VICTORIA - Fresh off giving the No. 1 ranked Regina Cougars a scare but losing with a brief fourth-quarter lapse and then responding by putting up over 100 points on Brandon last weekend, the University of Victoria Vikes women's basketball team hosts Thompson Rivers twice at McKinnon Gymnasium this weekend at Ken and Kathy Shields Court.
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The WolfPack and Vikes both enter the games at 2-2 in the West division in the Canada West conference. Four teams - UVic, Thompson Rivers, Trinity Western and Fraser Valley - are tied at with four points to lead the division making this two-game series even more crucial.
Senior guard #
Debbie Yeboah# of Winnipeg continues to lead the Vikes in scoring with 14.3 points per game, but three other players factor into double-digit scoring as #
Cassandra Goodis# of Penticton, B.C. (11.8 PPG), #
Chelsea McMullen# of Prince George, B.C. (11.5 PPG), and #
Sarah Semeniuk# of Fruitvale, B.C. (10 PPG, 7.0 RPG) also help to provide balanced scoring. Victoria native #
Jessica Renfrew# (8.8 PPG, 4.5 PPG) has also had a strong start to the season along with rookie guard and hometown product #
Shaylyn Crisp# (6.0 PPG, 2.3 RPG).
The WolfPack are led by the duo of
Diane Schuetze (16.8 PPG, 12.3 RPG) and
Jen Ju (16.0 PPG, 2.25 SPG), Thompson Rivers poses a tough test for the Vikes. Looking for their first road win of the season, Thompson Rivers boasts depth in experience with three fifth-year and three fourth-year seniors. Freshman
Taiysa Worsfeld (8.3 PPG, 4.8 RPG) has had a strong start, and the aforementioned Schuetze is third in the Canada West in scoring and first in rebounding.
"They also have a lot of role players like
Dana Clarkson,
Michelle Dimond and
Kailey Colonna. They have balance and are super physical," said Vikes women's basketball head coach #Rich Chambers#. "We well need to focus on rebounding well, especially at the defensive end. They lead the Canada West in defensive rebounding and we will need to get some offensive boards. And we have to take the ball at their bigs. We'll need easy hoops and we have to run."
The Vikes will need to rebound well and match a physical WolfPack squad to be successful this weekend.
"They are a good experienced team. The have the leading rebounder in the Canada West and present some very tough match-ups for us. They are an older group and they've been together for a while," Chambers said. "Without question we will have to be physically tough. If we aren't it's going to be a long night."
UVic will host the Rockstar Energy Drinks and Strathcona Hotel
Days of Thunder: Rockstar Edition night on Friday. Rockstar will be on hand with free drinks and CFUV, with Club9one9's DJ Marshall, will be on hand laying down the beats. Fans are asked to wear blue and gold outfits to support the Vikes. Game Day Promotions include a giveaway of $500 of tuition.
Thunder the Mascot will be hosting a Rockstar photo booth, so fans can show off with awesome outfits or incredible Movember 'staches. As part of the Canadian Cancer Society Men's and Women's Health Campaigns the Canadian Cancer Society is excited to be joining forces with the Vikes to encourage men and women to make time to get a game plan to defend against some of the most common cancers. Visit the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) booth at Days of Thunder for more information, or to purchase your 50/50 tickets (all proceeds supporting CCS).
Following this weekend homestand, the Vikes will close out the 2011 portion of the season in Alberta against the currently undefeated Calgary Dinos and the dramatically improved Lethbridge Pronghorns Nov. 25 and 26. Live video and live stats for both games is available at
http://canadawest.tv.
Projected Starting 5
Thompson Rivers Projected starting five: #6 Duxbury / #7 Ju / #12 Colonna / #13 Schuetze / #14 Dimond
UVic Projected starting five: #4 Renfrew / #6 Yeboah / #8 Goodis / #12 Semeniuk / #15 McMullen
Season to Date
UVic (2-2)
Nov. 4 @ Trinity Western W 82-73
Nov. 5 @ Trinity Western L 69-55
Nov. 11 vs. Regina L 74-65
Nov. 12 vs. Brandon W 109-33
Thompson Rivers (2-2)
Nov. 4 vs. Fraser Valley W 68-64
Nov. 5 vs. Fraser Valley W 65-59
Nov. 11 @ Calgary L 76-61
Nov. 12 @ Lethbridge L 63-61
