The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women’s basketball team fell 64-58 to the Carleton Ravens on Saturday, January 16 at the Athletic Centre Sports Gym.

The Blues are now 6-8 and sit in sixth place, while the Ravens are 9-4 and tied with the Queen’s Gaels for first place in the OUA East.

Toronto came out strong and a solid team effort would lead to a 17-13 advantage after the first quarter.

The Blues continued their stellar play into the second frame and built a seven-point lead midway through, however, the first-place Ravens found their scoring touch and went on a 14-5 run. Carleton was up 31-29 at the half.

The Ravens extended their lead to eight in the early minutes of the third quarter, however, a 12-2 Varsity Blues run led by five points and five boards from first-year forward Alicia Van Kampen (Orangeville, Ont.) would even the score at 46-46 heading into the final frame.

That would be all the Blues could muster as Ravens guard Alyson Bush (Ottawa) went 7-for-8 from the free throw line in the last 20 seconds to put the game out of reach.

Bush and fifth-year forward Ines Jelic (London, Ont.) led the Ravens with 14 points apiece, while fourth-year guard Courtney Smith (Ottawa) had 13. Ashleigh Cleary (Kemptville, Ont.) tallied eight points and a team-high 11 boards in the win.

Nicki Schutz (Toronto) recorded her second double-double in as many nights with 10 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. First-year guard Katelyn McConnell (Whitby, Ont.) played a solid game, tallying12 points, while both Joanna Medri (Toronto) and Varsity Blues player of the game Erin McNeely (Kingston, Ont.) had 10 points in the loss.

The Varsity Blues return to action next Friday, January 22 when they travel to Sudbury, Ont. to take on the Laurentian Voyageurs. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m.

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