VANCOUVER, B.C. – The tenth-seeded UBC Okanagan Heat women's basketball team had their season come to a close on Friday night as they lost 64-56 to the seventh-seeded Regina Cougars in their Canada West play-in round matchup at the War Memorial Gymnasium.
 
In a back-and-forth matchup, the Heat appeared poised to knock off the higher-ranked Cougars as they led by as many as four points late in the third quarter. However, Regina battled back and a 6-0 run by the Cougars through the middle part of the fourth-quarter allowed them to take a nine-point and they never looked back en route to the victory.
 
"Overall, we thought we played well," said Heat head coach Bobby Mitchell following the game. "The third quarter was probably our most consistent quarter and then I thought in the fourth quarter there were a couple decisions I think we'd like to have back but it was good, we played how we wanted to play and that was key. We wanted to do the things that we did, I liked our compete and our fight and our energy throughout the game for sure."
 
Playing in her first playoff game as a member of the Heat, Kelowna native Lily Pink was the story of the game for UBCO, pouring in a game-high 18 points on 53.5 percent shooting from the floor. She also added four blocks and two steals on the defensive side of the ball, along with three rebounds.
 
Playing in her final game with the Heat, Lauren Foullong finished with 11 points, hitting three of her team's five three-pointers in the match. Fellow graduating senior Kelsey Falk put together one last monster effort for UBCO, finishing the game with seven points, a game-high 14 rebounds three assists and three steals.
 
Rachel Vanderhooft matched Pink's 18 points to lead all Cougars scorers while Cara Misskey added 17 points. The Heat managed to limit Canada West leading scorer Jade Belmore to just 10 points, nearly 10 points below her season average.
 
The game opened up with Regina, who finished 13-7 during the regular season, jumping out to an 8-0 lead as the Heat struggled to find their offensive rhythm. However, UBCO responded with an 8-0 run of their own, highlighted by a Pink jumped that tied the game. The Cougars would score three of the final four baskets of the frame as they grabbed a five-point lead after 10 minutes.
 
The Cougars continued to increase their lead throughout the second quarter and led by as many as 10 points late in the quarter. UBCO would respond over the final minute and a half of the frame, posting a 6-0 run, including five more points from Pink, as the Heat found themselves down just four, 30-26, at recess.
 
Pink was the story of the opening frame, scoring 14 of her team's 26 points as she single-handedly kept her team in the contest.
 
That late run sparked the Heat in the third quarter as UBCO put together their strongest 10 minutes of the contest.
 
Just three minutes into the frame, two quick buckets from Tsuki Tsuzuki and Tennyson McCarthy gave UBCO their first lead of the game and that advantage would grow to four points minutes later off a three-pointer from Aiko Williams.
 
Regina would respond with a 6-2 run to close the quarter and the two teams would be tied at 44 after three.
 
The two teams traded buckets through the opening three minutes of the fourth quarter before the crucial eight-point run by Regina turned a one-point lead into nine and sealed the win for the Cougars.
 
"It's not easy to get here," added Mitchell. "We had to do some work in term two and we did that so overall I'm very proud and the future looks good. A lot of our young players got big minutes tonight, played well and our veterans are leaving them in good hands, so they were good for those young players."
 
The loss wraps up a strong season for a Heat squad that featured a number of young players on a regular basis. The team finished the season with a 7-13 record, reaching the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season. Although the team will be losing key contributors in Falk, Foullong and Abby Smith, the future looks bright for a squad that has eight players entering their second or third year of eligibility in 2025-26.