Queens drop contest to sharp-shooting Williams and visiting Clippers

Brent Forster - RDC

Red Deer, AB - The RDC Queens were up against a talented shooter who certainly found her rhythm. Briercrest College's Angenay Williams was nearly unstoppable Saturday afternoon. Williams knocked down 39 points and led her squad to a 93-75 road win.

"We didn't have an answer any time we've played her. She's an unbelievable talent," says Queens Head Coach Mandy Botham. "She played Div. 1 in the States and is a phenomenal athlete. Nothing we seemed to throw at her would stop her."

After a strong Clippers' start, the Queens closed the gap late and pulled within a triple (22-19) at the end of the first quarter. Once again, the Clippers liked the long ball, connecting on six-of-15 over two quarters. The visitors outscored RDC 21-14 in the second quarter and held a 10 point edge (43-33) at the break.

Harneet Sidhu (14) led the Queens with 17 points

Both teams were 40 per cent successful from field.

The Clippers connected on 40 per cent of their three-point attempts and the Queens went 30 per cent from beyond the arc.

Williams led the Clippers with 15 points. Valentina Rincon had seven for the Queens.

Briercrest College put up 27 points in the third. RDC responded with 18 and the visitors pushed their lead to 19 (70-51) after 30 minutes.

"We tend to get frustrated easily when things don't go our way," says Botham. "I think it's a maturity thing and as we play more games and learn, and grow together, we will improve on it."

The RDC Queens edged the Clippers in the fourth quarter (24-23), but they couldn't rally. Briercrest College picked up a 93-75 road win. 

The Clippers finished with nine three-pointers. The Queens had eight.

Briercrest College took 15 more shots from the field (79-64) and the success rate slightly favoured the visitors (43.8-43%).

Calgary's Valentina Rincon was named the Collegiate Sports Medicine Queens Player-of-the-Game, totaling 12 points, one steal, one assist and one rebound.

Val Rincon (9)

"I was really impressed with how she showed leadership on the floor. She was communicating effectively on defence," says Botham.

"One of things we were struggling with all day with our zone, and when she was in the game, she became that person who was directing traffic. It made a difference and we slowed them down, for a little bit. She was getting some good looks and taking shots with confidence."

The head coach would like to see improved ball management.

"We had a ton of turnovers and a lot of them were unforced," says Botham.

The Queens had 31 turnovers. The Clippers totaled 23.

Williams was recognized for the Clippers with an outstanding offensive performance. She added five steals and five assists, and made 11 out of 12 free-throws.

The RDC Queens (4-4) will challenge the Rattlers (3-4) in Medicine Hat on Friday, November 29 at 6:00 p.m. At the same time, the second place Clippers (5-2) will host the top seed Olds College Broncos (6-1).