- Recent Scores: Fri, Feb 3 vs. Douglas College: WBB 63-58 (W), MBB 80-63 (W); Sat, Feb 4 @ CBC: WBB 43-83 (W), MBB 81-102 (W)
News
February 6, 2012Eagles Victorious in Must-Win Weekend
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (February 6, 2012) – As the PACWEST Basketball season enters the home stretch, both Kwantlen Polytechnic University Men’s and Women’s Eagles teams found themselves in must-win situations in the qualification race for Provincial Championships and capitalizing on that motivation to a string of victories.
The Eagles reigned victorious over the visiting Douglas College Royals on Friday, February 3rd as the Women’s team led the charge to a 68 – 53 win, ending their five-game losing streak. Paving the way for the first win after returning from the break was second-year center, Samantha McPhail (Vancouver) with 17 points and 12 rebounds and going 5 for 6 (83%) from the free throw line. Second-year guard, Anna Work (Everett, WA) came back to the stats list with double-digit points on the board (14) and shooting 100% (5 for 5) at the free throw line as did first-year guard, Jessica Villadiego (Surrey), tallying 12 points while pressuring the Royals’ guard. The Women’s Eagles led in total points throughout every quarter and, as a team, shot an impressive 80% from the free throw line.
Continuing their weekend of dominance, the Women’s Eagles traveled to Columbia Bible College on Saturday, February 4th for a show-down with the Bearcats. First-year guard, Cassandra Micona (Mission), led the Eagles with 18 points on their way to a commanding 83 – 43 victory. Adding to this point differential, and following closely with double-digits, was first-year guard, Brittney Church (Langley), with 17 points and going 5 for 11 from the free throw line. “Offensively, we have started to get better scoring chances as was seen in our game against Douglas College”, stated Head Coach Dan Nayebzadeh. “We also did a good job of this against CBC, shooting 13 for 13 from the free throw line. [If we] continue to take good shots and get the high percentages, we will continue to have this type of success.”
The Eagles Men’s team followed the Women’s lead with a set of wins over the weekend. In an intense game against Douglas College, the Eagles defeated their rivals 80 – 63 with help from the second quarter where the Eagles out-shot the Royals 31 points to eleven. First-year guard, Aaron Ram (Surrey), led the Eagles in points with 21 followed by first-year forward, Gurpal Mann (Surrey), with 16 points and going 6 for 8 (75%) from the free-throw line. First-year guard, and new recruit, Anmoel Dhillon (Surrey), also added to the tally with 15 points. Veteran forward, Varinder Singh (Delta) topped the Eagles’ list in rebounds with six while first-year point guard, Chris Arcangel (Toronto, ON) led with 7 assists. “The game was very intense on Friday. Rival games are what make [varsity] basketball exciting. I was proud of our players for using their emotions [during the game] in a positive way,” stated Head Coach Stefon Wilson.
For the first time all season, the Men’s Eagles hit triple digits in total points with their 102 – 81 victory over the Columbia Bible College Bearcats on Saturday, February 4th. Ali Bosir (Surrey), third-year center, led the Eagles on the stats list capturing 29 points and 9 rebounds. Forward Varinder Singh (Delta) followed closely with 25 points and guard Aaron Ram (Surrey) racked up 19 points in the high scoring match.
After Week 8, both the Eagles Women and Men have taken sole possession of 6th place in the PACWEST standings. The Eagles will host the Langara College Falcons on Thursday, February 9th heading into the final two games of the regular season with tip-off for the Women at 6:00pm and for the Men at 8:00pm.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eaglesJanuary 30, 2012
Eagles Men Win Back-to-Back Home Games
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (January 30, 2012) – The Kwantlen Eagles Men and Women played host for the second straight weekend to their rivals from north of the Burrard Inlet playing Quest University on Friday, January 27th and Capilano University on Saturday, January 28th.
