Wolves women’s basketball team wins home opener

The Wolves women’s basketball team won its home opener, defeating the Georgian Grizzlies 47-42 on Nov. 1 at the Jack Doyle Athletics and Recreation Centre.

Fans cheered as the undefeated Wolves faced the Grizzlies in their third game of the season.

Wolves guard Cianah Miller came in strong with a jump shot, earning the team’s first two points of the game.

The Grizzlies, who travelled from Barrie, Ont., struggled with the Wolves’ strong defence. Grizzlies players Daija Thompson and Ami May scored their team six points by the end of the first quarter, but they still fell behind.

The Wolves led 15-6 at the end of the first quarter.

The Grizzlies slowly began to pick things up in the second quarter, but their efforts were no match for the Wolves.

The Wolves ended the second quarter ahead 26-20 after Miller made another jump shot.

Miller wasn’t worried about the Grizzlies catching up.

“We’ve been practising a lot this week on how to handle Georgia because they’re one of the top teams in our league,” said Miller at halftime.

Miller said she’s been putting in more hours off the court to prepare for this season.

“We all practise during the summer. As soon as August hits, we come back to Ottawa and make sure we get ready for the season,” said Miller.

The team’s hard work was tested in the third quarter of the game. The Grizzlies were catching up, with one player scoring a jump shot seconds into the third quarter.

The crowd watched closely as the teams remained neck-and-neck for the rest of the quarter.

Basketball fan Ashley Davis was cheering for the home team. When asked who she thought would win the game, Davis remained confident the Wolves would win.

“I think the Wolves will take the lead again. The girls just had two wins back-to-back,” said Davis during the third quarter.

The Wolves led 34-29 at the end of the third quarter.

In the final quarter, Wolves forward Libby Hirst scored the team’s final point after making a free throw in the final six seconds of the game.

The Wolves secured a 47-42 win against the Georgian Grizzlies.

This was their third win of the season following wins against the Centennial Colts and the George Brown Huskies in late October.

Fans cheered as both teams lined up to shake hands after the game.

Wolves coach Jaime McLean was excited about his team’s win and their improvement since last season.

“We got bronze two years ago, we got silver last year. This year is about continuing that growth so that when we get back to where we want to be, we are ready for it,” said McLean after the game.

When asked about a player who stood out to him during the game, McLean named Miller, noting her excellent defence.

“Cianah really stepped up today. She came game-ready and focused. She had great intensity on defence. They gave her a really tough matchup today, but she really took care of it,” said McLean.

Miller was proud of how the team played.

“I think what we did well was sticking together and we made sure we got the win at the end,” said Miller.

The Wolves are scheduled to play against the St. Lawrence Surge on Nov. 8 at the Jack Doyle Athletics and Recreation Centre.