aspx?path=wbball

Queen’s 78 – Guelph 62

Despite the fact that this was our third game in as many nights against fresh teams, we looked strong and rested.  Our shooting in this game improved significantly over the past two games (unfortunately Guelph had computer issues and was not able to provide the stats).   We continued to get stronger as the game progressed, outscoring Guelph 14-10 in the first, 20-17 in the second, 22-15 in the third and 22-20 in the fourth.  Five players finished in double digits with Marianne Alarie chalking up her usual 18, while Jenny Wright and Abby Dixon each had 11.  Emily Hazlett and Robyn Pearson finished with 10 apiece.

Q’s SID Report:  http://gogaelsgo.com/news/2015/10/24/WBB_v_Guelph_EX.aspx?path=wbball

We will be holding our annual ID/Training Camp on Sunday, November 29^th.  On court sessions will be from 9:30-11:45am and again from 1:30-3:30pm.  During the break in between, we will conduct a facility tour and a question and answer session (for players and parents).  The camp is designed for players in Grade 10-12 that may be interested in Queen’s as a university destination.  There is no charge for the camp, but please drop me an email so I can keep track of the numbers.

Up Next at Home:

Saturday, November 7 vs. York  6pm (league opener)

Up Next on the Road:

Friday, November 13 @ Laurentian  6pm

Saturday, November 14 @ Nipissing  6pm

Have a great week!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Game Report

Hi Folks,

We opened our CIS exhibition schedule in Montreal on Friday with a win over Concordia, 67-47. We got off to a good start, exerting a great deal of pressure over the full court, taking Concordia out of their rhythm.  We also did a very good job of taking care of the basketball, registering only 3 turnovers in the first half.  Our transition game provided us with good scoring opportunities, leading to a 21-12 lead after the first quarter.  We continued on a similar pace in the second quarter, 19-11 to go into half time with a 40-23 lead.  We continued our dominance in the third quarter, although our shooting percentage was a little lower, opening a 56-35 lead.  Concordia outscored us 11-12 in the fourth, but the game was never in doubt.  Emily Hazlett finished with a game-high 15 points, along with 3 assists and 3 steals in only 24 minutes of play.  Abby Dixon chipped in with 11 points, 3 boards and 2 steals.  Maddie Morris hit double digits in the rebounding category with 10, to go along with her 9 points and 3 steals.

I am very excited to announce that former Team Canada Olympic Coaches (London 2012), Allison and Mike McNeill will be travelling to Kingston shortly after Christmas to work with our team.  Our High Performance funding is allowing us to bring them in for four days to work on-court with our athletes, both in a team setting, and as individuals.  They will also spend time with our coaching staff, helping to evaluate and advise on a variety of tactics and strategies. 

McNeill is the longest-serving coach in senior national team history with an 11-year career. She guided Canada to the world championships in 2006 and 2010, returning after a 12-year absence. She did the same with the team and the Olympics, getting Canada to the Games for the first time in more than a decade, finishing in the top-8 after advancing to the quarter-finals for the first time in a 12-team tournament.  Under her reign, Canada moved into the Top 10 in the world!

Momentum is building for our Alumni vs. Alumni game scheduled for Saturday, October 17^th at 1:00pm.  All Alumni, regardless of year, are encouraged to participate.  The reception in the evening will be honouring the teams from 1995-96 to 1999-2000.  Of course this is in conjunction with our Tindall Tournament as follows:

Friday, October 16

6:00pm Queen’s vs. UQAM  Main Gym

Saturday, October 17

1:00pm Alumni vs. Alumni  Bews Gym

6:00pm Queen’s vs. Memorial U.  Main Gym

7:30pm Alumni & Family/Friends Reception and Silent Auction  Alumni Lounge

Sunday, October 18

2:00pm Queen’s vs. Carleton

You can register for the weekend and receive a discount on game tickets at:

http://gogaelsgo.com/sports/2011/8/19/WBB_0819114220.aspx?path=wbball

Prior to the Tindall Tournament, we have added a mid-week exhibition game as follows:

Tuesday, October 13

6:00pm Queen’s vs. Windsor  Main Gym

Have a great Thanksgiving (Canadian)!

Dave.

Women's Basketball - Update

Hi Folks,

It has been a very busy end to our summer, hence this update is long overdue.

We assembled our team in mid-August for 4 days of training before hopping on a plane to Barcelona, Spain.  We had an outstanding trip, practicing most days and playing a couple of games against two different professional teams from the Spanish league.  We split the two games, finding both games tough and competitive.  Our hotel was in the heart of Barcelona, so we could walk everywhere.  We also added in some guided tours that were spectacular.  Robyn Pearson captured much of the trip in a short video she put together.  It can be viewed on our facebook page and at:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPiILSErZLA&feature=youtu.be

We have added another exhibition game to our schedule.  Tuesday, October 13 at 6pm, Windsor will drop by for a game.  It should be a good one.  Our last encounter in Windsor ended up with an 81-89 loss. (Check our website:  www.queensbasketball.net for our schedule)

We have a very exciting press conference scheduled for this Thursday (Sept. 17) at 11:00am in the Alumni Lounge.  We will be introducing the newest extremely high level recruit for the 2016-17 season.  More details to follow.

Our Alumni Weekend, held in conjunction with the Tindall Tournament is all set for the October 16-18 weekend.  A reception and silent auction will be held in the Alumni Lounge following our 6:00pm game on Saturday (vs. Memorial)  where we will be honouring team members from the 1995-96 to 1999-2000 teams.  Wendy Moon and Jacqueline Butler (nee Beaudoin) will be on hand to speak on behalf of those teams.  All friends of Queen’s basketball can register for the event (and receive a discount on game tickets) at:  http://gogaelsgo.com/sports/2011/8/19/WBB_0819114220.aspx?path=wbball

Our annual Alumni vs. Alumni game will take place on Saturday at 1pm featuring players from all years.

You can also check out our facebook page at:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Queens-University-Womens-Basketball/410735072319684?sk=timeline&ref=page_internal

I am very pleased to announce, Jenny Wright (5^th year nursing student) becomes the first two-time recipient of the prestigious Catherine Gertrude (Milliken) Smith Memorial Award.

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.  It is awarded to recognize academic achievement and athletic excellence to student-athletes on the competition roster of the Gaels interuniversity women's basketball team.

Lastly, our Athletic Department welcomed our newest addition, Sean Scott in mid-summer.  Sean fills the newly created position of Director of High Performance Sport, where he will focus on making our varsity teams compete for Provincial and National titles.  He comes to Queen’s from the Canadian “Own the Podium” government group, where he worked with Canadian athletes and teams to secure medals at the Olympics and World Championships.  This is just the latest in our push to become the best Athletics Program in Canada.

That’s it for now, but more to come shortly.

Dave.