It was a massive night for the Ryerson Rams women’s basketball team, who got themselves into a tie for first in the division following Saturday night’s win over the Brock Badgers.

The Badgers led the Rams by only a game for the top spot in the division, a placing that will be crucial come to the post-season. With all the implications on the line, the game was invaluable for Ryerson, yet still, one which the Badgers could not give up.

There was a lot to be happy with the first quarter from both sides, although it did offer a differing array of basketball through the game. Starting off as a stingy affair, it was expected that it would continue that way, however, that idea was quickly put to rest as the team’s returned to a regular scoring rythm soon after.

Coming into the game, there were three players who were expected to be on the floor for most of the game. First was one of the finest players in the OUA, Melissa Taddi has led the association in playing time and boosted that fact by playing every moment of the ryerson game. On the Rams side, both recent U Sports athlete of the week Marin Scotten and ever-reliable Hailey Roberton also played large portions of the evening.

Despite these players playing so much, there was one more who made an insane impact on the game. Third-year forward and St.Catherine’s native Sam Keltos put on a shooting show, scoring 23 points, tying her second-most ever in a single game.

Throughout this season, the Badgers have become known for their prowess from the beyond three-point line, as they have scored nearly 1/3 of their attempted shots, one of the highest percentages in the league. However, teams have become wary of that, leading the Badgers to adjust their tactics.

“Watch the screen, get it screen, open the lane!” were common words exclaimed by Brock’s coach, as it was clear that his team was trying to diversify the way they got points on the board. They did just that, a few of their points came from the extra point line. The only problem, was while they surrendered the extra point, they scored as often as usual, leading to a lower total, hence the loss.

The adjusted tactics, alongside a pair of 25+ point quarters from Ryerson, spelled the end of the day for the Badgers, who gave up their hold atop the division, something that could come back to haunt them come playoff time.

Following their loss, Brock has an even tougher road ahead of them, as they play the rest of their games away from home. The next opponent for the Badgers are the two schools in Kitchener/Waterloo, the Laurier Golden Hawks and Waterloo Warriors before the Badgers close out their regular season with a pair of high profile matches against the high-flying Ottawa schools.

For Ryerson, they will play their final two away games of the year this week, taking on both Guelph and Algoma, before returning home to close out their season.

Cover Photo: Ryerson Athletics