HAMILTON, ON—The season will be remembered for what was accomplished, not what was lost. A perfect 13-0 home record, an 11-game winning streak, and an OUA banner for the first time since 1997 were just the highlights of the 2001-02 women’s basketball season.
This past weekend at Nationals, the team’s season ended with consecutive losses to defending national champion Regina and Ontario University Athletics West (OUA West) champion Brock.
Thursday afternoon the Blues struggled to keep pace with the Cougars’ perimeter game. Regina drained 6 of 13 three-point attempts on their way to an 89-72 victory. Toronto’s normally reliable outside game eluded them, as they finished 0 of 5 from beyond the arc.
After a sloppy couple of minutes to start the game, Regina seized control behind second-year guard Jana Schweitzer (26 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds) to take a 44-23 halftime lead. Schweitzer was named Regina’s Saxon player of the game.
Following the dismal first half, the Blues recovered to shoot 53% from the field in the second half (29.4% in first half). However, outscoring their opponents 49-45 in the second half was not nearly enough to make up for the slow start.
Fourth-year guard Holly Pagnan (18 points, 9 assists, 3 steals) was named Saxon player of the game for Toronto. CIS All-Rookie team member Paula Romkey chipped in with 15 points and 7 rebounds for the Blues. CIS honourable mention Vanessa Richardson (13 points, 5 rebouds, 5 assists) and Jacquie Armour (10 points, 4 blocks) also made significant contributions.
In Friday’s game, the Blues lost a rematch of last Sunday’s OUA championship game to Brock by the score of 75-67. Richardson (22 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists), Pagnan (17 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists) and second-year guard Vanessa Nobrega (12 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals) led the Blues in the loss. Richardson was named Saxon player of the game.
Fifth-year guard Nickie Thompson (22 points, 8 rebounds, 6 assists) received Saxon honours for Brock.
In the gold medal game Sunday evening the Simon Fraser University (SFU) Clan defeated the Université Laval Rouge et Or 66-51 to capture the 2002 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) title. SFU finished the season with a 35-0 record to become the first undefeated team in women’s basketball since 1994 (Winnipeg). All-Canadian first-team member Jessica Kaczowka led the Clan with 28 points and 13 rebounds.
