The Varsity Blues women’s basketball team bounced back on Saturday, Oct. 31, to take their home opener, 74-57, over the visiting Ryerson Rams at University of Toronto’s Athletic Centre Sports Gym.

Nicki Schutz led the way with a game-high 34 points and team-high nine rebounds in 33 minutes. She shot 58% (14-24) from the floor and was 5-for-5 at the free-throw line.

In contrast to last night’s contest at Ryerson, the Rams got the early jump in the first half, outscoring the Blues 39-35 through two quarters of action. However, it was Toronto who set the tone for the second half, taking care of the ball and the boards, out-rebounding their opponents 47-38 on the night.

The see-saw battle continued into the opening minutes of the third, when with the game knotted at 45, Schutz (Toronto) netted seven points in the final 3:30 minutes to help lead her team to a 13-1 run to close out the quarter.

As Ryerson again tried to pressure the Blues guards, who tonight did a much better job of breaking the full-court press and moved the ball up the floor quickly for easy fast-break points.

It wasn’t until the 6:26 mark of the final frame that Ryerson finally got their offence back on track as Lacey O’Sullivan (Port Colbourne, Ont.) hit one of her 10 free-throws to break the Blues run, but by then Toronto had established a 16-point lead and never looked back.

The Blues outscored the Rams 39-18 over the final two quarters. On the night, Toronto was 49% from the floor and 84% from the charity strip; where as the visiting Rams hit only 28% of their shots and shot 71% from the free-throw line.

Blues fourth-year guard Erin McNeely (Kingston, Ont.) contributed nine points on 3-of-4 shooting and five assists. Markham native Amanda Lum also added eight points, while first-year forward Robyn Fashler (Vancouver, B.C.) tallied four points and hauled in seven boards.

Angela Tilk (Welland, Ont.) had her second double-double in as many nights for the Rams. She had a game-high 12 rebounds and added 10 points. O’Sullivan was the high shooter for Ryerson with 18 points, while Kelsey Wright (Brampton, Ont.) netted 11.

The Varsity Blues are back in action next weekend as they host the Laurier Golden Hawks and Waterloo Warriors, November 6th and 7th, at the Athletic Centre.

For more information, scores and highlights on your favourite Toronto teams, please visit the home of the Varsity Blues at http://www.varsityblues.ca.