By Raphael Chahinian
The Bishop’s University Gaiters handed the Toronto Metropolitan University Bold (TMU) women’s basketball team its second loss in two days at the Mattamy Athletic Centre (MAC).
The Gaiter’s had three players score 20 or more points, including Jael Kabunda with 24, Victoria Gauna with 22 and Amaiquen Siciliano with 20—who led them to their 89-73 win.
With TMU’s head coach Carly Clarke still away from the team coaching the Canadian Senior Women’s National team, Assistant Coach Shae Dheensaw served as TMU’s head coach for the second night in a row.
TMU and Bishop’s both started off strong with great ball movement and tenacious defence, which included a Bishop’s full court press after every TMU basket. They continued to trade baskets throughout the opening quarter, going back and forth with three pointers and transition opportunities leading to free throws.
The first ended in bold fashion with TMU sinking a buzzer beating three to send them to the second quarter with a score of 19-16 in Bishop’s favour.
Although the score was close, the number of shots and field goals were drastically different with Bishop’s shooting 45.5 per cent and TMU shooting 27.3 per cent.
The Bold came out with a more tenacious approach in the second quarter, starting a full court press of their own to pinch the offence.
The first half of the frame was favourable for the Bold as they upped their rebounding numbers drastically, along with an increase in their percentages.
After two made free throws the Bold held their first and only lead of the game at 24-23. Their lead swelled to three points before it was quickly lost when the Gaiter’s got hot in the second half of the quarter. Both teams were ready for a three-point shootout, much like TMU’s last game. After a half that saw both teams shoot 34 threes, the Gaiters led by a score of 42-36.
Leading the way for the Bold was fourth-year guard Tiya Misir who had two threes and a strong layup. The shifty shooter had eight points, along with two assists and a steal in the half.
The third quarter saw another stretch of back and forth scoring with TMU trying desperately to fight their way back into the game, but fouls and turnovers would eventually lead to the Bold’s demise.
Sparking the Gaiters offense was Siciliano who had a sequence of two threes that would help Bishop’s go on a mini-run that was eventually halted by a TMU offensive board and put back.
After a series of TMU shooting fouls and Bishop’s free throws, the Gaiters ended the quarter with a layup that put them ahead by 13 with a score of 65-52.
Bold forward Rachel Farwell had a strong second half with a total of 13 points, along with a block and steal, getting the Bold to back within 10 points.
The jolt of offense wasn’t enough as the Gaiters went on a final run, scoring nine more points to end the game with a final score of 89-73.
UP NEXT: The Bold will return to the court on Thursday Oct. 13 at Acadia University where they will look to secure their first win of the pre-season.
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