Photo credit Yan Doublet
QUEBEC CITY (CIS) – The top-seeded and tournament favourites Windsor Lancers earned their fifth-consecutive Bronze Baby Trophy, tying the record for most consecutive CIS championships on Sunday afternoon by defeating the McGill Martlets 60-47 at the PEPS Gym of Université Laval in the ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS Women's Basketball Championship gold-medal game.
In a relatively close fought battle, the Lancer seized control early in the first frame and never relinquished their lead from there on out. With their fifth straight title, Windsor now equals a record set by Laurentian, who also won five consecutive national titles between 1975 and 1979. With the championship victory the Lancers also brought their season winning streak to 16 games and playoff winning streak to 21. Their last series defeat came back in 2012 when they lost the OUA Final Four final against the Ottawa Gee Gees.
Fifth-year players Korissa Williams and Jocelyn LaRocque also accomplished quite a feat with the victory. They have now raised the Bronze Baby trophy in each of their past five seasons, a feat that has never been done at the women's CIS level. Williams was also named MVP of the tournament, leading her team in the finals in points (21), rebounds (14), assists (7) and steals (6) .
“Every championship is special, but this one even more. We only had nine players for most of the season, and for me, to win in the city of Quebec, where I’m from, it’s pretty special,” said Lancers head coach Chantal Vallée after her team’s historic win. “We didn’t panic (when McGill got close), it was no big deal. It happens in basketball, it’s a game of runs. We reacted as champions, pushed to the limit and got some scores.”
The Martlets, who were the first Quebec team to participate in the national final since the Laval Rouge et Or in 2002, claimed their best result at a national tournament. McGill had also previously won bronze in 1996.
“We knew it was going to be a grind. They were a disciplined team, they knew what they were looking for. Their experience and their discipline came through and I think that was the difference in the game,” said Martlets coach Ryan Thorne. “To be the best, we have to be more disciplined and follow the game plan and stick with it for 40 minutes. No one is going to give it to you.”
The first quarter of the national championship was marked early-on by the defensive prowess of both teams. CIS defensive player of the year Korissa Williams stood out and demonstrated why she won the honour. Williams stole the ball on back-to-back McGill possessions, both resulting in four easy points the other way. Constant pressure from Windsor wore McGill down and after one quarter the Ontario champions were up 21-10.
The Martlets worked hard throughout the second quarter to get back into the game. McGill started gaining momentum after three-point shots from Dianna Ros and Carolann Cloutier that brought the Lancers lead back down to seven, but Windsor responded with a three of their own from Caitlyn Longmuir and at the half, it was Windsor 34, McGill 26.
The second half started much the same as the second quarter, with the Martlets scoring early to close the gap. Now only up 34-32, the Lancers once again responded scoring the next eight points. Williams continued to set the pace for both teams accumulating 21 points after 30 minutes. Windsor would finish the third ahead 45-38.
In the fourth quarter, the only real threat the Martlets posed was when they managed to bring Windsors lead down to five points, but as hard as McGill tried, the Lancers never cracked under the pressure completing the job en route to a 13-point, 60-47 victory.
STAT LEADERS
WSR 21-13-11-15:60
McG 10-16-12-9: 47
Windsor
Points: Korissa Williams (21), Emily Prevost (12), Cheyanne Roger (10)
Rebounds: Korissa Williams (14), Cheyanne Roger (8)
Assists: Korissa Williams (7)
Player of the game: Cheyanne Roger
McGill
Points: Mariam Sylla (10), Alex Kiss-Rusk (10), Gabriela Hebert (9)
Rebounds: Mariam Sylla (11), Gabriela Hebert (10)
Assists: Gabriela Hebert (4)
Player of the game: Mariam Sylla
CHAMPIONSHIP HONOURS
Tournament MVP: Korissa Williams, Windsor
R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award: Ryerson University Rams
Tournament All-Stars:
Laura Dally, Saskatchewan
Kris Young, UBC
Saskia Van Ginhoven, Alberta
Cheyanne Roger, Windsor
Gabriela Hebert, McGill
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE & RESULTS
Thursday, March 12
12:30 Quarter-final 1: No. 3 McGill 67, No. 6 Saint Mary’s 59
14:30 Quarter-final 2: No. 2 UBC 81, No. 7 Ryerson 59
18:00 Quarter-final 3: No. 1 Windsor 91, No. 8 Laval 57
20:00 Quarter-final 4: No. 4 Saskatchewan 70, No. 5 Alberta 63
Friday, March 13
18:00 Consolation 1: No. 7 Ryerson 76, No. 6 Saint Mary’s 60
20:00 Consolation 2: No. 5 Alberta 62, No. 8 Laval 50
Saturday, March 14
12:00 Semifinal 1: No. 3 McGill 59, No. 2 UBC 57 (OT)
14:30 Semifinal 2: No. 1 Windsor 75, No. 4 Saskatchewan 61
16:30 5th-place game: No. 5 Alberta 73, No. 7 Ryerson 65
Sunday, March 15
10:00 Bronze: No. 2 UBC 73, No. 4 Saskatchewan 61
13:00 Final: No. 1 Windsor 60, No. 3 McGill 47