VANCOUVER – A fourth-quarter surge from the Alberta Pandas (2-0) helped them defeat the UBC Thunderbirds (0-2) 69-54 on Saturday night, to sweep the season-opening series at War Memorial Gymnasium in Vancouver. 
 
Much like Friday night's matchup, the teams remained neck-and-neck throughout the opening half, with the lead rarely exceeding two points for either team. It wasn't until the closing quarter that Alberta took control and finished with a 15-point advantage. 
 
While three Thunderbirds managed double digit nights, Kara Spotton (Fort Collins, Colo.) with 13, Adrienne Parkin (Vancouver) with 11 and Diana Lee (North Vancouver) with 10, it wasn't enough to push the 'Birds past the Pandas. 
 
A stellar 20-point night from Alberta's Megan Wickstrom brought her weekend total to 34 points, while Elle Hendershot and Jesslyn Fairbanks contributed 14 and 11 points respectively. 
 
UBC shot 33.3 per cent (20-of-60) from the field compared to Alberta's 47.3 per cent (25-of-53). The Thunderbirds did manage to find success at the free throw line, sinking 10 of 11 attempts with Spotton perfect on all seven opportunities she earned.
 
UBC head coach Deb Huband acknowledged that Wickstrom's impressive efforts coupled with a strong final quarter helped Alberta secure the victory.
 
"[Wickstrom] hit big shots at a key time in the game…and that's when they separated from us. Before that it was anybody's game," said Huband. 
 
"They had very strong offensive production in the fourth quarter and we didn't."
 
The first quarter was a steady back-and-forth affair, with the lead changing hands with nearly every basket. A buzzer-beating three-pointer from Shilpa Khanna (Surrey, B.C.) put UBC ahead 17-15 at the break.
 
Alberta managed 11 points in a quiet second quarter compared to UBC's six, with a five-point effort from Hendershot helping give the visitors the edge. 
 
Penetration to the hoop didn't seem to work for either side in the third and three-point attempts became the weapon of choice. A long-distance shot from Alberta's Fairbanks at 8:26 commenced a trend of hit-and-miss shot attempts from behind the arc by both teams. 
 
Lee and Parkin drained three of UBC's five attempts, but it wasn't enough to prevent Alberta from heading into the final quarter with a 43-38 lead. 
 
Much like Friday night's game, the fourth quarter was where Alberta created separation. Following a pair of successful layups from the Pandas, Wickstrom nailed a three-pointer that brought her team to a 50-40 lead. 
 
Despite an impressive, end-to-end effort from Cherub Lum (Vancouver) with five minutes remaining that reignited the Thunderbirds, they weren't able to outmaneuver the Pandas.
 
Huband feels confident in her young team moving forward.
 
"Every time you step on the floor there is stuff to learn and an opportunity to grow…our team is better now than it was a week ago and that's where we have to keep our focus with our young group," said the UBC head coach.
 
The Thunderbirds will prepare for another pair of home games next weekend against the Trinity Western Spartans. Those games take place on Friday, November 13 (6 p.m.) and Saturday, November 14 (5 p.m.) at War Memorial Gym.
 
The Pandas will return home to face the Winnipeg Wesmen next weekend.