Tag: Concordia Stingers

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Stingers unable to compete against Canada’s best

Kaylah Barrett’s 34 points weren’t enough to upset Regina. Photo by Josh Schaefer

The road to the top is not often a straight one. The women’s basketball team understood that after they lost to McGill on March 2 in the RSEQ finals, but were given a second chance to make it to Calgary for the national championship, that is, if they won the West Regional tournament in Saskatoon.

However, they did not. Goliath won against David and their game against the number one team in the country, the University of Regina, ended as most would have predicted.

Regina’s Cougars didn’t take long to start their engine, leading the Stingers 6-0 halfway through the first quarter, taking their opportunities from Concordia’s missed chances. The Stingers were trailing behind, and had to fight an uphill battle to make their way back into the game.

Then, it was another episode of  “The Kaylah Barrett Show” that started as this year’s MVP took it upon herself to carry the team, taking the Stingers to within eight after the first quarter.

Barrett continued her one-man show into the second quarter. With the help of teammates Tina Mpondani  and Anne-Marie Prophete, Concordia battled a very skilled Regina team but continued to struggle trailing 39-26 at halftime.

The Cougars stretched their lead in the beginning of the third quarter, as both forward Lindsay Ledingham and guard Michelle Clark made three-point jump shots 30 seconds apart, making it 47-26 for Regina. Despite Barrett, Prophete and Mpondani’s combined efforts, the Cougars finished the third quarter with a comfortable 21-point lead of the Stingers.

The Stingers were unable to rally on time in the fourth quarter, despite Barrett’s tremendous 16 points, and lost 73-60.

Kaylah Barrett led the team in this ultimate game with an impressive 34 points. Anne-Marie Prophete finished with 11 points and Magalie Beaulieu with six points.

This loss put a definite end to a season that started with great expectations, but was dismantled with ups and downs and injuries. What is left now is to reflect on a season that could have been so much more and look forward to next season.

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Disappointing weekend in Halifax

HALIFAX (CUP)—After a blowout loss in their first game to StFX, the Concordia Stingers quickly found themselves in a spot they had hoped to avoid: the consolation bracket. Even there the Stingers couldn’t find success.

Evens Laroche goes up for a shot in concodia’s loss to StFX. Photo by Nick Pearce

A day after getting blown out by an impressive Alberta squad, the Ryerson Rams showed grit and determination over the Stingers in the consolation semifinals, pulling out an 84–80 victory Saturday afternoon at the Halifax Metro Centre. The Rams claimed their program’s first-ever win at the CIS championships.

The Stingers, the RSEQ champions, were eliminated from the tournament with a winless 0 – 2 record. It was a frustrating setback for head coach John Dore.

“We did not play how we were capable of playing in either game that we played here,” said Dore. “It’s a disappointing end to the season, and, you know, we’ve got our work cut out for us if we want to play at this level.”

Although their hopes for a national title have passed them by, Rams head coach Roy Rana said getting a consolation victory still matters to his group.

“Maybe for others it wasn’t that important of a game, but for us it was. I thought we kept fighting. We didn’t get off to a great start tonight, but I’m proud of the kids. They came up big,” he said.

The Rams would not have gotten here if not for an earlier upset of the defending OUA champion Lakehead Thunderwolves in the semifinals.

A Ryerson victory over Concordia did not seem possible until an 18–0 run to end the third quarter put a charge in the Rams. With the score 61–45 for Concordia midway through the third quarter, Ryerson turned up the defensive pressure and got hot on the offensive end. A combination of three point plays and easy fast break baskets paced the run eventually leading to victory.

The theme of runs carried throughout the game. From the start, Concordia came out firing, opening up a 17–4 lead early on. The Rams, led by OUA first team all-star Jahmal Jones, did not panic and played their game, pulling back to within six by the end of the first quarter. This run, along with the electric 18–0 stretch later in the contest, made the difference in the game.

