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UNBC women's basketball season comes to an end after Canada West quarterfinals loss to Calgary

The women had a season for the history books
Jess Balzer
Jess Balzer
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(via UNBC Athletics)

All good things come to an end, but it was a little earlier than the UNBC Timberwolves women's basketball team was hoping for. 

The women's unforgettable season ended last night (Feb. 20) in Canada West quarterfinal play against the top-seeded Calgary Dinos with a 87-68 loss after a stellar few weeks of basketball prior. 

At one point in the season, UNBC had a record of 3-9 with playoffs a distant thought, but would reel off eight straight regular-season wins to finish 11-9 and clinch their fourth straight Canada West playoffs appearance. 

And not to mention, they did it with only six players dressed due to numerous injuries which led to exceptional play from fifth-year forward Maria Mongomo and fourth-year guard Madison Landry with Mongomo eventually claiming the 2019-20 Canada West scoring title.

She and Landry were also selected to Canada West All-Star teams yesterday (Feb. 21). 

The Timberwolves would go on and win their playoff opener in a double-overtime thriller against Lethbridge which set up the matchup with the Calgary Dinos in Alberta. 

Erin McIntosh would help Calgary come out of the gates fast to open the game and put the Dinos up 5-0 in the early going but UNBC didn't back down and would end up with a 14-12 lead late in the first quarter but would go cold from the floor which game Calagary a 17-16 lead after the opening 10. 

In the second, fatigue started to show for the Timberwolves which led to the Dinos making the most of the situation with the lengthy Michaela Nieuwenhuizen going to work for Calgary and took a 36-21 lead heading into halftime. 

"That first half really showed the character of our team," UNBC's Madison Landry said in a postgame release. "That team is so deep, Nationally ranked. We gave such an effort, and we can't be mad at ourselves after that."

The Dinos came out to start the second half blazing, going on a 10-0 run which gave them a 16 point lead. UNBC would keep being scrappy and not going away quietly to cut the deficit to eight after three quarters that saw Calgary hold onto a 60-52 lead heading into the fourth. 

But once again, the Dinos showed why they're the top-ranked team in Canada West, with Bobbi-Jo Colburn nailing a pair of threes to push Calgary's lead to double digits once again with a 14 point advantage. 

But five weeks of having only six players dressed eventually caught up to UNBC who would suffer a 87-68 loss and were officially eliminated from the playoffs, which were the last for Prince George's Emily Holmes and Maria Mongomo, both graduating this year. 

"We really stayed together as a team. The fifth-years have really set amazing building blocks," Landry added. "They will be missed, but they have left a legacy that will always be there."

Landry paced UNBC, dropping 25 while adding four rebounds and four steals. Mongomo added 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists. Madison's sister, Rebecca, also chipped in with 12.