SEMI-FINAL 1: 2009 CIS women’s rugby championship: Two-time reigning champion Lethbridge off to final

VANCOUVER (CIS) – The two-time national champion Lethbridge Pronghorns earned a return trip to the CIS women’s rugby final with a convincing 25-0 win over the Guelph Gryphons in the first semi-final of the 2009 tournament, Saturday morning at the University of British Columbia’s Thunderbird Stadium.

The Pronghorns will play for CIS gold for the fourth time in team history Sunday at 2 p.m. Pacific Time (live SSN Canada webcast on www.ssncanada.ca  and www.cis-sic.ca ). Lethbridge captured the Monilex trophy in 2008 with a 29-15 gold-medal victory over StFX and in 2007 with a 15-10 defeat of Western, and settled for silver in 2003 following a 20-3 loss to Alberta.

Lethbridge awaits the winner of Saturday’s second semi-final between StFX and Concordia.

Guelph will play for bronze Sunday at 12 p.m. hoping to claim a CIS medal for the fifth straight year following third-place finishes in 2008, 2007 and 2005, and a loss to StFX in the 2006 final.

Reigning CIS player of the year and national team member Ashley Patzer, a fifth-year senior from Lethbridge, Alta., led the way for the Canada West champion Pronghorns against Guelph with a first-half penalty kick and a try in the second period.

Andrea Letal of Calgary and Ashley MacDonald of Mt. Stewart, P.E.I., added a try apiece and freshman Laura Murphy-Burke of Surrey, B.C., had a convert for the ‘Horns, who rounded out the scoring with a late penalty try on a Guelph foul.

The Pronghorns’ physical prowess was on display throughout the match and never more so than on their second try, early in the second half. A pack of Pronghorns latched on to the back of MacDonald and pushed the all-Canadian through a group of Guelph tacklers and over the try-line early to put the Canada west champions ahead 13-0.

“We made good adjustments and didn’t allow [The Gryphons] to get out wide,” said Lethbridge head coach Neil Langevin, the 2009 CIS coach of the year. “In the second half we kept them on their side of the field, which I credit to our strong play up front.”

The OUA champion Gryphons, who suffered their first loss of the season, were at times penetrating into Lethbridge territory early in the match but were unable to find the end zone. All-Canadian Brittany Benn of Napanee, Ont., was the Gryphons’ biggest threat with the ball, making two long runs in the first half, but the Pronghorns’ solid tackling thwarted her efforts.

NOTES: It was the third meeting between Lethbridge and Guelph at the CIS championship since the inaugural tournament in 1998. In two previous semi-final duels, the Pronghorns prevailed 39-3 a year ago while the Gryphons scored a 27-5 victory in 2006.

SCORING SUMMARY
LETH 8-17: 25
GUE: 0-0: 0

First half
1. LETH: Andrea Letal (try, 5 pts)
2. LETH: Ashley Patzer (pen. kick, 3 pts)

Second half
3. LETH: Ashley MacDonald (try, 5 pts)
4. LETH: Ashley Patzer (try, 5 pts)
5. LETH: Team (penalty try, 5 pts)
6. LETH: Laura Murphy-Burke (convert, 2 pts)

Players of the game
LETH: Alex Hendricks (Lomond, Alta.)
GUE: Rose Harris (Colbourne, Ont.)

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

Pool A round-robin standings (final)
GP W L T PF PA PTS
1. Lethbridge 2 2 0 0 51 3 9
2. Concordia 2 1 1 0 10 0 4
3. Western 2 0 2 0 3 61 0

Pool B round-robin standings (final)
GP W L T PF PA PTS
1. StFX 2 1 0 1 28 10 6
2. Guelph 2 1 0 1 15 10 6
3. UBC 2 0 2 0 0 23 1

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, Nov. 6
Round-Robin Pool A: Lethbridge 51, Western Ontario 3
Round-Robin Pool B: StFX 18, UBC 0
Round-Robin Pool A: Concordia 10, Western Ontario 0
Round-Robin Pool B: Guelph 5, UBC 0
Round-Robin Pool A: Lethbridge 15, Concordia 0
Round-Robin Pool B: StFX 10, Guelph 10

Saturday, Nov. 7
Semi-final 1: Lethrbridge 25, Guelph 0
13:00 semi-final 2: Concordia vs. St. FX (SSN Canada webcast)

Sunday, Nov. 8
10:00 5th place: Western Ontario vs. UBC
12:00 Bronze medal: Guelph vs. TBD (SSN Canada webcast)
14:00 Championship final: Lethbridge vs. TBD (SSN Canada webcast)

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