In the end, the game came down to the wire, but poor clock management by the Stingers doomed them. After Concordia players let precious time tick off the clock before committing a foul, Jones hit two clutch free throws to extend the lead to 84–80, essentially icing the game.

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See ya later Gaiters

Riddled by injuries in the past weeks, the Stingers went from a team drawing attention nationally to a team hovering near .500, battling for a home playoff game.

Concordia thrashed Bishop’s at home. Photo by Navneet Pall

With the third place Bishop’s Gaiters visiting on Friday night, Concordia came out playing quality basketball and turned in its largest margin of victory this season, with a 71-40 win.

The Stingers built up a 13-point lead in the first half, but Concordia watched a halftime lead of the exact same margin dissipate last week in a loss to Laval.

Coach Keith Pruden was determined to keep his team from befalling the same fate against Bishop’s. “I told the team [at half] it’s the same [lead] we had against Laval last week and that we had to maintain the intensity level we had in the first half and we just had to execute a little bit better and we did both those things,” he said. “I’m very happy with [the team’s] effort.”

Concordia held Bishop’s to just 15 points in the final half, including a fourth quarter in which the Stingers outscored their opponents 21-6, sealing the game with an exclamation mark.

Guard Kaylah Barrett, who has been battling thumb and lower-back injuries and struggling mightily lately, broke out of her slump, scoring 19 points to go along with five rebounds and five assists.

“I’m busted up everywhere but I just try and play through it,” said Barrett, who has not been participating in full-speed drills in practice.

Concordia dominated Bishop’s statistically, outrebounding the Gaiters 53-34 and forcing 26 turnovers, while only turning the ball over 15 times themselves.

“We played with a lot of heart compared with the other games [during the losing streak],” said Concordia guard Magalie Beaulieu, who was second in scoring for the Stingers with 11 points. “Other nights we let teams back in the game, but tonight we played better defence and offence and with much more heart,” she said.

With the win, Concordia remains in sole possession of second place with a record of 7-5, which would give them at least one home playoff game in the first round of RSEQ playoffs, but will be jockeying with Bishop’s (5-7) for the coveted two-seed the rest of the season.

The Stingers will also continue to be without Natasha Raposo, one of the team’s best perimeter shooters, who is out with an injury. The team will be forced to move forward though, as they hope to build momentum going into the playoffs.

Concordia’s next game is a rematch with Bishop’s this Friday night, on the road at 6 p.m.

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Cellar dwellers topple division leading Stingers

Jerome Blake is guarded by Sean Monplaisir in the Stingers loss. Photo by Navneet Pall

Playing the Bishop’s Gaiters, the RSEQ’s last-place team who only had one win coming in to Friday, it seemed the Stingers would be able to record their 11th win of the season. Instead, Concordia was upstaged on its home court by a hungry Bishop’s team looking to slay the Goliath of the Quebec conference.

Jerome Blake is guarded by Sean Monplaisir in the Stingers loss. Photo by Navneet Pall

While it is undeniable that Concordia is a more talented team than Bishop’s, the games are not won and lost on paper.

“They outworked us and they outplayed us,” said coach John Dore. “We weren’t prepared and they deserved to win. We played better in the first half, but just weren’t focused in the second half.”

The Stingers trailed by a point after the first quarter, but came out strong to start the second, going on a 12-3 run at the beginning of the quarter, taking a 37-26 lead midway through the second, and went into the break with an eight-point lead.

Whatever momentum Concordia had built up, though, was gone coming out after halftime.

Bishop’s outscored the Stingers 23-13 in the quarter and took a slim, two-point lead in the final quarter when Mukiya Post hit a jump shot in the last minute of the third.

It was all Bishop’s in the beginning of the fourth quarter, as the Gaiters built a 13-point lead with just over two and a half minutes to play. To give the Stingers credit, they refused to fold.

