The Martlet

Early in the afternoon on Saturday, Feb. 13, while many UVic students were nursing their heads after the first night of reading break, the women’s basketball team was on the court earning their break with a 63-61 victory over the reigning national champions, Simon Fraser University.

Debbie Yeboah had fans roaring with excitement when she scored the game-winning basket with less than a second left on the clock to snap the Clan’s 54-game winning streak.

Things were looking grim going into the second half as the Vikes had netted only four points in the second quarter and went into the half trailing 34-21. Yeboah, who struggled in the opening half, came alive late, scoring 11 points in the third quarter and finishing off the game as the team high scorer with a total of 21 points.

“[It was] the hearts and wills of the girls,” said coach Brian Cheng of the Vikes’ burst of energy in the second half. “It comes down to our girls being able to come together and unify.”

And unify they did, taking their first lead of the game with five minutes left in the third with an 18-2 run led by Yeboah, who did yeoman’s work playing all but one minute of the game. She was named CanWest player of the week for Feb. 16.

Defending CIS MVP Kayla Dykstra contributed a solid overall game with 18 points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots, while forward Vanessa Forstbauer chipped in 11 for the Vikes.

SFU entered the game with CanWest’s three top-ranked shooters, and jumped out to of the gates lead by Robin Buna’s 18 points. Clan guard Katie Miyazaki had 14, and centre Laurelle Weigl had 12.

The Vikes take a tonne of confidence into the CanWest playoffs, with the knowledge that they can beat the best team in Canada.

SFU’s 54-game winning streak dated back to October of 2008, when the Vikes won a 58-57 nail-biter. The Clan’s run included the 2008-2009 CIS championship and earned them the number-one ranking from the beginning of the year to the finish.

“We’ve got good momentum going into the playoffs and our psyche is good,” said a proud Cheng. “We’re not polished, but we played as well as we needed to.”

The Vikes host the Saskatchewan Huskies, ranked number three in Canada, for a three-game series on Feb. 25-27. All three games are scheduled for 7 p.m. at MacKinnon Gym.