Abbotsford/Winnipeg (Jordie Arthur) – Women’s Basketball: Cascades battle past T-Wolves 68-57
ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – It took the University of the Fraser Valley women’s basketball team a while to find its collective footing, but once they finally did, they were able to fend off a stiff test from the UNBC Timberwolves on Friday evening.
The U SPORTS No. 2-ranked Cascades (5-0) defeated the T-Wolves (0-5) by a 68-57 count at the UFV Athletic Centre.
UFV’s third-year backcourt partners Maddy Gobeil (14 points, five assists, five rebounds) and Nikki Cabuco (12 points, four assists) both scored in double figures, while Alina Shakirova’s 12 points paced UNBC.
The two teams renew hostilities at the UFV Athletic Centre on Saturday (5 p.m., CanadaWest.tv).
“We struggled to find a cohesive way to all be on the same page right away,” Cabuco analyzed afterward. “That just showed tonight with all the balls that were fumbling out of our hands and all the turnovers we had in the first quarter.
“I think we realized – or we should know – that we are going to be winning these types of games by doing it all together. That isn’t just passing the ball nicely together or shooting the ball 100 per cent. It’s more being together mentally.
“We came together more (as the game wore on), not even necessarily with the basketball IQ, but with the mental side – making sure everyone was on the same page.”
The Cascades’ start was inauspicious to say the least – the T-Wolves were tough as nails on defence, forcing a series of UFV turnovers and building an early 10-2 edge. Amidst that game-opening run, Cascades head coach Al Tuchscherer took out all five of his starters and went with an all-reserve lineup in an effort to spark his squad.
The hosts, after surrendering 12 turnovers in the opening frame, were able to find some traction in the second. Cabuco led the charge offensively, confidently swishing a trio of triples, and a late Gobeil steal led to a Lauren Clements layup to give UFV a 32-29 advantage at the break.
UNBC’s Laura Garmendia Garcia matched Cabuco’s nine points to lead her squad offensively in the first half.
The Cascades expanded the lead to 53-35 thanks so some sharp transition play while limiting the T-Wolves to just six points in the third quarter, and they were able to keep UNBC at bay from there.
Natalie Rathler stuffed the stat sheet for UFV, posting nine points, a team-best seven rebounds, and five assists.
Garmendia Garcia (11 points) and Sarah Kuklisin (10 points) joined Shakirova as double-digit scorers for UNBC.
Men’s Basketball: Cascades dig deep to outlast T-Wolves
ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – The University of the Fraser Valley men’s basketball team came through in the clutch, clawing their way past the UNBC Timberwolves 79-75 on Friday evening at the UFV Athletic Centre.
In a classic back-and-forth Canada West battle, the Cascades came up with a few more critical plays down the stretch to improve to 3-2 in conference play while dropping the visiting T-Wolves to 2-3.
Dhivaan Bhogal had a monster night for the hosts, racking up game-high totals for points (22) and rebounds (16) to go with six assists. Courtney Anderson (17 points) and Dario Lopez (14 points, nine rebounds) also contributed offensively for the Cascades.
Darren Hunter, with 18 points, set the pace offensively for UNBC, and Fareed Shittu (15 points, 12 boards) notched a double-double.
The two teams wrap up the weekend series on Saturday at UFV (7 p.m., CanadaWest.tv).
“Just super-proud of our guys as far as how they handled adversity,” Cascades head coach Joe Enevoldson enthused. “I’m super-proud of their efforts tonight, win or lose – and obviously it’s great we won the basketball game – but I’m proud of how hard we played, and how we played together.”
The Cascades and T-Wolves were neck-and-neck on this night – there were 18 lead changes, and neither was able to build a double-digit lead at any juncture.
UFV held slim leads after the first and second quarters – 19-18 and 45-42, respectively – and they were able to pry open a nine-point edge midway through the third after an 8-0 surge highlighted by five points from Anderson.
The T-Wolves, though, responded with a 10-2 run of their own, capped by a Dylon Matthews triple at the third-quarter buzzer to give the visitors a 64-63 lead heading to the fourth.
