Clan lose a close game, bounce back at home
By Bryan Scott
The Simon Fraser women’s basketball team was in Bellingham, Washington to battle the first place Western Washington Vikings. The resulting game was a barnburner all the way through.
The Clan led most of the first half. Erin Chambers chipped in six points, while Nayo Raincock-Ekunwe dropped four points, and had eight rebounds in the half. SFU was up 29–23 heading into the second half of the game.
The Clan rode their six-point lead until two minutes in. With the score 34–28 in favour of
SFU, the Vikings started to deploy their attack. It took them five minutes and a 11–0 run to take the lead 39–24 with 13 minutes left in the game. The teams traded the lead for the rest of the game until the Vikings ended up on top. They took the conference battle 59–57.
Raincock-Ekunwe recorded her ninth double-double of the season. She had 14 points and an enormous 21 rebounds against the Vikings.
Next, the Clan hosted another conference rival, the Montana State Billings Yellowjackets. The winner of the game took second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference.
The Clan took the early lead only to lose it a few minutes later. The game stayed within a few baskets for most of the game until just under five minutes left, with the score tied 30–
30. The Clan finished the half on a 14–2 run, enjoying a twelvepoint lead into the locker room. SFU didn’t want to lose another first-half lead, so they scored early and often to start the second. They punished the Yellowjackets in every category, pushing their lead to 33 near the end of the game.
They didn’t lose much ground in the end, winning the game 89–58. Two members of the Clan earned double-doubles in the game. Kristina Collins recorded 16 points and 10 assists, and the consistent Raincock-Ekunwe 11 points and 10 rebounds. Collins expressed her happiness with the team’s overall play, “We came out and showed we can be a confident team that plays together.” The Clan took over second place in the GNAC, behind the Vikings.
