The University of the Fraser Valley women's basketball team continued to roll, defeating the Victoria Vikes 71-57 on Saturday evening at the UFV Athletic Centre.Â
It was the Cascades' sixth straight victory, boosting their record to 14-2 in Canada West play, and they need just one win over their final two games of the regular season – Feb. 23-24 at UNBC – to clinch the West Division title.Â
Deanna Tuchscherer had another big night for the Cascades – the sophomore standout scored nine of her 19 points in the fourth quarter, and she moved up to third on the Canada West scoring list, averaging 17.8 points per game.
Maddy Gobeil also excelled for the hosts, stuffing the stat sheet with 17 points and seven assists, and
Natalie Rathler hit double digits with 12 points to go with five boards and two steals.
The Vikes mounted a fourth-quarter push led by CW scoring leader Ashlyn Day, who had eight of her 18 points in the final frame, and Aleah Ashlee, who scored a team-high 19.Â
But the Cascades, with Tuchscherer doing much of the scoring down the stretch, were able to close out their third straight win over UVic.
"I think the big lesson for us tonight is, you can't let up," UFV head coach
Al Tuchscherer said. "Good teams that have players like Ashlyn Day are always going to be dangerous, right? We weathered that storm, and it took us a little bit, but we were able to right the ship and get things going in the right direction again and finish strong. That's a real important lesson for us moving forward.
"I like the progress we're making. I like that we're getting better every weekend, and hopefully this upcoming week against UNBC we're playing some good basketball as well."
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The Cascades took control of the game five minutes in, putting together a 13-0 run bridging the first and second quarters with Gobeil notching six points during that surge to go up 24-10. The Vikes responded with an 11-2 run of their own, which Ashlee ignited with a triple and capped with a fast-break layup. But after a timeout, UFV settled down and rebuilt the lead to 34-21 at the half.
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The Cascades led by as many as 17 in the third quarter, but the Vikes scored 10 straight points – all coming off the fingertips of Ashlee or Day – to cut the deficit to 46-41 early in the fourth.
The hosts steadied themselves and methodically extended the lead back to double figures –
Deanna Tuchscherer's triple with 1:34 remaining was essentially the dagger, putting UFV up 64-51, and they cruised from there.
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"Ashlyn Day is a heck of a player," Coach Tuchscherer said, reflecting on the Vikes' comeback attempt. "Some of the shots she made, I don't think we could have defended it any better. She's just a shot-maker, and kudos to her. It was pretty impressive to watch.
"When Deanna's in an aggressive, attacking mindset, she's really effective for us. She goes away from that a little bit at times – and we sat her a bit because of foul issues, and that took her out of her rhythm. But she came up big at the end."
The Cascades celebrated a pair of graduating student-athletes,
Victoria Jacobse (eight points, seven rebounds, three assists on the night) and
Alexis Worrell (five points, three rebounds), in a post-game Senior Night ceremony. Both players have emerged as pillars of the program over their six years on campus, Coach Tuchscherer noted.Â
"I'm really proud of the players and leaders they've developed into over the years," he said. "Both of them had a long road to get here, and they had to work hard to establish their roles. But we're at the point now where we wouldn't have the success we've had if they weren't part of our team."
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