LANGLEY, British Columbia – Led by Diana Lee, who had a game-high 20 points, the No. 4 UBC Thunderbirds earned an 80-63 win over the Trinity Western women's basketball team Friday at the Langley Events Centre.

The T-Birds took a 27-14 lead after 10 minutes and never looked back, cruising to the 17-point win.

The Spartans managed to win the fourth quarter 20-14, but the T-Birds never gave up control.

Beyond Lee, UBC's Kris Young added 14 points and six rebounds while Kara Spotten had 11 points and three boards and Harleen Sidhu had a game-high seven rebounds to go with six points.

The Spartans were led by Laurissa Weigl (Stony Plain, Alta.), who had 11 points and a team-high five boards. Kayla Gordon (Prince George, B.C.) and Tessa Ratzlaff (Abbotsford, B.C.) added 10 points each.

The T-Birds won the battle on the glass 37-26 while also shooting 52.9 per cent from the field compared to the Spartans 46.3 per cent.

Turnovers also did the Spartans in as they committed 20 while UBC only gave up 13.

The Spartans 3-point game, which had been dominant two weeks ago against Regina, was limited to just two for 10 shooting.

Led by Lee, who had 10 points in the opening frame, the T-Birds shot 52 per cent from the field over the first quarter and raced out to a 13-point lead.

In the second quarter, Young led UBC with seven points and the T-Birds pushed their lead to 42-29 at halftime.

The T-Birds continued to roll in the third quarter, out-scoring TWU 24-15, including a six-point run by Stephanie Bell.

With a renewed energy in the fourth quarter, the Spartans pushed back over the final 10 minutes but never threated UBC's lead. Ratzlaff had an impressive final quarter, collecting eight points and two rebounds to lead TWU.

The teams will play in the rematch Saturday at 5 p.m. at the LEC.

Game Notes – The Spartans were 11 for 13 from the free throw line while UBC was four for six…UBC had a 16-9 edge in offensive rebounds.

-TW-