Women's Basketball 2010-11
here COURT HOOPS NAIL-BITERS
In their final home games of the 2010-2011 season, your CMU Blazers hosted the top-ranked College Wesmen from the University of Winnipeg and those in attendance were treated to college basketball excitement at its finest! Currently in fourth-place in league standing, your CMU women jumped out to an early lead, only to see it disappear before half-time. Trailing by twelve points, first-year guard Carrera Lamoureux and fourth-year forward Jaime Semchuk led the Blazers back to within 3 points of the Wesmen as the seconds ticked down. Semchuk ended with 9 points, 12 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocks. Lamoureux and guard Hannah Prowse led the Blazers with 12 points each. The final score was 73-68. Former Blazer Anneke Hildebrand led all College Wesmen scores with 14 points.
Though heart-breaking, the men’s game was equally as exciting. Gaining a first-half lead by as many as 20 points, the MCAC leading Wesmen stormed back on the home team, eventually tying the score with 4.8 seconds remaining when Anwar Ahmed was fouled while hitting a three-point shot. The guard calmly sunk his free throw, sealing the win for Winnipeg. Without the services of injured guard Roger Beals, Spencer Harrison and Nik Kikundule led the way for CMU scoring 20 and 13 points respectively. Date Feb 18, 2011
EXCITING COMMUNITY CHALLENGE ENDS IN A TIE
It was a fitting end to the two-week Community Challenge series between CMU and Providence College on Friday night when the two historic competitors took to the basketball court with equal records of games one. The fun got underway on Wednesday, February 2 when the Blazers took wins in both home volleyball matches, only to see Providence even the series 2-2 when the teams played at Providence two days later. The basketball portion of the challenge began last Wednesday night in Winnipeg where a sell-out crowd saw CMU defeat the Freemen 73-54 in women’s basketball and later see Providence press-out their first MCAC win of the season 86-74 in impressive fashion over the Blazers. First-year guard Carrera Lamoureux was the offensive leader in the women’s game, amassing 19 points, while fellow freshman Roger Beals paced CMU with 29 points in a losing effort for the men. So with the series level at three games each, the table was set for a banquet of entertainment on Friday night in Otterburne.
When the women took the court it was meant more than just the Challenge, it was a game for third place in the standings. With the win on Wednesday night, CMU leaped past Providence into third place. Held to just 10 points in their previous match, Sonia Radi who has led the MCAC in scoring since week one, broke out for 22 points on Friday night including 14 in the first half to help the Freemen out to a 34-23 led at the break. Mallory Shack attempted to bring the Blazers back in the final quarter, but despite outscoring the home team 23-16, Providence held on to win 67-62. The victory pushed the Freemen back into third-place and gave the them a 4-3 lead in the Community Challenge.The CMU men came prepared for full-court pressure on Friday night and rebounded from their home loss with a 78-65 road win. It was a complete team effort by the Blazers and a critical time to get back on winning terms. Beals was once again the top man, dropping 19 points while Wyatt Anders and Spencer Harrison chipped in with 14 a-piece. The win was made more of an impact that simply evening the Community Challenge 4-4. The Blazers mathematically eliminated Providence from the MCAC Final-four championship that the Freemen are due to host in mid-March and solidified their own claim to third-place in the highly-competitive MCAC Men’s Basketball standings.
Date Feb 4, 2011
TOUGH COMPETITION FOR CMU
The Ladyjacks jumped out to a 25-9 first quarter lead over CMU in women’s non-conference basketball on Friday night, and cruised to a 101-50 win. Despite the lopsided scoreline, there were some very bright moments for the Blazers. Facing a half-time deficit of 30 points, CMU got rolling in the second half, posting two 6-0 runs on their Bottineau opponents and only losing the quarter 21-18. “Playing a US Junior College opponent is a difficult task for any Canadian College basketball program” commented CMU Director of Athletics Russell Willms, “There were moments tonight where they (Bottineau) showed their dominance, but there were also moments, and quite a few, where we really showed that we could play with them.” First-year guard Carrera Lamoureux led the way for CMU in the third quarter, knocking down three 3-pointers and ending with a team-high 16 points. Haley Mindt led all scorers with 29 for Bottineau.Date January 17, 2011
CMU Steps Up With Series Sweep of ACC
In the final home action of 2010, the CMU women's and men's basketball teams swept their weekend series with Assiniboine Community College of Brandon on Saturday afternoon. The Blazer women moved to 4-5 on the season with wins of 80-26 and 77-40. It was the veteran players that stepped forward for CMU in the series opener, Mallory Shack dropped 17 points including three 3-pointers while Nina Schroeder deposited 16 points in support. "It was a great win for us", stated head coach Christie Anne McCullough, "we were able to run the floor, cut down on our turnovers and balanced scoring was an added bonus." Kayla Bauche was the offensive leader for the Cougars with 10 points.