In a weekend filled with anxiety, the Eagles Men needed two wins in order to stay in contention for a play-off berth and in two hotly contested games, which is exactly what the Eagles did. On Friday, the Eagles led in points thru three quarters only conceding total point allocation to the Quest Kermodes in the fourth but it still was not enough for the Spirit Bears as the Eagles soared to a 82 – 76 victory. Leading the team, third-year center Ali Bosir (Surrey) tallied 19 points and 6 rebounds followed closely by third-year forward, Varinder Singh (Delta) with 18 points. Rounding out the team with double digits were first-year guard Aaron Ram (Surrey) with 12 points and second-year guard Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON) with 11 points. First-year guard, Tanaad Insaniye’s (Surrey) three-pointer in the final second of the third quarter gave the Eagles momentum going into the final ten minutes and combined with first-year point guard Chris Arcangel (Toronto, ON) hitting five of six free throws in the dying seconds of the game helped clinch the win.
On Saturday, the Eagles continued their tight playing leading in points throughout most of the game faltering only in the third quarter with a total of seven points collected against the Capilano University Blues. Despite fouling out in the final minutes of the game, first year point guard Chris Arcangel (Toronto, ON) racked up 18 points to share the high scoring with teammate and first-year guard Aaron Ram (Surrey) also with 18 points. First-year forward, Tristan Gruenthaler (Abbotsford) led the team with 8 rebounds and 7 assists. The fourth quarter was jam packed with high intensity and anxiety with the Eagles trailing slightly as third-year center, Ali Bosir (Surrey) sank a three-pointer followed by second-year guard Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON) hitting two clutch free throws in the final minutes of the game to pull ahead and steal the win with a score of 71 - 69. Reminiscing on the weekend, Head Coach Stefon Wilson commented, “This weekend was very important for us. We knew that we would have two hard battles both Friday and Saturday. I am very proud of my players for stepping up to the challenge. We played with a lot of energy on defense and made some big shots on offense.”
Knowing that it would be a tough game, the Eagles Women came out more cohesively as a team against the Quest Kermodes than when they played in Squamish, but it was still not enough to stop some strong runs late in the game from their PACWEST rivals. Only down by 7 points going into the fourth quarter, the Eagles switched up their defense allowing an opportunity for the Kermodes to sink a bushel of three-pointers and led them to a 55 – 76 finish. Adding to the fourth quarter difficulty, first-year guard, Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) fouled out of the game. Second-year center, Samantha McPhail (Vancouver), kept the Eagles in the game with 16 points and 8 rebounds followed by first-year guard, Brittney Church (Langley) in double digits with 10 points.
On Saturday, the Eagles Women hosted the Capilano Blues in a close game leading in points through three of the four quarters and only faltering in the second quarter with a single digit posting in the 68 - 76 loss. Strong showings by second-year center, Samantha McPhail (Vancouver) racking up 20 points and 12 rebounds as well as first-year guard, Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) with 9 rebounds kept the Eagles in contention throughout the game. Also contributing to the tight match was first-year guard, Christina Brown’s (Langley), coverage of the Blues Jenna Ralsten over the course of her 39 minute playing time keeping the Blue’s highest scorer to only 11 points – a huge decrease from Ralsten’s previous tally of 45 points the night before. Oxana Senyuk (Vancouver), second-year guard, came off the bench in the second half of the game and tallied 13 points and shot 6 for 7 from the field. Assistant Coach Emily Wright stated, “This was the best forty minutes we have played as a team. We made strides offensively and executed down the stretch opening up with three lay-ups right at the beginning of the game. We are now focused on the next game [against Douglas] which is a big game for us to clinch a play-off spot.”
After Week 7 action, the Eagles Women remain in 6th place in the PACWEST standings as the Eagles Men remain in 7th place but still in contention for claiming a play-off spot. The Eagles look forward to continuing to improve their records this weekend hosting Douglas College on Friday, February 3rd and travelling to Columbia Bible College on Saturday, February 4th.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
January 23, 2012
Island Rivals Victorious over Eagles in Home Weekend Games
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (January 23, 2012) – In the first of a long stretch of home games for the Eagles, Kwantlen Polytechnic University played host to, and battled hard against, both their Vancouver Island rivals in the PACWEST Conference with games against the VIU Mariners on Friday, January 20th and the Camosun College Chargers on Saturday, January 21st.
