VICTORIA – The Calgary Dinos jumped out to a 35-28 lead in the first half on Friday night but couldn't hold on for the win, as the Victoria Vikes bounced back for a 58-51 victory at the CARSA Performance Gym.
The loss was the first for the 2-1 Calgary Dinos, while the Vikes pick up their first win of the season in their first game at home after dropping their first two games to the U Sports No. 1 Regina Cougars.
Jenna Bugiardini finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Victoria Vikes. Bugiardini picked up eight points in the first half but was a game-changer in the second, scoring 13 points as the Vikes bounced back from a sloppy first. The fifth-year Vike was nine-for-nine from the line, showing up time and time again when the Vikes needed her the most.
Amira Giannattasio also had a big game for the Vikes, scoring eight of her 14 points in a strong second half. She shot six-for-11 from the field and two-for-five from beyond the arc to help give the Vikes some much-needed energy for a comeback in the second half.
UVic bounced out to a 15-9 lead after the first quarter on the strength of six points from Amira Ginnattasio but
Brianna Ghali exploded for eight points in the second to send the Dinos to the half with a 35-8 lead. Ghali finished the game with 16 points, 10 more than any of her teammates as
Bobbi Jo Colburn and
Lauren Seabrook each added six points for the Dinos on Friday.
The Calgary native was deadly in the first half, hitting four of 10 shots from the field and making both of her attempts from beyond the arc. She was just as good in the second half, adding six points and two defensive rebounds to finish with five on the night.
But a late push for the Vikes proved too much for the Dinos on Friday, as Victoria outscored Calgary 16-6 in the final quarter to pull away with the 58-51 victory. It was a good sign for a team that had their troubles putting away teams early in the preseason.
The teams will be back at it on Saturday night, when they hit the CARSA Performance Gym court at 6 p.m. MT, live on canadawest.tv.
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