Women's Basketball Weekend Recap | January 28, 2018
The Lakeland Rustlers swept their weekend series against the Grande Prairie Wolves on the weekend, defeating the Wolves 74-53 Friday and 81-55 Saturday in Lloydminster. The two wins move the Rustlers to 12-4 on the season.
Friday night, the Rustlers took the lead early in the first quarter, finding ways to get the ball inside to 5th-year forward Shania Magnusson. The Rustlers would also move the ball on the perimeter and push it in transition, finding different people to score. The Wolves started out shooting hot from the outside but cooled off as the quarter went on. At the end of the first quarter, the Rustlers led 20-12. Both teams came out slow to start the second quarter before they found their scoring touch. The Rustlers did a good job drawing fouls on the Wolves, forcing them to turn to their bench.
At the half, the Rustlers led 38-27. The third quarter was well fought by teams, as they looked to push the ball in transition and finding scoring opportunities inside. The Rustlers led 55-42 after three quarters. In the fourth quarter, the Rustler got more strong play inside from Magnusson and good plays by second year guard Angela Baran and first year guard Ashlee Norman, helping the Rustlers build a lead that the Wolves could not overcome. The Rustlers hung on and came away with the 74-53 win.
The Rustlers were led by Magnusson with 17 points, while 3rd-year guard Taiya Paylor had 11. Player of the Game for the Rustlers was #21, Ashlee Norman who added 10 points.
Saturday afternoon, the teams started off hot from the outside, each knocking down a 3 to start the game before the Wolves would prove to be the aggressor and take a 10-7 lead. The Rustlers would push the ball and got 6 points in the quarter from Baran, but also turned it over, allowing the Wolves to take a 23-20 lead after the first quarter. In the second quarter, both teams started aggressive, drawing fouls on each other. The two teams would go back and forth for much of the quarter, with the Wolves leading 39-35 at the half.
In the third quarter, the Rustlers would come out strong, getting stops and finding ways to score, tying the game at 39. The Rustlers would build a 14 point lead forcing the Wolves into tough shots. The Wolves fought back to cut the lead to 10, but that was the closest they would get, as the Rustlers led 63-51 after three quarters. The fourth quarter was all Rustlers as they held the Wolves to 4 points and led by as many as 26 as they came out with an 81-55 win. Player of the Game for the Rustlers was #11, Hailey Sommers, who led the team with 15 points.
Following the game, Magnusson shared what the team's mindset was heading into the games. "We just came out and tried to hustle on every play and just played fun. I think that energy of defence and offense and playing with all we got really brought the team together" Magnusson said.
Talking about Friday night's player of the game, "I was so proud of Ash [Ashlee Norman]" Magnusson said. "We always joke around that she is so shy to shoot, but she has a great shot, and she has the green light to shoot if she has it. She will shoot the lights out in practice, so it was good to see her translate that into a game".
Norman was quick to deflect the praise to her teammates. "I was just happy we got the win," Norman said, "we needed that. I am happy [about how I played] but more happy that we got the win."
The Rustlers return to the court next weekend, February 2nd & 3rd against the NAIT Ooks. The Rustlers will travel to Edmonton on Friday and return home Saturday as they partake in RBC's Make Some Noise for Mental Health. Saturday's game is set to get underway at 6:00 pm.