QUEBEC CITY — The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold women's basketball team fell to the Carleton Ravens in overtime in the U SPORTS Fifth-Place Game on Saturday afternoon, 60-58.

The matchup was a low-scoring, grit-and-grind affair that saw neither squad shoot higher than 30% from the field. Both teams were playing their third game in three days, losing their respective quarterfinal matches on Thursday and winning in their consolation matches on Friday.

All of that play left the Bold and Ravens exhausted. Shots that would usually find the bottom of the net fell short, and some sloppy passing led to both squads surpassing their regular season turnover averages at 17 and 21 respectively.

Despite the lethargic play at times, Bold guard Myriam Kone still managed game-highs of 25 points and 16 rebounds–the latter of which nearly tripled her regular season average of 5.5 and ranks third all-time in program postseason history. 

Kone's isolation scoring ability came up big for TMU throughout the game, especially with Carleton's strong defence forcing the already-tired Bold players into some difficult moving shots. Guard Catrina Garvey, who scored a team-high 19 points in the team's consolation win against the University of British Columbia, exited the game in the third quarter due to a lower-body injury. With guard Kait Nichols already sitting out due to an injury of her own, Kone was left with a lot of heavy lifting in the backcourt — and absolutely delivered.

As the game creeped closer to its end, the score stayed close with neither team managing to build up more than a nine-point lead. Four straight points from forward Hailey Franco DeRyck tied the game up at 51-51 with just under two minutes to go in regulation.

The third-year Franco DeRyck logged a monstrous 17 points and 14 rebounds on 55% shooting from the field in the matchup, controlling the paint with her size and length. The OUA Defensive Player of the Year deterred countless shots at the rim that would usually be easy makes for the Ravens.

After a pair of jumpshots from Kone and Carleton's Kyana-Jade Poulin kept things tied, the game advanced to overtime.

The Bold came out strong in the extra period, as Franco DeRyck nailed a free throw and finished a layup inside to give the team a three-point lead.

Kone had to briefly exit the game with a lower leg injury, though, and the Ravens took advantage of the opportunity with back-to-back three-point makes. Despite Kone returning to the game and knocking down two free throws to bring the Bold within one, Carleton squeaked away with the eventual two-point win.

The loss officially ends TMU's 2025-26 season with a sixth-place finish in the U SPORTS National Championship Tournament. Although their final game didn't end with the result they wanted, the Bold had an impressive season, advancing to the U SPORTS Final 8 for the first time since winning the tournament in 2022.

With nearly all of the team's rotation players holding eligibility for the 2026-27 season, the Bold women's basketball team has a bright future ahead of them.