Big wins and titles for Gaels teams over weekend

Big wins and titles for Gaels teams over weekend

October 6, 2014

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[Gael Men's Rugby]
Kainoa Llyod of the Queen's Gaels men's rugby team eludes a tackle by a Guelph Gryphons player during Saturday's match at Nixon Field. The Gaels won 33-17. (Photo by Ian MacAlpine)

Here’s a quick roundup of Queen’s Gaels teams that were in action over the weekend:

Women’s Rugby

The No. 4 Gaels women's rugby team (4-1) claimed a 50-19 victory against the Western Mustangs (2-3) on Saturday night on Nixon Field in the final game of the regular season.

The Gaels had big nights from Lauren McEwen, who reached 101 points for this season with a try and four conversions, and Gillian Pegg, who added three tries to the winning score.

Sydnee Nolan put the first try on the board for the Gaels in the fifth minute, with McEwen converting to put Queen's up 7-0 early. That set in motion a cascade of three tries for the Gaels from Karley Heyman, Emily Groper and McEwen.

After a kick deep into the Gaels end, the Mustangs put down their first try, that was converted. The Gaels were quick to respond with a lineout near the goal line, pushing Gillian Pegg across to put down the final try of the half in injury time and giving Queen's a 29-7 lead.

The Gaels continued to pull away from the Mustangs in the second half, as Gillian Pegg added two consecutive tries with conversions from McEwen. Emma Chown scored the last try of the match for Queen's with Heyman adding the convert.

Western added a pair of late tries.

With the win, the Gaels will enter the playoffs in a good position to defend their OUA title.

Men’s Rugby

After losing their first match in over two years last weekend at McMaster, the Gaels bounced back Saturday afternoon taking down the previously unbeaten Guelph Gryphons 33-17 on Nixon Field. 

The Gaels put the pressure on early and were rewarded, as Angus MacPhail put the first try on the board, followed by a conversion from David Worsley.

The Gryphons were quick to respond, grabbing a fumbled pass for a try. The Gryphons attacked again, forcing a scrum at the five-meter line, which allowed them to notch a second score. The Gaels pushed back with a beautiful chip assist from Andrew Carr just across the goal line, put down by Teddy Taggart tying the game at 12-12. However, Guelph added another try, as the Gryphons led the Gaels 17-12 at halftime.

With the wind at their backs in the second half, the Gaels turned up the heat in a series of offensive attacks, including a 20-yard kick from Worsley dying just short of the Gryphons 22, causing a lineout for the Gaels. In a team effort, the Gaels pushed a ruck across the goal line, with Brendan Sloan getting credit for the try. A Worsley conversion gave the Gaels a two-point lead, which they never relinquished.

The Gaels charged the defensive line again with Joseph Yelle putting down a try with another conversion by Worsley. The Gryphons kept up the pressure forcing the Gaels line back only to be denied as Fraser Bruce intercepted a chip forward and added his own try to the board.

The Gaels will be on the road next weekend when they take on the Toronto Varsity Blues at 7 pm.  

Cycling

The Queen's Cycling Varsity Club completed their fourth and final race weekend of the University Cup race series this past weekend at Ganaraska Forest Center near Port Hope, Ont., and emerged victorious as provincial champions for the fifth year in a row.

Team captain Etienne Moreau finished the race series with a win at Ganaraska in Men's A. He also took the individual race series victory in Men's A for the third time in his university career. Moreau swept the entire series by winning all six elite men's races.

The rest of the Men's A podium was filled with Queen's riders, as Cameron McPhaden and Jason LeBlanc finished second and third overall.

In Women's A, first-year science student Haley Golding won the overall elite women's title. Golding had a great second-place finish at this weekend's race after battling back from her misdirection on course at Albion Hills last weekend.

Men's B was dominated by a couple of Queen's riders who eventually moved up to the Men's A category. Two notable Queen's athletes in this situation were Blake Bogden and Cameron Lawrence.

The Gaels finished at the top of the leaderboard in the team category with an immense lead over any contender.

Men’s Basketball

The Queen's men’s basketball teams took the Tindall Invitational with a 77-61 victory against McGill. Both teams finished with a 2-1 record, giving the title to the hosts on head-to-head.

Both Guelph and Trinity Western ended the tournament 1-2.

Earlier, Queen’s beat Guelph 78-75 but lost to Trinity Western 69-60.

The Gaels Greg Faulkner was named the tournament MVP, putting up 65 points, 26 rebounds, and seven steals overall, including a double-double performance against Guelph with 28 points, 13 rebounds, and four steals.

The Gaels will be on the road  Thursday when they take on Nipissing at 6 pm in exhibition play.

Women’s Basketball

The Queen's women’s basketball finished their home tournament with an unblemished 3-0 record, beating their competition from Acadia, Laval, and Thompson Rivers to claim the Tindall Invitational title.

On Sunday the Gaels wrapped up a dominant performance with a 76-59 win against the Thompson Rivers Wolfpack. On Saturday they topped Laval 75-58 and opened the tournament Friday with a 74-43 victory over Acadia.

