LANGLEY, B.C. – Trinity Western improved to 3-0 on the season with a 53-52 win over the Victoria Vikes Friday at the Langley Events Centre. 

With TWU holding a one-point lead, the Vikes went to the free throw line with 0.6 to play in the fourth quarter. However, the Vikes Ashlyn Day missed both free throws and the Spartans held on for the victory.  

TWU's Nicole Fransson (Edmonton) had 17 points and 16 rebounds to lead TWU, while rookie Jenna Gill (Abbotsford, B.C.) added 13 points, as the Spartans outlasted the Vikes for the second game in a row. TWU beat Victoria in overtime in the Spartans last outing (Oct. 29), winning 73-66. 

Day led Victoria in scoring with 21 points, while Calli McMillan adding 10 points and seven rebounds. Tana Pankratz led the way on the glass for the visitors with nine rebounds. 

AS IT HAPPENED 
A low-scoring first half saw the Spartans hold a 12-10 lead through 10 minutes and a 22-21 edge at the break. Fransson led TWU with seven points after 20 minutes, while the Vikes Day had 10 points. Both teams struggled from the field, with TWU shooting 24.0 per cent (6-25) and UVIC shooting 22.2 per cent (8-36). The Vikes were slightly better on the boards, holding a 27-23 edge. 

The teams found their form in the third quarter, with UVIC outscoring the Spartans 18-15 to take a two-point lead, 39-37, into the final frame. 

The teams traded points early on in the fourth quarter, but a 5-0 run from the Spartans with just over four minutes to play gave TWU a 53-47 lead. The Vikes battled back to within a single point, but it was TWU's night in the end. 

 

QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Cheryl Jean-Paul
"It was a battle. Sometimes it goes your way and sometimes it doesn't and sometimes unusual things happen for it to go your way and that's what happened today. I thought we had a lot of missed opportunities towards the end of that game, which would not have put us into that situation at the end. But we battled through that and the team showed a lot of resiliency, working through frustrating things. You never know what you're going to get from your team after a bye week and I think we saw a bit of rust, but I hoping that this game gets the rust off, especially offensively, and that we're ready to battle again defensively tomorrow. 

"Jolene Vlieg (Edmonton) was a warrior today. She had some of the toughest matchups defensively. To hold a team that can score 80 points to 52 points says a lot about our defensive leader and that's Jolene. Nicole gave us so many sparks in that second half and especially her offensive rebounding, which kept us in the game, but what I think Nicole does for us on offence, Jolene does for us on defence."

UP NEXT 
The Spartans are back on the floor Saturday for a rare afternoon tilt at home, as they host Victoria for the third game in a row at 3 p.m. (PT). 

About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 29 Canada West team championships.

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