Kyle Desmarais, who led the Stingers with 18 points, made back-to-back three-point shots on consecutive possession to pull Concordia within eight points.

Trailing 75-68 in the final minute of play, the Stingers went on a 7-2 run and had a chance to tie the game after Sean Monplaisir missed a free-throw that would have virtually clinched the victory for Bishop’s.

This allowed the Stingers to run one final play to tie the game. Concordia got the ball to Decee Krah, who struggled on the night, scoring eight points on just two-of-12 shooting. Krah, however, missed a difficult 25-foot three-pointer, giving Bishop’s the upset victory.

Afterwards, Coach Dore stressed the importance of not overlooking weaker teams like Bishop’s. “You have to respect your opponents and come out ready to play every night,” he said.

Despite the loss, Concordia still remains in first place in the RSEQ, two wins ahead of McGill, but the Redmen only have three games remaining, while the Stingers have four.

The Stingers will have a chance to avenge the loss as they face Bishop’s again this Friday night at 8 p.m., on the road in  Lennoxville.

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6-0 feels long ago

The Concordia Stingers started the season off with six wins, but are now in the throes of a five-game losing streak. Currently sitting in third, they trail first-place McGill by six points. Photo from archives.
The Concordia Stingers started the season off with six wins, but are now in the throes of a five-game losing streak. Currently sitting in third, they trail first-place McGill by six points. Photo from archives.

Just two weeks ago, the Concordia Stingers were the class of the RSEQ. The team was riding a six-game winning streak and was poised to run away with the conference.
My, how things have changed.
Lately the Stingers have underperformed, resulting in a five-game losing streak. They now trail first place McGill by six points. This past weekend, Concordia was facing two of the conference’s weaker teams and was expecting to snap out of its struggles. Unfortunately for the Stingers, the games aren’t won on paper.

On Friday night, Concordia hosted a feisty Laval Rouge et Or squad who they defeated twice this season, but only by a combined six points.
This time, though, it was Laval’s turn to eke out a win. Concordia amassed a 13-point lead in the first half, only to watch the wheels fall off in the third and fourth quarters. Laval outscored the Stingers 17-6 and 21-15 in the final two quarters, leaving the Loyola gym with a 56-52 victory.
This wasn’t the end of the Stingers’ troubles; the weekend reached its nadir on Saturday. Matched up against last place UQAM, a team Concordia had blown out twice already this season, the Stingers seemed to get back on track early, outscoring UQAM 24-13 in the opening quarter.
But when it rains it pours.
The Stingers imploded in the second quarter getting outscored 21-11 and were unable to regroup in the second half. After grinding out the third, Concordia brought a five-point lead into the game’s final quarter, only to allow UQAM to run away with the game in the final 10 minutes, leaving the Stingers with their most lopsided loss of the season.
The frustration around the team is undoubtedly building as head coach Keith Pruden is refusing to allow any players or coaches to speak with the media. Pruden himself could not be reached for comment either.
The recent play of Kaylah Barrett is also cause for concern. After a blazing start, Barrett has struggled during the losing streak, not scoring more than 12 points in a game and shooting just 20 per cent from the field. The uncharacteristic struggles leave people to wonder whether or not Barrett is playing with an unknown injury.
Concordia is now battling for second place with the Bishop’s Gaiters, who they are two points ahead of in the standings.
Concordia is hoping to gain some ground on Bishop’s Friday night at 6 p.m. when the two teams meet at Loyola.
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Stingers get back on track with weekend sweep

Taylor Garner battles off defenders in Concordia's victory over UQAM. Photo by Navneet Pall
Taylor Garner battles off defenders in Concordia's victory over UQAM. Photo by Navneet Pall

After watching an archrival end their perfect season last week, the Concordia Stingers were anxious to get back on the court this weekend against Laval and UQAM and atone for the loss to McGill.

Concordia turned in two impressive performances, beating Laval 80-59 on Friday at home, and then picking up a 73-62 win at UQAM.

