Photo by Marta Kierkus
Women’s basketball bounces back
The Gee-Gees rebounded from their loss with two wins against the University of Guelph Gryphons and Lakehead University Thunderwolves Nov. 8–9. Their first game against the Gryphons stayed within a seven-point gap the entire time, but ended 67–61 in favour of the Gees.
Although second-year forward Catherine Traer landed a three-point shot to begin the game, it seemed like the Gees and the Gryphons were evenly paired. Both teams continuously responded to the other’s offence with their own. Traer netted a total of 20 points and led the scoreboard for the Gees.
The game against the Thunderwolves was clearly defined by the Gees’ early game offence. The Thunderwolves responded with a strong third and fourth quarter, but it wasn’t enough to reconcile the 62-35 point difference at the end of the third.
Gees’ second-year forward Katherine Lemoine scored a remarkable 25 points, ending the game with a score of 78–52. Her performance and excellent shooting during the game puts her in fourth place in the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) ranking for her shot percentage, standing at 65.2 per cent. She landed 11 of her 15 shots.
The Gees ended their weekend with a 3–1 overall record for the regular season.
Men’s basketball undefeated
The Gees continued their now 12-game winning streak with their third and fourth regular season wins against the University of Guelph Gryphons and Lakehead University Thunderwolves Nov. 8–9. The men dominated the Gryphons in every single quarter with the exception of a two-point difference in the final quarter.
In their second 100-point game of the season, the Gees were propelled by fourth-year point guard Johnny Berhanemeskel, who scored an astounding 26 points. The Gee-Gees wasted no time setting the pace and maintained a strong defence. For nearly the entire first half of the second quarter, the Gees never allowed a single point to the other team, but racked up 10 of their own.
Berhanemeskel currently sits at the top of the CIS rankings for points scored, with 106 points in just four games—an average of 26.5 points per game.
During the second game against the Thunderwolves, the pace was noticeably different.
Lakehead took an early lead in the first quarter, but the U of O responded in the second quarter bringing the score to 34–31. The Thunderwolves then led a strong third, but the Gee-Gees responded with a marginally better fourth and secured an 80–75 win.
Despite Lakehead’s near-perfect foul shot success rate, the game was nuanced by the Gee-Gees’ superior three-point shot success rate, landing 54.5 per cent of their three-pointers as opposed to Lakehead’s 30.8.
The Gee-Gees ended their weekend with a 4–0 overall record for the regular season.
Women’s volleyball on the rise
The Gees reared from their previous loss with two solid wins against the Windsor Lancers and Western Mustangs on Nov. 9–10. The first game was a bit shaky, but allowed the Gees to re-establish themselves with a 3–1 win over the Lancers.
Most notable were the English twins, who both scored 23.5 points in the game against the Lancers. This put Myriam and Kelsie English at the top of the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) standings for average points per game and Myriam third across Canada.
The Lancers led the fourth set 16–13, when the Gees reaffirmed their solidarity and came back with two kills from the English sisters and six service aces from Myriam.
The second game against the Mustangs was a quick 3–0, although the Gees almost lost their second set after a few mistakes. The set remained within a three-point differential until Western’s Serena Smith erred three serves and the Gees capitalized and secured the second set.
The Gee-Gees ended the weekend with a 5–1 record for the season.
