Pressure showings

Squad ends up on both sides of close games

A fourth-quarter collapse stole a perfect weekend away from the Gaels against two perennial playoff teams.

The Gaels lost 57-55 to the Carleton Ravens Friday, before beating the nationally 10th-ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees 57-46 in overtime on Saturday.

The Gaels had an eight-point lead against Carleton going into the fourth quarter, but a nine-point scoring run midway through the frame by the Ravens tied the game at 51-51 with 3:14 left to play.

Gemma Bullard committed a shooting foul on Lindsay Shotbolt of the Ravens in the final seconds, giving Carleton a two-point lead after two made free throws. The game ended when a last-second heave by Gaels guard Liz Boag failed to connect.

“We just watched [the lead] dwindle away in the whole fourth quarter, and that’s the part I was most disappointed,” said head coach Dave Wilson. “The game seemed to change and we didn’t change with it.”

Bullard had a strong shooting night, finishing with 19 points, including three made three pointers. She also made all eight of her free throw attempts.

Boag was only 3-16 from the field, but dished out five assists to go along with her eight points.

Against Ottawa, the Gaels held the Gee-Gees to their poorest shooting game of the season at 25 per cent en route to the overtime victory. Last year, Ottawa eliminated the Gaels from the post-season.

The last time the Gaels beat the Gee-Gees was nearly four years ago, on Feb. 21, 2010.

Wilson said it was the Gaels’ best defensive game of the season.

“We pressured Ottawa the whole game,” Wilson said, adding that the pressure was intended to tire out the Gee-Gees guards to hurt Ottawa’s chances of making late-game shots.

In the last minute of the fourth quarter, the Gee-Gees were down by three points. After a timeout, Ottawa’s Sarah Besselink made a three-pointer, tying the game and ultimately sending it into overtime.

The Gaels limited the Gee-Gees to one made shot in the extra frame, while scoring 14 points of their own, eight of which came from wing Jenny Wright.

Boag rebounded from a poor shooting night against Carleton, ending the Ottawa game with 15 points. Robyn Pearson notched a double-double with 10 points and 14 rebounds.

The Gaels will return home this weekend to face the Algoma Thunderbirds and the Laurentian Voyageurs for the second time this season. Queen’s came out on top against both teams in their previous meeting earlier this month.

Tags

Carleton, Gaels, Ottawa, Wilson, women's basketball

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