The Carleton Ravens women's basketball team represent Carleton University in the Ontario University Athletics of U Sports women's basketball. The Ravens have won three national championships, in 2018, 2023 and 2024. The Ravens have also won the OUA Critelli Cup conference championship three times, in 2017, 2018, and 2023. Between 2009 and 2018, the Ruth Coe Award, recognizing Carleton University’s Female Athlete of the Year, was won by seven female basketball players. Additionally, the program served as host team for the 2020 U Sports Women's Basketball Championship, contested at Ottawa's TD Place Arena.
In 2023, both the women’s and men’s teams won the national titles, something no school had accomplished since 1985, when the Victoria Vikes were double champions.
History From 2007 to 2019, the Ravens were coached by Taffe Charles. An assistant coach with the women’s program in 1995, he would join Dave Smart’s coaching staff with the Ravens men’s team in 1998, enjoying five U SPORTS national championships, before returning to the women’s program in 2007.
Under Charles’ leadership, the women’s team captured the 2010 OUA East Division title, qualifying for the OUA East postseason finals. It would mark the first of five division titles. The Ravens would top the East Division in 2013, 2014 and 2018, while the 2016-17 season saw a first place finish in the OUA North Division. Clinching its first appearance in the U Sports Final 8 in 2011, the program would return to the biggest stage in Canadian university basketball in 2013, 2017 and 2018.
The 2012-13 season saw the Ravens among the top five in the national basketball rankings, defeating the Ottawa Gee-Gees to win the East Division Final. Finishing the 2016-17 season with an 18-1 mark, its highest win total in the 45-year history of the program (since broken), the Ravens would enjoy the milestone of a number-1 ranking in the national polls, reaching the summit on November 15, 2016. Reaching the U Sports Final 8, the Ravens defeated the Victoria Vikes in the quarterfinals, enjoying their first-ever win at the tournament.
Winning the OUA conference title in 2017 and 2018, the Ravens enjoyed a perfect 29-0 record, for their first-ever undefeated season, capturing the Bronze Baby for the first time in 2018. Defensively, the Ravens stymied their competition during the championship season, averaging merely 45.9 points per game, resulting in the finest defense in U Sports.
Elizabeth Leblanc was a key player during the 2017-18 season, culminating in a perfect 29-0 season, highlighted by the program's first national championship. Statistically, Leblanc averaged 26.7 minutes per game, signifying her third straight season of leading the team. With 10.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.1 blocks per game, Leblanc also won the U Sports Defensive Player of the Year Award, the first player in Ravens history to do so.
The season also saw Heather Lindsay garner some hardware, capturing the Carleton Ravens Athletics Outstanding Graduating Female Athlete award. In what proved to be her last campaign as a Raven, Lindsay reached the plateau of 100 regular season appearances, complemented by 82 starts. With career averages of 11.1 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, she graduated by surpassing the 1000-point career mark.
During the 2018-19 season, Nicole Gilmore reached career-highs in many categories. Starting with 14.3 points-per-game, 7.7 rebounds per game, plus shooting 40.5 per cent from the field, she received the Carleton Ravens Outstanding Graduating Female Athlete Award.
The Ravens finished fifth at the 2026 national championship following a 60-58 win over Toronto Metropolitan Bold on March 7, 2026.
Season-by-season record National championsLost championshipConference championsLeague leader
Season W L PF PA Finish2003–04 7 15 1198 1273 7th, OUA East2004–05 5 17 1120 1281 7th, OUA East2005–06 10 12 1268 1267 5th, OUA East2006–07 5 17 1272 1477 6th, OUA East2007–08 8 14 1280 1307 5th, OUA East2008–09 14 8 1388 1184 3rd, OUA East2009–10 18 4 1473 1119 1st, OUA East2010–11 18 4 1430 1209 1st, OUA East2011–12 17 5 1494 1157 2nd, OUA East2012-13 15 5 1337 1048 2nd, OUA East2013-14 16 6 1290 1172 1st, OUA East2014-15 9 10 1113 1047 2nd, OUA North2015-16 14 5 1289 1061 2nd, OUA North2016-17 18 1 1296 970 1st, OUA North2017-18 23 0 1666 1055 1st, OUA East2018-19 18 5 1532 1242 2nd, OUA East2019-20 15 7 1498 1273 2nd, OUA East2020-21 Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2021-22 11 5 1129 901 2nd, OUA East2022-23 19 3 1646 1264 2nd, OUA East2023-24 21 1 1774 1178 1st, OUA East2024-25 22 0 1659 1181 2nd, OUA East
