Toronto, ON - The Laval Rouge et Or finished third at the Darcel Wright Memorial Classic following a 62-50 victory over the UBC Thunderbirds. Laval outscored UBC in each quarter to secure the win.
The first quarter was a defensive battle between the clubs as only 17 points were scored and Laval held a 10-7 edge through ten minutes.
Laval's Marie-Pascale Nadeau (Levis, Que.) took over in the second quarter, registering seven points in the frame to help guide the Rouge et Or to a 25-21 advantage at the half time break.
The third was the most productive offensive quarter for both teams, with each club going on an extended run. Laval started the quarter on a 9-2 run to build a 13 point lead at 36-23. With 3:25 remaining in the quarter and the score reading 41-27 in favour of the Rouge et Or, UBC called a timeout and tallied the next eight points to close the deficit. Laval still led by eight after three quarters, 45-37.
UBC closed the gap to just three at 46-43 with 6:50 remaining but that was as close as they would come as Laval continued to run the floor and execute offensively to come away with the 62-50 victory.
"We continued to lack flow offensively and struggled to score," said head coach Deb Huband. " It will take some time to develop our on court chemistry and refine our play. There were great signs today of improved defense and gritty play and we found some combinations that worked well together, but we have to extend those minutes."
Laval's Nadeau and UBC's Leigh Stansfield (Victoria, B.C.) went toe-to-toe all game long in a battle of fifth year post players. Nadeau edged Stansfield on the boards, recording 11 rebounds while Stansfield outscored Nadeau, netting a game-high 15 points. Both players were named tournament all-stars at the conclusion of the game.
Marjorie Ferland (Quebec City, Que.) had a strong game for the Rouge et Or finishing with 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting and added a game-high four assists.
UBC's Victoria Spangehl (White Rock, B.C.) also finished in double digits behind Stansfield with 10 points. Her seven rebounds were also second on the squad.
Tournament All-Stars:
Kiera Lyons (SASK)
Kabree Howard (SASK)
Claire Colborne (UNB)
Marie-Pascale Nadeau (LAV)
Leigh Stansfield (UBC)
Tournament MVP:
Dalyce Emmerson (SASK)
The Thunderbirds exhibition schedule continues next week in Edmonton, AB at the Alberta Pandas Pre-Season Tournament.
