QUEBEC CITY, QC - Friday evening (Nov. 3, 2023) in Quebec City, the Guelph Gryphons women's rugby team suffered a 16-0 loss to the University of Victoria Vikes in the first semifinal matchup of the 2023 U SPORTS Women's Rugby Championships. The Gryphons, who earned a spot in the national semifinals thanks to their
29-14 victory over StFX on Wednesday, were unable to solve a tough Victoria squad in the semifinals. The Vikes, who entered the eight-team tournament as the No. 8-seed, upset the top-ranked Ottawa Gee-Gees in their quarterfinal, and carried that momentum into Friday night's semifinal clash with the Gryphons, with UVic taking a 6-0 at the half before adding 10 more points in the second half. With points hard to come by, the first try of the game was not scored until the 65th minute, when UVic touched down in goal to extend their lead from 9-0 to 16-0.
With the loss, the Gryphons will now play for U SPORTS bronze on Sunday afternoon at 1pm in Quebec City, and await the loser of the second semifinal match on Friday night which pits the OUA champion Queen's Gaels against the host Laval Rouge et Or.
