November 3, 2021
Banner Season: Familiar foes set to collide in field hockey finale between Blues and Gryphons
Burlington, Ont. - Division winners are set to collide in the banner season finale and only one can come away with the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) field hockey title. In what has been a collision course to the championship stage, it will be the decorated Toronto Varsity Blues taking on the defending champion Guelph Gryphons on Sunday, November 7 to see which nationally-ranked program will add their storied history.
2021 OUA Field Hockey Championship | Fan Guide | Tickets | Stream
Despite the new look format during the regular season, the result remains a familiar one for OUA field hockey fans, as this weekend's finalists have done battle on the championship stage in 10 of the previous 15 championship games. The Gryphons may have won the most recent matchup in 2019, but it is the Blues holding the 7-3 edge overall during that stretch, and whether facing Guelph or not, Sunday's hosts are no strangers to hoisting the trophy.
The Blues, proud owners of 32 conference championships since 1971, enter this weekend's finale with an undefeated record to their name throughout the 2021 campaign. Locked in a division with the York Lions and Queen's Gaels, Toronto went on a six-game winning streak through the heart of the season to buoy them into the division lead, a stretch that they bookended on either end of the season with a draw against the aforementioned Lions.
It was those same cross-town rivals that stood in Toronto's way toward their quest for their first OUA title since 2016, and while they were knotted up at halftime, a late tally from OUA leading scorer Sam McCrory (Kitchener, Ont.) broke the deadlock and secured her team's spot in the gold medal game.
Guelph, meanwhile, started their title defence on the rockier side, opening with a draw against McMaster, who were playing their first OUA league game, before falling to Waterloo in their third game of the season. After earning just one win in their first four games, however, the Gryphons went on a four-game winning streak to close out the season, and with 10 new players on the roster and no exhibition games to their name, the latter half of the 2021 campaign seemed to be when the Gryphons really found their footing.
The eventual first-place finishers in the West Division entered the postseason on a high, and on the heels of two wins against Western during the regular season, the Gryphons needed a third to give themselves a chance at a provincial repeat. A pair of first half goals from Bailey Mitchell just 30 seconds apart proved to be the difference-maker in Guelph's eventual 3-1 win over the Mustangs, but even though those two goals were key, one of the most important ingredients for Guelph's success has been the combined play of their entire team.
Among those who contribute to the Gryphons' firepower - offensively and defensively - are Sidney Evans, Arden Goddard-Despot, and Darci Moher. Each of these players remain a part of the young core, but each have made a name for themselves early on in their careers. Evans, a sophomore from Waterloo, Ont., enters the 2021 final as an OUA all-star, while Goddard-Despot, a first-year defender from North Vancouver, B.C., made an immediate impact on the defensive end in her debut season to take home the conference's rookie of the year nod.
On the other side of the ball, meanwhile, Waterloo, Ont. native Moher registered seven goals on the season (2nd in OUA), as the Waterloo, Ont. native made the most of her offensive opportunities for the Guelph group.
Testing the Gryphons' potent play this weekend are some capable counterparts on the Blues side. The league's top offensive threat, McCrory, accounted for 44% of Toronto's regular season offence thanks to her 11 goals in eight games. The Victoria Vikes transfer is also joined by rookie midfielder McKinley Kennedy (North Vancouver, B.C.), who picked up four goals of her own, alongside fellow offensive threats in OUA MVP Katie Lynes (Oakville, Ont.) and all-star Rebecca Carvalho (Brampton, Ont.).
Both teams have shown they have what it takes to claim the championship, and after sitting on the sidelines for nearly two years, the Blues and Gryphons are chomping at the bit to cap off their post-pandemic OUA campaign with a conference championship in hand.
The gold medal game will hit the Back Campus Fields at the University of Toronto on Sunday, November 7 at 2:00pm. Tickets are on sale now, with those spectators looking to attend the championship event required to show proof of vaccination upon entry. The winning side will also go on to serve as hosts for the upcoming national championship the following weekend.
2021 OUA Field Hockey Championship | Fan Guide | Tickets | Stream
Despite the new look format during the regular season, the result remains a familiar one for OUA field hockey fans, as this weekend's finalists have done battle on the championship stage in 10 of the previous 15 championship games. The Gryphons may have won the most recent matchup in 2019, but it is the Blues holding the 7-3 edge overall during that stretch, and whether facing Guelph or not, Sunday's hosts are no strangers to hoisting the trophy.
The Blues, proud owners of 32 conference championships since 1971, enter this weekend's finale with an undefeated record to their name throughout the 2021 campaign. Locked in a division with the York Lions and Queen's Gaels, Toronto went on a six-game winning streak through the heart of the season to buoy them into the division lead, a stretch that they bookended on either end of the season with a draw against the aforementioned Lions.
It was those same cross-town rivals that stood in Toronto's way toward their quest for their first OUA title since 2016, and while they were knotted up at halftime, a late tally from OUA leading scorer Sam McCrory (Kitchener, Ont.) broke the deadlock and secured her team's spot in the gold medal game.
Guelph, meanwhile, started their title defence on the rockier side, opening with a draw against McMaster, who were playing their first OUA league game, before falling to Waterloo in their third game of the season. After earning just one win in their first four games, however, the Gryphons went on a four-game winning streak to close out the season, and with 10 new players on the roster and no exhibition games to their name, the latter half of the 2021 campaign seemed to be when the Gryphons really found their footing.
The eventual first-place finishers in the West Division entered the postseason on a high, and on the heels of two wins against Western during the regular season, the Gryphons needed a third to give themselves a chance at a provincial repeat. A pair of first half goals from Bailey Mitchell just 30 seconds apart proved to be the difference-maker in Guelph's eventual 3-1 win over the Mustangs, but even though those two goals were key, one of the most important ingredients for Guelph's success has been the combined play of their entire team.
Among those who contribute to the Gryphons' firepower - offensively and defensively - are Sidney Evans, Arden Goddard-Despot, and Darci Moher. Each of these players remain a part of the young core, but each have made a name for themselves early on in their careers. Evans, a sophomore from Waterloo, Ont., enters the 2021 final as an OUA all-star, while Goddard-Despot, a first-year defender from North Vancouver, B.C., made an immediate impact on the defensive end in her debut season to take home the conference's rookie of the year nod.
On the other side of the ball, meanwhile, Waterloo, Ont. native Moher registered seven goals on the season (2nd in OUA), as the Waterloo, Ont. native made the most of her offensive opportunities for the Guelph group.
Testing the Gryphons' potent play this weekend are some capable counterparts on the Blues side. The league's top offensive threat, McCrory, accounted for 44% of Toronto's regular season offence thanks to her 11 goals in eight games. The Victoria Vikes transfer is also joined by rookie midfielder McKinley Kennedy (North Vancouver, B.C.), who picked up four goals of her own, alongside fellow offensive threats in OUA MVP Katie Lynes (Oakville, Ont.) and all-star Rebecca Carvalho (Brampton, Ont.).
Both teams have shown they have what it takes to claim the championship, and after sitting on the sidelines for nearly two years, the Blues and Gryphons are chomping at the bit to cap off their post-pandemic OUA campaign with a conference championship in hand.
The gold medal game will hit the Back Campus Fields at the University of Toronto on Sunday, November 7 at 2:00pm. Tickets are on sale now, with those spectators looking to attend the championship event required to show proof of vaccination upon entry. The winning side will also go on to serve as hosts for the upcoming national championship the following weekend.
