The University of Regina's women's basketball team dealt Lakehead its first loss of the season on Wednesday night as the Cougars opened up the non-conference Cougar Classic with a 75-58 win over the Thunderwolves at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.
Michaela Kleisinger led the way for the Cougars, scoring a game-high 20 points and pulling down 10 rebounds for a double-double.
Kyanna Giles nearly one-upped her with a triple-double, but finished with 11 points, 11 rebounds, and nine assists to fall just short.
Christina McCusker also had a double-double for Regina, scoring 14 points and pulling down 13 rebounds.
Macaela Crone added 13 points and nine rebounds for the Cougars, helping them enjoy a 58-41 advantage on the boards in the win.
Leashja Grant had 15 points and 13 points for Lakehead, which had won its first five non-conference games of the season coming into Wednesday.
The visitors opened up the contest with a Nikki Ylagan triple on the game's opening possession, but that would turn out to be Lakehead's only lead of the game as Regina scored the next nine points as part of a 15-4 run and never looked back. The Cougars led by double digits almost the entire way, and the one time Lakehead got the lead down to nine points in the second quarter they responded with a quick 8-0 run to help them go into halftime with a 41-26 lead.
The Cougars led by 16 points after three, and never led by fewer than 16 in the final period.
Shooting – both from the field and from the line – turned out to be the difference. The Cougars were 34.9% from the field and hit 22 of their 27 free throws, while Lakehead was 25.6% from the field and 9-for-13 from the stripe.
Both teams continue the tournament on Thursday. Lakehead (5-1) will square off with Lethbridge (1-1) with a 5:00 PM start time, while the Cougars (2-1) will host Saskatchewan (0-0) starting at 7:00 PM.
Cougar Classic Schedule & Results
Wednesday – Regina 75, Lakehead 58
Thursday – Lakehead vs. Lethbridge (5:00 PM)
Thursday – Regina vs. Saskatchewan (7:00 PM)
Friday – Lakehead vs. Saskatchewan (3:00 PM)
Friday – Regina vs. Lethbridge (5:00 PM)
Cougar Classic Standings
Regina 1-0
Lethbridge 0-0
Saskatchewan 0-0
Lakehead 0-1
Â
