MONTREAL, Que. - As the holiday season comes to a close, the Laurentian women's basketball team took to the court for their first game of the 2004 Concordia-Reebok Women's Basketball Invitational Tournament in Montreal, Quebec. Facing off against the Concordia Stingers the Lady Vees battled hard but were unable to seal the deal losing 69-58.

Entering into the tournament top of the OUA standings with a 7-3 season record, the Lady Vees were ready to play a fast and determined Concordia team. Down 15 points early in the first half, the Vees had trouble finding their momentum, but with a few key plays, the Vees were back in it and would go on to tie up the game at 37 points at the half.

The second half was much like the first with Laurentian only able to score 7 points in the first 13 minutes. The Vees would again turn the game around with veteran forward Cassandra Carpenter (Kanata, Ont.) scoring 18 points and pulling down 7 rebounds, while Tierney Hoo (Huntsville, Ont.) would toss in 14 points and add 3 rebounds to bring the Lady Vees within reach of the Stingers. Strong play from Maria-Jose Raposo (Montreal, Que.) and Graziella Charles (Montreal) would prove too much for the Vees defence. With one last push, Concordia would pull away by 11 late in the half and would leave little room for the Lady Vees rally.

"I am quite pleased with our effort and toughness today" said head coach Mike Clarke. "We played a fast home team today".

The Lady Vees will now take on UQAM at 4 p.m. on December 30 in their next game of the holiday tournament in Montr