Mariners Roster Breakdown: Women's

Chloe Scaber (3) navigates through the Saint-Jean defense in the 2023 CCAA national championship.

The Mariners are hungry for another national title after an emotional 2024-25 season that saw them thrust into national news before the first semester had finished.

In stark contrast to their male compatriots, the ladies boast one of the youngest rosters by average age in the PACWEST. Better still, due to their ties to the mid-island area, many of them look to don the blue and white for years to come.

As is tradition for a Tony Bryce-coached team, defense will be VIU's main calling card this season. The by-committee approach worked wonders for the Mariners last season, as their league-best defense guided them to their seventh PACWEST gold medal last season.

With teams like CBC and Douglas looking to assert themselves in the upper tier of the province, the Mariners hit the open market and scooped up every high school senior they could find on the island.

Fifth-year guard Mackenzie Cox remains the quarterback of VIU's perimeter offense. She has a wide array of friends in the backcourt, ranging from the trigger-happy Allison Bentley to crafty veteran Sammy Shields. Emily Sprott, recruited as a combo guard, will likely see some minutes at small forward.

The forward room took a major hit in the offseason by losing former CCAA MVP Harriette Mackenzie. While Kiayra Hohlweg and Kaia Simpson remain, the battle for starting centre is still a contentious one. Courtenay native Katie Hartig is the most likely candidate, but she'll compete with the job for Annabelle Neufeld. Even so, expect to see VIU utilize a 3-guard lineup most nights, especially in the early stages of the season.

The defense, especially in the backcourt, is where an already talented part of VIU's roster becomes even more dangerous. Third-year guard Trista Thorn continues to etch out a niche as one of the conference's elite ball hawks, averaging 1.8 steals per game last season.

Imaan Lali, set to return from a knee injury that sidelined her for all of last season, will have to guard some of the conference's best players in Kagari Tomita and Barcha Hnizdilova. Mikella Campanile and Aysia Kumar fill a similar mold of being two-way guards capable of min-maxing opponents' points and their own. Given how valuable 3-and-D players are in the basketball ecosystem, having a surplus in that category is a good problem to have.

Finally, Sarah Cook comes over from the other side of the I-5, is capable of playing nearly any position, ensuring a constant rotation of bodies across the court.

Don't let VIU's youth fool you. The Mariners remain the team to beat in the conference, and will begin their title defense tomorrow night in Penticton.