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The University of Regina's women's basketball team scored an 86-77 victory over the Alberta Pandas on Friday night in the Canada West semifinals in Burnaby, B.C. The win advances the Cougars to the Canada West championship game on Saturday night against Simon Fraser and clinches the team's third consecutive appearance in the national tournament.

The Pandas led by a point at halftime, but the Cougars scored nine consecutive points early in the third quarter to open up a double-digit lead that they hung onto for most of the second half. Regina led by as many as 16 points in the fourth.

The win may have come at a cost for the Cougars, though. All-star post Brittany Read had 11 points and six rebounds before suffering an injury early in the third quarter and didn't return. Read is not expected to play on Saturday night against the Clan.

Joanna Zalesiak had a game-high 22 points for the Cougars and added six rebounds and six assists. Zalesiak and Read were among five Cougars who hit double digits in points, as Lindsay Ledingham (15), Carmen Stewart (15), and Stacey Walker (12) each scored at least 10.

Anneka Bakker led Alberta with 20 points.

The Cougars will square off with Simon Fraser for the conference championship on Saturday night at 7 p.m. PST. Video webcast and live statistics will be provided for the game.