The Chicoutimi D2 Women’s Basketball Team Dominates Post-Season Tournament, Eyes Provincials

It was first with the Voltigeurs du Cégep de Drummondville that the Chicoutimian team crossed swords in the morning to begin its post-season tournament. Quickly, the players led by Jean-Michel Bergeron and Marilyne Girard gained pace in the match. Jennyfer Gros scored nine points in the first quarter, her teammates followed her effort and the Cégep de Chicoutimi built a lead that was soon insurmountable.

At halftime, the scoreboard showed 54 to 19 in favor of the home team. The Chicoutimi team did not slow down in the second half of the game. To tell the truth, and with all respect, the Cégep de Drummondville has never really been in the game. The meeting ended with a score of 100 to 41, a complete triumph for the team which had enjoyed a flawless regular season in the Northeast Conference.

“The girls played a great game to start the day on Saturday. We were really able to see the depth and talent of our team. All players participated offensively and defensively. It set the tone for our post-season journey,” commented the head coach of the team from the outset.

Jean-Michel Bergeron is very invested in the success of his team, as is his assistant Marilyne Girard. (Sophie Lavoie/Le Quotidien)

Adversity in the second game

The semi-final duel pitted the Cougars against the Sherbrooke Volunteers. The tournament hosts, much like their quarter-final performance, took the reins early in the match. In the first possessions, everything seemed to work for only one side. After 20 minutes of play, the crowd favorites were ahead of their opponents by 18 points.

However, the wind seemed to change sides somewhere at the end of the third quarter. Successively, the baskets followed one another in the Sherbrooke camp only. The locals’ lead was thus considerably undermined. Fully aware of the change in dynamics taking place in the match, Jean-Michel Bergeron called a timeout.

“We missed a lot of baskets in a row, baskets that we normally would have scored. The goal, by taking a timeout, was to slow down the momentum in the other camp and give my players a moment of respite. The main thing was to execute well in attack and to return to a more solid defense,” explained the Cougars pilot after the meeting.

The Sherbrookoises managed to orchestrate a whole sequence of successes in attack. From 50 to 22 to 54 to 40, the visitors did an excellent job with the ball. (Sophie Lavoie/Le Quotidien)

The Audrey Yerle machine started up after the timeout. Successful attempts followed one after the other. The ball shook the strings for Chicoutimi. The French player’s teammates also helped put the final nail in the coffin. The Volunteers’ hopes were effectively dashed in the final minutes of the fourth quarter, the reigning Northeast Conference champions had regained their composure. The end of the match siren finally sounded with a score of 70-45.

“We didn’t experience a lot of adversity this year during the regular season. It happened a few times that we had closer matches, but overall, we didn’t really feel the team on our nerves like Sherbrooke did at the end of the match. It’s an experience that makes us grow stronger because in the remaining matches, there will be adversity,” said Mr. Bergeron.

The smiles were back on the Cougars bench after the timeout. The baskets have indeed started to fall for them again. (Sophie Lavoie/Le Quotidien)

Prepare the provincials

By reaching the final, which will be played at 1 p.m. Sunday, the Cougars confirmed their qualification for the provincial championship. The first four teams in the Northeast Conference tournament will join the four best teams in the Southwest division to ensure a winning team is crowned at the Quebec level.

Even if Chicoutimi obtained its bye by beating Sherbrooke, the conference final is still a high-stakes match, confirmed the head coach. “The best team from each conference faces the worst team from the other conference which has managed to get past the provincials. So we want to make sure we finish as high as possible in our conference to maximize our chances of winning when we get there.”

For a team that only has two graduating players, Marilyn Girard and Jean-Michel Bergeron were very amazed to see the maturity and seriousness of their entire team, throughout the season. (Sophie Lavoie/Le Quotidien)

The perfect season is still at stake, but assistant Marilyn Girard confirmed that there was never any pressure put on the shoulders of the Chicoutimi players for this streak to continue. “The girls are very proud of it, we, as coaches, are very proud of it too, but we never talked to them about perfection. We want them to play their best basketball every game. What matters is that they work hard,” she said.

Still, the perfect season can still be preserved tomorrow with a win. The Cégep de Chicoutimi D2 women’s basketball team had a historic season. Only the future will tell whether this story will continue to be written or not. One thing is certain, the fans, coaches and the players themselves are very satisfied with the journey accomplished so far.

Excellent work was done in the key among the Cougars. The majority of baskets were also generated in this zone at the end of the match. (Sophie Lavoie/Le Quotidien)

2024-04-06 23:31:22
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