MVP honours went to Jenny Wright who nabbed a total of 35 points, 19 rebounds, and five assists in the tournament, including a 13-point, eight rebound performance against Laval.

The Gaels will be back in action Oct. 16 when they travel to British Colombia for more exhibition games.

Women’s Soccer

Jessie de Boer extended her scoring streak as the women's soccer team earned a pair of road wins over the weekend.

On Sunday, the Gaels beat the Nipissing Lakers 3-1 Sunday and 2-0 over Laurentian.

The Gaels got off to a quick start Sunday as Breanna Burton buried her first of the season three minutes into the match. De Boer added the eventual game-winner soon after for Queen's before Nipissing cut into the in the 33rd minute. As the first half reached its final minutes, Queen's regained the two-goal lead as Rachel Radu beat Nipissing keeper Kelly Dunk.

On Saturday, De Boer did all the scoring in the 49th and 73rd minutes in a largely defensive battle with Laurentian.

Keeper Madison Tyrell (White Rock, B.C.) turned aside all three shots that came her way, earning her OUA leading sixth clean sheet.

With the weekend tally, de Boer has scored seven goals in the last five games.

The Gaels (7-2-3) return to action next Saturday when they begin their final four-game homestand of the season against the Ryerson Rams (3-7-0). The match begins at 1 pm on Miklas-McCarney Field.

Men’s Soccer

The Queen’s men’s soccer team picked up three of a possible four points on the road over the weekend with a 4-0 rout of Laurentian followed by a 1-1 draw with Nipissing.

On Sunday, captain Chris Michael scored the lone goal for the Gaels in a 1-1 draw against the Nipissing Lakers. The Gaels found themselves trailing as Nipissing opened the scoring in the 27th minute. However, Michael found the back of the net in the 47th minute.  

It was a different story Saturday with four goals in the second half against the Laurentian Voyageurs. Jacob Schroeter netted a pair, bringing his season total to six. Andrew Martin and Patrick van Belleghem registered their first goals of the season to round out the score.

The Gaels (7-2-4) are set to return home as they prepare for their final three game homestand of the season. The first match is scheduled for Saturday at 3:15 pm on Miklas-McCarney field as Queen's will battle the first-place No.4 Ryerson Rams (10-1-0).

Rowing

The Gaels rowing team picked up nine medals as they competed at a blustery Head of the Trent Regatta in Peterborough on Saturday.

On the women's side Queen's earned four silver medals and one bronze. The men collected four bronze medals.

The women's heavyweight eight, lightweight eight, heavyweight coxed four, and lightweight coxed four picked up silver medals, while the men's lightweight single, heavyweight coxed four, lightweight coxed four, heavyweight eight, and women's heavyweight double claimed bronze medals.

The Gaels rowers head to St. Catherines to compete at the Brock Invitational on Saturday in their final competition before the OUA Championship.

Cross Country

Jeff Archer picked up his second win of the season on Saturday, placing first in the men's Brown race at the Lehigh Paul Short Run in Bethlehem, Pa. Claire Sumner finished 13th as the women's fastest runner in the Gold race.

In the most competitive race yet, Queen's had strong individual showings in both the men's and women's race. In the Gold Women's Race, indicating NCAA Division 1 calibre teams, Sumner had an impressive race in a Guelph dominated field, running a 20:25 over 6 km to finish 13th and lead the Gaels to a 30th place overall finish. Shannen Murray ran a time of 22:08 to place 153rd with the rest of the Queen's women's team finishing within a minute and a half of her.

In the Brown Men's Race, the level immediately below the Gold race, Archer won in a time of 24:34 over 8 km. Not far behind, Alex Wilkie finished in a time of 24:41 to take third place. The men's team tied for eighth.

The women's and men's team are gearing up for the Queen's Invitational on Saturday at Fort Henry Hill, which is the final race before OUA Championships are held on the same course.

Men’s Hockey

The Queen’s men’s hockey team headed south of the border for a pair of exhibition games and were roughed up by their NCAA counterparts.

On Sunday, the Gaels tumbled to an 8-0 loss against Clarkson University and a lost 7-1 to Colgate University a day earlier.

The Gaels finished the preseason with a 2-3-1 record.

The team will open the 2014-2015 OUA regular season Saturday at home against No.8 McGill. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 pm at the Memorial Centre.

Women’s Hockey

Courtenay Jacklin and Shawna Griffin led the Gaels women’s hockey team offensively as Queen's defeated the Brock Badgers 5-1 in the final game of the preseason Saturday in Peterborough.

The Gaels dominated play, outshooting the Badgers 36-18 in the game. Jacklin and Griffin tallied three and two points respectively, while Taryn Pilon  and Clare McKellar  each added a goal.  

Goalie Stephanie Pascal registered 17 saves in the win.

The Gaels open the 2014-2015 regular season Saturday at home against the Nipissing Lakers. Puck drop is scheduled for 2:30 pm at the Memorial Centre.

Check out the weekend highlights in this video.

For more information on Queen's Gaels teams, including rosters, player profiles and schedules go to gogaelsgo.com.