This past weekend proved to be a tough one for the Women’s Eagles team collecting two losses; one of which included a one-sided game again the VIU Mariners. Never leading throughout the game, the Eagles reached double digits in two quarters and played well defensively but it was not enough to stave the Mariners as they went on to a commanding 74 – 38 win. First-year guard, Jeannine Yngreso (Surrey) hit double digits in both weekend contests with 11 points each game which included 33% from the free throw line against the Mariners and the Chargers.
The Eagles Women had a great start against the Camosun College Chargers on Saturday, January 21st but took some unsuccessful shots which put them behind and had the team playing catch-up for the remainder of the game. The Eagles came back to post high scoring third (19 points) and fourth (14 points) quarters but were unable to recover ground and losing the game 52 – 68. First-year guard, Brittney Church (Langley) played well against Camosun and attacked the hoop consistently. Sam McPhail (Vancouver), second-year center, played well defensively all weekend with a total of 27 rebounds. In response to the difficult weekend result, Eagles’ Head Coach Dan Nayebzadeh, stated “We were badly out-rebounded this weekend. We played well defensively in both games but we had no flow offensively and didn’t shoot the ball well all w
eekend.”
The Men’s Eagles fought hard against the VIU Mariners and were down 36 - 38 at the half in a very closely contested game. The third quarter continued this trend as the Eagles were only down by 5 points, however, the Mariners increased their lead in the fourth with a number of free throws to finish the game with an 84 – 72 win over the Eagles. The Eagles rallied hard and had four athletes in double digit scoring throughout the match. Second-year guard, Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON) led with 16 points; first-year guard, Aaron Ram (Surrey) followed closely with 15 points; third-year forward, Varinder Singh (Delta), had 12 points; and first-year point guard, Chris Arcangel (Toronto, ON), rounded out the team with 11 points. Singh also led the team with 10 assists and 5 rebounds.
On Saturday, January 21st, the Eagles welcomed the Camosun College Chargers for another hotly contested match. With a slow start, the Eagles rallied back to lead the Chargers 29 – 28 going into the half. Despite a strong third quarter, the Eagles faltered in the fourth allowing the Chargers to take the lead with the aid of 14 opportunities at the free throw line to win the game 77 – 66. The Eagles saw two athletes in double digits with Chris Arcangel (Toronto, ON) leading with 14 points and Varinder Singh (Delta) following with another 12 points. Singh led in team assists again with 4 while teammate Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON) led the team in rebounds with a total of 7.
Despite the losses, the Eagles Men played hard and close matches against two of the top teams in the PACWEST conference. VIU is currently leading in 1st place with Camosun in 3rd after Week 6 action. Of the games, Head Coach Stefon Wilson was positive and direct with what the Eagles need to focus on stating, “We played very well for the first three quarters of both games. We have to do a better job of closing out games. VIU scored 25 points in the 4th and Camosun scored 28 points. Camosun only scored 28 points in the entire first half of the game. This clearly shows how important it is to finish games.”
The Eagles continue their hosting responsibilities playing Quest College on Friday, January 27th and against Capilano University on Saturday, January 28th. Both games will see tip-offs for the Women at 6:00pm and for the Men at 8:00pm.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
January 16, 2012
Friday the 13th Games Prove to be Unlucky for Eagles
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (January 16, 2012) – The Kwantlen Polytechnic University Eagles basketball teams began the second half of their season with a long road trip to Prince George for their contest against the University of Northern BC (UNBC) Timberwolves on January 13th.
