ABBOTSFORD, B.C. – Trinity Western continued in their winning ways on Friday, defeating the Fraser Valley Cascades 68-52 at the Envision Financial Athletic Centre.
 
TWU's (10-1) airtight defence forced the Cascades (8-2) to go back to the drawing board countless times throughout the game.
 
All five of TWU's starters hit double digits in the scoring category in Friday's game as Nicole Fransson (Edmonton) led the way with 17 points, six rebounds, and four assists. Kianna Wiens (Regina) boasted a game-high of nine rebounds to nearly secure her second double-double of the 2021-22 season.
 
UFV's Julia Tuchscher took home a game-high in scoring, going 8/11 from the field for a total of 18 points.
 
The Spartans now sit at the top of Canada West's western division after Friday's important victory.

AS IT HAPPENED 
Fuelled by revenge, the Spartans got out to a hot start by claiming an 18-4 lead over UFV in the first quarter. The Cascades answered back with a run of their own, but the Spartans stayed in front (21-15).

Although UFV closed the first quarter on a run, the Spartans came out strong in the second. Kianna Wiens hit back-to-back 3-pointers to highlight a 21-9 quarter favouring TWU. The first half of action rolled to a 42-24 lead for the Spartans.

TWU's night of hot shooting continued throughout the third quarter. Whether it was Jolene Vlieg (Leduc, Alta.), Kianna Wiens, or Nicole Fransson, the Spartans simply couldn't miss. Fransson tied the quarter together with a fadeaway hook shot in the post to keep their lead significant. The quarter closed with the Spartans leading 57-42.
 
The fourth quarter was the game's most defensive one. The Spartans outscored the Cascades 11-10 to bring the game to a 68-52 close.


NOTABLE 
•    The Spartans were strong on the boards in Friday's match, outrebounding the Cascades 44-32.
•    Friday's game was won on the perimeter as TWU shot 7-20 from 3-point range. The Cascades had a tough shooting night, going 21-61 from the field with only four of 16 3-point attempts sinking.

QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Cheryl Jean-Paul
"I thought today's game was a great response to last week. We had some core players step up offensively, and defensively. That was the statement we were hoping to make based on shot selection and defensive schemes. The team responded well to the changes we made in our game plan.
 
"It's going to be an exciting third game [against UFV]. We've been approaching this weekend understanding that we didn't respond to pressure in the way that we needed to, so this was the exact response we needed to have. We understand that when we play well together good things can happen. We're really excited to see what we're all about going into tomorrow's game."
 
NEXT UP
TWU will take rematch UFV tomorrow at 6 p.m.

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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