The Okanagan College Coyotes had a mixed bag of experiences in their home-opener this past weekend.
In the first home court action of the season, the Coyotes men and women went a combined 1-4 as they hosted some of the best teams in the conference at their new home court at Quigley School.
The men earned a tough victory in game one of the weekend on Friday against Camosun College with a 83-78 win.
Head coach Dino Gini said though the men split the weekend with a win and a loss, the team will continue to grind.
“These wins are so important even though their early in the season,” said Gini.
“This league is tough and Camosun is a solid well coached team. It was a great game and it was a big win for us.”
The men hosted the country No. 6 ranked team on Saturday when the Vancouver Island University visited the Okanagan. In a 102-74 loss, Gini said that the Coyotes’ men need to clean up the mistakes.
“We need to be tougher, mentally and physically. We had a decent first half but we can be much better and need to be much better.”
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The women’s weekend saw ups and downs in back-to-back losses to Camosun then VI University.
Late game collapses led to the losses for the Coyotes as they kept up with both highly-ranked schools until the final quarters. In game one against Camosun, the women’s squad kept the game tied going into the third quarter, but fell 100-68 as Coyotes Elizabeth Henne and Jordan Andres combined for 23 points and nine rebounds.
In game two, the Coyotes hosted the No. 2 ranked VI University and battled hard but lost their momentum in the final quarters in a 84-45 loss.
The Coyotes are coming off a history-making 4-0 start at the season’s launch on Nov. 8.
Okanagan College is back in action as they host Douglas College for double-header action this weekend at Quigley School.
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