The Women’s Eagles had a tough game against the Timberwolves who are currently in the top spot in the PACWEST conference. Losing the match 43 – 92, the Eagles never really controlled the game but still had some strong performances. First-year guard Brittney Church (Langley) hit three three-pointers in the first half and led the team with 11 points while second-year forward, Carrie Snaychuk (Kelowna), led the team with 6 rebounds. Although not reflected in the score, the Eagles defense played well with guard Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) and center Samantha McPhail (Vancouver) leading the charge. “Although Jess and Sam played well, we need to work on transition defense,” stated Assistant Coach, Emily Wright. “We didn’t get many shots up and had difficulty defending some of the Timberwolves in the paint.”
The Men’s Eagles started out strong against the 2nd place Timberwolves and amidst a loud local crowd but began to fall behind in the second quarter, eventually losing the match 56 – 92. Despite the point differential, the Eagles had three players in double digit points led by second-year guard, Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON), with 21 points and 3 assists. Fellow Ontarian and first-year point guard, Chris Arcangel (Toronto), followed with 10 points as did third-year forward, Varinder Singh (Delta). The deciding factor in the game showed when the Eagles were out rebounded 28 – 50 (56%) by the Timberwolves. “The game got away from us in the second quarter and we never recovered,” said Head Coach Stefon Wilson. “UNBC shot the ball well from the field and we shot the ball poorly. We were out rebounded [so] we must be tougher on the glass in future games.”
The Eagles are preparing to host a stretch of home games beginning this weekend with games against the island universities. Vancouver Island University visits Kwantlen on Friday, January 20th at 6:00pm while the Camosun College Chargers take to the court on Saturday, January 21st with a 1:00pm tip-off. All games are hosted at the Kwantlen – Surrey Campus Gym.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
December 2, 2011
Bird Fight! Eagles Split Games Against Falcons
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (December 2, 2011) – The Kwantlen Polytechnic University Eagles basketball teams concluded the first part of their seasons ahead of the long holiday break with split decisions against the Langara College Falcons on Thursday evening.
Although the beginning of the game was slow for the Eagle Women, they came back for a good second half and secured their third victory in a row with a 55 – 46 prevail. Second-year centre, Sam McPhail (Vancouver), issued another strong game collecting 12 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks, and 5 points against the Falcons. First-year guard, Jessica Villadiego (Surrey), also had a great game anchoring the Eagle team defensively and continually showing up every game with a solid presence in the paint.
In Men’s basketball, the Falcons would control home nest advantage over the Eagles. Unable to capitalize on the Falcon fouls, the Eagles shot only 37% from the free throw line. Contributing to the Eagle loss was the fact that the Eagles were out-rebounded by Langara 60 to 33. Despite this, first-year guard, Aaron Ram (Surrey), led the Eagles in points going 6 for 10 (60%) from the three-point line and finishing the game with a total of 23 points. AJ Adusei (North Delta), second-year point guard, continued to collect points adding 14 points and four assists while first-year guard, Mark Mitchell (Toronto, ON) also hit double digits marking 11 points on the board.
The Eagles go into the long holiday break with this split decision against the Langara College Falcons. The Eagle Women currently are sitting 4 – 3 in the PACWEST standings while the Eagle Men are at 2 – 5 with the bulk of the season still to come in the New Year. Both Eagle Men and Women teams will travel north for their next games on January 13, 2012 against the UNBC Timberwolves.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
November 28, 2011
Eagles Dominate in Season Home Opener
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (November 29, 2011) – The Kwantlen Polytechnic University Eagles basketball teams played host to Columbia Bible College (CBC) at their season home opener on Friday, November 25 rallying to victories against the Bearcats. On Saturday, November 26, the Eagles visited Douglas College where the Eagles split the games with the Women defeating the Royals and the Men suffering their fourth loss of the season.In front of a solid crowd of family and Kwantlen students, the Eagles welcomed the Bearcats for their season opener. The Eagle Women took the court first and quickly gained a lead held throughout the game. The Eagles made 21 of 47 three-pointers with second-year guard, Anna Work (Everett, WA), leading the team with 37 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists on the way to a commanding 119 – 52 win over the Bearcats. Early in the fourth quarter, third-year guard, Erin Vekic (Port Coquitlam), shot a three-pointer that took Eagles over the 100 point plateau. This marks the first time in Eagles history that the women’s basketball team tallied a score above 100 points in a single game.
