The Falcons women’s team “flowing better” following a new addition

By DUNCAN MCCARTHY

After placing fifth at the PACWEST championships, the Langara Falcons women’s basketball team has big hopes for next season.

The women made it to the quarterfinals of the conference championship on March 5 before losing to Columbia Bible College, 68-46. Playing under their new head coach Adriano Catena, the result was breakthrough for the women, marking their best showing since 2018-19 when they advanced to a bronze-medal game but lost to Camosun.

The PACWEST championships is an annual, high-stakes tournament where 58 post-secondary sports teams from the province compete to represent B.C. at the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association nationals.

Focusing on “pride” and “trust”

Catena, previous an assistant coach at UBC and joined the Falcons less than a year ago, said he was proud of the team.

“Seeing how open the girls were to everything that I was bringing into the table, it was really rewarding,” he said.

Catena said it was a challenge to step into the role of head coach knowing the women had been struggling for the past few years, but he recognized there was a lot of potential with the team.

In their season performance, the women’s team won 11 games and lost 13, overall a better outcome than prior years.

He said focusing on “their skill set” this season has helped team motivation and drive.

“If you are disciplined, if you play with a lot of pride, then you trust each other, that’s usually something that you can control for the most part,” he said.

Improvements within the team

Bianca Padolina, a first-year player and a guard, said her team has gotten closer over the time they’ve played together.

“I’d say we’ve improved a lot more from September till now,” she said, adding that a notable difference is their ability to bounce back from a rough start. “We’re finding our groove and how to read what the defense is giving us and then to counteract that.

“I think our team’s flowing better,” she said.

Sean Shook, the manager of athletics and campus recreation, said Catena’s vast experience has allowed him to see exactly where Langara’s women needed to improve.

He said Catena understands “what it takes at that level to win.”

Avaani Pagely, third-year kinesiology student and a guard for the women’s team, has been playing basketball competitively for 10 years.

She said Catena has helped them correct their mistakes and improve their game.

“We’ve always been a super defensive focus team . . . this year even more so,” she said.

Like the women, Langara’s men were knocked out of the quarterfinal round against Okanagan College, finishing the game at 98-87. Vancouver Island University went on to win gold, Camosun College silver and Capilano beat Okanagan for bronze.