Though they were held to a mere six first-quarter points in the second game of the weekend series, the Blazers again counted on balanced scoring to sweep through ACC. The Blazers dropped 23 in the second quarter and 25 in the fourth to open a 40-point margin by the final buzzer. First-year post Holly Goossen led CMU with 15 points while third-year guard Meghan Kjartanson added 9 in the win.
Date December 6, 2010
HOME COURT PROVIDES NO ADVANTAGE IN WEEKEND SERIES
MCAC women's basketball followers waited seven months for the rematch of the 2010 women's final between the CMU Blazers and the Red River Rebels. Last March, CMU took top honors on home court and claimed the title of the top women's college basketball team in Manitoba.On Friday night, the top two teams in the province tipped-off again at CMU and it was the 2010 runners up that drew first blood in the new season winning by a seven-point margin, 55-48. First-year Rebels head coach Heather Hildebrandt got the most out of her athletic guard Tia Ruddock in the opening quarter She scored 10 or her game-high 22 points in the opening frame, propelling Red River ahead.
CMU's dynamic backcourt duo of Mallory Shack (third-year) and Carrera Lamoureux (first-year) led CMU back into the game in the second quarter. Both guards finished with a team-high 13 points and brought the Blazers within ten at the end of the half, 34-25.
Ruddock continued to torment the Blazers in the second half, displaying her ability to score off the dribble and to get herself to the free-throw line. Samantha Lewis added 9 points for the Rebels, but ran into foul trouble later in the quarter. Despite her absence for much of the final quarter, the shots didn't fall for CMU. "We got our chances to get back in the game, but we didn't capitalize," quipped CMU head coach Christie Anne McCullough.
Part two of the home-and-home series between the provincial rivals took place on Saturday afternoon at Red River's Notre Dame Campus, and despite the comforts of home court, it was CMU that righted their wrongs and parted with victory.
A very different Blazer team showed up on Saturday - a team that showed tenacious defending and confident shooting. Lamoureux and Shack were again the offensive catalysts for CMU, topping all scorers with 18 points. After a 22-point outpouring on Friday, Red River's Ruddock was held to just 11 points on Saturday afternoon and her offensive absence helped CMU to a slim 30-29 halftime lead.
Secondary scoring improved for the Rebels in game two, with Lewis dropping 9 points and first-year forward Shelby Stranger adding 8, but not enough to stop CMU from pulling away. "We managed to stop Tia (Ruddock) from taking over the game and we had great performances by our team, particularly Mallory (Shack) and Carrera (Lamoureux) who led us on both sides of the court." With the 62-46 win, CMU climbs back to 2-3 and prepares for a non-conference game on Friday night with powerful Winnipeg women's team Swoosh. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 pm.
Womens Basketball Photos Nov 12
Date November 17, 2010
FROM COURT TO COACH FOR McCULLOUGH
After receiving many awards and recognitions for her play at CMU in her graduating year, CMU Athletics is pleased to announce that the 2010 MCAC Women’s Basketball Most Valuable Player will become the new head coach of the CMU women’s basketball team for 2010-11. “Christie Anne has been an amazing player and ambassador for CMU during her time here as an athlete and as a student,” explained CMU Director of Athletics, Russell Willms. “When you watch her play, she is almost like a coach already. Christie Anne is a natural leader and she is a great fit for our program. I think she has a very bright future in coaching.”McCullough spent her first three years of university athletic eligibility with CMU, before leaving for Brandon University and a year in the CIS in 2008, playing for former CMU head coach Jaime Hickson. McCullough returned to CMU in 2009 and will be graduating this spring with a degree in History. She played an instrumental role in the success of the women’s basketball team this year, scoring better than 12 points per game and showing her court vision by leading the conference in assists. McCullough has been volunteering at the Spence Neighbourhood Association coaching 14 and under girls this season while completing her CMU degree.
Date April 1, 2010