WINNIPEG, Man. – It has been an unforgettable 2017 playoff run for the Guelph Gryphons women's soccer team. But it has also been a mentally and physically exhausting one. Less than a week ago, the Gryphons gutted out back-to-back victories in penalty kicks in order to claim the school's first ever OUA title in women's soccer. On Thursday in Winnipeg, the Gryphons opened up play at the U SPORTS national championships where they once again found themselves locked in a match where 90 minutes simply was not enough to determine a winner. Unlike their experience at the OUA level, however, this time around the Gryphons would find themselves on the wrong end of a dramatic finish.
With their U SPORTS Quarter-final match tied 0-0 late in extra time, the Montreal Carabins would get a goal from Mégan Sauvé to lift the RSEQ finalists to a 1-0 victory over the Guelph Gryphons. For the Gryphs, who entered the tournament as the No. 3-seed in the eight-team field, it marked the third straight match in which the players were asked to play an additional 30 minutes of extra time. With the loss, the Gryphons will now play in a U SPORTS consolation semi-final match on Friday (5pm ET) against the host-Manitoba Bisons. Montreal advances to face Trinity Western in a national semi-final.
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The Gryphons, who were making their first appearance at nationals since 1999, received an outstanding performance from fourth year goalkeeper
Libby Brenneman. The match would not have required extra time if not for some heroics in the dying stages of regulation by the OUA First Team All-Star keeper.
With the Carabins pressuring late, Brenneman turned away a hard shot and scrambled to deny a Montreal player from point blank to keep the match knotted at 0-0.
It was one of several close calls for the Carabins, who hit the post on several occasions in the match. But with penalty kicks mere moments away, Montreal would finally find a breakthrough thanks to an impressive individual effort from Carabins' forward Mégan Sauvé who split a pair of Gryphon defenders before firing a left-footed strike home.
The Gryphons' best scoring chance may have come in the 34th minute when rookie midfielder
Katya Tarasoff's long-distance strike looked destined for the top corner before Montreal keeper Claudia Dube-Trempe tipped it over the bar to safety.
Friday's match between the Gryphons and Carabins also proved to be an extremely physical affair, with the two teams combining for 19 fouls. Player of the Game honours for Guelph went to third year defender and OUA All-Star
Nicole Brown-Shaw who helped anchor a gritty defensive performance by the Gryphs. The Carabins out-shot the Gryphons 15-4 in the match, which was played indoors at the Subway South Soccer Complex.
The Gryphons' next match will be streamed live online at usports.live, with kickoff versus Manitoba set for 5pm ET. Should the Gryphons win that match, they would play in the 5th place game on Sunday (11am ET) in the U SPORTS Consolation Final.
