CALGARY – The UBC Thunderbirds added to their record number of McCrae cup wins on Sunday, capturing their 13th national title with a 3-1 victory over the Field Hockey Canada-CIS tournament host Calgary Dinos at Hawkings Field.
 
CIS tournament All-Star Poonam Sandhu netted the game-winner for UBC, while fellow All-Star, CIS MVP and Championship MVP Robyn Pendleton added an insurance marker with her fourth goal of the tournament to lock up the title for the T-Birds.
 
"The championship trophy is the one I really wanted, and it's great to cap off my career with a win at nationals. It couldn't have gone down a better way," Pendleton said.
 
Her goal game in the final minutes of the contest to put the game away. With her side up 2-1, she carried the ball into space in the circle and wired a high shot past Calgary goalkeeper Steph Petrowitsch to dash any hopes of a Dinos comeback.
 
Sandhu's game-winner was the key goal of the match though, coming in the 44th minute off a penalty corner after the Dinos had tied the game up just before the half.
 
"We called my play, which I was stoked about, and Miranda Mann just had a good shot from the top and I found the ball, and it was just wide open right there. The goalie came out pretty far and I just got it past her," said Sandhu.
 
"Our second goal was huge, because it turned the pressure on them to get back at us and it opened up a few doors for us," said UBC head coach Hash Kanjee.
 
The T-Birds got on the board first with a goal from Sara McManus in the ninth minute on a penalty corner. Her shot from the top of the circle had eyes for the far corner of the net, sneaking through traffic to put UBC up 1-0.
 
But the Dinos responded just before the half with a penalty corner goal of their own. After a great individual effort by Lindsay Koch to win the corner, Kaitlyn Longworth scored her tournament-leading sixth goal with a blast to the far corner.
 
"We always knew they were going to score," said Kanjee. "It was a matter of us getting more than Calgary was going to get. One of our games this year, they tied us 4-4. We scored three up on them and they came back and scored four, so we know they can score against us and they have some kids who get in the right places at the right times and get some good touches on the ball."
 
The T-Birds generated most of their chances off penalty corners. They totaled 11 penalty corners in the match, nine of which came in the first half. They also put 11 shots on goal compared to four for the Dinos.
 
Along with Sandhu and Pendleton, Abigail Raye was also named a tournament All-Star for UBC. She missed the entire regular season with a broken rib and only saw game action in the CIS tournament.
 
"We have a great team and they were really accepting of me just coming in for the finals," said Raye. "We all played really well and they worked hard all season and really deserved the championship so I'm glad I could help a bit."
 
Carolina Romero, Serena Lockhart and Longworth were Calgary's All-Stars.
 
Bea Francisco made three good saves to earn her fifth win of the tournament in goal for the T-Birds. McManus was named player of the game for UBC, while Courtney Duggan earned the nod for Calgary.
 
Pendleton was named tournament MVP thanks to her four goals and countless impressive runs to pressure opposing teams and set up scoring chances.
 
"I'm very proud of her. She's fun to watch," Kanjee said of his fifth-year star player. "You just sit back and enjoy what she brings to the pitch. She's totally consistent, great skills and you never know what she's going to do next. She's hard to tie down."
 
"It's great to perform at this tournament," said Pendleton. "There's always a lot of nerves going on, and especially today in such an exciting environment, so it was good to have a great team performance when it counted."
 
Championship MVP: Robyn Pendleton, UBC
 
R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award: UBC Thunderbirds
 
Championship All-Stars
Julianna Cormier, Alberta
Serena Lockhart, Calgary
Kaitlin Longworth, Calgary
Robyn Pendleton, UBC
Abigail Raye, UBC
Carolina Romeo, Calgary
Poonam Sandhu, UBC
Brittany Seidler, Guelph
Jacqueline Trautman, Alberta
Kaelan Watson, Toronto
Amanda Woodcroft, Toronto