Bearcats Advance to Semis

CBC Bearcats vs. SAIT Trojans – Thursday March 13, 4:00pm PST | SEMI-FINAL

Wednesday night the Bearcats won their first ever game on the national stage, beating the Quebec champ Geants de Saint-Jean 67-61 in a thrilling victory advancing to the CCAA semi-final.

The Bearcats had a four-point lead at halftime before the Geants exploded in the third quarter and outscored them 20-9 to take the lead heading into the final frame.  Despite that, the Bearcats would not be denied and outscored their opponents 26-13 in the fourth to claim the six-point victory. 

Offensively they shot 40% from the field led by guard and Player of the Game Kagari Tomita and her game high 24 points as she quarterbacked the offence.  All-Canadian Elissa Vreugdenhil didn’t shoot the ball particularly well but accounted for 13 points and 10 rebounds while Madeline Beerwald added 14 points in the win.

They will meet the ACAC champion Trojans from Calgary who blasted the host St. Thomas Tommies 73-42 in their quarterfinal shooting 38% with Kitawna Sparks dropping a team high 15 points.  Their defence was outstanding and something the Bearcats will need to crack on Thursday.  The Trojans forced 27 turnovers and held the Tommies to 22% from the field and 2-22 from the three-point line.

During the regular season, the Trojans dominated the ACAC with a 20-1 record scoring over 82-points a game and shooting 43% from the field. They are balanced with four players averaging double figures.

The winner of this game will advance to the national gold medal game on Saturday while the loser moves over to the bronze medal semi-final on Friday.