Women drop tough first exhibition hoop game

The Kwantlen Eagles women’s basketball team didn’t go down without a fight as they lost 51-44 to the Douglas Royals in their first exhibition game of the season at the Kwantlen Surrey campus Friday night.

Emotions were running high at the end of the fourth quarter, as the Royals added 12 points to their score and the Eagle’s Head Coach Gary Pawluk was asked to leave the gym after asking the referee for “a moment of your time.” Assistant Coach Ivan Adrian said that “we liked the intensity that they showed in the fourth quarter” and the “fact that they weren’t giving up.”

The game began with a bang as the Royals scored a two-point basket in the first minute and Kwantlen’s up-and-coming guard Jessica Williams scored within the first two minutes, bringing the score to 2-1 for the Royals.

The back-and-forth action continued with strong passing from the Eagles. The fast-paced offense and defense by both teams resulted in an even match for most of the quarter, which was ending with a two-point lead for the Eagles until the Royals tied the score to 9-9 with 38 seconds left. The Royal’s Cynthia Lawson scored again with one second left in the period, putting Douglas in the lead 11-9.

The Royals took their lead into the second period but the quick passes by the Eagles resulted in a one-point lead of 22-21 going into the third quarter. The score went back and forth, and the third ended 37-34 for the Royals, after Koral Fraser scored three for the Eagles with 23 seconds left in the third quarter.

Assistant coach Adrian said the team had set a goal to work on their rebounding, “especially on our own boards,” but that they didn’t meet their expectations.

“Our rebounding needs to improve in order for us to be a successful team.”

Guard Taminder Dhaliwal, returning for her third year on the team, agrees. She also said the team was slow to start but they did a good job “hustling back.”

Also returning player forward Michela Fiorido says the team is “definitely improving.”

The next game for the Eagles will be against the Langara Falcons on Saturday, Oct. 4, at 6 p.m. in Vancouver.