The Douglas College Royals continued their on-court success in PacWest women’s basketball action, beating two Island rivals to improve to 13-3 on the season.
The Royals topped third-place Vancouver Island 64-47 on Saturday, powered by New West native Jettie McLaughlin’s 14-point performance off the bench.
Douglas erased a 19-18 deficit with a strong second quarter, limiting the Islanders to just seven points. In the third quarter, the defence was nearly as tight, holding Vancouver Island to eight points.
McLaughlin, a third-year post, led the squad in scoring while also contributing six rebounds. Cashing in for 12 points was Sarah Jorgenson. Dominating on the boards was Rachel Beauchamp, with 12 rebounds to go with six points, while Hannah Klassen delivered 11 rebounds.
A key to the win was the squad's 34 points off the bench.
The victory bumped Douglas' record to 13-3, one game back of first-place Capilano.
A day earlier, the Royals again turned a one-point deficit – this time at the half – into a solid 73-60 win over Camosun.
Beauchamp tallied 18 points and 10 rebounds, while registering four blocks. Contributing 13 points and a game-high 15 boards was Jorgenson, while Ellen Fallis chipped in 12 points. McLaughlin drained eight points in just over eight minutes of playing time.
The board battle was a huge advantage for the Royals, who out-rebounded Camosun 61-38.
For her performance during the week, Jorgenson was named the PacWest's women's Player of the Week. In a make-up game last Tuesday, she counted a career-high 25 points against Columbia Bible College, then tacked on double-double against Camosun. She finished the three-game week with 50 points and 30 rebounds.
Beauchamp, with a strong lead in the top-rebounding stats for the PacWest, enters the final weekend of the regular season with a slim lead over Vancouver Island's Sienna Pollard for the scoring lead, 250 to 245. The Surrey native's 172 boards over 16 games is 32 more than Pollard. Guard Adelia Paul sits second overall in the league for assists, with 48 over 14 games.
Douglas wraps up the regular season this weekend, hosting Langara, 5 p.m. Saturday at the New West campus.
The provincial championships begin March. 2.
ROYALS BLAST CBC
The Douglas College Royals men's basketball team turned on the jets, en route to a 111-64 victory over the Columbia Bible College Wildcats on Monday in a make-up contest.
Lambert Pajayon set the tone with 21 points, while Malcolm Mensah was good for 20 and Grant Campbell contributed 18. The Royals were successful on 53.2 per cent from the field, picking up their eighth win of the season. They wrap up the regular season on Saturday, 7 p.m. against Langara.
