The first of two basketball home openers kicked off at the Bob Davis Gymnasium on Oct. 30 as the Brock women’s team fell to the Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold 74-40.
The Badgers opened the season with a 66-53 road win over the Algoma Thunderbirds on the road, a pleasant sign for the team and the first career OUA win for new Head Coach Ajay Sharma. Sharma took over after Shae Dheensaw accepted a new position with Simon Fraser University, leaving the former six-time OCAA champion with a team in rebuild mode.
Over half of the Badgers roster is made up of new players, including rookies and transfers from other teams. The team now looks to create a new identity after former National Player of the Year and three-time OUA M.V.P. Madalyn Weinert moved on to play professionally overseas.
As for the Bold, they are fresh off a 2026 OUA championship campaign that saw them cruise through the regular season and capture their third provincial title in its history. This year, much of their team remains the same, with returning stars Myriam Kone and Hailey Franco DeRyck leading the charge for the defending champs.
The first quarter was all Brock, as forward Vienna Vercesi began the game on a personal 6-1 run thanks to a free throw, three-pointer and layup to give her team an early lead.
The Badgers looked very comfortable early, with several players chipping in during a stretch that made it seem like this game would be close.
After a Kaleah Gosee three-point make, the Badgers held a 19-13 edge over the visitors by the end of the first frame, fueled by strong shooting from beyond the arc.
The second quarter is where the Bold completely flipped the game on its head. In twelve minutes, TMU held Brock to just four points while scoring a game-high 25 points in a quarter of their own to take a commanding lead heading into the break.
Kone’s impact was most evident in the second frame, as she diced up the Badger defence with outstanding ball handling and showed she could get to her spot at any given moment.
The half-time score was 38-23.
The third quarter was much more competitive, as Brock responded to every Bold run with buckets of their own; however, it still wasn’t enough. The Bold were plus six in the third frame, thanks to some remarkable shot-making from Franco DeRyk and Catrina Garvey.
The final quarter mirrored the second, with the Badgers managing only three points before falling 74-40.
Kone was outstanding, finishing with 18 points on 8-for-17 from the field, while Garvey finished with 16 points on 4-for-9 from three-point land.
The Badgers fell to 1-1 on the season before defeating the University of Toronto Varsity Blues to improve that record. They will welcome the University of Ottawa Gee-Gees on Friday, Nov. 6.
For the Badgers, the next stretch of games is about consistency and finding players who can fit within their system game to game.