In the fourth, an 11-0 UFV run gave the hosts a 76-68 lead, but they had to weather one more push from the T-Wolves down the stretch to seal the win.
Afterward, Enevoldson noted the impact of Bhogal in the paint.
“It’s going to be nice to have him for the next three-and-a-half years,” he said with a chuckle. “Obviously his stat line was really good tonight. He’s just been getting better and better every night as his conditioning gets back into basketball playing mode.”
Women’s Volleyball: Cascades rally to take down Wesmen in four sets
Winnipeg, MB – Gabrielle Attieh and the UFV Cascades recovered after dropping the first set to come up with a four-set victory over the University of Winnipeg Wesmen on Friday night.
UFV fell in the opening set 25-23, before storming back to take the next three 25-16, 25-22, and 25-18 to seal the match, and improve their record to 3-4 on the year. Meanwhile, Winnipeg sees their record fall to 4-3 this season.
This was the Cascades first visit to the home of the Wesmen since joining the Canada West ranks last season.
“It was a big space that our athletes were trying to get accustomed to,” noted UFV head coach Janelle Rozema “we had to get used to a new gym that we haven’t played in before.”
Winnipeg got off to a solid start in the first, as a pair of service aces from Selva Planincic helped give them a 9-6 lead. UFV would pull back even in the middle portion of the set, and gain a 23-21 lead late, but Haille Bujan found a kill to get the side out for Winnipeg before serving out the final three points to give her team the set victory.
The Cascades came back strong in the second, manufacturing a 22-13 lead before closing it out 25-16 on a Gabrielle Attieh kill.
The teams battled back and forth in the third set, as UFV built an 18-13 lead, before the Wesmen fought back to grab a 21-20 advantage. However, the Cascades took five of the next six points, including three kills from Gabrielle Attieh to finish out the set 25-22.
Both teams traded blows once again in the fourth, but it was again the Cascades that found themselves with the lead, up 21-15, and they made no mistake to see out the final set 25-18.
Gabrielle Attieh set the pace for the Cascades with 22 kills in the match while Lauren Attieh, who earned a U SPORTS player of the week nod following the Cascades last game action, notched 14. Mo Likness added a game-high seven blocks for UFV in the effort.
“This shows that we aren’t a one player team,” Rozema noted “It’s really hard to play your best all the time, so when different players can step up at different times to have their moment, it makes a big impact.”
Planincic led the Wesmen with six kills, four aces, and five blocks, while Bujan had six kills of her own, and Taylor Kleysen added five kills and four blocks on the night.
The two teams face off once again on Saturday to close out the weekend set. Game time is set for 4:45 p.m. (PT) and can be watched live on Canada West TV.
Men’s Volleyball: Cascades fall in three sets to Wesmen
Winnipeg, MB – The UFV Cascades dropped a three-set decision to the University of Winnipeg Wesmen on Friday night. The Wesmen prevailed with set scores of 25-21, 25-22, and 25-17 to improve their record to 3-4 on the season, while the Cascades drop to 2-5.
The Cascades got off to a good start, edging out a 12-10 lead, However, Winnipeg’s Eric Dornez managed to pick up a block and three consecutive kills to help his team gain a 16-12 advantage, and despite pushback from UFV the Wesmen held on to a 25-21 first set win.
Winnipeg picked up where they left off in the second, building a 20-15 lead. Kills from Tyson Ardell and Nimo Benne pulled them within three once again, but the teams traded points from there as Winnipeg closed out the set 25-22.
The Wesmen came out flying in the third, taking leads of 9-3 and 17-8 on their way to finishing off the match 25-17.
Benne led the Cascades with a game-high 10 kills and six blocks, while Ardell added six kills of his own. Jonas Van Huizen notched a pair of aces and a team-high seven digs in the game.
Dornez paced the Winnipeg offence, picking up nine kills, while Liam Kristjanson added eight kills, eight digs, and three blocks.
“Tonight the Wesmen were the better team,” noted Cascades head coach Nathan Bennett after the match. “We have good moments, and we have good players, we just need to work on our consistency.”
The Cascades get another crack at the Wesmen in the rematch on Saturday. Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m. (PT) and the match is also available to stream live on Canada West TV.
