DAVID LARKINS, Wesmen Athletics

Just as the Mount Royal Cougars looked to be swinging momentum on the road, the Winnipeg Wesmen delivered an extended knockout blow.

The Wesmen women's basketball team held the Cougars to nine points nine the fourth quarter and broke a third-quarter tie with a decisive run to post a 75-57 Canada West conference victory Friday night at the Duckworth Centre. 

All five starters scored in double figures for the Wesmen (11-6), who used a 25-6 run over a span of 5:52 that connected the third and fourth quarters to break the game open. 

The Cougars (5-12) pulled even at 48 on an Abbey Gillette three with 2:21 to go in the third, but mustered just six points over the next 10 minutes and 45 seconds of the game.

"Defensively we played man and we were able to make sure their shooters weren't wide open because when we were sitting in our match (zone) the kids literally sitting in the match and the shooters were wide open," Wesmen head coach Tanya McKay said. "And so if you even give them an inch it's going. They average taking close to 30 threes a game so you've gotta respect their shot."

Anna Kernaghan and Jillian Duncan led the Wesmen with 15 points apiece, with Duncan grabbing seven rebounds. Jessica Dyck had 13 points and 11 rebounds, Lena Wenke also had 13 points and Robyn Boulanger had 11. 

"It felt like we just lost our mojo, lost our rhythm there, for whatever reason," Mount Royal coach Robyn Fleckenstein said. "It just has to be something that we address as a group in terms of how we can find other things to give us rhythm."

Jenika Martens had 11 first-quarter points on her way to a team-high 14 points for the Cougars. Charity Marlatt added 11.

The Wesmen forced 29 MRU turnovers and coughed it up 16 times.

Winnipeg shot 43.1 per cent from the field and 4-for-17 from three, while Mount Royal shot it at 31.7 per cent and 29.6 per cent.

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