The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's basketball team fell 61-57 to the Lakehead Thunderwolves on Friday (Dec. 1) at the Goldring Centre for High-Performance Sport.

The Blues started strong controlling the first and second quarters, but a near-scoreless third quarter allowed the Thunderwolves to capitalize. The Blues battled back in the fourth outscoring the Thunderwolves (23-13), but ultimately couldn't make up the difference. While evenly matched, the Blues dominated on the boards pulling down an additional 18 rebounds compared to the visitors (50-32).

Leading the Blues was fifth-year standout Ellen Ougrinov. The Mississauga, Ont. native scored a team-high 20 points. On the boards, third-year forward Sabrina Nero tallied a game-high 13 rebounds, while fellow third-year Gabby Reed recorded 12. In the process, Nero picked up her third double-double of the season putting up 13 points, in addition to her effort off the glass.

Third-year guard Ally Burke made the difference for Thunderwolves, recording a game-high 22 points in the win.

The Blues are back in action tomorrow (Dec. 2) as they play the second game of their back-to-back at the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m., with tickets available at varsityblues.ca/tickets. The game is also streamed live on oua.tv.