TORONTO, Ont. - This past weekend (February 17-19), the Guelph Gryphons varsity badminton team made the trip down highway 401 to Toronto to compete in the 2023 OUA Badminton Championships, hosted by Toronto Metropolitan University. After three days of action and five total matches the Gryphons finished 8th after going 0-3 in pool play.
Each of the nine participating schools at the championship were placed in one of two pools, with Pool A being comprised of four teams and Pool B holding five teams.
The Gryphons found themselves in Pool A, meaning they would take on the Western Mustangs, Ottawa Gee-Gees, and the defending conference champions in the U of T Varsity Blues. In each matchup teams played a total of 10 games, a pair of both men's and women's solo matches, a pair of both men's and women's doubles matches, and a pair of mixed doubles matches.
The Gryphons opened the tournament with a tough 10-0 loss to Western which saw the Mustangs outscored the Gryphons 420-189 across the 10 matches played between the two schools. In their second matchup on Friday, the Gryphons took on the Ottawa Gee-Gees, falling 8-2 while being outscored 424-256. On Saturday, the U of G badminton team's schedule did not get any easier, with the defending champion Varsity Blues defeating the Gryphons 8-2, with a point differential of 386-245.
Following the conclusion of pool play the Gryphons placed last in Pool A with a 0-3 record, meaning they would take on the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks for the opportunity to play in the 7th-place match against the host TMU Bold. In the consolations semifinal the Gryphons were able to pick up their first win of the weekend, an 8-2 victory over the Ridgebacks where they outscored their opponent 380-260 across the 10 matches. In their final game of the championships the Gryphons fell to the TMU Bold 7-3, and finished the tournament in 8th place.
Following the completion of the tournament a pair of Gryphons earned OUA All-Star status in
Aditi Mahajan on the women's side and
Kyle Thompson for the men's side.
RESULTS
Team Standings
GOLD - York
SILVER - Waterloo
BRONZE - Toronto
4th - Western
5th - McMaster
6th - Ottawa
7th - TMU
8th - Guelph
9th - Ontario Tech
OUA Major Award Winners & All-Stars
WOMEN
Major Award Winners
MVP: Jacqueline Cheng, Western
Rookie of the Year (co-winners): Sopha Nong, York & Natalie Yee, McMaster
Coach of the Year: Michelle Tong, York
All-Stars:
Jacqueline Cheng, Western
Crystal Lai, York
Tiffany Too, Western
Sophia Nong, York
Joycelyne Jaw, Toronto
Ashley Wong, Waterloo
Jeslyn Chow, McMaster
Aditi Mahajan, Guelph
MEN
Major Award Winners
MVP: Victor Lai, York
Rookie of the Year: Victor Lai, York
Coach of the Year: Michelle Tong, York
All-Stars:
Victor Lai, York
Noah Xu, Western
Michael Farrell, Toronto
Jonathan Lai, Toronto
Kyle Thompson, Guelph
Jason Ho-Shune, York
Alex Bianchini, Ottawa
Harry Soo, Waterloo
