The top-ranked Capilano Blues cruised into the final of last weekend's PacWest Championships with a 76-37 semifinal win over Camosun but their title hopes were dashed by the second-seeded Douglas College Royals Saturday at Quest Universigy in Squamish.
Capilano racked up an impressive 16-2 record in regular season play but the Royals came through on the biggest stage, earning the championship banner and a trip to nationals with a 70-63 win.
The teams were tied after the first quarter but Douglas built a four-point lead at halftime and extended it to 11 after three quarters. Capilano mounted a comeback in the fourth quarter – closing to within three points – but it was not enough as the Royals sealed the championship win with strong free throw shooting down the stretch. Capilano settled for silver for the second year in a row, let down by their shooting in the final. The Blues shot just 31 per cent from the field – including 20 per cent from three – and only 46 per cent from the free throw line, missing eight shots from the charity stripe in the second half alone.
Rachel Beauchamp led the way for the Royals with 15 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks while Amber Beasley scored a team-high 17 points with four assists.
The Blues were paced by the inside combination of Carmelle M’Bikata and Karyn Nelson, both of whom earned tournament all-star status after picking up double-doubles in the final.
M’Bikata battled a bit of foul trouble in the final but still scored 16 points with 16 rebounds. Nelson dropped 12 points with 13 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block while Reiko Ohama put in a team-high 19 points.
M’Bikata, a fourth-year forward from Abbotsford, was recently named the PacWest MVP after leading the league in scoring with an average of 15.8 points per game while shooting 56 per cent from the field. On the last weekend of regular season play M’Bikata passed former teammate Michelle Errico to become the highest scorer in team history. M’Bikata has amassed 916 points in her four years while Errico collected 881.
“The scouting report on Carmelle out of high school was that she was a player that was very athletic but lacked intensity, work ethic and leadership,” stated head coach Ramin Sadaghiani in a Capilano press release.
“Carmelle has proven her critics wrong and has shown that she is exactly the opposite. She has shown incredible commitment to improving her skills, bringing consistent energy to the team, and being a leader on and off the court. Although the Player of the Year award is an incredible recognition by the league, I think Carmelle would tell anyone that her biggest accomplishment as a player is being voted as one of our team captains this season.”
Sadaghiani also took home some hardware this season, earning PacWest Coach of the Year honours. The Blues were terrors on defence all season, allowing just 51.1 points per game, the lowest mark in the country.
Guards Sherrie Errico and Ashley De La Cruz Yip also got in on the awards this season, both earning second-team all-star status. Errico, a Windsor secondary grad (and Michelle’s younger sister), nailed 58 three pointers this season while shooting a league-leading 40.6 per cent from behind the arc. Fourth year point guard De La Cruz Yip led the league in assists by a wide margin, her total of 102 in 18 games topping the second-highest tally by 44. Her 257 assists in 78 career games is the highest total in team history.
