Women's Basketball

QSSF Semi Final: Gaiters fightback falls short in 68-56 loss at No. 8 Laval

QSSF Semi Final: Gaiters fightback falls short in 68-56 loss at No. 8 Laval

QUEBEC CITY - The Bishop's Gaiters came back from a ten-point first quarter deficit, and led late in the third quarter, before finally succumbing 68-56 to the No. 8-ranked Laval Rouge et Or in a Quebec University Basketball League semifinal tonight at the PEPS Gymnasium. The game was tied 52-52 with 5:00 to go before Laval broke it open with an 8-2 run, punctuated by an Elyse Jobin three-pointer with 31 seconds left. With the win, Laval advances to the QUBL championship game against the McGill Martlets, who beat UQAM 77-59 in the other semifinal.

For Bishop's (12-14, 12-14 CIS, 6-10 QUBL), Katy Germain (Val d'Or, Que.), fresh off being named a QUBL First Team All-Star, led all scorers with 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting, while Marie-Ève Lemoine (Sorel, Que.) added ten points and a team-high six rebounds.

For Laval (20-7, 20-5 CIS, 13-3 QUBL), Marie-Michelle Genois scored 15 points, with Myriam Lamarre adding 14 points and Marie-Pascale Nadeau scoring 11. Genois finished just short of a double-double, grabbing a game-high nine rebounds, while Nadeau collected eight.

Laval outshot Bishop's 48.9% to 36.9%, and outrebounded the Gaiters 39 to 27. The Gaiters struggled at the free-throw line, connecting on only six of 14 attempts, while Laval was good on 18 of their 27 tries from the charity stripe.

The Gaiters got into an early hole, falling behind 12-2 before the game was four minutes old. Genois, minutes after receiving the league's Player of the Year award, scored eight of the Rouge et Or's first ten points. Laval maintained the lead through the rest of the quarter, leading 17-7 after ten minutes.

The second quarter saw the Gaiters rebound, as they went on a 9-2 run to tie the game at 24-24 with 3:03 left. Germain led the Gaiters' charge in the quarter, with seven points. Laval quickly regained the lead, and took a 28-26 edge into halftime.

The Gaiters took their first lead of the night with 7:26 left in the third, as a 15-footer by Charles put Bishop's up 32-30. Altogether the quarter featured five ties and four lead changes; with Laval finally taking a slim 46-45 lead into the final stanza.

After Laval opened the fourth quarter on a 6-0 run, the Gaiters tied it back up at 52-52 with 5:05 left, as Germain scored five consecutive points, including a traditional three-point play. However, Genois put the Rouge et Or up for good at 4:42, and Laval stretched the lead out to 59-54 with two minutes to go. The dagger came with 31 seconds left, as Elyse Jobin connected on a three-pointer to give Laval an eight-point lead.

The loss puts an end to the Gaiters' 2009-10 season, as they finish with a 12-14 overall record.

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