ST. CLAIR 76, SHERIDAN 46

HAMILTON, Ont. - The St. Clair Saints looked sharp early for their 9 a.m. Saturday start time, running a balanced offence of inside and outside scoring when they faced the Sheridan Bruins in the bronze medal semi-final.

Even when they were up by 20, St. Clair used an up-tempo offence and turned good defence into transition points to extend their lead to 30, advancing to the bronze medal game at the 2014 belairdirect Ontario Colleges Athletic Association Women's Basketball Championship.

Meighen Boyd buried back-to-back three-point shots and Jessica Gordon provided sure handed scoring in the paint to help the Saints take a 36-26 lead into halftime. Gordon was also stellar on the defensive side of the court, coming up with two of her six blocks in the first half. The 6-foot-6 forward also recorded a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds.

Both teams took 71 shots for the game but the Saints made 30 of their field goals while the Bruins could only convert 15 of their attempts.

Sheridan resorted to the outside shot early then started force the ball inside. The Bruins were able to gain a chunk of their first-half points from the charity stripe, drawing the Saints into a penalty situation in the first quarter.

To Sheridan's credit, the Bruins kept their hands up on defence right to the end of their elimination loss. In garbage time, both coaches brought in substitutions to give their bench players a chance to experience tournament play. Sheridan's Stacey Harper and St. Clair's Mackenzie Merner both received big cheers from their bench when the women scored their only two points of the game in very limited minutes, Harper's points coming from free throws.

St. Clair's Shannon Kennedy was named player of the game for the Saints. Kennedy tied her teammate, Kendyl Rizea, for the scoring lead with 19 points. Kennedy added 12 rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and a steal. Sabrina Brathwaite was Sheridan's player of the game with four points, a game-high 13 rebounds, three assists, and four steals.

The Saints now wait for the winner of the St. Lawrence Vikings-Humber Hawks bronze medal semi-final to see whom they will face at 5 p.m. in the David Braley Athletic and Recreation Centre.

Championship Website: www.mohawkcollege.ca/athletics/ocaawbballchampionship.html

OCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Thursday, February 27
Quarter-Finals
Game 1 - St. Clair 64, St. Lawrence-K 61
Game 2 - Algonquin 73, Fanshawe 43
Game 3 - Mohawk 64, Durham 50
Game 4 - Humber 67, Sheridan 55

Friday, February 28
Bronze Quarter-Finals
Game 5 - St. Lawrence-K 59, Fanshawe 51
Game 6 - Sheridan 69, Durham 61
Semi-Finals
Game 7 - Algonquin 76, St. Clair 47
Game 8 - Mohawk 65, Humber 43

Saturday, March 1
Bronze Semi-Finals
Game 9 - St. Clair 76, Sheridan 46
Game 10 - Humber vs. St. Lawrence-K - 11 a.m.
Bronze Medal Match
Game 11 - St. Clair vs. Winner Game 10 - 5 p.m.
Winning team presented OCAA Bronze Medal at conclusion of match
Gold Medal Match
Game 12 - Algonquin vs. Mohawk - 7 p.m.
OCAA Gold and Silver Medals presented at conclusion of match

Source: Mohawk College