The Guelph Gryphons women’s basketball team started the winter semester with a game against the Western Mustangs on Jan. 9, 2015, looking to come off of the holiday break with a nice win. Last time they played, they suffered a tough defeat at the hands of the McMaster Marauders, setting their season record at 5-2 going into Saturday’s game.
In the first quarter of the game, both teams were evenly matched. The Gryphons started the game with consistent scoring efforts, while fifth-year guard Caroline Wolynski of the Mustangs responded with a very fast-paced offence that would prove to be a threat for the Gryphons throughout the game as she finished the first quarter with 6 points. The back-and-forth momentum continued into the second quarter, and the score remained close as Guelph’s Bridget Atkinson worked to increase the gap. The quarter started out with a quick steal from Atkinson, followed by a basket, but the Mustangs seemed to come alive on offence. They quickly answered back to the Gryphons’ efforts, and went on to close out the half up 29-27 over Guelph.
The last half of the game saw a continuation of the first half’s intensity, as the Gryphons and Mustangs showed a lot of fight on both ends of the floor. At the end of the third quarter, the Gryphons were up by three points on the Mustangs, securing their lead with a basket and free throw made by forward Vanessa Rampado. Fellow forward Kate McTavish also had a strong shooting display in the third, with six points in total, two from made free throws. McTavish is no stranger to coming alive on offence against the Mustangs; her last game against them was a 35-point night last season with 62 per cent shooting from the field.
As the game progressed, both teams took turns on stops and points made, but the last half of the fourth quarter saw the Mustangs take the lead. The Gryphons tried to stop the pace of the Mustangs by playing strong defence, but with six minutes left in the quarter, second-year guard Maddy Horst put down a jumper to put the Mustangs up 48-46. The Gryphons were motivated to respond on offense, but on a quick decision the Gryphons turned the ball over, allowing Western’s Meredith McLeod to bury a the three-pointer. The crowd of Western fans erupted in cheers and the Gryphons’ head coach, Christin Dickenson, called a time-out. As the game drew to a close, the Gryphons tried to hold down the Mustangs with the offense of McTavish and the rest of the team, but Horst, Wolynski and the free throw shooting of the Mustangs team kept Western ahead.
The Gryphons had a strong fight even towards the last stretch of the game, but they ultimately went down 57-64 with a tough loss. This puts the Gryphons 5-3 in the OUA standings and third in the Central standings behind McMaster. The Gryphons’ next game will be at home against the 5-3 Windsor Lancers on Jan. 15, 2015.