Women’s Final 8
McMaster’s Sarah Gates wins 2023 Nan Copp Trophy
SYDNEY, N.S. (U SPORTS) - Emma Weltz scored a game-high 29 points to lead the No. 3-seeded Queen’s Gaels to a 75-72 (OT) win over the No. 6 UQAM Citadins in the first quarterfinal of the 2023 Protocase Women’s Final 8, presented by Bell, at the Sullivan Field House in Sydney, Thursday. Weltz, who was the player of the game for Queen’s, shot 10-for-18 from the field, including three from beyond the arc, as the Gaels survived a scare from the upset-minded Citadins.
UQAM led 21-19 after the first quarter and expanded their lead to 41-37 at halftime. UQAM led by as many as six points in the fourth quarter, but a 6-0 run by the Gaels tied the game at 65-65 with 2:17 left. Both teams had chances to take the lead in the final two minutes, but neither side was able to take advantage, sending the game to an extra five minutes.
In the overtime, the Gaels’ Bridget Mulholland came up large, scoring eight of her 12 points in the period, as she went 3-for-4 from the field in the extra session. UQAM’s chances of pulling the upset took a hit early in the period when Fredlyne Verrier, who won player-of the-game honours for the Citadins, picked up her fifth foul.
Mulholland finished the game with a double-double, adding a game-high 15 rebounds to her 12 points. Julia Chadwick also added 11 for the Gaels.
The Citadins had five players in double figures, led by Fredlyne Verrier’s 19 points. Her sister Fredlaine had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, Paule-Beline Ibata-Pondza chipped in with 12, Yasmine Gasmi added 11 and Alexe Dufresne had 10.
With the win, the Gaels advance to Saturday’s championship semifinal, where they will play the winner of the Alberta-Acadia game at 3 p.m. (Atlantic). UQAM will play the loser of the Alberta-Acadia game in a consolation game on Friday at 6 p.m. (Atlantic).
