The fifth-seed Gaels women's basketball team (14-5) hosts the 12th-seed Laurentian Voyageurs (3-16) in the ARC main gym at 6pm on Wednesday in preliminary OUA playoff action.Â
Queen's ended their regular season with a pair of losses, falling to second in the OUA East, while Laurentian, losers of their last 11 games, squeaked into the playoffs as the third-place team in the OUA North. Based on their Rating Percentage Index (RPI), the Gaels earned a fifth-place ranking, one spot shy from earning a bye through the preliminary round. The Voyageurs are ranked last among the 12 OUA playoff teams.
The Gaels lost a pair of close games heading into the playoffs against Ryerson and Toronto. Despite 22 points in the fourth quarter, Queen's couldn't complete the comeback, falling 66-61 to Ryerson. In the loss, Emily Hazlett (Fredericton) tied a career-high of 19 points to go with eight rebounds, five steals, and four assists. Robyn Pearson (Toronto) ended the night with a double-double on 14 points and 13 rebounds. Against Toronto, it was Jenny Wright (Kingston, Ont.) leading the charge for the Gaels in a losing effort, earning a season-high 28 points, plus nine rebounds, a season-high five steals, a career-high four blocks, and two assists. Hazlett also contributed 13 points against Toronto, while Pearson pulled in 13 rebounds, pushing her to first in the OUA with 206 boards on the year, an average of 10.8 per game. Pearson is the third-highest scorer for Queen's as well, averaging a double-double with 10.0 points per game. Hazlett averaged double-digits for the first time in her career, scoring 10.5 points per game in addition to finishing eighth in the OUA with 66 assists, while Wright led all Gaels scorers through the regular season with 12.3 points per game. Abby Dixon (North Vancouver) and Hazlett both had 38 steals on the season, tied for 11th in the OUA, and Dixon was seventh in steals per game with 2.2.Â
Laurentian closed out their regular season at home with a 75-55 loss to Carleton and a 59-51 loss to Ottawa. Danielle Harris and Adrienne Moreau put up 13 points each for the Voyageurs, and Emily Tinnes chipped in with 10 points, three assists, and three steals of her own. Tinnes was the only Laurentian player to reach double-digits against Ottawa, netting a game-high 16 points. Harris finished the regular season 13th in OUA assists thanks to five against Ottawa, bringing her total to 54. Moreau was tied for second in the OUA with 50 steals this year, including five against Ottawa. L'Ashante Henry has been the best Voyageurs forward this season. Despite playing in only 11 games, Henry was third in scoring on the team with 7.4 points per game and her 5.9 rebounds per game were second-best to Moreau's 6.2. Henry missed the last four games of the regular season.
When Laurentian hosted the Gaels in November, Queen's came away with a 61-51 victory led by 20 points from Wright and 18 rebounds from Pearson. The Voyageurs saw 15 points from Harris and 14 points from McLean. Henry was not in the lineup. The Gaels hosted Laurentian in the preliminary round of the 2014-15 playoffs as well, where Queen's coasted to an 80-52 victory. Dixon had 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals to lead all returning players, and Andrea Priamo (Guelph, Ont.) also contributed 13 points and nine rebounds for the Gaels. The Voyageurs got 12 points from Harris in the loss. |
