VICTORIA – The University of Victoria Vikes women's basketball team took hard tumble in their final pre-season match against the Brock Badgers on Oct .27 at McKinnon Gym. The visitors took the game 71-63 thanks to 25 bench points and 16 points off Vikes turnovers.
 
BOX SCORE
 
The Vikes were on par until the final 10 minutes of play, out-scoring the Badgers in quarter one and two, but struggling to maintain possession after that. Jenna Bugiardini continued her scoring leadership earning a team-high 15 points and seven boards, while Shaylyn Crisp chipped in with 12 points, seven rebounds and two three-pointers.
 
The Badgers had a scoring frenzy in the fourth thanks to the hands of third year Kayla Santilli who contributed seven points in the fourth and 17 overall. Second-year guard Dayna Howlett put three shots from beyond the arc to finish the night with 13 points, while Nicole Rosenkranz and Samantha De Jong also hit double digits with 12 and 11 points, respectively.  
 
"We couldn't stop the ball and let them have 42 points in the paint," said Dani Sinclair, Vikes head coach. "They backed us down and we had 22 turnovers to their 11 and that was the difference."
 
The home team got off to a good start going on an 8-0 streak to open the game. Brock was held off the board for nearly four minutes until a pair of free throws from Andrea Polischuk broke the streak. The Vikes did well earning nine defensive rebounds to Brock's three in the opening frame. Seven different players put up baskets as the Vikes ended the first frame leading 21-16.
 
In the second it was the Badgers who started with a 6-0 streak thanks to some good drives to the net by Santilli. The third-year guard worked well with De Jong to combine for 10 of Brock's 12 second-quarter points. The Vikes made good on only three attempts but managed to stay within range as the visitors edged the Vikes 28-27. The Brock come back was evident as the Badgers out-scored the Vikes 12-6 in the second.
 
Following the break the Vikes started to move the ball and take better care of their defensive responsibilities. The Vikes earned eight points from the line as Bugiardini was six-for-six in free throws in the third. The home team continued to win the battle under the boards edging the Badgers 13-7 in rebounds and out-scoring them 17-14 in the third.
 
In the final frame, Santilli found her stride driving to the hoop and grabbing seven of her 17 game points in the fourth. Rosenkranz used her five-foot-eleven size to her advantage adding six points of her own, while the hot hands of Howlett served two daggering threes to the Vikes who were out-scored 29-19.
 
The Vikes were held to 37.7 per cent from the field throughout the game despite shooting 87.5 per cent from the line. The Badgers were 29.7 per cent from the field in the first half but bounced back to shoot 51.4 per cent in the second and take the game to a final score of 71-63.
 
The Vikes end their pre-season with a 3-2 record and will now prepare for their opening Canada West games Nov. 1-2 on the road against Brandon and Regina. Watch the games live at http://canadawest.tv
 

SCORING SUMMARY
UVIC: 21-6-17-19: 63
BROCK: 16-12-14-29: 71

SCORING LEADERS
UVIC: Jenna Bugiardini (15), Shaylyn Crisp (12), Jenny Lewis (8)
BROCK: Kayla Santilli (17), Dayna Howlett (13), Nicole Rosenkranz (12)