LANGLEY, B.C. – Trinity Western's Kianna Wiens (Regina) had a 22-point night to lead the Spartans to a 71-66 win over UNBC Saturday at the Langley Events Centre. 

In a tightly-contested battle, the Spartans rallied from a nine-point third quarter deficit to improve their record to 13-2 on the season. The loss drops UNBC to 5-7. 

With UNBC holding a three-point lead, 61-58, with 6:25 left in the fourth quarter, the home side went on a game-deciding 11-4 run that put the Spartans ahead for good.

TWU's Jayden Gill (Abbotsford, B.C.) added 12 point for the Spartans, while Jolene Vlieg (Edmonton) dropped 10 points and grabbed six rebounds. 

The Timberwolves were led by Alina Shakirova, who had 16 points, while three others hit double-digits in points, with Anastasia Soltes getting 12, and both Rebecca Landry and Laura Garmendia Garcia putting up 10 apiece. 

The Spartans had a 17-8 edge in assists and a 37-36 advantage on the glass. 

UNBC finished the night shooting 45.5 per cent (25/55) from the field, while the Spartans shot 40.6 per cent (28/69). 

The Timberwolves had a 24-9 edge in points from their bench. 

AS IT HAPPENED 
The Spartans shot 55.6 per cent from the field in the first quarter and held a 22-16 lead after 10 minutes. 

UNBC responded well in the second quarter, finding their form, clawing back from as much as a nine-point deficit to take a 39-38 lead into halftime. 

The third quarter saw UNBC extend their lead to nine points, at 52-43, but this time it was the Spartans getting back into the game late in the quarter to make it a one-point contest heading to the fourth quarter. 

In the final frame, TWU snatched momentum midway through and held on for the victory.

QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Cheryl Jean-Paul
"The finish is how we should have started the game. I'm hoping to see that throughout the whole game tomorrow. We keep putting ourselves in a situation where we have to hope that other things play in our favour to give us enough time to figure out who we want to be on defence. To me that was the statement we didn't make until the fourth quarter. But then we made it very soundly, which was exciting to see. That's who we have to be if we want to have the success that allows our whole team to be part of the win. We put a lot of pressure on a few key players in key moments and we know that that is not sustainable. But, if we understand the approach we need to take into tomorrow's game, I think we'll be good."

NOTABLE
•    The Spartans are now 8-10 all-tie against UNBC, with a 5-4 record at home.
•    The last time these two teams met was Nov. 9, 2019 when TWU won 63-52. 
•    Saturday's game is senior night, with Kianna Wiens (Regina) and Ose Obetoh (Maple Ridge, B.C.) playing their final regular season game at home.

UP NEXT 
The Timberwolves and Spartans play the rematch Saturday at 5 p.m. (PT) at the LEC. 

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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