Capital Hoops Classic
Ottawa victories Carleton victories
YearSiteWinning teamLosing teamSeriesAttendanceNotes2008 Scotiabank PlaceCarleton53 Ottawa 43 CAR 1–0 9,124 Inaugural edition of Women's game2009 Scotiabank PlaceCarleton62 Ottawa 53 CAR 2–0 10,523 2010 Scotiabank PlaceCarleton53 Ottawa 40 CAR 3–0 8,074 2011 Scotiabank PlaceCarleton71 Ottawa 63 CAR 4–0 7,565 2012 Scotiabank PlaceOttawa59 Carleton 55 CAR 4–1 7,022 2013 Scotiabank PlaceCarleton68 Ottawa 50 CAR 5–1 6,208 2014 Canadian Tire CentreOttawa57 Carleton 47 CAR 5–2 6,604 2015 Canadian Tire CentreOttawa46 Carleton 40 CAR 5–3 10,780 Highest attendance record2016 Canadian Tire CentreCarleton73 Ottawa 50 CAR 6–3 10,105 Largest margin of victory2017 Canadian Tire CentreCarleton57 Ottawa 44 CAR 7–3 10,030 2018 Canadian Tire CentreCarleton57 Ottawa 41 CAR 8–3 8,579 2019 Canadian Tire CentreOttawa61 Carleton 52 CAR 8–4 9,004 2020 TD PlaceOttawa 77 Carleton 75 CAR 8-5 8,103 2022 Ravens NestCarleton 63 Ottawa 43 CAR 9-5 2023 TD PlaceCarleton 66 Ottawa 60 CAR 10-5 2024 TD PlaceCarleton 78 Ottawa 72 CAR 11-5 6,137
Individual leader scoring
+Legend GP Games played GS Games started MIN Minutes played FG Field-goals 3FG 3-point field-goals FT Free-throws PTS Points AVG Points per game 2015-16Heather Lindsay 19 473 126 0 50 302 15.95th2014-15Lindsay Shotbolt 14 389 61 11 30 163 11.620th2013-14 Alyson Bush 22 727 107 9 100 323 15.0 9th2012-13 Alyson Bush 20 592 105 44 31 285 14.3 10th2011-12 Alyson Bush 22 620 111 27 52 301 13.7 11th2010-11 Kendall MacLeod 22 516 79 19 68 245 11.1 22nd2009-10 Alyson Bush 22 634 73 28 44 218 9.91
International Catherine Traer : 2017 Summer Universiade Nicole Gilmore 2019 Summer Universiade
Awards and honours 2016-17 U Sports Rebounding Champion: Heather Lindsay (10.8 rebounds per game)
All-Canadians 2018-19 Second Team All-Canadian: Nicole Gilmore
OUA Awards 2009-10 OUA East Coach of the Year: Taffe Charles 2013-14 OUA All-Rookie Team: Heather Lindsay 2017-18 OUA Coach of the Year and the :Taffe Charles 2018-19 OUA Defensive Player of the Year: Nicole Gilmore
OUA All-Stars First team 2018-19 OUA First-Team All-Star: Nicole Gilmore 2016-17 OUA First-Team: Heather Lindsay 2016-17 OUA First-Team: Catherine Traer
Second team 2017-18: OUA Second Team All-Star - Heather Lindsay 2016-17 Second Team: Elizabeth Leblanc 2015-16: OUA Second Team All-Star - Heather Lindsay
OUA Showcase 2019 Showcase Participant: Alyssa Cerino, Carleton (named to Team Burns) 2019 Showcase Participant: Nicole Gilmore, Carleton (named to Team Belanger) 2018 OUA Showcase Participant: Alexandra Trivieri (named to Team Charles)
U Sports Awards 2016-17: U SPORTS Second-Team All-Canadian - Heather Lindsay 2017-18: Elizabeth Leblanc U SPORTS Defensive Player of the Year award 2017-18 Peter Ennis Award as U SPORTS national coach of the year: Taffe Charles 2024-25 Peter Ennis Award as U SPORTS national coach of the year: Dani Sinclair
U Sports nationals 2018 U SPORTS Final 8 Championship MVP: Elizabeth Leblanc 2018 U SPORTS Final 8 Championship All-Tournament Team: Elizabeth Leblanc
U Sports All-Canadians 2019 Second Team All-Canadian: Nicole Gilmore
University honours 2016-17 Pat O’Brien Award – Carleton Ravens Athletics Coach of the Year: Taffe Charles 2017-18 Pat O’Brien Award – Carleton Ravens Athletics Coach of the Year: Taffe Charles
Ruth Coe Award 2010-11: Alyson Bush 2016-17: Heather Lindsay - Ruth Coe Award winner as Carleton Ravens Athletics Female Athlete of the Year 2017-18: Elizabeth Leblanc - Ruth Coe Award winner as Carleton Ravens Athletics Female Athlete of the Year
Outstanding Graduating Women’s Athlete of the Year
2011-12: Ashleigh Cleary - Carleton Ravens athletics Outstanding Graduating Women’s Athlete of the Year 2017-18: Heather Lindsay - Carleton Ravens athletics Outstanding Graduating Women’s Athlete of the Year 2018-19: Nicole Gilmore - Carleton Ravens athletics Outstanding Graduating Women’s Athlete of the Year
Team awards This is an incomplete list
Most Valuable Player 1996-97: Karin Brown 1997-98: Rosie Warden 1998-99: Rosie Warden 1999-00: Tamara McNulty 2000-01: Rosie Warden 2001-02: Anne McDonnell 2002-03: Dasa Farthing 2003-04: Ashley Kimmett 2004-05: Sarah Kennedy 2005-06: Dasa Farthing 2006-07: Susan Shaw-Davis 2007-08: Tanya Perry 2008-09: Ines Jelic 2010-11: Ashleigh Clearly 2011-12: Kendall MacLeod 2012-13: Alyson Bush 2013-14: Alyson Bush 2014-15: Lindsay Shotbolt 2015-16: Heather Lindsay 2016-17: Heather Lindsay 2019-20: Alyssa Cerino
Alumni Award 2014-15: Abeer Farhat 2015-16: Abeer Farhat
References
External links