GUELPH, ON - You can't win a game in the second quarter. But you can certainly lose it. Friday night at the Guelph Gryphons Athletics Centre, a terrific comeback effort by the Gryphons women's basketball team ultimately fell short in a 67-64 home loss to the Lakehead Thunderwolves. The Gryphons, who were the better team for 75% of the game, outscored the Thunderwolves by a combined 13 points over the course of the 1st, 3rd and 4th quarters. However, it was Lakehead who took control of the game in the 2nd quarter, outscoring the Gryphons 25-9 in the frame to take a 16-point lead into the halftime break. Guelph's second half charge saw them battle all the way back to make it a one-possession game. Gryphons second year guard Sarah Holmes had a chance to tie the game in the dying seconds, but her shot hit back rim and stayed out. Despite the loss,
the Gryphons (4-13) currently own the 12th and final spot in the OUA playoffs with just two games remaining in the regular season schedule.
Friday night's game marked the beginning of a back-to-back matchup with the Gryphons and Thunderwolves, who are set to tip off against each other once again on Saturday night in Guelph. A tight opening quarter saw the teams tied at 14-14 heading to the 2nd quarter. And that's when things went south for the Gryphs. The Thunderwolves started the 2nd on a 12-4 run and used a combination of sharp shooting and solid defence to take control. The Gryphons committed 30 turnovers on the night, compared to just 15 by Lakehead, and found themselves trailing 39-23 heading to the 3rd.
Leading the comeback for Guelph was sophomore guard
Sarah Holmes (Welland, ON) who scored a career-high 22 points on an impressive 10-19 shooting. 10 of those 22 points game in the 3rd quarter as Holmes knocked down a couple of big three pointers to help trim the deficit in half. For Holmes, 18 of her 22 points came in the second half alone. Not only was she leading the charge from a scoring perspective, she was also dominating on the glass, racking up a total of 16 rebounds to finish the night with a monster double-double.
Trailing by two points with just 11 seconds remaining, the Gryphs would commit their 30th and most costly turnover of the night after some great defensive pressure from Lakehead forced Haley Belyk into a double dribble. A free throw pushed the Lakehead lead to 67-64. Holmes last ditch effort from beyond the arc in the final seconds was no good, as the Thunderwolves were able to escape with a three-point victory.
Aside from the huge night from Sarah Holmes, the Gryphs also received a nice performance from
Megan Brenkel (16 points, 8 rebounds). Lakehead meanwhile were led by a pair of veterans in fourth year forward Gillian Lavoie (17 pts, 10 reb) and fifth year guard Katelyn Zen (14 pts, 11 reb).
Despite Friday night's loss,
the Gryphons are clinging to the 12th and final spot in the OUA playoffs based upon the league's RPI rankings.
The Gryphs and Thunderwolves will square off once again on Saturday night at 6pm at the Guelph Gryphons Athletics Centre. After that, the Gryphs close out their season next Saturday (Feb. 18) when they host the Waterloo Warriors.
