WOMEN’S

2017-18 Year in Review

TEAM FACTS:

Head Coach: Dani Sinclair (6th Season)

Assistant Coach: Leanne Evans

Team Captain: Kristy Gallagher

2017-18 Key Departures: Jenna Bugiardini, Nicole Karstein, Jenna Krug

2017-18 Key Returnees: Kristy Gallagher, Amira Giannattasio, Marissa Dheensaw, Katie Langdon

2017-18 Key Additions: Ashlyn Day, Haily Weaver

U SPORTS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS (9): 1980, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1992, 1998, 2000, 2003

CANADA WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS (18): 1976, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1992, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001

U SPORTS COACH OF THE YEAR (4): 1978, 1980, 1992, 2010

CANADA WEST COACH OF THE YEAR (11): 1978, 1980, 1987, 1988, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2001, 2010

SEASON RECORD:

Canada West Record: 16-4 (5th in conference)

Canada West Playoffs: 1-2 (Lost in Quarter-Finals)

Last U SPORTS title: 2003

Last Canada West title: 2001

2017-18 AWARD WINNERS:

Canada West Second Team All-Star: Kristy Gallagher

Canada West All-Rookie Team: Ashlyn Day

2016-17 VIKES HONOUR ROLL:

Jenna Bugiardini, Andrea Psotka, Kristy Gallagher, Jenna Krug, Nicole Karstein, Morgan Roskelley

PRE-SEASON EXHIBITION

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Oct. 13 Fraser Valley Abbotsford, BC L 60-72 Oct. 14 Fraser Valley Abbotsford, BC W 58-41 Oct. 20 Calgary Calgary, AB L 73-59 Oct. 21 Regina Calgary, AB L 87-52

CANADA WEST REGULAR SEASON (OCTOBER-NOVEMBER-DECEMBER)

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Oct. 27 UBC Victoria, BC W 64-54 Oct. 28 UBC Okanagan Victoria, BC W 78-64 Nov. 3 Brandon Brandon, MB W 93-87 Nov. 4 Brandon Brandon, MB W 84-80 Nov. 10 Trinity Western Langley, BC L 76-68 Nov. 11 Trinity Western Langley, BC L 70-63 Nov. 17 Saskatchewan Victoria, BC L 89-79 Nov. 18 Saskatchewan Victoria, BC L 96-63 Dec. 1 Alberta Edmonton, AB W 63-61 Dec. 2 Alberta Edmonton, AB W 66-58

HOLIDAY HOOPS INVITATIONAL

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Dec. 28 Toronto Toronto, ON L 65-64 Dec. 29 Laurier Toronto, ON W 65-50 Dec. 30 Toronto Toronto, ON W 59-49

CANADA WEST REGULAR SEASON (JANUARY-FEBRUARY)

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Jan. 5 Thompson Rivers Victoria, BC W 83-65 Jan. 6 Thompson Rivers Victoria, BC W 83-64 Jan. 13 Manitoba Winnipeg, MB W 71-68 Jan. 14 Manitoba Winnipeg, MB W 90-78 Jan. 19 UNBC Victoria, BC W 76-70 Jan. 20 UNBC Victoria, BC W 76-64 Jan. 26 Mount Royal Victoria, BC W 85-75 Jan. 27 Mount Royal Victoria, BC W 85-82 Feb. 1 UBC Victoria, BC W 76-74 Feb. 2 UBC Vancouver, BC W 74-73

CANADA WEST PLAY-IN SERIES

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Feb. 9 Fraser Valley Victoria, BC W 91-62

CANADA WEST QUARTER-FINALS

DATE OPPONENT LOCATION RESULT Feb. 16 Calgary Calgary, AB L 105-49 Feb. 17 Calgary Calgary, AB L 80-61

SEASON RECAP

A young University of women’s basketball team rattled off 13-straight victories between Dec. 1 and Feb. 9 in the 2017-18 season, proving themselves a resilient bunch en route to the program’s best regular season record in nine seasons.

