(London, Ontario) – On Friday afternoon, the No. 4 CCAA ranked Fanshawe Women's Basketball team (19-1, 2nd in West) defeated the Durham Lords (14-4, 3rd in East) in a hard-fought 79-70 quarterfinal victory. The provincial championship is being hosted by St. Clair College in Windsor.
Durham jumped out to a 4-0 lead to start the game but the Falcons found their offensive stride mid-way through the quarter. An offensive rebound and layup from Ashleigh LaBlance (Wallaceburg, ON) sparked a 15-0 run by Fanshawe. OCAA Player of the Year Chuot Angou (London, ON) had 10 first quarter points for the red and white, as they concluded the opening frame up 22-10.
The Birds went cold in the second quarter and were unable to pull away from the Lords. Back-to-back jump shots from fifth-year OCAA First Team All-Star Mikhaila Wright (London, ON) kept Fanshawe on top going into the locker room at half-time by a score of 35-23.
Senior forward Natalie Warren (London, ON), Wright and Angou combined for 19 third quarter points as the Falcons shot an impressive 50% from the field in the frame. Durham would stick with Fanshawe with some hot shooting of their own from behind the arc. Going into the final quarter, Fanshawe continued to lead, 58-45.
The Falcons were able to stretch their advantage to 21 in the fourth frame with a pair of layups from Warren. Durham's Kendra Oliver showed why she was named the OCAA East Division Player of the Year, recording 19 points in the frame to keep the Lords within reach. Fanshawe would hold on to their lead with buckets from Jessica Cameron (Calgary, AB) and Taylor Hill (Ohsweken, ON) and went on to win 79-70.
Warren was named the player of the game with 13 points. Angou recorded 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while Wright added 13 points. The Falcons had 21 bench points to Durham's three and 12 players on the Fanshawe roster recorded at least a point.
The Falcons now advance to the OCAA semi-final on Saturday, where they will face a talented Algonquin Thunder squad (17-1, 1st in East) at 3:30pm. The game can be viewed live on fanshawefalcons.ca/watchlive.