Joanna Medri drained a three with 29 seconds remaining as the No. 6 Varsity Blues women’s basketball team came from behind to upset the No. 3 Western Mustangs, 65-57, in the CIS Eastern Regional final on Saturday afternoon in Fredericton.

CIS championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wbkb

With the win, the Blues advance to the CIS Final 8, March 18-20, hosted by the University of Windsor. Toronto's last appearance in the national championship was 2007-08 in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
 
Veteran forward Nicki Schutz of Toronto led all players with 12 boards and tallied 17 points, while OUA East rookie of the year Jill Stratton (Etobicoke, Ont.) also knocked down 17, to go along with six rebounds and five assists. Fifth-year guard Erin McNeely of Kingston, Ont., had 10 points in the fourth quarter en route to a 14-point performance.

After a slow start, which saw only four points scored in the first five minutes, the Mustangs pulled away and a late three by Beckie Williams (London, Ont.) would give Western a 13-6 advantage after the first quarter.

Second-year forward Alicia Van Kampen of Orangeville, Ont., and Stratton combined for 10 points early in the second to bring the game within three (19-16). Western’s rookie guard Laura Dally (Sarnia, Ont.) tallied six points late in the second to put the Mustangs up 27-21 at halftime.

The Blues opened the second half with a 10-4 run to even the score, 31-31, at the midway point of the third. Both teams exchanged baskets the rest of the way and a late jumper by Stratton had Toronto within two (42-40) heading into the final frame.

A 6-0 start to the fourth would give Toronto their first lead since the opening minutes of the game. The Blues went on to gain a seven-point lead with under five minutes remaining. To their credit, Western battled back to bring the game to within two with 1:11 remaining. The Blues persevered and Medri’s late three would seal the deal and punch Toronto’s ticket to the Final 8.

Katelyn Leddy led Western with 16 points and nine rebounds, while Dally had 11 points in the loss.