WATERLOO, Ont. – The Guelph Gryphons women's hockey team dropped Game 2 of their OUA quarterfinal series with the Waterloo Warriors on Friday night (Feb. 27) at the University of Waterloo's Columbia Icefield Arena. The Gryphons, who won Game 1 back on Wednesday (Feb. 25), arrived in Waterloo with an opportunity to sweep the best-of-three series, but the Warriors exploded for five goals in the opening period and never looked back, skating to a 6-0 victory on home ice to tie the series at 1-1. The series will now shift back to Guelph on Sunday afternoon (March 1) where a 2:30pm puck drop at the Gryphon Centre Arena will determine which of these two Top 10-ranked teams (Guelph No. 6 in U SPORTS, Waterloo No. 5) will earn a spot in the OUA semifinals.
 
A thrilling Game 1 on Wednesday night in Guelph saw the Gryphons earn a hard-fought 4-3 win over Waterloo to take a 1-0 series lead. But it was all Waterloo on Friday night in Game 2, with Carly Orth and Katina Duscio scoring :33 seconds apart midway through the 1st period to give Waterloo an early 2-0 lead. Waterloo forwards Tatum James and Keiara Raitt later score :44 seconds apart, pushing the Waterloo lead to 4-0. With just :06 seconds remaining in the 1st period, Carly Orth would score her second of the night, capping a five-goal period for the Warriors. The Warriors added one more in the 2nd period which was more than enough for Waterloo goalie Kara Mark, who recorded a 35 save shutout on the night, including a penalty shot save on Olivia Knuff.
 
Tickets for Sunday afternoon's Game 3 are available online at gryphons.ca/tickets, with the game also broadcast live online at www.oua.tv. The Gryphons will need to win on Sunday to keep their season alive. The Waterloo Warriors, meanwhile, have an automatic berth to nationals, as they are serving as hosts of the U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championships for a second consecutive year. The OUA will send three teams to nationals (one being Waterloo as host, plus the two highest-finishing teams in OUA). The 2026 U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championships are set to take place March 19-22 in Elmira at the Woolwich Memorial Centre. The winner of the Guelph-Waterloo series will advance to the OUA semifinals to face the winner of the Queen's Gaels/Ontario Tech Ridgebacks series (that series is tied 1-1, with Game 3 set for 8pm on Sunday, March 1 in Kingston).