Canada Captures 2010 FIBA Americas U18 Championship for Women Bronze Medal With 81-42 Victory Against Chile

June 27, 2010 - Colorado Springs, Colo.

After shooting 0-for-10 from the field to start the game and 3-of-22 overall in the first period, the Canada Women's U18 National Team (4-1) found itself in a tight battle with Chile (3-2) early on in the bronze medal game of the 2010 FIBA Americas U18 Championship for Women on June 27 at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colo.

With the score at 11-8 in Canada's favor after the first 10 minutes, the game was not close for long as Canada opened the second period with an 18-6 run that included two 3-pointers from Laura Dally and all but sealed its 81-42 win and bronze-medal finish.

'Well, we had a horrible first quarter, and we haven't really played that well the whole tournament,' said Canada head coach Rich Chambers. 'We played tough defensively, but we struggled offensively. We were disappointed about our semifinal game yesterday, but we came out and played hard. We knew that finishing third meant for a better draw in the 2011 U19 World Championship, and that was important. It was a good way to end the tournament, with a win, and hopefully we can build upon our experiences here.'

The second-quarter run helped Canada secure a 36-21 lead at halftime, and the lead continued to grow as the game progressed. Canada outscored Chile 24-10 in the third and 21-11 in the fourth quarter to bring the game to its 81-42 final.

Four players tallied double-figures for Canada, including 13 points from Dally, 12 points from Melissa Mullins and Katherine Plouffe and 10 points, a game-high 12 rebounds and five steals from Michelle Plouffe.

Rocio Dieguez Arcuch and Fernanda Serrano Aburto finished with 10 points for Chile.