The Eagles Men’s team had a fast-paced game, narrowly holding onto the lead, only widening the gap at the end of the fourth quarter for a 94 – 82 victory. Freshman point guard, Aaron Ram (Surrey), led the team with 21 points followed closely by veteran center, Ali Bosir (Surrey) with 18 points and 18 rebounds. Recent PACWEST “Athlete of the Week”, AJ Adusei (North Delta) added to the win with a strong showing of 17 points and 7 assists. The highlight for the home crowd was a huge dunk by Ali Bosir over two Bearcats opponents in the third quarter.
The second game of the weekend saw the Eagles visiting the Douglas College Royals on Saturday, November 26. The Eagle Women’s team had a tough game against the Royals. Never leading until the final seconds of the fourth quarter, the Eagles rallied hard to overcome their opponents in a very close 50 – 48 victory. A foul on Douglas College in the Eagle’s end of the court in the final 18 seconds of the game gave center Samantha McPhail (Vancouver) the opportunity to hit both free throws to tie giving the team the push to move ahead to victory. McPhail also had 9 points and 10 rebounds throughout the close contest. The two wins for the Eagle Women places them in a 3 -3 standing in the PACWEST league.
The Eagles Men’s team was defeated by the Douglas College Royals in Saturday’s game 96 - 88. A close game, the Eagles attacked the rim strongly but were unable to capitalize on the fouls with 10 missed free throws. Aaron Ram (Surrey) continued his weekend of terror by adding another 25 points during the game. Second-year point guard, AJ Adusei (North Delta) led the team with 26 points while third-year center, Ali Bosir (Surrey) had another double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. After Week 3, the Eagles Men’s team sits at a 2 – 4 record.
The Eagles will play their next games before the holiday break Thursday, December 1 at Langara College. The women take the court at 6 PM and the men take to the court at 8 PM.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
November 23, 2011
Adusei Named PACWEST Male Athlete of the Week
METRO VANCOUVER, BC -- (November 23, 2011) -- The Pacific Western Athletics Association (PACWEST) has named second year Eagles point gaurd AJ Adusei the Male Athlete of the Week for basketball. Adusei followed up on a great first week of the season with an even better second week. His 43 point performance against the Quest Kermodes last Saturday helped propel the Eagles to their first victory of the season. Adusei is currently sitting in first place in PACWEST league scoring averaging 36.25 points and is sixth in assists with 3.75/game. To see the full PACWEST press release click here
November 22, 2011
Kwantlen Men's Eagles Reap the Rewards of Continued Hard Work
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (November 22, 2011) – The Kwantlen Polytechnic University Eagles basketball teams travelled to North Vancouver and Squamish this past weekend to challenge the Capilano Blues and the Quest Kermodes. Despite playing some solid team basketball the women’s results were unfavourable but the men managed a split of the weekend games with their first victory of the season against Quest.
Friday night’s game provided an excellent test for the young Eagles women’s team (1-3) as they stepped on the court to face the undefeated Capliano Blues (3-0). The Eagles came out with a solid game plan and a strong work ethic and managed to keep the Blues within striking distance. First-year guard Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) provided the Eagles with solid defensive play and a spark of energy off the bench and third year guard Erin Vekic (Port Coquitlam) led the Eagles in scoring with 13 points. Unfortunately the Eagles lost a tight 69-61 battle.
