Guelph, ON - Saturday afternoon at Varsity Field, the No. 1-ranked Gryphons Women's Rugby team won 38-3 over the No. 4-ranked Queen's Gaels in an OUA semi-final matchup of two of the top programs in the country.
Five different Gryphons scored tried while OUA leading scorer Alex King added 8 points on four made converts. The Gryphons got off to a quick start with second year fly half Madison Brattan (Orangeville, ON) scoring the opening try of the match to give Guelph a 5-0 lead. After a great run by rookie Alexandra Everett and a perfectly executed kick by Alex King, the Gryphons lead grew to 12-0.
Although the Gryphons have been receiving stellar performances all season from several of the veterans on the team, including a pair of fifth year players in
Daria Keane and
Brittany Kassil, it would be a pair of rookies who would link up to push the Gryphon lead even further. First year players Alexandra Everett and
Julia Schell came through with a great connection leading to a Schell try. Alex King was good on the convert and the Gryphons were in total control leading 19-0 on the Queen's Gaels. More great continuity by the Gryphons led to a try from third year wing
Emily Samek, as the Gryphons took a commanding 24-3 lead into halftime.
Guelph scrum half
Chloe Runge opened the second half with a try of her own, the convert from King was good, and the Gryphons led 31-3. The final try of the match would come from rookie Alexandra Everett, her second of the day, and Alex King's final convert put the finishing touches on what was a dominating performance by the Gryphons. The Gryphons will now host the OUA Final on Saturday, October 31 where they will face the defending OUA champion McMaster Marauders, who won 51-7 on Saturday in their semi-final match versus Western. The winner of the OUA Final between McMaster and Guelph will earn a spot in the CIS Championships. Despite losing today, the Queen's Gaels receive an automatic berth in the CIS Championships as they are the host team. The Gryphons and Marauders will square off at Varsity Field on Saturday, October 31st. Start time will be finalized shortly, check gryphons.ca for the latest.