NAME: Wesmen
UNIVERSITY: Winnipeg
CATEGORY: Team
SPORT: Women’s Basketball
YEARS ACTIVE: 1992-1995
HIGHLIGHTS:
Three straight CIAU women’s basketball titles (1993, 1994, 1995)
Record 88 consecutive wins from 1992 to 1994
Inducted into Canada Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995
BIOGRAPHY:
From 1992-93 to 1994-95, the University of Winnipeg’s women’s basketball team went on an unprecedented run winning three national championships while setting a Canadian record that may never be matched and tying a North American record that few thought was within reach.
Under the direction of coach Tom Kendall, Winnipeg won 88 consecutive games, which stands as the longest streak in Canadian university basketball history and equals that of the 1960s UCLA Bruins men’s basketball teams, who are universally recognized as one of the great dynasties in North American sport.
Winnipeg went well over two calendar years with a loss. The team’s streak began Oct. 24, 1992, with a 75-53 victory over Alberta in Edmonton, and lasted until Dec. 2, 1994, when they were beaten 64-62 by the crosstown rivals Manitoba Bisons. During their record run, the Wesmen knocked off two NCAA Division I opponents and averaged 88.7 points while scoring at least 100 in 19 games.
At the 1993 CIAU championship, Winnipeg defeated Victoria in the gold medal game to win the first national title in program history. The Wesmen defeated Toronto in the 1994 national final. They completed the Bronze Baby hat trick and avenged their streak-ending loss with a 72-61 victory over Manitoba in the 1995 CIAU title game.
Winnipeg’s championship teams featured several all-star players, led by guard Sandra Carroll, a four-time All-Canadian and three-time CIAU Player of the Year, who was named MVP of the CIAU championship tournament in 1994 and 1995. Kendall was voted CIAU Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1994.
So significant were the Wesmen’s achievements that the team was immortalized mere months after winning title No. 3, by being inducted into the 1995 Canada Basketball of Fame class.
TEAM MEMBERS - Sandra Carroll, Michelle Chambers, Pam Flick, Jody Rock, Andrea Hutchens, Diane Zunic, Heidi Rowley, Sheri Telke, Larisa Waschuk, Sandy Corby, Sarah Meyers, Nicole Jonker, Tracey Peter, Andrea Pales, Marnie Nechwediuk, Anna Weber, Lynette Lafreniere, Lara Asplin, Natalie McVicar, Carla Lenz (assistant coach) Craig Kennedy (assistant coach), Keith Pruden (assistant coach), Gail Kendall (assistant coach), Tanya Mckay (assistant coach), Tom Kendall (head coach).