The Carleton Ravens women’s basketball team saw their season come to an end March 3, after they lost an overtime heartbreaker to Brock Badgers in the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) bronze medal game.
With the loss, the Ravens were unable to secure a berth in the upcoming OUA regionals and as a result, they will not be travelling to Calgary for the CIS Final 8 tournament March 17-19.
But according to head coach Taffe Charles, the game against Brock could have been very different if they had been able to keep their focus.
“I don’t think our focus level was worthy of the game,” Charles said.
The Ravens seemed to be caught off guard by the aggressive Badgers, who dominated the paint. Samantha deJong, a third-year forward for the Badgers, made easy runs to the basket every time she was in the key.
“She was definitely one of our focuses,” said fourth-year Ravens guard Alyson Bush. “We wanted to force her weaknesses and that was something we didn’t do.”
After the first quarter, it looked like the Ravens were in for a tough game. Down 17-10, Carleton’s offence couldn’t click as Brock forced them to make early shots from the perimeter. Every time a Carleton player tried to drive to the net, they were double teamed by Brock’s defence.
With fourth-year forward Kendall MacLeod still recovering from a grade-2 medial collaterall ligament tear (MCL) she suffered in the game against the University of Toronto, the Ravens’ offence hinged on Bush and fifth-year forward Ashleigh Cleary.
“We had to go to our bench,” Charles said. “We needed other people to step up and I don’t know how well they did.”
While the Badgers could rely on points from their bench, the majority of the Ravens’ baskets came from Bush and Cleary. The veterans combined for 34 of Carleton’s 51 points throughout the game, while only four points all game came from players on the Ravens’ bench.
Bush jumped on a Brock giveaway in the second quarter to kickstart the Ravens’ drive.
Still behind, the Ravens put up 15 points in the third quarter to take the lead for the first time since the opening two minutes.
But their defence let them down, giving away six fouls in the third quarter — more than the entire first half.
With the game deadlocked at 50 at the end of regulation, the Ravens went to overtime for the third time this year. A win would have given them a chance to squeak in to the OUA regionals for the second year in a row.
But the magic on offence dried up in overtime. Brock sunk an early attempt from the line and the Ravens never recovered. Brock sealed the win with a minute left, winning 58-51.
“We had three things to focus on in this game,” Cleary said. “Defending, rebounding and taking the ball and we didn’t really do that.”
Cleary got her fifth and final foul and got an ovation from the crowd at the University of Ottawa as she walked off the court.
While the loss hurt, Cleary said it doesn’t take away from the experience she’s had as a Raven.
“I’ve really enjoyed it,” Cleary said. “It’s pretty much made my experience at Carleton and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
