VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds opened their 2022 schedule with an impressive 80-45 victory over the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack at War Memorial Gym to improve to 4-7 on the regular season.
Emily Martindale had a team-high 20 points for UBC, and
Hailey Counsell racked up 15 points with five steals as the 'Birds capitalized on TRU's 26 turnovers – while dominating the paint. Fourth year forward
Madison Legault had seven points in her first game back from injury for the T-Birds and
Olivia Weekes tallied 13 points with nine rebounds and three steals in the win.
"We're all just so excited that we finally get to play games again," said UBC head coach
Erin McAleenan after the 'Birds' first Canada West game since December 4
th. "We've had to go through a lot over the last few weeks, so I'm proud their hard work has paid off. The ball was dropping today, and with our zone defence we're trying to change things up a bit more and emphasize getting three stops in a row. In the second quarter we really opened things up and in the start of the third quarter we started with nine stops in a row, so our defence allowed us to earn that lead and have a bit more room."
Megan Rouault led the WolfPack with 11 points and six rebounds, while Priyanca Sundher had nine points with three boards as TRU fall to 1-11 on the regular season.
The Thunderbirds stormed out to an early lead as Weekes scored two buckets in the first two minutes and
Kate Johnson put the 'Birds up 8-2 with a steal and a layup. TRU tied it up midway through the frame, but Martindale drained a short jumper to retake the lead and
Dina Strujic put the T-Birds up 18-10 to finish the first quarter.
UBC's defence came up big in the second quarter – holding the WolfPack to just six points in the frame, and Counsell dropped three triples to solidify a 33-16 lead at the half.
Martindale opened the third quarter with another jumper and Strujic earned a steal and a score for a 37-16 cushion as UBC's strength on the defensive end continued to shine. TRU got on the board with a pair of Elana Sireni free throws with just under five minutes remaining in the third at 46-18 'Birds, but the home team carried a 56-20 lead into the final frame.
Sundher nailed a three to open the fourth for the WolfPack and made a layup moments later, as the first-year guard from Surrey, B.C. scored all nine of her points in the final quarter.
"You never know what's going to happen tomorrow," added McAleenan. "TRU is going to come back with some adjustments and a big thing for us is to build on what we did today. I'd also like to see us finish better inside. I think we left some points on the board at the rim – whether it was on offensive rebounds or post-ups – so I think we can do a better job of that tomorrow and ideally the ball goes in as much as it did today."
The two teams will rematch in War Memorial Gym on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. (PT) with a focus on the Shoot for Cure U SPORTS women's basketball breast cancer fundraising initiative in support of the Canadian Cancer Society. Tickets are available for free online, while the game will also stream live on Canada West TV.
