GUELPH, Ont. – The Guelph Gryphons women's basketball team is set to take the court on Friday night (Oct. 24) when they host the reigning OUA champion Ottawa Gee-Gees to begin the 2025-26 OUA regular season. Eighteen teams from across the province are split into three divisions as they compete in a 22-game regular season with the Gryphons playing out of the OUA West Division. Twelve teams in the OUA will make the playoffs, with the division winners and the team with the next best record earning byes into the quarterfinals while the other eight playoff teams play in the opening round of the postseason, which all begins on February 18, 2026. The Gryphons will look to make it back to the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season after reaching the OUA quarterfinal stage last season.
 
"We have some strong veteran leadership with our fourth-year players," says head coach Christine Hyde, who enters her first season in charge of the University of Guelph women's basketball program after being named Gryphon head coach in June of 2025. "We're strong defensively on the perimeter and have some shot blocking presence down low with the ability to rebound. We will need to lock in for all 40 minutes each game to get to where we want to go this season."
 
Fourth-year guard Hannah Bourdon leads an experienced Gryphon backcourt in 2025-26. Bourdon, a sport and event management major, is coming off a standout 2024-25 season where she took a major step forward in her game and earned OUA Second Team All-Star honours. The Fort Erie, ON native averaged 12.7 points per game and 8.0 rebounds per game last season and was 9th in the conference with 175 total rebounds. Rain Jhaj is back for her fourth season with the team as she enters the new season as the main ball handler from the point. The psychology major came off the bench last season and made 15 three's. Alexis Wright also returns for her fourth season in Guelph as she brings a two-way element to the team. The biology major scored 162 points offensively last season while coming away with 22 steals on the defensive end. Sarah Metwally, a third-year point guard from Alexandria, Egypt, provides the Gryphons with additional depth at point guard. 
 
The Gryphon forwards will be led by graduate transfer, Christina Morra. Morra (Mississauga, ON) is pursuing her Masters at the University of Guelph in public health, and arrives at U of G after having previously played four years of NCAA Division I basketball at Wake Forest, where she appeared in the NCAA Tournament in 2021. The Mississauga native spent the last few years playing overseas in Europe, and is poised to play an integral role up front for the Gryphs in 2025-26. Macy Weber enters her third season with the team and provides a shot blocking presence on the inside. The Conestogo, ON native last season swatted away 15 shots and had a season-high 3 blocks against Toronto (Nov. 8). Australian centre Keryl Ousey returns to fortify the frontcourt as the music major last season grabbed 90 rebounds.
 
The Gryphons women's basketball team face a tough test in their home opener to begin the 2025-26 regular season with a home date with the reigning OUA champion, Ottawa Gee-Gees. Tip off from Guelph Gryphons Athletics Centre is scheduled for Friday (Oct. 24) for 8pm. All Gryphons women's basketball games throughout the season can be streamed live online at www.oua.tv, with tickets for home games in Guelph available online at www.gryphons.ca/tickets.