The Queens bounce back with a victory over the Eagles in Edmonton

Edmonton, November 11 - On this Remembrance Day matchup, the Red Deer Polytechnic Queens travelled north to face off against The Kings University Eagles. The Eagles enter this match with a 2-2 record in the North Division which is good enough for fourth place. The Queens are coming off a loss last weekend against the University of Alberta-Augustana Vikings and currently sit in sixth place in the South Division with a 2-3 record.

The first 10 minutes took quite some time with more fouls and stoppages then usual for a first quarter and lasted just under 30 minutes. But it was very much an even and defensive match between the teams from Red Deer and Edmonton. At the end of the first it was tied 12-12 after an Eagles player capitalized on some last-minute foul shots. After 10, Stauffer-native Amy Szymanek (Bachelor of Education Middle School) led her team with six points and two rebounds.

The tight battle continued into the second quarter as it stayed at 21-21 for a few minutes before the Queens broke the dead lock late in the quarter with a layup and a three-pointer. But the Eagles stayed in it with a layup of their own and were down by just three before the half. Guard Heena Sidhu (Bachelor of Arts Political Science) came out of nowhere to take the team lead before the break with 11 points, two rebounds and two assists.

With just over three minutes left to play, the Queens were holding the Eagles to only four points in the third compared to their own 13 points to extend their lead. But The Kings University still did not allow Red Deer Polytechnic to run away with the game and stayed within nine points of the visiting team. But the Queens extended their lead to 13 before the end of third quarter and would lead the Eagles 43-32. Szymanek finished the quarter with a total of 14 points and seven rebounds which was just one point ahead of Sidhu.

The Kings University continued to battle to stay within the game but their defence could not hold up against the Queens offence, even if it was not Red Deer's highest scoring game. The Queens would hop onto the bus and travel back to Red Deer with a 64-46 win. They would end their weekend with a 3-3 record with this win.

Szymanek finished her night with 18 points and nine rebounds, but it was Heena Sidhu, who was named player of the game for the Queens with 13 points, three assists and two rebounds.

The Queens have a tough schedule ahead of them next week with two matches against North Division teams. On Friday, they will play host to the Keyano College Huskies at 6 pm before battling it out with the Lakeland College Rustlers on Saturday at 6 pm. The Huskies are currently sitting in third place in the nation. Both games will be at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre.