Mystics drop second game of double-header to Tommies 58-48
Empringham and Smith led the Mystics’ attack in defeat as the Tommies would take the second game of their doubleheader.
(Halifax, NS) The St. Thomas Tommies defeated the Mount Saint Vincent Mystics by the score of 58-48 Sunday afternoon at the A. Garnet Brown Memorial Gymnasium.
Claudia Steeves (St. John's, NL) lead the way with 16 points and 8 rebounds for the Tommies. Paige LeBlanc (New Maryland, NB) chipped in with 15 points and 3 steals. Katie Vidito (Charlottetown, PE) finished with 9 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.
Leading the way for the Mystics was Emma Empringham (Sackville, NS), finishing with 13 points and 8 rebounds. Keezaidra Smith (North Preston, NS) recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds. Elissa Bryce (Rothesay, NB) scored 7 points off the bench for the Mystics.
It was a tightly contested start at the A. Garnet Brown Memorial Gymnasium as both teams returned to the court to play the second game of their weekend doubleheader. The Tommies got early production from the three point line as Claudia Steeves and Alyssa Jeffrey (Sussex, NB) would connect from deep. The Mystics would respond with a jump shot from Jenna Matheson (Halifax, NS) and a three point shot by Bryce. In a low scoring quarter, both teams raised their defensive intensity as the quarter winded down. The Tommies would close the quarter out strong as Jeffrey, Vidito and Steeves would knock down consecutive mid range jumpers as they would take an 13-8 lead into the second quarter.
As the second quarter resumed, the Tommies would strike first as LeBlanc would knock down a three to increase their lead to 16-8. The Mystics would respond with back-to-back transition layups. First, Smith would drive past the defence for the tough layup. In the ensuing possession, Smith would find Celine Sterckel (Moncton, NB) ahead of the play for the open layup which force the Tommies to call a timeout as they held a 18-12 lead. It was deja vu for the Mystics as Smith would drive to the lane for another tough layup. On the next possession she would find Empringhamahead of the play for another easy layup as they cut the Tommies' lead to 2. Victoria Strickland (St. John's, NL) would tie the game up with a drop step layup and her teammate Empringham would tie the game up in transition as they would take their first lead of the game since early on in the first quarter. The Tommies would retake the lead on an elbow three from Vidito late in the second quarter. As the quarter closed out, Empringham crashed the offensive glass as beat the clock with a buzzer beating lay-up to take a 24-23 into halftime.
When the second half kicked off, the Tommies had the early momentum as LeBlanc would leak out and score in transition over her defender. Steeves and Vidito would attack the Mystics' defence for mid range finishes as they would reclaim the lead at 29-27. The Tommies would open things up midway through the quarter when Payton Oschypko (Fredericton, NB) would finish in transition to give them a 35-27 lead. Out of the timeout, Lily Newberry (Yellowknife, NT) would connect from deep to close the gap to 5. The Tommies would lean on their bench as Reagan Kerr (Fredericton, NB) and McKenzie Giesbrecht (Medicine Hat, AB) would contribute to their attack knocking down key baskets and providing a defensive pressure to extend their lead to 40-32. As the quarter reached the final minute, Jeffrey would crash the offensive glass as her rebound would lead to a second chance lay-up for the Tommies. They would use this momentum to take a 44-36 lead into the final quarter.
LeBlanc continued to be a threat for the Tommies as she would knock down consecutive corner threes out of the break. Their defensive pressure increased throughout the quarter as they would convert defensive into numerous baskets and the Mystics looked to make a final push midway through the quarter as they turned to Empringham and Newberry when they each knocked down a corner threes to trim the lead to 7. In a respond to the Mystics run, the Tommies would turn to Steeves as she would connect on a corner three of her own as the lead pushed to 10 with less than 4 minutes to play. Strickland would match her three on the next possession for the Mystics. As the time dwindled, the Tommies would end up closing out the Mystics, winning by a 58-48 margin.
The Mystics will close out their season next weekend when they travel to Sackville to play the Mount Allison Mounties. Tip off is at 2:00pm. They will finish the season in second place in the regular season, receiving a first round bye in the ACAA Championships in two weeks. They will await the results of the quarter-finals to determine their opponent for their semi-final matchup.