QUARTER-FINAL #4 CIS championship: No. 4 Capers, Everett edge Blues

Courtesy: University of Windsor sports information / Photp credit Keenan Geer
  
WINDSOR, Ont. (CIS) – The fourth-seeded Cape Breton Capers broke a 38-38 deadlock with an 11-0 run at the start of fourth quarter and then held on for a 58-49 win over the No. 5 Toronto Varsity Blues in the fourth quarter-final match of the CIS women’s basketball Final 8, Friday night, at the University of Windsor’s St. Denis Centre.
 
Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wbkb
 
Making their fifth appearance in program history at the CIS championship, the Atlantic conference champion Capers will play in their second national semifinal Saturday at 8 p.m. when they battle top-ranked and tournament host Windsor. In 2006, Cape Breton beat UNB 63-48 in the semis before dropping a 56-53 decision to UBC in the title match.
 
The early semifinal at 6 p.m. will pit No. 2 Saskatchewan against No. 6 St. Francis Xavier.
 
The OUA bronze medallist Blues, who booked their ticket to Windsor by winning last weekend’s East Regional qualifying tournament in Fredericton, will face No. 8 Laval at 3 p.m. on the consolation side.
 
After qualifying four teams for the Final 8, the Ontario conference went 1-for-4 on opening day with No. 3 Carleton and No. 7 Laurier also relegated to the consolation round.
 
Fifth-year forward Kari Everett of Stilesville, N.B., earned player-of-the-game honours thanks to a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double for the winners.
 
Jahlica Kirnon, a fourth-year guard from Toronto, also finished with a double-double scoring 15 points and grabbing 10 boards, while 6-foot-3 forward Stephanie Toxopeus of Kanata, Ont., contributed 10 points.
 
The Capers outscored their OUA rivals 23-12 in the first quarter and headed to the locker room at halftime with a 28-21 lead but the Blues rebounded in the third frame to tie it at 38 all after 30 minutes, with second-team all-Canadian Nicki Schutz closing out the third quarter with four straight points.
 
An 11-point run to open the final stanza ended up being the difference as Cape Breton never trailed again on the night. Toxopeus came up big during the decisive sequence with five points.
 
Rebounding was another key factor in the affair as the AUS champs ended the evening with a 54-32 advantage, including 36-21 at the defensive end of the floor.
 
Schutz, a 6-foot-1 native of Toronto, was held to 23 minutes of court time after picking up three fouls in the first two minutes and 44 seconds of the contest. She still paced Toronto with 12 points and seven boards.
 
Four of her teammates scored eight points apiece.
 
In a very even matchup both teams fought for every inch of the paint, while they both managed to put up 24 points each down low, while Cape Breton’s bench made the difference in the game as they chipped in 15 points compared to the five Toronto received from their extras. 
 
Despite committing 22 turnovers the Capers managed to capitalize on their opportunities and play sound enough defence to limit Toronto’s opportunities.  
 
The first quarter saw Schutz get into foul trouble early as she was limited to only three minutes of playing time.  With Schutz out the Capers took full advantage as they dominated the paint scoring 10 points from the post en route to a 23-12 lead after the first quarter.
 
Kirnon scored nine points and four rebounds to lead the Capers into the second quarter.  
 
After a high flying first quarter both teams increased the defensive intensity as Toronto  put up a quarter high nine points while limiting the Capers to five points to close the gap to 28-21. Everett scored all five points for Cape Breton, while Toronto received a balanced attack to get within seven. 
 
A back and forth third frame saw the Capers pull away before the Varsity Blues charged back to tie the game at 38-38 at the end of the third. With just over three minutes left in the quarter   Joanna Medri hit a clutch three pointer to bring Toronto within four points. 
 
After that Schutz took over for the Varsity Blues putting up eight points in her first full quarter.   Toronto was able to capitalize on Cape Breton’s seven turnovers in the quarter to close draw the game to a tie headed to the final frame. 
 
The fourth quarter saw the Capers come out on fire, knocking down consecutive shots and racking up ten points in the first three minutes of the quarter.  Despite a late charge by Toronto led by Schutz, the Blues were unable to overcome the late game deficit.
 
The Capers’ Denisha Haywood dominated the paint, putting up six points while grabbing an impressive 14 rebounds to help lead her team to victory.     
 
GAME NOTES: Toronto, which claimed its lone Bronze Baby Trophy in 1986, was the only team in this year’s Final 8 field to have captured the CIS title in the past... The last time two AUS teams were in the semifinals was in 2007 when Dalhousie and Memorial ended up losing to Simon Fraser and Alberta, respectively...
 
STAT LEADERS
 
CBU 23-5-10-20: 58
TOR 12-9-17-11: 49
 
Cape Breton
Points: Kari Everett (20), Jahlica Kirnon (15), Stephanie Toxopeus (10)
Rebounds: Denisha Haywood (14), Kari Everett (10), Jahlica Kirnon (10)
Assists: Jahlica Kirnon (5)
 
Player of the game: Kari Everett
 
Toronto
Points: Nicki Schutz (12), Joanna Medri (8), Erin McNeely (8), Alicia Van Kampen (8), Sherri Pierce (8)
Rebounds: Nicki Schutz (7), 3 players with 4
Assists: Jill Stratton (5) 
 
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS
 
Friday, March 18
 
Quarter-final #1: StFX 50, Carleton 44
Quarter-final #2: Saskatchewan 58, Wilfrid Laurier 51
Quarter-final #3: Windsor 80, Laval 50
Quarter-final #4: Cape Breton 58, Toronto 49
 
* Televised locally on TVCogeco.
 
Saturday, March 19
 
13:00 Consolation #1: No. 3 Carleton vs. No. 7 Wilfrid Laurier (SSN Canada webcast)
15:00 Consolation #2: No. 8 Laval vs. No. 5 Toronto (SSN Canada webcast)
18:00 Semifinal #1: No. 6 StFX vs. No. 2 Saskatchewan (SSN Canada webcast) *
20:00 Semifinal #2: No. 1 Windsor vs. No. 4 Cape Breton (SSN Canada webcast) *
 
* Televised locally on TVCogeco.
 
Sunday, March 20
 
11:00 5th place game (SSN Canada webcast)
13:00 Bronze medal game (SSN Canada webcast) *
16:30 Championship final (Live on TSN)
 
* Televised locally on TVCogeco.
 
-CIS-