OSHAWA – The Guelph Gryphons women's soccer program had never finished a season with a championship banner. But that drought ended on a rainy night at Terry Kelly Field. The Gryphons took the No. 3 nationally ranked Western Mustangs to extra time and penalty kicks in the OUA gold medal match, where
Victoria Hinchliffe slotted home her chance to give Guelph a stunning 1-1 (3-0) victory, and a long-awaited first championship.
Fourth-year goalkeeper and First Team OUA All-star
Libby Brenneman dramatically saved the first two Western attempts, while the third from goal-scorer Julia Crnjac struck a post. Rookie
Kaylin Twardowski and veteran defender
Allison Clouse scored on two of Guelph's first three kicks, setting the stage for Hinchliffe, a decorated second-year striker, who was also the hero for the Gryphons just 24 hours earlier. She calmly stepped to the spot, and as Western goalkeeper Megan Girardi leaned left, the Guelph native kept her nerve and tucked a low strike inside the left post, prompting the onlooking Brenneman to collapse in joy.
Libby Brenneman comes up huge in penalty kicks
"We're elated," said first-year head coach
Shayne Campbell, who took the reins from Randy Ragan. "The win was emblematic of this group -- they found a way. It's a team trophy and everyone here earned it."
"We've been working towards this," added Clouse, a fourth-year defender, who waited her whole career for the moment. "We knew we had a winning team and we're where we need to be."
It was the best weekend in the program's history, one that required 240-plus minutes of game action and two penalty shootouts. Saturday provided one of the biggest moments ever, a win in kicks over undefeated defending OUA champion UOIT. That result also earned Guelph a berth at Nationals in Winnipeg next week. Hinchliffe provided the energy then, answering both of the host Ridgebacks' regular-time goals, before burying the winning penalty to send Guelph through to the final.
The players knew the prospect of kicks was possible and the team had been practicing in recent weeks. Clouse, who struck her penalty hard into the top right corner, was certain the kick takers would find the Western net. And she also felt great about the Gryphons' experienced shot-stopper, a competitor who Campbell figured was usually "good for at least one or two.".
"We have total confidence in Libby," Clouse said. "It's comforting having her in there."
Hinchliffe, last season's OUA West Rookie of the Year, actually had two glorious chances to win it in the 88
th and 115
th minutes. Late in regular time, she got away from the Western defence and was in alone but her low shot was denied by Girardi. Hinchliffe, who was limping late in the match, was in on a break again in extra time but a Mustang defender tracked her down.
The prize for the new OUA champions
The wet conditions and tension of a final made for a conservative match, with both teams taking few risks in their own end. Clear chances were at a premium but Guelph's
Hayley Howes capitalized on a rare opportunity, scoring a massive goal in the 53
rd minute. Guelph trailed 1-0 at the half on a 34
th minute strike from Crnjac but the Gryphons began to press forward in the second half and were awarded a corner. Howes got her head to the ball and put it in behind Girardi for the critical equalizer.
"We have really been emphasizing the need to get something from corners," said Campbell. "Hayley just rose above everyone for a wonderful goal. It took courage to be able to do that at that time."
Western finished the year 15-2-1, with both losses coming to the new champions. The Mustangs' only regular season defeat was back on Aug. 27, a 1-0 win for Guelph (12-4-2). Western responded with a 5-2 victory over the Gryphons on Oct. 21, which was the highest goal total allowed by the defence-first side all season. Guelph was also eliminated from last year's OUA Quarter-finals by the Mustangs, in penalties.
The sides exchanged decent opportunities in the first half, with Guelph getting a half chance on a through ball to Hinchliffe in the 24
th minute that the striker just couldn't reach. Western responded in the 29
th minute with an opportunity from a corner but Juliana Guglietti's attempt from 10 yards out trickled wide right.
The Mustangs would get the breakthrough minutes later. Crnjac got away from a Guelph defender in the area and sent a low shot to the far post, just underneath the right arm of a diving Brenneman. But the Gryphons showed the same resolve they had all season, coming back to tie and eventually rip the title away from higher-seeded Western.
The first championship banner in UG WSCR history
"Western is a great team, such a difficult opponent for us," said Campbell. "They are hard to score on. We knew we had to be persistent and persevere. We have been talking about this for a couple weeks, just staying on an even keel, and the players took it to heart. They didn't panic."
Guelph will now focus on some rest before resuming training for Winnipeg.
Campbell was thrilled for the players and staff but also acknowledged everyone involved with the program who helped get to this achievement. He referred to it as a "quantum leap," that in an instant, you can become a champion, though the work leading up is long and difficult.
"There are pillars to this program," he said, making reference to Ragan first. "It takes a community to build a team, the past players and coaches, the trainers, all of the people behind the scenes.
"We are fortunate to be in the position where so many people care."
