LANGLEY, British Columbia – The Trinity Western women's basketball team earned a thrilling 78-70 overtime win over the visiting Victoria Vikes to open its Canada West campaign Friday at the Langley Events Centre.
After the Vikes rallied late in the fourth quarter to tie the game 70-70, the Spartans put up a defensive wall in overtime, as they outscored the Vikes 8-0 in the extra session to pick up their first win over Victoria in just over four years.
Tessa Ratzlaff (Abbotsford, B.C.) was the star of the night for the Spartans as she put up career-high 31 points to go with nine rebounds to lead the Spartans. Ratzlaff's 31-point effort equaled the second best offensive performance in Spartans history. Former Spartan Holly Strom had a 31-point night on Nov. 17, 2012 while Taylor Stuart holds the record of 35 points, which she scored on Nov. 4, 2005 against Regina.
"Tessa had an outstanding game," said Spartans coach Cheryl Jean-Paul. "She's really been finding her way. There have been some hot spots and there have been some cold spots and today she was fire hot. A lot of people were creating really good looks for her and they had no problems finding her and getting her the ball. And then she did the work and finished it. It's such a good sign of things to come for this season."
Beyond Ratzlaff, the Spartans had four players hit double-digits in scoring, with Kristin Ford (Okotoks, Alta.) collecting 15, Jessie Brown (Langley) adding 12 and Kayla Gordon (Prince George, B.C.) putting in 10. Luca Schmidt had a team-high 11 rebounds.
The Vikes responded with both Jenna Bugiardini and Amira Giannattasio earning 17 points and Kristy Gallagher adding 13 points. Bugiardini grabbed 11 boards to earn a double-double.
TWU held a 40-35 lead at halftime, but saw the Vikes rally in the third quarter to take a 55-54 advantage into the final frame, which set up a tight fourth quarter that ultimately produced overtime.
"I thought there was a commitment to doing the little things well," said Jean-Paul, whose team out-rebounded the Vikes 47-32. "One of the things we talked about during the off-season was mental toughness and understanding the importance of getting stops and having belief in ourselves at the end of games. For us to have an overtime game in the very first game of the season and win it, I don't know how much more 'end of game situation' it can get. I'm really proud of the effort that every single player put into today's game."
In the first quarter, the teams traded points throughout with both teams shooting better than 50 per cent. TWU took a two-point lead late to go up 22-20.
The second quarter belonged to Ratzlaff as she scored 12 points, including 10 straight for TWU, to help the Spartans to a 40-35 halftime lead. The Spartans shot 52.9 per cent from the field and collected 20 rebounds. The Vikes shot 50 per cent and grabbed 12 rebounds.
In the third quarter, Victoria responded, out-scoring the Spartans 20-14 to take a 55-54 lead going into the final 10 minutes.
In the fourth quarter, the Spartans took a 70-65 lead with 1:35 to play, but the Vikes didn't quit. Sparked by a pair of Gallagher free throws, Victoria battled back to even the score 70-70. TWU had a chance at the buzzer for the win, but Schmidt's lay-up effort came up just shy.
In overtime, Ratzlaff scored the first two points and the Spartans never allowed the Vikes to find the scoreboard. Victoria was zero for seven from the field in overtime while TWU was one for six, but the Spartans hit six of their eight free throws.
The Spartans and Vikes will play the back end of their two-game weekend series Saturday at 5 p.m. at the LEC.
Game Notes: Ratzlaff's previous career-high for points was 18, which she tallied on Jan. 24, 2015 against UBC…the last time TWU beat Victoria was Nov. 11, 2011, when the Spartans won 69-55 on home court…the Vikes came into Friday's game having won six in a row against TWU.
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