OTTAWA (CIS) – For the second straight season and for the third time in four years, the three-time reigning national champion Windsor Lancers head into the ArcelorMittal Dofasco CIS women’s basketball championship as tournament favourites.
 
CHAMPIONSHIP WEBSITE: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wbkb/index
 
The seeding was announced Sunday night for the CIS Final 8, hosted by the University of Windsor. The single-elimination tournament gets under way Friday at the St. Denis Centre and culminates next Sunday at 8 p.m. with the gold-medal final, live on Sportsnet 360.
 
Sportsnet 360 also has live coverage of Saturday’s semifinals at 3 and 5 p.m. All 11 games from the competition - including televised contests - will be webcast live on www.CIS-SIC.tv. 
 
Joining the host Lancers (OUA champions) in their quest for the Bronze Baby Trophy are the second-seeded Saint Mary’s Huskies (AUS champs), No. 3 Saskatchewan Huskies (Canada West champs), No. 4 McGill Martlets (RSEQ champs), No. 5 Fraser Valley Cascades (Canada West finalists), No. 6 Queen’s Gaels (OUA finalists), No. 7 Alberta Pandas (Canada West bronze medallists) and No. 8 Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (OUA bronze medallists).
 
In Friday’s quarter-finals, Alberta will battle Saint Mary’s in the 1 p.m. opener, followed by Queen’s vs. Saskatchewan at 3 p.m., Laurier and Windsor at 6 p.m., and Fraser Valley and McGill in the 8 p.m. nightcap.
 
The Lancers’ first Bronze Baby Trophy triumph came at the St. Denis Centre in 2011, when they became the first team in CIS women’s hoops history to be crowned on home court. They added titles in Calgary two years ago and in Regina last winter.
 
This season, Windsor and Saint Mary’s were the only teams to reach No. 1 in the national rankings, topping seven and six weekly polls, respectively.
 
Alberta received the at-large berth (wildcard) following a vote by a committee of CIS coaches. The Pandas were ranked in the top five in the country all season – including No. 3 each of the last nine polls – but settled for bronze at the Canada West Final Four after being upset by Fraser Valley in the semifinal round.
 

SEEDING

 
1. Windsor Lancers (OUA champions: 21-1 regular season / 3-0 playoffs)
2. Saint Mary’s Huskies (AUS champions: 20-0 regular season / 2-0 playoffs)
3. Saskatchewan Huskies (CWUAA champions: 17-5 regular season / 4-1 playoffs)
4. McGill Martlets (RSEQ champions: 13-3 regular season / 2-0 playoffs)
5. Fraser Valley Cascades (CWUAA finalists: 17-5 regular season / 3-1 playoffs)
6. Queen’s Gaels (OUA finalists: 16-6 regular season / 2-1 playoffs)
7. Alberta Pandas (CWUAA bronze medallists: 20-2 regular season / 3-1 playoffs)
8. Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks (OUA bronze medallists: 15-7 regular season / 3-1 playoffs)
 
CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE (all times EASTERN TIME)
 

Friday, March 14

13:00 Quarter-final 1: No. 7 Alberta vs. No. 2 Saint Mary’s (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
15:00 Quarter-final 2: No. 6 Queen’s vs. No. 3 Saskatchewan (www.CIS-SIC.tv)   
18:00 Quarter-final 3: No. 8 Wilfrid Laurier vs. No. 1 Windsor (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
20:00 Quarter-final 4: No. 5 Fraser Valley vs. No. 4 McGill (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
 

Saturday, March 15

10:00 Consolation 1: Loser QF 1 vs. Loser QF 2 (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
12:00 Consolation 2: Loser QF 3 vs. Loser QF 4 (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
15:00 Semifinal 1: Winner QF 1 vs. Winner QF 2 (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
17:00 Semifinal 2: Winner QF 3 vs. Winner QF 4 (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
 

Sunday, March 16

15:00 5^th Place (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
17:00 Bronze (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
20:00 Final (Sportsnet 360 / www.CIS-SIC.tv *) 
 
* The webcast of all 3 televised games (semifinals & final) will be on pay-per-view basis.