(Beijing, China) The Canadian Women’s U25 National Wheelchair Basketball Team will face Great Britain in the semifinals at the 2015 Women’s U25 World Championship in Beijing. Canada (2-3) will tip off against undefeated Great Britain (5-0) at 1:30 a.m. ET on Sunday.
“We need to come prepared to play Great Britain and recognize that the Brits are a very fast team which focuses on transition,” said Team Canada player Erica Gavel, a native of Prince Albert, Sask. “The British offence relies on their defence and if we attack their defence aggressively we should do well.”
“The British offence relies on their defence and if we attack their defence aggressively we should do well.”
Australia (4-1) will play host China (3-2) in the other semifinal match, while Germany (1-4) will take on Japan (0-5) to decide fifth place.
Team Canada placed fourth at the conclusion of round robin play on Saturday following a 73-57 loss to Australia.
Australia outscored the Canadians 18-10 in the first 10 minutes of play. Canada turned the tide in the second frame and doubled up the Aussies on the scoreboard by an output of 26-13 to take a 36-31 lead into halftime. Australia responded with a massive third quarter, dropping 22 points compared to nine by Canada. With the game firmly in control, Australia secured the win by outscoring Canada 20-12 to close out the match.
“We are here to continue to improve and we really improved our shadow mechanics against the Aussies,” said Ross Norton, head coach of the Canadian team. “We need to learn to make adjustments on the fly. We did a lot of things correctly and need to focus on what we did well in this game. We also shot the ball well today.”
Arinn Young, of Legal, Alta., led all Canadian players with a double-double on the strength of 20 points and 14 rebounds. Rosalie Lalonde, of St-Clet, Que., finished second in team scoring with 14 points for the Canadian side. Amber Merrit produced a game-best 34 points for the Australians.
The Women’s U25 World Championship is held every four years and Canada is one of six countries competing for the world title from June 30 to July 6, 2015 in Beijing. Canada placed fourth as the host nation at the inaugural world championship for junior women in 2011 in St. Catharines, Ont.
The following athletes are representing Canada (athletes’ city of residence indicated / returning players from the 2011 team denoted with a *):
#4 Corin Metzger (Elmira, Ont.)*
#5 Élodie Tessier (St-Germain de Grantham, Que.)
#6 Helaina Cyr (Sherwood Park, Alta.)*
#7 Danielle Arbour (St. John’s, N.L.)
#8 Alarissa Haak (Sherwood Park, Alta.)*
#9 Maude Jacques (Lac-Beauport, Que.)*
#10 Zoe Hahn (Linwood, Ont.)
#12 Sara Black (Toronto, Ont.)
#13 Arinn Young (Legal, Alta.)
#14 Erica Gavel (Saskatoon, Sask.)
#15 Rosalie Lalonde (St-Clet, Que.)
Head Coach: Ross Norton (Edmonton, Alta.)
Assistant Coach: Simon Cass (Victoria, B.C.)
To arrange interviews, please contact Courtney Pollock at 613-260-1296 ext. 203 or cpollock@wheelchairbasketball.ca.
About Team Canada
The Women’s U25 National Team develops the top young Canadian female athletes in preparation for the IWBF Women’s U25 World Championships, which take place every four years. Players must be 25 years old or younger to be eligible to compete. Canada hosted the inaugural world championship for junior women in 2011, where the Team Canada placed fourth.
About Wheelchair Basketball Canada
Wheelchair Basketball Canada is the national sports governing body responsible for the organization of the sport in Canada. It is a non-profit, charitable organization that is committed to excellence in the development, support and promotion of wheelchair basketball programs and services for all Canadians from grassroots to high performance. Wheelchair basketball is a fast-paced, hard-hitting, competitive sport in which Canada is held in high esteem around the world for winning a combined six gold, one silver, and one bronze medal in the last six Paralympic Games.