Box Score Box Score

The University of Regina's women's basketball team trailed by 14 points at one point early in the third quarter, but came roaring back and defeated the Victoria Vikes by a score of 63-52 in a Canada West game on Friday night at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.

The Cougars, ranked No. 4 in the CIS, held the Vikes to just 16 points in the second half and scored 39 of their own to secure the victory.

“We basically started the game 20 minutes late, and Meryl Jordan turned this game around for us,” Cougars head coach Dave Taylor said. “She came out and played with the energy that we all should have been playing with and dragged everyone else along with her.”

Jordan ended up with 20 minutes of floor time for the game, a season high for the fifth-year guard. She ignited the Cougars with a pair of clutch threes and registered totals of eight points, two steals, and a rebound for the game.

Carmen Stewart had a solid game for Regina, scoring 13 points and adding 10 rebounds for the double-double. Stacey Walker was 3-for-4 from beyond the arc and ended up with 11 points.

Kayla Dykstra, the conference's leading scorer, had 17 points and nine rebounds for the Vikes. Ashley Yee had 10 points for the Vikes, while Michelle Lee chipped in with seven points and a game-high six steals. Vanessa Forstbauer had eight points and nine rebounds.

The first half saw Victoria shoot 52% from the field, while the Cougars scored on just 25% of their attempts. That statistic was completely reversed in the second half, with the Vikes shooting a lean 21% and Regina hitting 57% of its shots.

The win improves the Cougars' record to 4-1 on the season, as they draw closer to Manitoba and Winnipeg, who are tied for first place in the Great Plains Division with a 5-2 record. The Vikes drop to 2-5 on the season.

The Cougars will host the UBC Thunderbirds (3-4) on Saturday night in their final home game of the calendar year. The Vikes will carry on eastward to Brandon, where they'll take on the 1-4 Bobcats before returning to Vancouver Island.

NOTES: The Cougars raised approximately $1800 through auctions and raffles to support the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation ... Brittany Read made her first career start in place of Chelsea Cassano, who battled illness throughout the contest.