WATERLOO – THUNDER BAY – The Lakehead University Thunderwolves women’s basketball team salvaged a weekend split against the Laurier Golden Hawks, winning 65-61 and thus keeping them nipping at the Hawks’ heels in the OUA West standings. Halftime score was 36-26 Lakehead. The lead did get as large as 14 (36-22) with 2:00 remaining in the first half, but Laurier finished the first half with a few defensive stops, combined with some offensive rebounds that cut into what would have been a more comfortable cushion for the ‘Wolves. In the end it would not matter, as Lakehead played enough defense down the stretch and put together a balanced attack from their veterans.
Carolyn Fragale led all scorers with 16 points (3/6 from three), followed by Lacey McNulty with 15 and Lindsay Druery with 14 – the two posts also grabbed 8 rebounds each. Ayse Kalkan chipped in 12 on 4/6 shooting from the field and 3/3 from the foul line.
The leading Golden Hawk was Felicia Mazerolle with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals.
Jon Kreiner stated, “Tonight we played with heart. We came out strong, executed our game plan and did a great job when Laurier countered with runs of their own. I am really proud at how hard our players worked tonight. This was a big game and I haven’t seen a team I’ve coached at LU be more ready and driven to win.”
The women play next at home versus McMaster for a weekend series Jan 20-21.