Reading week is usually a time for students to go back to their hometowns to visit family, go on a vacation, take some extra shifts at their part time job, work on assignments, study, or simply relax. This week was Western’s reading week, and one thing that is not par for the course during this week, is being tested. In a week dedicated to being away from your studies, it is ironic that Western’s Women’s Basketball team, prepared to face their toughest test of the preseason. The Mustangs were heading into action Saturday undefeated (4-0) in the preseason thus far, including a lop-sided dismantling of St. Clair College on Friday evening 91-45, but on the opposite side of the court stood the McGill Martlets. Why is it a test for Western to be facing McGill? Only because the Martlets are the defending 2016 USports National Champions. McGill has faced two NCAA basketball teams in the preseason, winning a close won by 2, and losing another close one by 2. No doubt, the Mustangs knew they were in for a long night, against arguably, the toughest competition they will face this season. One thing was for certain, the crowd at Alumni Hall on Saturday night, was about to witness basketball on another level.
A balanced attack that ultimately would result in four Martlet’s players finishing in double digits in scoring, McGill blew the game open again in the 3rd quarter. Western did get to within single digits, sparked by the leadership and timely scoring of Mackenzie Puklicz, who finished the game with a solid 10 points. Puklicz’s efforts were not enough, as the Mustangs were outscored 17-7 in the 3rd quarter, basically putting the game out of reach from there. The 4th quarter was relatively even, but by that moment of the game, the outcome was going to be clearly a McGill victory. The final score was 70-49 for the Martlets.
Running the table and being undefeated would have been nice, but for the Western Mustangs Women’s Basketball team, learning and improving upon what they have learned is the most important thing. Western Head Coach Brian Cheng discussed in his post-game comments, the value of preseason games, and the reason why they are so necessary in the preparation of a team for a regular season and possibly postseason journey. The Mustangs have one final weekend of exhibition play, October 19th-21st, at a tournament hosted by the Ryerson Rams in Toronto. The regular season for the team begins on Wednesday October 25th against the Brock Badgers, in St. Catherine's. All the best to the Western Women’s Basketball team, not only in the Ryerson tournament, but in the 2017/2018 regular season.
