After two games away from home last weekend, the Kwantlen Eagles men’s and women’s basketball teams are looking forward to their first home games of the PACWEST (Pacific Western Athletic Association) season.
After each team opened the season with a win two weeks ago, both squads lost a pair of games to fall to 1-2 (won-lost) on the season.
The men started with an 81-62 loss to the Capilano Blues in North Vancouver Friday. Princess Margaret Secondary graduate Ali Bosir was the only Eagles player to hit double digits in scoring, netting 10 points. Gurpal Mann, Nii-Norty Engmann, Jag Takhar and Chris Arcangel added 10 each.
Mann, a Queen Elizabeth Secondary graduate, led all rebounders with six while first-year point guard Aleksander Mihajilovic of North Delta had three assists.
One night later in Squamish, Kwantlen came up just short in an 87-82 loss to the Quest Kermodes.
“This was a hard fought battle for four quarters,” said Eagles head coach Stefon Wilson. “The difference in this game was free throws. We lost by five points and missed 14 foul shots. We have to do a better job of focusing at the free throw line. They are easy points and can be costly if not converted.”
Takhar, a guard and a graduate of Guildford Park Secondary, led Kwantlen with 21 points, followed by Arcangel with 18. Aaron Ram contributed 13 points and Engmann scored 10.
Mann and Mihajilovic each grabbed five rebounds.
The women’s team began its weekend with a close game in North Vancouver against Capilano, falling 59-50.
Jeannine Yngresso, a second-year guard from Holy Cross high school, paced the Eagles with 15 points while adding two assists and a pair of rebounds.
Forward Sara Kurath had a strong all around game with 10 rebounds, eight points, two assists, a pair of blocks and one steal, while rookie Amber-Lee Kavanagh collected eight rebounds.
Yngresso and Kavanagh each had a double double in Saturday’s 71-57 loss to Quest in Squamish. Yngresso had 20 points and 10 rebounds, while Kavanagh, a five-foot-11 forward from Langley, scored 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
“We competed hard but we made some crucial mistakes at critical times which cost us both games,” said coach Dan Nayebzadeh. “At times, we showed some grit, we just have to be able to play competitively for a full 40 minutes.”
The first weekend at home for the two Eagles teams begins tomorrow (Friday) night with the Langara Falcons as the visitors, while Douglas College Royals play in the Kwantlen Polytechnic University gym on Saturday. Games times both nights are 6 p.m. for the women and 8 p.m. for the men.