With the graduation of standout players Jenna Bugiardini, Nicole Karstein and Jenna Krug after the 2016-17 season, head coach Dani Sinclair entered her sixth year in charge of the program with a team that featured no fifth-year athletes and just two fourth-years.

Due to this youth, the Vikes would be overlooked and underrated throughout the entire year, as evidenced in their placing of ninth in the Canada West Pre-season Coaches’ Poll.

The Vikes would serve notice to the rest of the conference that they were a force to be reckoned with by opening the season with four-straight victories.

Kristy Gallagher and Amira Giannattasio, the lone fourth-years on the team, led by example, scoring 73 of the team’s 142 points in a season-opening sweep of the UBC Okanagan Heat (64-54 & 78-64).

On the road in Brandon the blend of experience and youth that would serve the Vikes so well throughout the season began to emerge. In just her second weekend in the league, All-Rookie Team member Ashlyn Day scored 19 and 26 points in victories of 93-87 and 84-80 over the .

The only stumbling block in the Vikes regular season would come in the next two weeks, when the team was swept by Trinity Western on the road (76-68 & 70-63), and Saskatchewan at home (89-79 & 96-63).

That blowout loss at home to the Huskies was the turning point of the season for the Vikes, who would regroup from the tough loss and go on to win their next 13 games in a row.

The team ended the first half of their schedule by sweeping the then No. 10 ranked team in the nation, the Alberta Pandas, by scores of 63-61 and 66-58 in Edmonton. While Giannattasio and Gallagher once again led the way offensively, Katie Langdon continued the trend of different players stepping up at different times by scoring 23 points and adding 20 rebounds on the weekend.

Launched into the second half of the season with confidence thanks to those back-to-back wins over the Pandas, the Vikes won their next six games in a row, proving equally adept at blowing teams out of the water - 83-65 and 83-64 over Thompson Rivers - as squeaking out victories 71-68 over Manitoba and 76- 70 over the University of Northern .

The team wrapped up their regular season with four more victories all of which came in a close fashion.

Giannattasio scored 104 and Gallagher 87 points as the Vikes defeated Mount Royal by scores of 87-75 and 85-82 at home before sweeping their rival UBC Thunderbirds by scores of 76-74 and 77-73 in a home-and-home set.

That winning streak continued into the playoffs as the fifth-seeded Vikes dominated the 12th-ranked Fraser Valley Cascades from start to finish in a 91-62 victory on home court.

The squad’s magical run of 13-straigth victories would come to an end the very next weekend as they were unable to go on the road and pick up a victory against a very-talented University of squad. Losses of 105-49 and 80-61 brought the season to the end with the Vikes bowing out of the Canada West Playoffs in the quarter-final stage.

ROSTER

Calli McMillan G 5-7 2 Victoria, B.C.

Amira Giannattasio G 5-5 4 Hamilton, ON

Morgan Roskelley G 5-4 3 Victoria, BC

Amelia Ack G 5-6 1 Olympia, Wash. (USA)

Haily Weaver G 5-10 1 Edmonton, AB

Ashlyn Day G 5-11 1 , BC

Aleah Ashlee G 5-11 2 Comox, B.C.

Kristy Gallagher G 5-9 4 Sidney, BC

Marissa Dheensaw F 5-10 3 Victoria, BC

Amy Sprangers F 6-1 2 Langley, BC

Katie Langdon F 6-1 3 Owen Sound, ON

Ellen Ougrinov G 5-9 1 Mississuaga, ON

Lyndzie Caron F 5-11 1 Naramata, BC

Kennedy Cuspard F 5-11 1 Avondale, Arizona (USA) Ella Johnson G 5-6 1 Saskatoon, SK

Xenia Knoop F 6-4 1 Hamburg, Germany

Kayla Krug G 5-6 1 North Vancouver, BC

Paige Thomson F 6-0 4 Brandon, MB

Hannah Walline G 5-10 1 Kelowna, BC