Box Score CIS all-Canadian Nicki Schutz tallied a career-high 35 points to lead the Varsity Blues to an 82-79 victory over the Laval Rouge et Or in the second consolation semifinal at the 2011 CIS women’s basketball Final 8 championship on Saturday afternoon in Windsor, Ont.
With the win, the Blues advance to their fourth consolation final in program history. They tip off versus the No. 7 Laurier Golden Hawks, who upset the No. 3 Carleton Ravens 56-52, in a repeat of the OUA bronze medal game tomorrow at 11 a.m.
The Blues are 3-0 in consolation final appearances, finishing fifth in 1982, 1987 and 1993.
Schutz drained the second of two free throws and her 12th of the game with 4:23 remaining to break her previous career-high - 34 vs. Waterloo on Nov. 7, 2009. The Toronto native added 13 rebounds, two blocks and two steals to her performance on the day.
“The biggest difference today was that we came out fired up,” said Schutz after being named the player of the game. “Michèle [Bélanger] told us we had to win the rebounding battle and win the loose balls and we did that today. It was a close game and Jo [Medri] came up with a great board at the end for us.”
Veteran guard Erin McNeely of Kingston, Ont., had 17 points and six boards, while Brampton, Ont., native Sherri Pierce had nine points and OUA East rookie of the year Jill Stratton had eight in the win.
Down nine points heading into the fourth, Laval’s CIS all-Canadian Marie Michelle Genois rallied her squad with 11 points in the first five minutes to bring the game within two (72-70). A Marie-Pascale Nadeau lay up with 1:39 remaining put the Rouge et Or up 77-76.
Blues forward Megan Stoncius (Mississauga, Ont.) was fouled and sent to the free throw line with 18 seconds remaining. Stoncius drained the first and after missing the second, teammate Joanna Medri (Toronto) came up with a huge board to regain possession and secure the win.
The first quarter was a back-and-forth affair. Sophomore forward Alicia Van Kampen kicked things off for the Blues with back-to-back jumpers before Schutz came alive with 10 points of her own. U of T held a 20-16 lead after the first 10 minutes of action.
Blues rookie trio of Julie Longauer, Liane Bailey and Amanda Lauzon came off the bench and made an impact at the beginning of the second. Laval battled back, led by five consecutive points from Genois, to bring the game within one (31-30) with 4:16 remaining in the first half. A see-saw battle ensued with U of T maintaining a four-point advantage (39-35) at halftime.
Laval opened the third with a 7-2 run to take the lead, however McNeely and Schutz would register Toronto’s first two three-pointers of the game to regain a comfortable advantage. Schutz totalled 16 points in the third as U of T had a 63-54 lead heading into the final frame.
Game Notes: Toronto improves to a perfect 2-0 versus Laval on the national stage. The Blues defeated the Rouge et Or 89-69 in the quarter-final round at the 1996 tournament. U of T is also 2-0 versus Laval this season, previously defeating the Rouge et Or, 65-60, at the University of Calgary’s Holiday Hoops tournament.
