Box Score
MONTREAL -- Raeshaun Gaffney, a junior guard from Reynoldsburg, Ohio, hit a lay-up with 1.2 seconds remaining in overtime as Xavier University edged McGill 68-67 in an NCAA-CIS women's preseason basketball thriller at Love Competition Hall, Tuesday. The game featured 14 lead changes.

It was the third victory in three games for the Musketeers, an NCAA Div. 1 squad from Cincinnati, Ohio, on their four-game exhibition tour of Canada.

Gaffney, who played a game-high 37 minutes, led all scorers with 17 points and also registered six rebounds with three assists.

The Martlets had a chance to win it with less that two seconds remaining and a 67-66 McGill lead.  Veteran Stephanie Blais went to the foul-line but missed both shots and XU sprinted back for the winning basket. McGill had another last-ditch effort on the final play of extra time but a buzzer-beater attempt by Gabriela Hebert from mid-court was a split-second too late and went astray.

McGill, which trailed 51-40 after three quarters, rallied to outscore the Musketeers 17-6 in the foiurth stanza.

"It was a good effort... but we've got to learn how to come out of a quarter and go up," said Ryan Thorne, in his 13th season as bench boss at McGill. "They changed some things and we didn't adjust right away... It's early (in the preseason) and sometimes when things start going south, people revert back to what they've done in the past, especially the young kids...We just gotta stay consistent and that's what we did in the fourth quarter, which allowed us to come back into the game."

Jennifer Silver, a junior from Montreal, was one of two McGill players to reach double figures in scoring with 11 points. Freshman starter Gladys Hakizimana of Montreal added 10, while junior Alex Kiss-Rusk of Beaconsfield, Que., tallied eight points, posting game-highs in rebounds (12) and blocks (5).

Briana Glover and Jenna Crittendon added 16 and 15, respectively, for Xavier. Crittendon and Leah Schaefer led the Musketeers on the glass as both players pulled down seven rebounds.

The opening period was close as neither team led by more than two possessions and Xavier held a 17-14 advantage at the end of the quarter. The teams were tied at 33-33 with 30 seconds left in the second quarter but Silver connected on a put-back as time expired to give McGill a 35-33 advantage at the break.

The Musketeers started the second half with an 8-0 run and finished the third period by outscoring McGill, 18-5, to lead 51-40 after three quarters of action. But McGill returned the favour by scoring 12 unanswered to start the fourth period and take a 52-51 lead with 6:36 left in regulation time. The teams were tied at 57-57 with 2:40 remaining but neither side hit a basket in the closing minutes to force the extra period. A Crittendon three-pointer fell short as time expired to end the fourth period. XU outscored McGill 11-01 in overtime.

The Martlets shot 31.6 per cent from the floor (25/79) and 36.4 from three-point range (8/22) but only went to the charity stripe 14 times to come away with just nine points (a 64.3 per cent success rate).

Xavier shot 30.9, 35.7 and 72.4, respectively. They went to the line a whopping 29 times and came away with 21 points on freebies.

It was a sloppy game that featured 50 turnovers, including 27 by McGill. The Martlets had a 46-35 edge in rebounds and a 10-7 margin in blocked shots. The visitors held a 12-10 difference in steals,

Xavier will be off tomorrow as they travel to Niagara Falls to sightsee before closing the night in Toronto. The Musketeers wrap up their exhibition tour on Thursday against a team called the A-Game All-Stars.

The Martlets (0-2) will host Maryville University from Dayton, Ohio, on Wednesday (Aug. 12) at 7 p.m.

MARTLET MURMURS: For the second straight outing, McGill was without the services of all-Canadian forward Mariam Sylla, who was kept out of the lineup with an undisclosed injury suffered in training camp... The Martlets also lost fifth-year point-guard Dianna Ros with less than two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter with what appeared to be a muscle spasm in her leg. She did not return but finished with nine points, seven rebounds, a pair of blocked shots, two assists and a steal in 25 minutes of court time.

Xavier's Exhibition Preseason Schedule for Trip to Canada
Saturday, Aug. 8: Xavier 71, CEGEP All-Stars 49
Sunday, Aug. 9: Xavier 71, Carleton 37
Tuesday, Aug. 11: Xavier 68, McGill 67 (OT)
Thursday, Aug. 13 Xavier vs A-Game All-Stars - 7 p.m. (in Toronto)

FOR MORE INFO CONTACT:

Earl Zukerman
Sports Info Office
McGill University
514-398-7012