VICTORIA – Four members of the University of Victoria Vikes women's basketball team have spent five years together and have forged a friendship through the good and the bad times, while the lone graduating member from the men's side has a lifetime of memories he will never forget.

All five athletes will be honoured and each presented with a gift for their contributions to the Vikes program in between the men's and women's games on Alumni Night this Saturday, presented by the UVic Alumni Association.

While this weekend may be their final regular season home games, both sides are hoping for a long and fruitful playoff run while wearing the blue, gold and white.
 

Kristy Gallagher has been around the longest out of all the graduating players this year. Growing up on the peninsula in Sidney, Gallagher always wanted to play for the Vikes.

"This experience has been an amazing one for me. I've gotten the chance to play with some great teammates and we have won a lot of games over the years. It will feel strange to not play for the Vikes next season," said Gallagher, who will graduate with a Bachelor of Recreation and Health Education with a minor in Public Administration.

Longevity wasn't always a certainty for Gallagher, though. During her second season, she injured her left knee when she landed unusually during a game. The result was a torn meniscus, which she had surgery on and returned after the Christmas break her third season, which gave her just enough time to prepare for the U SPORTS Nationals, which were hosted at UVIC.

Unfortunately, the knee injuries didn't end there.

While getting ready for preseason play in her fifth year, Gallagher felt more discomfort in that same knee. She had to go under the knife once again for a meniscal repair and to remove a few floating bodies.

"The first surgery was hard, but having to go through it a second time was even more daunting, but I knew I wanted to finish my career here eventually so I just worked through it," said Gallagher, who owns the Canada West record for best free throw percentage in a single game after she went 15-for-15 back on Nov, 18, 2017.

Now healthy, Gallagher is hoping her veteran leadership can help carry the Vikes back to the Canada West Final Four for the first time since her freshman year.

Her knee injury gave her an extra year to be around the team and grow close to the recruiting class that came in after her.
 

Similar to Gallagher, Marissa Dheensaw battled her fair share of knee injuries with the Vikes.

The summer before Dheensaw joined the Vikes, she tore her ACL in her left knee.

Dheensaw rehabbed her way back to full strength, only to tear the same ACL in her same knee two years later.

"When I injured myself the first time, I knew I still had five years ahead of me, so I was fine. When it happened again it obviously wasn't great, but I turned it into a positive experience that wouldn't have happened if I was playing basketball," said Dheensaw.

The local power forward used her rehab time to complete a co-op term, which contributed to her degree in recreation and health education.

She also took on more of a leadership role from the bench and even got into a little coaching.

"It was tough not to play, but it turns out, I really enjoyed coaching and actually learned more about the game sitting out than I would have if I was playing," said Dheensaw, who has yanked down a career-high 93 rebounds this season.

It's not a stretch to see that Dheensaw would take to coaching. Her older sister, Shalie, is completing her third year as an assistant coach with the Vikes. It is an unique experience that the two of them have enjoyed.

Being around her sister and competing in some epic battles against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds are two of the things she will miss most about the program.

Morgan Roskelley and Katie Langdon also started their careers in 2015 and both are certain that the relationships they built with Marissa and Gallagher will last long past this season.
 

"Many people say it, but it's definitely true for us: when we look back, we won't remember the wins and losses as much as we will remember who we played for and the great times we had with our each other," said Langdon, who will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Biology and Environmental Studies. "To graduate with these three other girls means a lot to me."

The only non-local from the graduating women's class, Langdon has maintained a level of consistency off the bench that has stabilized the Vikes on both ends of the floor this season.

In fewer minutes, she is averaging 7.2 points per game, highlighted by her second-career 20-point performance last weekend against the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack.

Roskelley also enjoyed a career-best performance against the WolfPack, as she drained seven threes.

The Oak Bay Secondary grad is reaping the rewards that four years of hard work can provide.

Now a starter, she is averaging a career-high 8.5 points per game and nearly two assists per game.

"I've really enjoyed the transition from my first year until now. Back when I first joined the team, I wasn't playing much, but I wanted to put the work in and get better for my older teammates. Now, I'm seeing that reversal with me being older and the younger players coming in and it's pretty cool," said Roskelley, who will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science with a double major in Geography and Environmental Studies.
 

If everything goes according to plan this weekend against the University of Manitoba Bisons, the Vikes will be guaranteed one more home date, when they would host a play-in game sometime between Feb. 14 to 16.

On the men's side, Hayden Lejeune doesn't exit the program with any of the freshmen he entered with, but he still has five years of highlights and memories to take with him.

Lejeune had a great view of the Vikes winning their 16^th Canada West title during his first year in 2014-15.

The 6-foot-8 forward from Chilliwack had some adjusting to before he became a regular in the Vikes starting rotation. His inexperience didn't stop him from seeing the floor at the U SPORTS national tournament, though.

"One of my favourite memories that I'll take with me is a funny one. We were the Canada West champs taking on Dalhousie in the first game. I was on the bench towards the end of a close game, so I thought my night was done. Then, out of nowhere, Chris (McLaughlin) was calling for a sub because he needed to get back to our locker room all of a sudden and Craig (Beaucamp) was yelling at me to get up to the scorers table to check in," recalled Lejeune. "We were up one when I went in and I was so nervous – I just didn't want to mess anything up. Sure enough the first play on defence comes my way and I give up an and-1 play overtop me to give up the lead. Luckily, Chris came sprinting back out two minutes later, subbed back in and hit two free throws to give us the win.

"Looking back at it, it was one of the most hilarious endings to end a game all things considered."

Lejeune, who will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science with a major in geography, admitted that it took him a few years to find the proper work ethic, but once he did, he found regular playing time and became a force down low.

He has averaged at least five rebounds per game in each of the past three seasons and is enjoying his most productive season this year with 10.9 points per game.

Saturday will be a special evening for everyone involved. While they are all sad that their time as a Vike is coming to an end – whenever that may be – they are all very thankful and glad for the opportunity to put on the Vikes uniform as often as they did.