LONDON, Ont. – The Golden Hawks kept the New Year's fireworks going at Alumni Hall in London on Friday night, winning a thrilling 60-55 road game against the Western Mustangs.
It was the first time this season the divisional rivals squared off, with Western having won the past six straight match-ups and nine of the last ten going back five years to the day.
The game started slowly for Laurier, as they only mustered eight points for their lowest offensive output in a quarter this season, going 3 for 15 and 20% from the field to head into the second down 18-8.
Cassidy Hirtle,
Isabella Cotton, and
Brittyn Graves were the lone Golden Hawks to get on the board.
It was a completely different and much more confident Golden Hawks team who broke the huddle for the start of the second quarter; outshooting, Â outrebounding, and, most importantly, outscoring the Mustangs 14-5 in the frame.
Veteran guard
Cassidy Hirtle led the team with six more points in the quarter, eventually finishing with a team-high 19, while second-year
Kate White followed closely with five. With her offensive output, Hirtle sits ninth in OUA scoring, averaging 15.7 points per game.
Mustangs MacKeely Shantz and Paris Alexander recorded five apiece, but Western, in general, seemed relatively out of sync for the majority of the quarter. This allowed the Golden Hawks to go on a seven-point run and quickly close the gap. Western clung to a 23-22 lead at halftime.
Laurier finally took its first lead of the game just 20 seconds into the second half, but the two sides would trade it fairly often throughout the third, as they remained within a basket of each other throughout the remainder of the game.
Late in the fourth quarter, Laurier's
Janet Enge hit a clutch three-pointer and, shortly after,
Brittyn Graves, who was perfect from the free-throw line on the night, secured the win with two of her five from the charity stripe.
Â
The Golden Hawks, winners of back-to-back games, improved to 7-4 for the season. Western dropped to 4-6.
With a win over the Waterloo Warriors in their upcoming mid-week match-up, the Golden Hawks can grab a share of the OUA West division lead.
Top Performers
#7 –
Cassidy Hirtle
Hirtle didn't miss a beat. She was one of just two Golden Hawks to finish with a double-digit point total in a team-high 34 minutes of action. She also played well in the paint, matching a team-high with six rebounds.
Western Mustangs
#7 – MacKeely Shantz
Shantz put up an incredible performance in the game, posting 32 points. She also played strong defensively, with a game-high four steals along with four rebounds on the defensive glass.Â
Up Next
It's the first Battle of Waterloo match-up of the season on Wednesday for the Golden Hawks as they make the short trip up University Avenue to the University of Waterloo campus. Tip-off at the PAC is set for 6 pm.
Catch the game live on OUA.tv or follow along at  @WLUAthletics on X.
