White shines as Queens win in Lethbridge

Brent Forster - RDC

The RDC Queens were looking for a bounce back performance in Saturday's rematch in Lethbridge, and they received that in spades. After trailing in the opening half, the Queens displayed a strong work ethic and controlled the second half as they cruised to an 84-72 road victory over the Kodiaks. 

At the half, the RDC Queens found themselves trailing 39-32. Emily White equaled her 11 minutes yesterday in the opening two quarters. The third-year forward had 13 points, 3 blocks, 2 assists, 1 steal and 3 rebounds for the Queens while Amy Arbon led the Kodiaks with 12 points at the half.

The Queens hit the court with enthusiasm in the third quarter and outscored the Kodiaks 22-13. Paige Schultz led the way for RDC with 6 points in the third. The RDC Queens continued to push the pace and hit several important shots down the stretch as they added 30 more points in the final quarter. Lethbridge College responded with 20 and the Queens earned a significant 84-72 win. Maya Parker contributed 8 points, 3 assists and 1 rebound in the final quarter for the Queens. 

White was named the player-of-the-game for the RDC Queens, and finished with 24 points, 4 blocks, 4 steals, 9 rebounds and went 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Amy Arbon led the way for Lethbridge College and totaled 19 points, 6 assists and 11 rebounds. 

As a team, the Queens were strong from the free-throw line and sank 88% of their attempts. The RDC team went 41.8% from the field and totaled 35 rebounds. Down low, the Queens were very effective and scored 34 points in the paint. The Kodiaks had a difficult time containing the Queens around the basket. 

Queens Basketball Head Coach Ken King was very pleased with the solid work ethic and victory. "Today's effort and compete level were much improved and it was night-and-day from yesterday to today. We were down by 12 at one point but battled back," said King. "It was a high compete level today that I expect every day. The ladies deserve a lot of credit - they competed very hard this afternoon and it was a solid win."

Emily White played 25 minutes and made a positive impact. "As Emily is adjusting to game action after her injury, we increased her minutes and she was great especially inside," said King. "Mary Krause also had a very good game. While many of her contributions did not show up in the stats, she took care of business." In 13 minutes on the court, Krause was strong on the boards and recorded 5 defensive rebounds. The Bachelor of Education student added 1 block and 2 points. 

The Red Deer College Queens (3-6) will host the Briercrest College Clippers (3-6) next weekend in a pair of games. On Friday, January 19, the two teams will hit the RDC court at 6:00 p.m. and then they will meet again at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.