Olivia Krol, Dinos Communications Assistant

CALGARY- The University of Calgary women's basketball team dropped their first home game of 2017 (60-69) on Friday night in their second game versus the University of Fraser Valley Cascades at Jack Simpson Gymnasium.

Fraser Valley opened the second quarter with a three-point play that gave them the 18-12 edge, before the Dinos responded with several impressive plays of their own. Brianna Ghali buried a layup, while Shinelle Handzuik mesmerized the audience with a 3-pt. jump shot that equaled the playing field to 19-19. Following this play, Calgary appeared to find its rhythm, as the team went on a run to bring the game to 35-21 in favors of the Dinos.

Though the Dinos entered the third quarter with a 12-point lead, they were unable to maintain the advantage, as the rivals came out strong both offensively and defensively. Calgary continued to press the rivals all throughout, as McIntosh made a beautiful layup followed by a 3-pt. jump shot, after which Ghali and Assaf followed suit. Despite this, the quarter ended 53-51 in favour of the Cascades.

Coming into the final quarter, Calgary made an effort to mount a comeback, but it wasn't enough, as the Cascades were able to hit several free throws and jump shots down the stretch, sealing the win. Colburn and Ghali each notched a 3-pt. jump shot, but the Dinos were ultimately unable to catch up, ending the game with a 60-69 loss.

Head Coach Damian Jennings discussed that the loss of a 12-point advantage was caused by the fact that there was too much judgment on whether or not shots "go down." He further added, "we're a bit disappointed, because there were some things that happened in the past few games that we thought we had changed, but clearly we haven't. Collectively, what we did as a team today was unsatisfactory, so for the upcoming games, we have to become 'hard to beat.' Though it sounds simple, we have to stop having slippages, and chase after that win. 

For the game, the Dinos were at a slight disadvantage in field goals, noting 30.8% to 38.1% of the Cascades. Similarly, Fraser Valley held the advantage in three point percentage and free through percentage, while the Dinos held the edge in rebounds.

The Dinos will return to the floor on Friday, January 20 as they welcome the Saskatchewan Huskies to the Jack Simpson Gymnasium for a showdown at 6:00 pm. The Cascades will hit the road once again next week to faceoff against University of Alberta.