CALGARY - The University of Calgary Dinos suffered their first home loss of the season as they were defeated by the University of Victoria Vikes by a score of 71-60 on Jan. 23 at the Jack Simpson Gymnasium. The Dinos record dropped to 8-6 while the Vikes improve to a winning record of 7-6.

Claire Colborne and Kelsey Lund led the Dinos offense with 13 points, respectively.

Vikes forward Jenna Bugiardini had an outstanding game, recording a game high of 23 points. Amira Giannattasio recorded 13 points, as did Nicole Karstein who also put up a game high of eight rebounds.

The Victoria Vikes, who lost six straight games early in the season, are now on a five game winning streak. "Our confidence level has definitely gone up. When we were losing all those games that was definitely tough, but we knew that that was the toughest part of our season and now it's paying off for us because we're staying focused and seeing results," said Jenna Burgiardini. "I think the team did a really good job of taking control early. One of our goals was to set the pace of the game and we did that from the beginning. It was a good team win."

Calgary came out to an early 7-2 advantage in the first quarter, but some sloppy defensive play resulted in a 13 point run for Victoria. The Dinos were held off the board for over seven minutes, which put the Vikes ahead 15-9. They finally got back on the board in the last thirty seconds with a basket from Emma Nieuwenhuizen, but Bugiardini countered with a three-pointer to give the Vikes a commanding 18-9 lead.

Despite a strong start to the second by Kelsey Lund, who recorded six points in the first three minutes, the Vikes kept coming and extended their lead to 12 by the three minute mark. Victoria pulled away even further throughout the quarter, giving their team a 38-22 advantage at the half.

The Vikes momentum continued early in the second half, but some solid offense from the Dinos midway through the third frame kept the game within reach. Victoria did not let up, however, as a layup from Karstein gave them a twenty point lead with a minute to go in the third. A layup from Colborne followed by two free throw baskets from Kristie Sheils resulted in a 58-42 Vikes lead going into the final frame.

Both teams had a slow start to the fourth, with the first points coming from Bugiardini after almost two minutes of play. The Dinos made it interesting thanks to a few strong drives by Lund and Colborne, which brought Calgary back within ten.

A six point run with four minutes to go gave the Dinos some hope, as they cut the lead to seven. Bugiardini was not done though, as she put her team back up by 10 a minute later with a free throw and a basket. Two quick lay-ups from the Dinos in the last two minutes brought the score to 65-59, but that is as close as they would get, with the Vikes pulling away to take the game 71-60.

The Dinos will try to bounce back as they face the Vikes again tomorrow night, Jan. 24. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. M.T at the Jack Simpson Gymnasium.