Box Score
GUELPH, ON – It's tough to win any game in OUA women's basketball action.
 
It's even tougher when you're battling not only the other team, but also your own inconsistency.
 
That was a big problem on Friday night for the Guelph Gryphons, who dropped a 65-49 decision to the Windsor Lancers at the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre.
 
The Gryphs outshot the Lancers, but managed only an 18.5 per cent field-goal percentage. They were more consistent from the free-throw line, but not enough to make a difference, because Windsor was markedly better in both categories.
 
"We weren't finishing," said Gryphs head coach Christin Dickenson. "We got a lot of great looks, we got to the free-throw line, but we didn't shoot well enough from the field and we didn't shoot well enough from the line."
 
Another big problem for Guelph was its inability to contain Windsor's Cheyanne Roger, who dominated at both ends of the court. The big forward asserted herself right away, scoring 11 points and grabbing five rebounds in the first quarter alone. And she couldn't be rattled despite the Gryphs trying to be tough with her, hitting all five of her free-throw attempts in that opening frame.
 
"It really allowed her to feel that she could control the game," Dickenson said. "That was someone who we needed to frustrate right away. To me, she got pretty confident throughout that game, and that was the biggest difference between winning and losing."
 
Roger wound up with a game-high 22 points and 16 rebounds. Emily Prevost had 14 points for the Lancers and Andrea Kiss added 13.
 
Bridget Atkinson led the Gryphs with 11 points. Katherine MacTavish, Dana Van Balkom and Barbara Inrig-Pieterse each contributed nine points, with MacTavish also collecting 12 rebounds.
 
Dickenson would like to have seen more from Atkinson, particularly in defending against Roger, but the sophomore forward from Welland, ON got into foul trouble.
 
"Not having Bridget on the court was a difficult situation for us," the coach said. "She's an outstanding point guard and so sitting her was a big issue for us."
 
She also expressed displeasure during the game with what she felt was inconsistent officiating, but she reflected on that later.
 
"I think they have a tough job, especially with two teams that are as physical as both of our teams," Dickenson said. "We're always trying to figure out how to play in each game."
 
Friday's was a particularly chippy contest, with the two teams combining for 55 fouls – 28 for Windsor and 27 for Guelph. Inrig-Pieterse and Regan Duff both fouled out for the Gryphs, as did Windsor's Orian Amsalem.
 
It was Guelph's third loss in a row, dropping the team's record to 5-4 in the OUA Central Division. The Gryphs are now on the road for the next month, playing six contests away from the W.F. Mitchell Athletics Centre.
 
Dickenson said it'll be a challenge, but one her team can overcome.
 
"We say 'win or learn, never lose,' and that's exactly what we said in there," she said, pointing at the locker room. "We learned lessons from this game. We've learned lessons from all of our losses, and that's going to better prepare us for our next task, against Brock. We're going there to win."
 
That game against Brock is on January 27. The Gryphs won't play at home again until Feburary 17 against Ryerson, which is currently No. 2 in the latest CIS rankings.