Capers go on fourth quarter run to defeat X-Women
Antigonish, N.S. - The visiting Cape Breton University Capers (6-4) scored a 69-48 victory in the first of back-to-back games versus the StFX X-Women (2-7) in AUS basketball action Thursday night at the Oland Centre.
The match-up, which was scheduled for Wednesday, was postponed due to the effects of a winter storm that swept across northeastern Nova Scotia.
Keyed by a 15-0 run, the Capers cruised to the convincing win by outscoring the X-Women 22-4 in the fourth quarter.
In the decisive final ten minutes, Colleen Keane (Ajax, ON) and Valentina Primossi (Trieste, ITA) sparked the Caper burst with consecutive old-fashioned three-point plays - the basket and a free throw.
The X-Women jumped to a 12-4 advantage to start the game, keyed by a pair of hoops from AUS leading scorer Lindsay Lessard (Waterloo, ON).
Late in the first quarter, Madison Munro (Truro, NS) gave the Capers their first lead on a three-point shot to make it 15-14.
In a back-and-forth second quarter, the teams exchanged the lead on many occasions.
In the closing minutes of the opening half, the Capers made a 8-2 run to take a 29-24 edge at the break.
The final CBU basket before the intermission came off a slick passing play, with the ball not touching the floor in six exchanges. Keane drew a foul down low and made the left-handed lay-up, but she missed the free throw.
Spearheaded by 11 points from Alison Keough (Marion Bridge, NS), the Capers led by as many as 10 in the third quarter.
Late in the period, the X-Women trimmed the disadvantage to one. Freshmen Chelsea Provo (East Preston, NS) and Courtney Bulman (Moncton, NB) helped lead the rally, with Bulman completing a three-point play and Provo hitting a pair of baskets.
In the fourth quarter, the X-Women would get no closer, with the Capers making their decisive push to secure the road win.
Keough, the Subway player of the game, scored 16 points, while adding 13 rebounds, three assists and one steal.
Primossi also hit double digits in scoring for the Capers with 12, while Keane contributed nine points, six assists, five rebounds and two steals.
For the X-Women, Lessard hooped a team-high 16 points to earn player of the game for her team. She added five rebounds, four assists and one blocked shot.
Kolbi Roper (North Vancouver, BC) chipped in a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds, along with three steals, two assists and two blocked shots.
The teams will return to the court Saturday, Jan. 16, at Sullivan Fieldhouse in Sydney. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m.
StFX Sports Information
Photo credit Dalton King