The slow starts and periods of lackadaisical play that plagued the Stingers in recent weeks were addressed this week during practice, and the changes were noticed come game time.

“I think it was our attitude on the team [that made the difference],” said coach John Dore. “The guys had a wake-up call. We had better practices, we were more focused and intense, and maybe had a bit better understanding of what we need to do.”

While he was happy with his team’s effort, Dore was never too concerned with the overall motivation level of his team. “The guys should get excited about playing the games, that’s why we work so hard in practice,” he said. “They’re here because they want to be here, so it shouldn’t be hard to get motivated.”

On Friday night, it was guard Kyle Desmarais leading the way for the Stingers with 18 points and seven assists. Despite falling behind by nine points early in the game, Concordia battled back to take a lead into the second quarter and would not trail again in the game.

Concordia faced a quick turnaround from the Laval game and was on the court against UQAM on Saturday. The Stingers jumped out to an early 17-4 lead, and though they let UQAM back into the game, Concordia dominated play for the most part and was never seriously threatened late in the game. Rookie guard Jerome Blake led the Stingers in scoring with 16 points in just 19 minutes coming off the bench.

With five games remaining in the season, Concordia has a six-point lead over second place McGill. Thus far the Stingers have been right on par with coach Dore’s preseason expectations.

“I thought we had a chance to be in first place and I sort of expected to be in first place,” said Dore. “I don’t know if I expected [to be in first by six points]. Our goal right now is to create some distance from the pack.”

Dore has never been one to rest players down the stretch, even if playoff seeding has been determined, but given some tough late season scheduling it is not something that has been ruled out.

 

Concordia’s next game is this  Friday at 8 p.m. against Bishop’s at Loyola.

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Big win and tough loss for Concordia men

Peter Karvouniaris makes a sprawling save in a 5-3 loss to the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Photo by Navneet Pall

Just like the women’s team experienced a week before, the men’s hockey team was unable to stop the Ottawa Gee-Gees as they played their second game in a row on Saturday night.

Peter Karvouniaris makes a sprawling save in a 5-3 loss to the Ottawa Gee-Gees. Photo by Navneet Pall

The night before, however, the men played what may have been their best game of the season, knocking off the CIS’ top ranked McGill 4-2. Concordia has defeated McGill in two of the teams’ three meetings this season.

This loss to Ottawa greatly dampened Concordia’s chances of making it into the CIS top 10, a place the team would love to find itself in as the regular season winds down.

“The guys played as hard as they could today with what they had left, but we just didn’t have enough energy to compete,” said head coach Kevin Figsby of the Ottawa game. “Ottawa was coming in with a must-win situation. If they lose, they are out of the playoffs. It was a tough game for us today, but you can’t do anything about it, that’s how the schedule dictates itself.”

With two games to go in the regular season, the Stingers will be without the help of goaltender Peter Karvouniaris, who is out indefinitely with a concussion he suffered in the second period as Ottawa forward Stephen Blunden ran him into the net.

Figsby believes the play was a critical turning point of the game. “We were still in a 1-1 hockey game when they ran our goaltender,” said Figsby. “We didn’t know when he got hit that it was a concussion, so he stayed in and they took two shots that went in. That turned the game around.”

The first period had Ottawa written all over it as the Stingers had trouble getting out of their own zone. The Gee-Gees had one opportunity after another as the defence was scrambling, but everything was stopped by Karvouniaris keeping the game 0-0.

Three minutes into the second period, Concordia forward François Lanctôt-Marcotte opened the scoring, making it 1-0 for the Stingers. “It’s a lucky goal I guess,” he said of the goal scored on the rebound of Charles-Antoine Messier.

After Concordia’s goal, it was all Gee-Gees once again. The Stingers had a chance to take a 2-0 lead as Ottawa forward Stephen Blunden was called for goalie interference. But the Stingers were sloppy on the power play, and gave up on a two-on-one which resulted in the puck finding its way past Karvouniaris and to the back of net.

