The Ryerson Rams cruised to their third consecutive win to start the season, defeating the Western Mustangs 67-56 in their home opener Wednesday.
This is the first time the women’s team at Ryerson has started 3-0 in more than 10 years, and it’s done the job in impressive fashion.
The Rams hit on 43.8 per cent of their shots from the field in the first half. Their stifling defence forced the Mustangs into a couple of shot-clock violations early, the product of executing their game plan.
They broke out to 15-point lead at halftime.
“We thought if we exerted our ball pressure like we’re capable of, we would challenge them to run their stuff and not get good shots,” said head coach Carly Clarke. “We were able to do it, so I was really pleased.”
Fourth-year guard, Keneca Pingue-Giles, led the attack for the Rams with an impressive stat line. She finished with 18 points, two rebounds, five assists and six steals.
Leading by as much as 26 points during the middle of the third quarter, the Rams seemed well on their way towards a blowout but the Mustangs began mounting a comeback.
Western went on a 14-1 run to begin the fourth quarter and cut the lead to nine at one point.
But the Rams held on to finish the game strong, ending the night with an 11-point victory.
“We can’t have those lapses against teams like Windsor, where they’ll come back and keep pushing,” said Pingue-Giles. “We have to keep putting the pedal to the metal and put as much pressure on defense as we can.”
The Rams next game is against the Windsor Lancers on Saturday, Nov. 15 at Mattamy Athletic Centre, where they look to move to 4-0.
Steve Tzemis was a sports enthusiast and very heated debater. He has also interned for Sportsnet's the FAN590 and written for Toronto Maple Leafs blog, The Leafs Nation.
Steve graduated from the Ryerson School of Journalism in 2015.