When the Eagles men’s team took to the court on Friday night they knew that they would be in for a high scoring affair. Both the Blues (2-1) and the Eagles play a fast paced transition team style basketball game and Friday’s game was evidence of that. The Eagles found themselves down 12 points heading into the fourth quarter when they managed to take control of the game. Unfortunately it was a little too late and the Eagles lost 89-84. Second year point guard AJ Adusei (Delta) led the team in scoring with 30 points, and first year forward Aaron Ram (Surrey) scored 22 in the loss.
The Eagles women travelled north on Saturday to play the Quest Kermodes (2-1). Third-year guard Anna Work (Everett, WA) scored 17 points and Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) chipped in a team high 6 assists, but it was not enough to overcome the strong Kermodes attack and the Eagles fell 80-61.
Despite the loss against Capilano on Friday, the Men’s Eagles were a confident group heading into Squamish to play the Quest Kermodes (0-3). The Eagles believed that they had played well enough to win the night before and a similar effort on Saturday would likely result in a victory. The Eagles used some tenacious team defense and excellent free-throw shooting to take an early lead. Point guard AJ Adusei led the attack by dropping in 43 points, including sinking 17 of 20 shots from the free throw line. Second year guard Mark Mitchell (Toronto) played some outstanding perimeter defense throughout the game, and managed to sink a 3 point shot at the end of the game that was a dagger to the Kermodes chances of coming back. The Eagles picked up their first win of the regular season with a 93-79 victory.
The Eagles next play against the Columbia Bible College Bearcats in the 2011-2012 season home opener on Friday November 25th in the Surrey Campus Gymnasium. The women play at 6 PM and the men tip-off at 8 PM. Students with a valid Kwantlen student card get in Free!
On Saturday the Eagles travel to New Westminster to take on their cross river rivals the Douglas College Royals.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
November 15, 2011
Kwantlen Eagles Post Mixed Results on the Island
METRO VANCOUVER, BC – (November 15, 2011) – Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s basketball teams launched into the 2011-2012 Pacific Western Athletic Association (PACWEST) season last weekend. The season started on the road against the Camosun College Chargers and the Vancouver Island University Mariners.
On Friday night against the Chargers, the Eagles women showed off their work ethic, coming back from a 48-53 deficit, to edge out the Chargers by five-points, winning 74- 69. Third-year guard and transfer, Anna Work (Everett, WA) was the leading scorer for the Eagles netting 16 points and 7 steals. Players of note were also Jeannine Yngreso (Surrey) and Jessica Villadiego (Surrey) and Cassie Micona (Mission).
“Jessica played amazing defense on Camosun’s best scorer,” commented Eagles assistant coach, Emily Wright. “Cassie came off the bench and hit back to back threes to put us ahead and Anna and Jeannine came through with huge steals at the end of the game.”
If there’s one thing you need to know about the Eagles men’s basketball team, they play hard. And, if Friday night’s game is any indication, there’s a ton of great basketball in store for the fans. Against the Chargers, the Eagles took control of the lead at the half [43-41], fell 32-17 points in the third quarter and shot 32-24 in the fourth quarter, only to fall short by five-points at the final buzzer [97-92].
On Saturday the Eagles headed north to Nanaimo to face the VIU Mariners and posted two losses. The women fell to the Mariners 47-75 and the men were defeated 51-81.
Leading scorer for the Eagles men over the weekend was second-year guard AJ Adusei (North Delta), who scored 72 points over the two games. Reflecting on the results, head coach Stefon Wilson commented, “We have to find production, points-wise from the other players.” “In Saturday’s game, I was proud of our defense, only giving up 81 points. But, there are two sides to the game of basketball, and it’s important that we get back into the gym and get extra shots up outside of our regular practice time this week.”
The Eagles continue on the road this weekend and face the Capilano Blues on Friday and the Quest University Kermodes on Saturday. Tip off for the women (1-0-1) is at 6:00 pm for both games, and the men (0-0-2) at: 8:00 pm.
Complete game results can be found at: www.kwantlen.ca/eagles
2011-2012 News Archives
For Kwantlen Eagles news from the past season, please visit our News Archive site.
