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The Thunder Women’s Basketball team faced off against the Augustana Vikings this past weekend in a two game set. With the Vikings being ranked one of the top four teams in the ACAC this year, the 'Lady Thunder' had their hands full with size and experience. As the ball was tossed up in the air to begin the weekend competition, the Thunder jumped out right from the start and made the game interesting. With hard work and perseverance, Concordia kept the Vikings feet to the fire but in the end were not able to get the 'W'. “Even though we didn’t come out victorious tonight, it sure felt like it was a win for the team,” said Head Coach Robbie Valpreda. "These girls – this team – have shown great improvement. They competed for the full 40 minutes and every time the Vikings made a run, this team responded by making a run of their own defensively. We got stops when we needed it.”  Once again Railene Hooper and Meagan McIntosh did a great job with their inside size and fellow veteran Karolina Wieczorek captured Player of the Game honours in the 78-62 loss.
On the 2nd evening of competition and with positive momentum from Friday night, once again the girls jumped out right from the tip off. With 2 minutes left before half time, the score was a narrow 30-28 in favour of Augustana. “They made a late run before half, getting it 38-28 as the first 20 minutes expired,” said Coach Valpreda. “We have to learn how to finish quarters. This is just as important as how you start. We will get better at this.” At the final buzzer, the Thunder trailed by 11 going down 63-52. Once again the Player of the Game was Karolina Wieczorek. "This was a total team effort again tonight," said Coach Valpreda. “We competed with one of the best in the ACAC this year. These girls are working so hard and competing each and every day. The coaching staff and I have seen much improvement and as long as we stay focused and do not become complacent, the outcome will always be positive."  The supporting cast on Saturday also included Aly Bridgeman who played with the quickness and versatility the team needed. Once again the dynamic duo of Railene Hooper and Meagan McIntosh held Augustana's best players to 3 points and 10 points for the evening.
The Thunder's next action will be on November 8th and 9th when they host the Grande Prairie Wolves in a two game series.  Tip off times are 6PM and 1 PM at the Ralph King Athletic Centre.

Photo Courtesy of John McIntosh