A historic season for the Columbia Bible College Bearcats women's basketball team hit a bump in the road with a 69-59 loss to the Vancouver Island University Mariners on Saturday (March 1) in the Pacwest final, but the Bearcats journey continues at the CCAA Nationals next week.
Coming off the team's best-ever regular season at 19-3, CBC entered the Pacwest provincials with a first round bye and then won a playoff game for the first time in school history with a 57-50 win over the Douglas College Royals on Friday (Feb. 28).
That set up a gold medal game against their arch-rivals from VIU.
The bad blood between the two teams stretches back to an alleged transphobic incident that occurred between Bearcats head coach Taylor Claggett and VIU player Harriette Mackenzie in October. The league investigated the incident and Claggett was removed from the bench for the remainder of the regular season and provincials. CBC has been fighting to reverse the decision.
CBC originally was hosting the Pacwest basketball provincials, but the event was taken away from the school after the investigation and moved to North Vancouver's Capilano University. VIU defeated CBC the two times they played earlier this season. The teams were scheduled to meet again in Abbotsford in January, but the Mariners chose not to play due to safety concerns.
Saturday's gold medal game saw the Bearcats fall behind 17-13 and trail 40-33 at halftime. CBC kept the game relatively close, but could never close the gap against the Mariners.
Tournament MVP Harriette Mackenzie scored 21 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and recorded six assists to lead her team to the win. VIU also got 13 points from Makayla Kimble and 12 points Mackenzie Cox. Mackenzie Hall added 12 rebounds, six assists and four points.
CBC was led by Grace Park, who scored 16 points and recorded six assists. Kagari Tomita also had a big game with 15 points and 14 rebounds. Julie Dueck contributed with 12 points and six rebounds. It was a tough night for Pacwest player of the year Elissa Vreugdenhil, as she scored just seven points on 3/11 shooting, but did grab nine rebounds.
VIU head coach Tony Bryce said he was proud for how his team performed in the face of adversity.
"People tried to tear us apart and we let love prevail and lead to success鈥�" he told the Nanaimo News Bulletin. "We know the truth. We know our people and we know the genuine side of each other and we love and appreciate each other in every way and you can see that in the way they operate on and off the court."
He credited the Pacwest and Capilano University for creating a safe environment for basketball and hosting on short notice.
"We knew we just had to stay focused on doing our jobs and staying out of any nonsense and just taking the higher road and we did a good job of doing that," he added. "We ignored all the outside noise and just played basketball and obviously did a little better than they did, but they're a very good team and I think they're going to represent very well out at nationals as well, on the court."
Despite the loss, the Bearcats still qualified for the CCAA Nationals as the silver medal winning team. Fredricton's St. Thomas University will host the event, which sees the top eight teams from across the country compete. VIU also earned a spot after winning the gold medal. That event runs from March 12 to 15.
Claggett's availability for the nationals is not yet known, but The News has asked CBC about her status.
With files from: Greg Sakaki/Nanaimo News Bulletin