HAMILTON, Ont. – Laurier's season started and ended against McMaster, as the Golden Hawks lost a 72-71 heartbreaker to the Marauders in their OUA playoffs first-round playoff match-up at Burridge Gym on Wednesday night. 

The Golden Hawks, as the #9-seed, came into the game as winners of five straight, while the #8-seed Marauders were even hotter: undefeated in their past eight games and nine of their last 10.

Laurier opened the first quarter by attacking with an intense pace. Miranda Campbell and Brittyn Graves connected from beyond the arc, giving the Golden Hawks an early six-point lead. It spurred a 17-4 run by the purple and gold in the game's first three minutes.

The Golden Hawks looked like they would have a run-away first quarter, but the Marauders checked into the game around the five-minute mark and began whittling down the deficit to just seven after the opening frame. 

Janet Enge, Cassidy Hirtle, Campbell and Graves all put points on the board within the quarter, contributing to the Golden Hawks 23-16 lead.

The second featured a hungry Marauders squad, resulting in a tight and competitive quarter. Campbell and Hirtle combined for 11 of Laurier's 16 points as they temporarily restored a double-digit advantage, but McMaster's Jenna Button and Cassie Joli-Coeur teamed up for 15 of their own as the Golden Hawks' lead was pared down to just two at the break.

McMaster finally broke through less than a minute into the second half, tying things up and then taking their first lead. The back-and-forth trend continued, with five more lead changes in the remaining nine minutes of the frame.

During the third, Kate White led the Golden Hawks offensive efforts with five points while Hirtle had three and the other three starters carried two a piece. 

In the fourth, third-year forward Janet Enge came alive both offensively and defensively, recording 10 points in her nine minutes of play, hitting layups and sinking jump shots consistently. 

Laurier's five-point advantage to start the quarter was gone three minutes in, as McMaster went on an 8-2 run to go ahead 59-58.

The teams exchanged the lead eight more times before Amy Stinson hit a dagger three for the home side with 1:26 left.

The last minute of play saw Enge sink a much-needed jumper to get within one, but that's where the road - and season - would end for the Hawks.

Hirtle finished with game-highs in points (24) and assists (four) to go with seven rebounds. White dominated the paint with a game-high 13 rebounds in 27 minutes of action. 

Despite the season being cut short, there is much reason for optimism as the team recorded 13 wins for the first time since the 2016/17 season. 

The vast majority of the team is eligible to return for the 2024/25 campaign, with Khalian O'Connor, Maddy White, and Alexa Sawchuk the only graduating student-athletes.