No. 10 Women's Basketball rolls to Final Four appearance

By: Nina Kersnik
Humber Athletics Communications

ETOBICOKE – No. 10 Humber women's basketball team (16-2, 2^nd West) overpowered the Algonquin Wolves (10-6, 3^rd East) in a 77-56 win in the quarterfinal at the Humber Athletics Centre. Marley Bonnick, who was also named Player of the Game, recorded 21 points and five rebounds. Sarah Baptie also performed well against the Wolves, recording 16 points and eight rebounds of her own.

However, punching their ticket to the semifinal round wasn't the only highlight of the night. Humber's women's basketball team also welcomed the 2015 CCAA women's basketball national champions to the Nest, to recognize the first team to win a championship for Humber in a ceremony at halftime.

Game recap

Right from tip-off, the Wolves found their footing early to take the lead as the Hawks struggled to find their rhythm on their offensive end. It took Humber almost two minutes to take their first lead of the game after Marley Bonnick launched a shot from downtown.

From that point on, both sides kept a tight game until Sarah Baptie made multiple contributions to help the Hawks take the edge in the opening quarter. Baptie led the home team with seven points in the first and racked up nine more by the end of the game.

In that time, the Wolves didn't generate much, scoring only 11 points in the first 10 minutes despite taking first possession. Most of those points were scored by their star player, Taryn Mitchell, who bucketed six of their 11 points.

After ten minutes of play, Humber would enter the second on an 11-point lead, 22-11.

Into the next frame, Algonquin knew they needed to close the gap right away or their quest to defend their OCAA bronze medal would come to an end.

Unfortunately, the Wolves didn't have enough energy to overpower the Hawks who would go on a 4-0 run before they could score a basket. Minutes later, Mitchell would go down with an injury, making the chance of a comeback even more difficult for Algonquin. At the five-minute mark, Humber would take a 13-point lead over the Wolves, who would only manage to rack up seven points in that time without her.

In the back half, the Hawks continued to increase their lead, outscoring their opponent by 21 points at the buzzer. Humber's 2026 OCAA All-Stars, Bonnick and Baptie, were the stars of the second, recording eight and seven points respectively.

Heading into the break, the Hawks held a comfortable lead of 44-23 over Algonquin.

After the break the Wolves got the first basket of the third but would struggle to execute their chances from that point on. At the halfway point, Algonquin would only close the gap to 20 points with five minutes to go.

In the back half, Humber continued to dominate on the court to outscore the Wolves 15-14 with one quarter left. Bonnick and Saleah Joseph stood out for the Hawks this time around, bucketing eight and five points respectively for a total of 13 points altogether.

After three quarters, Humber would enter the final quarter on a 22-point lead, 59-37.

In the final quarter the Wolves proved they had more energy left in the tank, going all-out until the final buzzer, but the Hawks were too much for them.

Buckets from inside the paint controlled the last ten minutes, which allowed Humber to show why they are one of the best in the conference. After 40 minutes, the Hawks scored 38 points compared to Algonquin's 18 from inside the paint.  

In the end the Hawks would secure a 77-56 win against the Wolves to advance to the semifinals, and end Algonquin's chances for an OCAA medal.

Humber Highlights

• The Hawks improve to 2-0 in the post season after winning against the Wolves.
• Humber is now 14-6 in the quarterfinal round.
• The Hawks have now extended their win streak to 11 straight games.
• Sarah Baptie leads Humber in four of eight stat categories.

What's Next?

The Hawks will face off against No. 8 Loyalist Lancers (16-0, 1^st East) in the semifinal at Mohawk College on March 7. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 pm and will be streamed on OCAA Live.