BRONZE: 2009 CIS women’s field hockey championship: Host Vikes edge top-ranked Guelph, win bronze

VICTORIA (CIS) – The tournament host University of Victoria Vikes edged the top-ranked Guelph Gryphons 2-1 to claim the bronze medal at the CIS women’s field hockey championship, Sunday morning.

It marked a fourth consecutive CIS podium and a 15th medal in 16 years for the No. 3-seeded Vikes, who came into the 2009 tournament has defending champions after tying UBC’s all-time record of 11 McCrae Cup triumphs a year ago. Victoria has 26 CIS medals since the inaugural national championship in 1975 including 11 gold, nine silver and six bronze.

The OUA champion Gryphons settled for fourth place for the second straight season, a year after losing 3-0 to UBC in the bronze-medal match. Guelph was undefeated in OUA play in 2009 coming into the CIS tourney with a stellar 14-0-2 mark but could only tally one win and one tie in five outings on the west coast.

The top-seeded team was kept off the podium for a third consecutive year.

“To lose yesterday with three minutes left to play [the team] could have folded up their tents and not even showed up to the game today,” said UVic head coach Lynne Beecroft. “But as you can see they all battled and especially the fifth-year kids, they really rose to the challenge.”

Midfielder Angela Buttress scored what proved to be the game-winning goal on a penalty stroke in the 58th minute. The third-year North Vancouver native capitalized on the opportunity after a Guelph defender blocked the ball on the goal line.

Sophomore Whitney Siegmann of Kelowna, B.C., opened the scoring for the Vikes in the 15th minute but he Gryphons tied the game just five minutes later on a penalty corner, with two-time all-Canadian Angela Lancaster of Burlington, Ont., slipping one past all-CIS netminder Kaitlyn Williams.

“Our forwards were running everywhere getting balls, penetrating the circle and getting chances,” said Victoria captain Katie Collison, who played her last game in a Vikes uniform. “It was an overall team effort which was good to see in the final game and we finished strong.”

In addition to Collison, Victoria graduating players include defender Sumeet Aujla of Surrey, B.C., defender Katie Tittler of Richmond, B.C., and forward Natalie Wise of Surrey.

Player-of-the-game honours were presented to a pair of rookie defenders, Victoria natives and former teammates at Lambrick Park Secondary. Kyla Kirby was named the Vikes’ MVP, while Lauren Goodmanson received the nod for Guelph.

SCORING SUMMARY
VIC: 1-1: 2
GUE: 1-0: 1

First half
15th, VIC, Whitney Siegmann (1)
20th, GUE, Angela Lancaster (2)

Second half
58th, VIC, Angela Buttress (2)

Goaltenders
VIC: Kaitlyn Williams (W, 70:00, 1 GA, 2-1-2)
GUE: Dorothy Marcy (L, 68:30, 2 GA, 1-3-1)

Players of the game
VIC: Kyla Kirby (Victoria, B.C.)
GUE: Lauren Goodmanson (Victoria, B.C.)

CHAMPIONSHIP SEEDING, STANDINGS & SCHEDULE (all times LOCAL: PACIFIC

Pre-championship seeding

1. Guelph Gryphons (OUA champions)
2. UBC Thunderbirds (Canada West champions)
3. Victoria Vikes (second place Canada West)
4. Toronto Varsity Blues (OUA finalists)
5. Alberta Pandas (third place Canada West)

FINAL round-robin standings (after 10 of 10 games)

GP W L T GF GA PTS
1. UBC 4 3 0 1 10 3 10
2. Alberta 4 2 2 0 6 7 6
3. Victoria 4 1 1 2 3 3 5
4. Guelph 4 1 2 1 8 8 4
5. Toronto 4 1 3 0 5 10 3

Thursday, Nov. 5
Round-Robin 1: UBC 3, Guelph 1
Round-Robin 2: Victoria 1, Toronto 0
Round-Robin 3: UBC 3, Alberta 1
Round-Robin 4: Guelph 5, Toronto 2

Friday, Nov. 6
Round-Robin 5: Victoria 0, UBC 0
Round-Robin 6: Toronto 2, Alberta 1
Round-Robin 7: Guelph 1, Victoria 1

Saturday, Nov. 7
Round-Robin 8: Alberta 2, Toronto 1
Round-Robin 9: UBC 4, Toronto 1
Round-Robin 10: Alberta 2, Guelph 1

Sunday, Nov. 8
Bronze medal: Victoria 2, Guelph 1
13:00 Championship final: UBC vs. Alberta

- CIS -