GAMES 3 and 4 CIS championship: Western eliminated, Pool B still wide open

By University of Lethbridge sports information office

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. (CIS) - The Western Ontario Mustangs were eliminated from medal contention out of Pool A while Pool B remained wide open following the third and fourth round-robin duels presented Friday afternoon at the 2008 CIS women's rugby championship.

In Pool A, the Quebec champion Laval Rouge et Or kicked off their tournament with a 26-5 win over OUA finalist Western. The Mustangs, who had lost 20-3 to the host Lethbridge Pronghorns earlier in the day, end round-robin play with an 0-2 record and will play for fifth place Sunday morning.

It was a historical victory for the young Rouge et Or program, which began CIS play in 2005, and suffered three straight losses in its only previous appearance at the national championship, in 2006.

Laval and Lethbridge will face off at 3 p.m. Mountain Friday to determine first and second place in Pool A. Both have clinched a berth in Saturday's semi-finals.

In Pool B, the Canada West finalist Alberta Pandas, who lost their tourney opener 15-5 to Guelph Friday morning, regrouped and battled the AUS champion St. Francis Xavier X-Women to a 5-5 tie. It was the first points allowed all season by StFX, which outscored its Atlantic opponents 468-0 in seven overall outings this fall.

Alberta (1-0-1) ends round-robin play with two points, while StFX (0-0-1) also has two points going into the final Pool B duel at 3 p.m. against Guelph (1-0), which has four points.

Championship web site:
www.universitysport.ca/e/championships/w_rugby/2008

GAME 2 POOL A: Laval 26, Western 5

In a very closely contested first half that saw action constantly switching back and forth from each team's end, this looked like it would be a very equal game. Laval had the slight edge on the physical play, and that helped lead Laval to the first score of the game when Catherine Carrier (Quebec, QC) broke free from deep in her own end and ran the ball all the way down field for the try. Claudiane Renaud (Trois-Rivieres, QC) converted to make the score 7-0 after 14 minutes of play. In the 22nd minute, Western's Kelly Russell (Bolton, ON) finished off a multi-player, cross-field passing play by scoring a try to make the score at the end of the first half 7-5 in favor of the Rouge-et-or.

Early in the 2nd half, Laval marched up the pitch and after several passes and broken tackles; Oniente K.Laflamme (La Sarre, QC) put the ball on the ground in the end zone for the try, increasing Laval's lead to 12-5. In the 37th minute, Laval's Karen Paquin (Quebec, QC) further added to their lead with a beautiful cut-back run, tripping up the defenders and leaving herself a wide open lane into the end-zone for a try. Renaud once again successfully converted the try to make the score stand at 19-5. Late in the game, Laval's Constance Loubier (Levis, QC) crashed over a pile of bodies on the touch line for yet another try. Renaud kicked her 3rd successful conversion to make the eventual final score 26-5 for Laval, upsetting the Western Mustangs and eliminating them from medal contention.

Laval head coach Bill McNeil was very pleased with his team's effort. "Our Quebec final against Concordia helped us to prepare for this because we had to 'go get something' at the emotional level that we hadn't been able to get during the regular season. This was the best game we played this year, and it came at the best possible time."

Scoring Summary

Laval
Tries (5 pts): Ontiente K.Laflamme (2), Karen Paquin, Constance Loubier
Converts (2 pts): Claudiane Renaud (3)
Penalty goals (3 pts): none
Drop goals (3 pts): none

Western Ontario
Tries (5 pts): Kelly Russell
Converts (2 pts): none
Penalty goals (3 pts): none
Drop goals (3 pts): none


GAME 2 POOL B: StFX 5, Alberta 5

The University of Alberta Pandas women's rugby squad survived a hard-fought game against the AUS champion St. Francis Xavier X-Women to keep their hopes alive for the medal round. In a game that featured several strong touch-line stands, the Pandas and X???Women finished in a 5-5 draw. An Alberta knock-on in the dying seconds kept the game even.

The X-Women dominated the first half of play, fighting their way to within the 5 meter line on several occasions, only to have the Pandas kick the ball out of their end. The Pandas staged a formidable stand that survived three scrums and several strong pushes. However, the X-Women were able to score shortly thereafter on a Kim Armstrong (Barrie, ON) try in the corner. Despite a late surge in the first half, the Pandas were unable to respond.

The second half saw more even play with the X-Women holding a slight advantage. A great pass sprung Alberta CIS All-Canadian Chelsea Stone (St. Albert, AB) on a long run culminating in her second try of the tournament and the equalizing try of the game. As in the first half, the Pandas made a late surge, but the X-Women showed their own defensive determination in holding the Pandas from the touch line.

St. FX head coach Mike Cavanagh was pleased with his team's defensive effort at the end of the game "We were defensively sound, we dug in and didn't give up."

Scoring Summary

StFX
Tries (5 pts): Kim Armstrong
Converts (2 pts): none
Penalty goals (3 pts): none
Drop goals (3 pts): none

Alberta
Tries (5 pts): Chelsea Stone
Converts (2 pts): none
Penalty goals (3 pts): none
Drop goals (3 pts): none


ROUND-ROBIN STANDINGS, SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times LOCAL: MOUNTAIN)

Pool A

-------------- GP - W - L - T - PF - PA - PTS

1. Lethbridge 1 1 0 0 20 3 5
1. Laval 1 1 0 0 26 5 5
3. Western 2 0 2 0 8 46 0


Pool B

---------- GP - W - L - T - PF - PA - PTS

1. Guelph 1 1 0 0 15 5 4
2. StFX 1 0 0 1 5 5 2
2. Alberta 2 0 1 1 10 20 2

NOTE: a win is worth 4 points and a tie 2 points.

NOTE 2: 1 bonus point is awarded for scoring 4 tries or more in a game, and 1 bonus point is allowed for a loss by 7 points or less.

Friday, Oct. 31
Round-Robin Pool A: Lethbridge 20, Western Ontario 3
Round-Robin Pool B: Guelph 15, Alberta 5
Round-Robin Pool A: Laval 26, Western Ontario 5
Round-Robin Pool B: StFX 5, Alberta 5
15:00 Round-Robin Pool A: Lethbridge vs. Laval
15:00 Round-Robin Pool B: Guelph vs. StFX

Saturday, Nov. 1
11:00 semi-final 1: first place Pool A vs. second place Pool B
13:00 semi-final 2: second place Pool A vs. first place Pool B

Sunday, Nov. 2
10:00 5th place: Western Ontario vs. third place Pool B
12:00 Bronze medal
14:00 Championship