WATERLOO, Ont. - The Laurier Golden Hawks hung with the defending OUA champions for a half but couldn't keep pace after the break, falling 75-30 to the #3-ranked TMU Bold in their home opener on Friday.
Laurier's defence set the tone early, holding the high-powered Bold off the scoreboard until the 3:58 mark of the opening quarter. Rookie
Kayleigh Rawson opened the scoring for the Golden Hawks with a pair of free throws after drawing a foul from reigning OUA Defensive Player of the Year Hailey Franco-Deryck.
The Golden Hawks carried an 8-4 lead late in the first quarter before TMU's Myriam Kone closed the gap with four straight points, sending the game into the second quarter tied 8-8.
Rawson gave Laurier another spark early in the second frame, knocking down a three-pointer to restore the lead. The first-year guard finished her season debut with nine points, five rebounds, and one assist.
TMU responded with a 16-0 run that showcased the depth and experience that helped the program capture last season's Critelli Cup championship. Veteran Kait Nichols contributed nine points and five rebounds as the Bold gradually pulled away.
Three-point shooting proved difficult for both teams throughout the contest, as Laurier and TMU combined to shoot 10-for-48 (20.8 percent) from beyond the arc. One exception was Golden Hawks veteran
Alexa Burtenshaw, who was a perfect 3-for-3 from long range and finished with nine points.
Despite trailing by just 13 at halftime, Laurier couldn't sustain its strong defensive start. The Bold outscored the Golden Hawks 46-14 over the final two quarters to secure the victory.
Laurier's manager of women's basketball operations and head coach Megan Reid said the challenge for her young squad will be maintaining its level of play over a full 40 minutes.
"With a really young team, we play really tough defence, but we've got to do more than play 10 minutes," Reid said. "We've got to be a 40-minute team, and that takes time and experience. When you're playing against a team that experienced and with that many offensive threats, staying locked in for 40 minutes is going to take time for us."
Kone recovered from a slow start to lead all scorers with 18 points while adding nine rebounds and one assist.
Although disappointed with the result, Reid pointed to the growth and chemistry her group continues to develop after welcoming 10 new players to the roster.
"Our team is connected, and with 10 new players, having a connection like that is exceptional," Reid said. "They're bought in, they're learning to trust each other, and every game we're getting more reps together. Where we start is not going to be where we finish."
Third-year guard Larissa Ruggerio echoed that sentiment, crediting the team's preseason trip to Yellowknife for helping build chemistry both on and off the court.
"I think the trip really helped us unite as one team," said Ruggerio. "We had a couple of tough games in Yellowknife, but we were able to take those experiences back into practice. We saw a spark of that today with our connection on and off the court. It was a really good trip to start our year and give us experiences we can build on throughout the season."
Up Next:Â
The Golden Hawks will travel to Toronto to take on the Varsity Blues (0-1) in their home opener.Â
Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m., with live streaming available for subscribers on OUA.tv.
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