LANCERS GO 1-1 AT OCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS

The Lancers wrapped up their season with their most successful weekend of the year after a 1-1 result at the OCAA Women's Rugby Provincial Championships.

Hosted by Durham College at Thompson Park in Oshawa, the Lancers kicked off the day with a hard fought 21-5 loss to the St. Lawrence Surge.

5'10 forward Lindsay Bonuchi (Brantford, ON) got the Lancers on the board with an early try that caught the Surge on their heels. The Surge answered back almost immediately with a try of their own and a successful convert to jump ahead 7-5. 

In her first year playing rugby, dual sport athlete Daija Thompson (Whitby, ON) made a great run to put the Lancers back into scoring position. Thompson and her team spent the majority of the final minutes of the first half within scoring distancing but couldn't quite break through the Surge's defence.  

The Surge caught two breaks in the second half that resulted in trys and brought the final score to 21-5. Local talent Olivia Cook (Belleville, ON) played a great game with stellar passing for the Lancers while Thompson came through with some huge tackles at key moments and was named Player of the Game.  

With a first game loss, the Lancers moved into the consolation round against the Seneca Sting in what would be their best showing of the season.

Showing vast improvements at both ends of the field, the Lancers found their stride and reaped the benefits of all the hard work and effort they put into the season. Thompson came through in a big way once again with two tries while Elayna Reid (Belleville, ON) added two of her own and Cook added another. Hannah Bender (Enterprise, ON) booted 4 successful converts to add 8 points to the scoreboard and help push the Lancers to an exciting 33-19 victory.

Chiara Van der Zalm (Niagara On The Lake) won player of the game honours for her role in the victory.

Congratulations to both players and coaches on a hard fought season that showed significant improvement from start to finish.