The University of Regina's women's basketball team suffered a 64-53 road loss to the Saskatchewan Huskies on Saturday night in the Canada West championship game at the Physical Activity Centre on the U of S campus.

The Cougars will now prepare for the 2017 U SPORTS Championship next weekend. They earned an automatic berth to the national tournament courtesy of Friday's win over Winnipeg in the Canada West semifinals.

Sabine Dukate was the difference for Saskatchewan, shooting 5-for-12 from three-point range and scoring a game-high 25 points. Summer Masikewich added 14 points and eight rebounds for the Huskies.

Kyanna Giles led Regina with 14 points and eight rebounds, while Sara Hubenig hit three triples and finished with 11 points and seven rebounds. Katie Polischuk added seven points, five rebounds, and five assists for the Cougars, who will enter the U SPORTS tournament with a 32-4 overall record.

The first quarter was marred by a dearth of offence, as Saskatchewan led 11-8 after the opening 10 minutes. The pace picked up considerably in the second quarter, starting with a 12-2 run by the Cougars that started with a three by Hubenig and finished with a triple from well beyond the arc by Britton Belyk. That put the Cougars up 20-16 midway through the period, but Saskatchewan finished the second on a 13-4 run as the Huskies took a 29-24 advantage into the halftime break. Dukate scored a total of six points in consecutive possessions for Saskatchewan during that run, hitting a triple and then hitting three free throws the next time down the floor.

Saskatchewan took over in the third quarter, as the Huskies went on a 14-2 run over the final seven and a half minutes of the period to go up 45-32 heading into the fourth. Regina showed some life in the fourth quarter after employing an effective press that forced a pair of turnovers and helped the Cougars go on an 8-0 run to get to within six. The U of R went on another 8-2 run late in the game to again get to within six, but could draw no closer and the Huskies iced the game with several late free throws.

Both teams had similar numbers, with Saskatchewan shooting 30% from the field compared to Regina's 27%. The Huskies had a 41-32 rebounding advantage, but turned the ball over 18 times compared to just 12 for the Cougars. The biggest difference was at the free throw line, where Saskatchewan was 25-for-33 as a team and the U of R was 14-for-19.

Seeding and quarterfinal matchups for next weekend's U SPORTS tournament will be announced on Sunday.

NOTES: Saturday's game marked the eighth time in the last 10 years that the Cougars have played in the Canada West championship game ... the Cougars will make their 18th appearance at the national tournament next weekend and their seventh in the last decade.