GUELPH, Ont. (CIS) – Kira Graham scored in the 54th minute to lead the defending national champion UBC Thunderbirds to a 1-0 win over archrival Victoria, Saturday afternoon, and a spot in the CIS women's field hockey final.
Second-seeded UBC (3-1) finishes the round-robin portion of the CIS tournament in second place with nine points, while the No. 3 Vikes (2-2) finish third with six.
The T-Birds will try to add to their record tally of 12 McCrae Cups when they face No. 3 Toronto (4-0) in Sunday's title match at 1 p.m. With a win, Toronto would tie Victoria for second most titles all-time, with 11.
Toronto blanked UBC 1-0 Friday in round-robin action.
Victoria will play for CIS bronze Sunday at 10 a.m. against either championship host Guelph or Waterloo.
“I was happy with the output from today's game,” said UBC head coach Hash Kanjee. “Looking ahead, we'll try and get our heads around what tomorrow brings. I think Toronto is a well-balanced side, they have strength all over the pitch and I think we're going to be hard pressed so we'll just have to go and re-group now and make sure we're ready for tomorrow and do the best that we can.”
The first half was mainly mid-field possession between the two teams as they entered the break with a scoreless draw. The Thunderbirds' defence was impressive from the start, making key tackles and saves all over the pitch.
The lone goal from North Vancouver native Graham came on a short corner. It was her second marker of the tournament.
Earning the shutout for the Thunderbirds was Bea Francisco of Richmond, B.C. It marked her first whitewash of the championship.
Sarah MacAulay of Vancouver was named player of the game for UBC, while
Danielle Hennig of Kelowna, B.C., received the honour for Victoria.
NOTES: This will mark the T-Birds' 18th all-time appearance in the national final since the inaugural CIS tournament in 1975... Last year, the UBC defeated the Alberta Pandas 6-0 in the final to earn a record setting 12 titles...
SCORING SUMMARY
UBC 0-1: 0
VIC 0-0: 0
First half
No scoring
Second half
54th, UBC, Kira Graham (2)
Goaltenders
UBC: Bea Francisco (W, 70:00, 0 GA, 3-1)
VIC:
Kaitlyn Williams (L, 70:00, 1 GA, 2-2)
Players of the game
UBC : Sarah MacAulay (Vancouver, B.C.)
VIC: Danielle Henning (Kelowna, B.C.)
