Despite their valiant attempt to rewrite last year’s conclusion, the Queen’s Gaels were ousted once again by the Carleton Ravens women’s basketball team, who repeated as OUA Critelli Cup champions in a 63-55 win on March 2 at the Ravens’ Nest.
Both Carleton and Queen’s will travel to Edmonton for the U Sports women’s basketball championship, set to begin March 7.
While the game felt all but finished by halftime when the Ravens carried a massive 36-18 edge, the Gaels came back to cut the deficit to just 10 points by the end of the third quarter.
The fourth quarter could only be described as a shootout as both teams exchanged points fast and furiously.
But it was OUA all-star Kali Pocrnic who powered the Ravens through when it mattered most. The Gaels managed to pull within two points in the final quarter when Pocrnic sunk back-to-back threes with under a minute to play.
Those points, combined with strong defence and a return to the fundamentals that have carried them all season, secured the win.
Pocrnic netted 20 points in the game for the Ravens, earning her back-to-back Critelli Cup MVP honours. Guards Dorcas Buisa and Teresa Donato chipped in 12 and 15 points, respectively.
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Ravens head coach Dani Sinclair said the win was a culmination of the team’s hard work from the very beginning and sticking to their game plan without faltering.
“I’m really happy not only for myself and the coaching staff but also for our players,” Sinclair said. “I know I come with the clichés every time, but this is just an amazing feeling. We all put a goal for ourselves at the beginning and we just accomplished one part of it.”
Starting forward Jacqueline Urban also basked in the result of her team’s arduous journey to reach the finals. Urban finished the game with six points and eight rebounds and was a notable presence on the defensive side of the ball.
“This is a great feeling because it really is the fruit of our labour,” Urban said. “We have incredibly hard and intense practices and we all work so hard so it’s nice to come out on top.”
The second half of the game showcased both teams’ skills on the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, as neither squad allowed a basket without a good fight.
Sinclair praised the Gaels for not letting up despite the early hole they found themselves in.
“It doesn’t matter how much you lead them by, they’re a team that is going to battle and never back down,” Sinclair said. “The second half is more indicative of who they are. They made us commit turnovers and forced us in a position where we took bad shots. So in the fourth [quarter], we talked about calming down and playing our style of basketball.”
On the other side, the Gaels’ best players showcased their talents in the losing effort. Starting forward and OUA defensive player of the year Julia Chadwick put up an impressive 14-point, 17-rebound double-double, while guard Laura Donovan put up 18 points of her own.
“I think we played great in the second half, but we were in a hole in the first that was difficult to come out of,” Gaels head coach Claire Meadows said. “I’m proud of our team and how they played this season.”
‘We’re still not satisfied’
With the OUA title in the books, both teams now look forward to next weekend, where there’s a bigger championship on the line.
The Gaels can bounce back from their defeat to Carleton with a chance at their first-ever national championship.
“It’s not over for us so we’re looking forward to making it up in Edmonton,” Meadows said.
For the Ravens’ part, they’re hoping for a repeat of last year’s double-gold. Another national title would bring their total to three.
“This isn’t the end for us and we’re still not satisfied,” Urban said. “We aren’t done so now it’s time to focus on nationals and do it all over again.”
The U Sports championship will take place at the Saville Community Sports Centre in Edmonton from March 7 to 10.
Featured image by Owen Spillios Hunter/The Charlatan.
