The Martlet

The UVic women’s basketball team clinched a playoff spot with a sweep of the Fraser Valley Cascades on Jan. 29 and 30, marking this as the ladies’ sixth consecutive win and placing them at 7-1 since the beginning of the calendar year.

The team was back in town after winning in Calgary 92-85 against the Dinos and beating the Lethbridge Pronghorns 75-66. One highlight of the Albertan weekend was the 32 points Debbie Yeboah scored in the Calgary game, the second highest offensive output by a Vikes member in a single game this season. 

The Vikes showed their muscle in Lethbridge too, coming back from a double-digit lack in the second half to take the win.

Friday night, the Vikes set the standard in the first half, shooting 51 per cent while holding the Cascades to just 18 per cent. UVic never looked back, coasting to a 71-49 victory. Kayla Dykstra lead the scoring with 16 points, followed very closely by Kristen Hughes with 15.

“Our shooters were really on tonight,” said Vanessa Forstbauer, who contributed 13 points on the night.

Jane Meadwell led the Cascades with a game high of 21 points in the losing effort.

Saturday, the Vikes came out strong and controlled the game from start. Already, in the first quarter, the ladies were running down the clock and taking their time to set up good shots. UVic never trailed in the game en route to an 84-46 drubbing of the Cascades.

Dykstra was celebrating her 23rd birthday by leading her team in scoring with 23 points and 11 rebounds. Also scoring in double digits were Carmen Lapthorne and Yeboah, with 15 points each, as well as Forstbauer with 12. 

The Cascades were led in scoring again by Meadwell, who is currently the top scorer in the conference with 19 ppg.  Meadwell dropped 22 of the Cascades’ 46 points, accounting for nearly half of her team’s offensive output. Meadwell was also on her own for the first half, until forward Alyssa Gaukel came to life in the second, bringing Fraser Valley 11 points and a burst of energy.

However, it was too little too late and the Vikes outdid their victory from the previous night, winning by 38 to move into second place in the Canada West Conference with a record of 11-4.

If conference playoffs began today, the Vikes would find themselves seeded third behind only unbeaten SFU and the 14-2 Regina Cougars. The win moved the Vikes into second place in the Pacific Division, just a game behind UBC.

Next weekend, the Vikes are off to Vancouver for two games against the Thunderbirds in a double-header that will most likely determine who claims second place in the division.