Women’s basketball wins first round of playoffs
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Photo: Rams women’s basketball forward Emma Fraser takes a shot during the February 22 game against York. Photo by Alex D’Addese.
Playoff season got off to a strong start at the Mattamy Athletic Centre on February 22, as the Ryerson Rams women’s basketball team triumphed in round one, beating York 78-52.
“We had great all-around team-play at all ends of the floor,” said head coach Carly Clarke. “We shared the ball offensively, and shared the ball as a team.
“York is a very gritty team: they play with good speed and feistiness, and bring physicality. We had to manage their compete level for 40 minutes.”
The first playoff victory comes after a strong year that saw the team rack up a 20-11 record. “Sofia Paska and Kellie Ring have been two go-to players for us every game all season,” said Clarke. “But we’ve had different people step up into a variety of important roles. C’airah Gabriel-Robinson is a fifth-year athlete for us; Cara Tiemens and Nicole DiDomenico have stepped up and been critical to our defence.”
On Saturday, the team faces a challenge in the OUA quarter-final against the Windsor Lancers. “We’ve got a big match-up against Windsor, who we’ve developed a bit of a rivalry with over the last three years. They play physically; they’ve got a great inside presence. So rebounding will be a critical area for us to focus on.
“They’ve got great experience, and they’ve had a winning program for a number of years, and have raised the bar for OUA. Beyond that, they’ve got a good balance on their team: they have some players who can shoot the ball, and some sides who can shoot on the inside. You have to defend both inside and outside against them.”
Elsewhere in the playoffs, the men’s basketball team’s first challenge in the OUA quarter-finals is Nipissing. The Rams women’s curling team brought home a silver medal (external link, opens in new window) at last weekend’s OUA Championship, winning five straight games and falling only to Laurentian in the final.
Women’s volleyball scored a 3-0 win in one of their last regular season games against Waterloo on February 18. They take on Lakehead on Saturday in Thunder Bay before OUA playoffs are set to start on March 4. Look out in Ryerson Today for future stories on the upcoming 2017 Women’s Volleyball National Championship March 17-19 at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Men’s hockey beat Waterloo 3-1 in the OUA West quarter-final on February 18, before falling 2-4 against Windsor on February 22, in one of three semifinal games.
For a full rundown of Rams news, visit Ryerson Athletics (external link, opens in new window) .