Rustlers WBB crowned champions

The Rustlers women's basketball team were crowned the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) Women's Basketball Champions this past weekend at the tournament hosted by Medicine Hat College.

The Rustlers opened the tournament with their quarterfinal game on Thursday against the Lethbridge College Kodiaks. The Kodiaks came out of the gates flying and with a strong first quarter, and they led the Rustlers 24-18 by the end of it. In the second quarter, not many points were scored by either team, and at the half the Rustlers were down by 5, 35-30.

In the third quarter, the Rustlers cut the Kodiak's lead to 1-point heading into the final 10 minutes of play. A strong 22-13 point fourth quarter for the Rustlers earned them a 72-64 victory over the Kodiaks. The fourth quarter push was led by third year guard, Jaden Cook with 10 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist.

Fifth-year forward, Brianne Hergott was named player of the game for the Rustlers with 12 points, a team-high 21 rebounds, 1 assist, 2 steals, and 1 block. Jaden Cook led the Rustlers with 18 points, 6, rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals in the game. Third-year forward, Bilge Topaloglu had 15 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 1 block for the Rustlers, and fourth-year guard, Tori Dugan had 14 points, and 7 assists.

Thursday's quarterfinal win earned the Rustlers a spot in the semifinal game on Friday evening against the defending ACAC and CCAA National Champions, the Olds College Broncos. The game had a slow start, with the first points not scored until 2:50 after tip-off by the Rustlers. The Rustlers would hold the Broncos scoreless until the quarter was more than half over. The quarter would end with the Broncos up 11-9 over the Rustlers thanks to a late basket in the remaining seconds.

The second quarter had a bit more action, and a small push from the Rustlers to give them the lead at the half, 26-23. In the third quarter, the game was very back and forth, with both teams taking leads at different points in the quarter, but never a lead of more than 5. The Rustlers would head to the line to add two more points, earning them a 7-point lead to end the quarter 42-35.

To start the fourth quarter, the Rustlers would go up big taking a 10-point lead over the Broncos, 47-37. The Broncos would work to cut the lead to 4 with just over 3 minutes remaining. In the final minute of play the Rustlers would hit a huge 3 to open up an 8-point lead and they would run out the remaining seconds on the clock to capture their 58-50 upset win and book their ticket to Saturday's Gold Medal Game.

Player of the game for the Rustlers was fourth-year guard, Tori Dugan with 16 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, and 3 steals. Third-year guard, Jaden Cook added 12 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal and third-year forward, Bilge Topaloglu had 9 points, a team-high 15 rebounds, 1 steal and 2 blocks. Fifth-year forward, Brianne Hergott had another strong showing putting up 9 points, 10 rebounds, and 1 assist.

The Rustlers had booked their ticket to the Gold Medal Championship game on Saturday where they would go head-to-head with their North Division rivals, the Keyano College Huskies who defeated the St. Mary's University Lightning to earn their spot in the final.

The Rustlers came out flying in the Championship final and would take a very early lead. The Rustlers defense held the Huskies scoreless in the first 3 minutes of the game, where the Rustlers offense was able to flourish. At the end of the first quarter the Rustlers were up 22-4, led by fifth-year forward, Brianne Hergott with 8 points, third-year guard, Jaden Cook with 5 points, and third-year forward, Bilge Topaloglu with 4 points.

The second quarter saw a stronger and cleaner performance from the Huskies as they managed to outscore the Rustlers in the quarter, but the Rustler still held a hefty lead at the half, 38-25.

The third quarter was a tight one for scoring, but the Rustlers managed to further extend their lead to 15. The fourth quarter was another close and low-scoring quarter, and the early Rustler lead would be the difference in the game. The Rustlers would run the remaining seconds out on the clock as they began to celebrate their 64-50 Gold Medal win, the first for their program.

Player of the game for the Rustlers was fifth-year forward, Brianne Hergott who led the team in points with 21, and rebounds with 12. She also had 4 assists and 1 block in the game. Third-year guard, Jaden Cook added 13 points, 4 rebounds and 1 steal for the Rustlers. Cook and Hergott were named Tournament All-Stars.

Fourth-year guard, Tori Dugan was named Tournament Most Valuable Player for her impressive performance all weekend long and her 11 points, 1 rebound, and 6 assists in the Gold Medal Final.

This is the first ever ACAC Title for the women's basketball program at Lakeland College. They are now headed for the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) Nationals hosted by Vancouver Island University in two-week's time (March 19-21) where they will compete for a National Medal.