Calgary, Alta. - Capping the 2021 Canada West season, the University of Victoria women's rugby team fell to the University of British Columbia, 47-13, in the gold medal match at McMahon Stadium, Oct. 31. Following the match, four members of the Vikes were named Canada West All-Stars for their performances during the 2021 season.
HOW IT HAPPENED
9th Minute – UVic 3, UBC 0
- Having the first scoring opportunity of the game on an awarded penalty goal, Alexie Pusch would put the ball through the uprights for the Vikes lead.
12th Minute – UBC 7, UVic 3
- UBC would find a response on their next possession, taking the lead with a try and conversion.
24th Minute – UBC 14, UVic 3
- Intercepting a Vikes' pass, the Thunderbirds would breakaway for their second try of the match, and make the ensuring conversion.
35th Minute – UBC 19, UVic 3
- Adding another five points to their lead, the Thunderbirds would notch one more try before the end of the first half.
48th Minute – UBC 26, UVic 3
- While it looked like the Vikes would be the first team to find the in-goal area in the second half, a knock-on just a few yards away from the try line would give the Thunderbirds the ball, which was returned for a try by UBC. The 'Birds also made the conversion.
51st Minute – UBC 33, UVic 3
- On their next possession, the Thunderbirds would breakaway for a run downfield and add another try and conversion to their lead.
54th Minute – UBC 40, UVic 3
- Continuing their trend of scoring off runs, UBC tacked on another set of points a few minutes later.
57th Minute – UBC 40, UVic 8
- Registering a try via breakaway of her own, Bethany Cudmore picked up the ball on a mishandle by the Thunderbirds and ran it back for the Vikes' first try of the match.
61st Minute – UBC 47, UVic 8
- Using their next possession for a response, the Thunderbirds scored the try and conversion to maintain distance.
68th Minute – UBC 47, UVic 13
- Diving across the line, Emerald Maze managed to touch the ball down among a sea of UBC defenders for the try.
THOUGHTS FROM HEAD COACH BRITTANY WATERS
“I thought it was a hard-fought match for both teams. In the beginning, especially, things were really going back and forth, and then UBC just ran away with it in the end. I thought we had a strong start – just could not finish our opportunities. We left a lot of tries out there. We got into their endzone, right by their try line, but unfortunately just could not capitalize on our opportunities today.”
“This is a fighting team. We’re a very, very young team, so I think they just have a lot of energy and excitement. One of our policies, we play the full 80 minutes and we need to fight to that last minute, and they did that today. Our impact subs made a huge difference coming on. It’s a young group and I’m really excited to see how they do in the future.”
WORTH NOTING
- With the silver medal showing, the Vikes have posted a podium finish in every season under Head Coach Brittany Waters (one gold, four silver, one bronze).
- The Vikes were unable to find success against the Thunderbirds this season, falling in all three matchups with UBC.
- UVic finishes the Canada West regular and postseason with a 4-3 mark.
- Larah Wright, Ada Okonkwo, Chanelle Edwards-Challenger, and Sara Kaljuvee were named Canada West All-Stars following the match, with Wright also being tabbed the conference's Rookie of the Year.
UP NEXT
The Vikes head to Kingston, Ont. for the U SPORTS national championships, Nov. 10-14.
