VICTORIA - The University of Victoria Vikes women's basketball team silenced the Manitoba Bisons with a 79-62 victory. Strong perimeter shooting helped the Vikes improve their Canada West record to 8-4, while tonight's ninth consecutive loss drops the Bisons to 2-11.
BOX SCORE
Third-year Jessica Renfrew paved the way for the Vikes after dominating the score board with 23 points. Fifth-year Debbie Yeboah was a big hitter with 19 points, while second-year Shaylyn Crisp went almost perfect to net three outside shots to earn nine points. Two-way play from Chelsea McMullen was also a factor in the win, as the six-foot forward tallied six rebounds and 12 points.
For the Bisons, the undisputed leader was Robyn Eyer who drained four three-point shots to finish the night with 14 points. Stephanie Gill and Brittany Koop were also high-scoring factors, as they finished with 11 and 21 points, respectively.
In the opening quarter, the Vikes outscored the home side 19-16 despite both teams putting in equal efforts at both ends of the court. The Vikes continued their quality shooting, netting three long-range shots, one from each of Jordyn Newman, Crisp and Renfrew.
The Vikes held their lead throughout the second quarter, despite a resilient home-side effort. Two three-point shots from Crisp counteracted some quality shooting from Manitoba's GIll. Both teams continued to shoot well from outside the arc as the Vikes were good on seven of 15 attempts in the opening half, while the Bisons were six for 12.
Victoria grabbed a 41-38 lead entering the break despite a late three-point bucket from Manitoba's Eyer.
Entering the second half, the Vikes had their best streak when they went ahead by nine points after keeping the Bisons off the board for nearly three minutes. Manitoba's Eyer put an end to the streak draining her third trey for the night to narrow the gap. Solid rebounding from fifth-year McMullen kept the Vikes' defensive game tight, good to hang on to the 60-53 lead entering the final quarter.
The Vikes finished strong to earn the 79-62 win to improve in the Canada West to an 8-4 record. The Vikes wil return home to prepare for next weekend, Jan. 18-19, where they will host Regina and Brandon. The games will be broadcast live at http://canadawest.tv
SCORING BY QUARTER:
VIC: 19-22-19-19 : 79
MAN: 16-22-15-9 : 62
LEADING SCORERS:
VIC: Jessica Renfrew (23 pts), Debbie Yeboah (19 pts)
MAN: Brittany Koop (21 pts), Robyn Eyer (14 pts)
