At about this time last fall, the UBC Thunderbirds were awarded the No. 6 seed for the U SPORTS Women's Rugby Championship, following a Canada West Final loss to UVic. That set up a gauntlet of a path to the championship, where the T-Birds lined up against and defeated all three of the top seeds before claiming national gold for the second straight year.
This time around, it's again a similar story, albeit with some notable differences. This year the T-Birds have been awarded the No. 8 seed, making their quarterfinal matchup that much more daunting. They also don't have the advantage of playing the tournament at home, instead flying to Guelph for the week-long adventure with games running from Wednesday, November 4, to Sunday, November 8.
The mission remains the same though, and that's to lift the Monilex Trophy for the third straight year. No rugby team has three-peated since the Lethbridge Pronghorns did so back in 2007-09, and the Thunderbirds are one of just two sides to win even two in a row since then.
"Obviously we didn't perform the way that we wanted to," said UBC head coach Dean Murten on his team's loss to the Vikes in the conference championship. "But the team is very positive. We're the defending two-time champions and there's pressure with that, but with us going in as the No. 8 seed, it does take a little bit of pressure off. But the players know that we have to perform. We know who we've got, we're preparing for it, and the players are in good spirits."
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The No. 1 seed for the tournament (and UBC's opponent for their first round matchup on Wednesday) is Queen's, the champions of the OUA for the fourth time in the last five years. The Gaels posted a 5-1 record in the regular season, with their lone loss coming against Guelph, before exacting revenge on the Gryphons in the OUA Final last week.
This will be the third all-time meeting between UBC and Queen's, all of them coming on the national stage. The Gaels prevailed in their first clash in the 2021 U SPORTS Quarterfinals, while the T-Birds came out on top in a heart-stopping semifinal bout at last year's tournament.
"We know what Queen's are about, we've faced them a couple of times now," added Murten. "We know they're a very good team, they're very well-coached, and we know that we have to defend extremely well. They're very physical, and we have to defend like we haven't defended all year. That'll hopefully get us the performance we need.
"We have to trust each other and stay connected to each other. It'll be a big challenge for us – I'm sure that they will have a lot of spectators out, just like we did [last year], and I'm sure that we'll give it all we've got."
Whether they end up in the championship or consolation side of the bracket, the T-Birds will face either No. 4 seed Guelph, hosts and OUA runners-up, or No. 5 Ottawa, runners-up from RSEQ. The semifinals are on Friday, while the consolation final and medal games are on Sunday.
The two teams entering nationals with undefeated records are on the other side of the bracket, with Canada West champs Victoria (No. 2) and RSEQ champs Laval (No. 3) on a collision course unless either OUA bronze medallists Brock (No. 7) or AUS champs Acadia (No. 6) can pull the upset.
UBC and Queen's will do battle in the third of four quarterfinals on Wednesday, with the opening kick set for 2:00 p.m. (PT). All of the U SPORTS Women's Rugby Championship games can be watched live and on-demand across the CBC digital platforms.
