Sault College grabs season's first win

NEWS RELEASE

SAULT COLLEGE ATHLETICS

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OCAA Men’s Basketball

This past weekend, the Cougar men headed south in search of their first victory of the season.

First off for the men was the hostile surroundings of the Redeemer University Royals on Friday night. The host Royals came out strong from the start jumping out to a 15 point lead on the Cougars.

The Sault College men fought hard trimming the lead down to 6 points by halftime. The second half saw the Cougar men continue to chip away at the lead employing strategic pressure defense to bring the Royals within reach. A challenging final minute saw the Cougars bring take the lead and hold on until the dying seconds for a 70-69 win.

The Cougars were lead by Jay Ripplinger (CASS) and Andel Martin with 19 and 17 points respectively. Strong defensive efforts by veterans Hassan Sulley and Mike Beharriell helped the Cougars to their first win of the season.

On Saturday the men looked to continue their winning ways against first place Niagara College. The host Knights quickly showed why they are the top team in the OCAA West opening up a 15-0 lead from the opening whistle. The Cougars took the first half to find their legs and entered halftime down 41-11. The second half saw Sault College battle back with a better effort being outscored 44-40; leaving the final score 85-51 for Niagara College.

Top scorers for the Cougars were Tyler Hawkins (Sir James Dunn) and Jay Ripplinger (CASS) with 12 and 10 points each.

The Cougar men play host to undefeated Sheridan College this Friday at 7 pm. OCAA Women’s Volleyball

The weekend road trip also saw the Cougar women travelling south looking for their first victory of the season.

On Friday night, the women played host Redeemer in a spirited contest. The Cougar women played intense volleyball as they fought in the first two games to get their legs after a long trip to Hamilton. Points were at a premium as the women battled the Royals on each rally falling just short in the opening two games by scores of 25-23 and 25-21.

The third game saw the Cougar women come alive as they dictated the tempo with inspired offence that lead to a 26-24 victory. The last game saw our women get behind and struggle to make up ground against the Royals as they fell 25-13; giving Redeemer the match win. Strong performances were turned in by Michela Szatanski (Sir James Dunn) and Tiffany Muncaster (Korah) with 10 and 9 points respectively.

On Saturday the women again fought hard against a bigger and more veteran Niagara squad. Despite the effort the women fell in 3 games to the Knights 25-14, 25-16, 25 – 21. Leading scorers for the Cougar women were Tiffany Muncaster (Korah), Megan Szatanski (SJD) and Kelly Roussell all with 4 points apiece.

Next action for the ladies is November 30 and December 1 when they play host to both Nipissing University and Canadore College at the Sault College Athletic Centre.

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