A minute later, Ottawa added another marker as Stephen Blunden scored with a wrist shot, making it 2-1.

Ottawa made the game 3-1 before the intermission as Luc Olivier Blain was able to beat a woozy Karvouniaris.

The third period started with Nicholas Champion taking the place of Karvouniaris in the net after he suffered his concussion. To welcome Champion to the game, Ottawa scored just 40 seconds into the period.

The teams exchanged goals for the rest of the period en route to Ottawa’s 5-3 victory.

Despite the win against McGill, captain Eric Bégin wasn’t letting his team off the hook for Saturday’s game. “I don’t buy into that fatigue factor, that’s not an excuse,” he said. “We play 28 games in a season, not 82 like the pros. It’s not an excuse.”

Concordia is up against McGill this Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. at Ed Meagher Arena.

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Group wants students to get SWARMed up

As reported last week, Concordia students are not the best at supporting their varsity teams. 

Still, a group of students known as the SWARM are hoping to change the culture of the school, by raising awareness and spirit around the teams.

The SWARM is a club that was launched in September by Emran Ghasemi, a member of the Concordia men’s rugby team, who was frustrated by the sparse attendance and sullen atmosphere at the Stingers’ sporting events.

The SWARM has exceeded Ghasemi’s expectations. “So far we’ve had five events and we’ve had a good turnout for all of them.”

The SWARM drew over 400 students for the football homecoming game, a win against St. F-X. Not all teams draw the same crowds, though.

Some events for more niche sports like soccer and rugby have only drawn 20 to 40 students. Ghasemi is aware that there is still a long way to go and is realistic in his goals.

“What we’re trying to achieve is to increase the athletic awareness around campus. If you go and talk to a normal Concordia student they will usually not know what kind of sports are offered, what kind of teams we have or what the teams have accomplished.”

Ghasemi is not alone in his efforts. His friend Lorne Segall is also heavily involved in helping the SWARM and is also impressed with how things have gone.

“This is something that has been tried at Concordia but has never worked,” said Segall. “We’ve gone beyond bounds of what any other people like us have tried in the past.”

Collaboration with other student groups has been paramount for the early success of the SWARM.

“We’re trying make people more aware of us by getting involved with other clubs and associations in our campuses,” added Segall.

The SWARM is currently working with ASFA to plan an event around the Feb. 8 men’s hockey game against McGill.

The group is also aware that Montreal is a city which offers plenty of other entertainment besides varsity sports in a residential neighbourhood 20 minutes from downtown. Because of this, events must be planned strategically.

“We try and avoid [planning an event] at a late Friday night game for that exact reason,” said Segall. “For example, at Hockey 101 (an event planned at a men’s hockey game for international students), it was early enough on a Friday that we were able to get students out, give them a couple of free beers and get sort of that early pre-buzz going.”

Segall was quick to note, however, that the SWARM’s goal is not to become a pre-bar drinking club that happens to be at sporting events. “We’re trying hard not to just be a free booze thing because that could get us in a little trouble around campus,” he said. “But I think the point is that we need a draw to Loyola. A little bit of extra incentive to [get students out to campus]. We want the fans to get loud and rowdy, just not to the point where it’s disrespectful.”

The SWARM is planning upcoming events for both hockey and basketball games, and more information about the group can be found on their Facebook page.

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Stingers overcome challenges on and off the ice in playoff race

With four games to go in the season, it must be frustrating for the Concordia Stingers and other OUA East hockey teams to look across the conference to the West Division where the Laurier Golden Hawks, sporting a 7-16-1 record, have practically clinched the final spot in the divisional playoffs.

By comparison, Ryerson, with a record of 11-10-3, would miss the playoffs if they started today. In the East, only four points currently separate the fourth seed (Toronto) from ninth-place Ryerson. Concordia is sitting in seventh, tied with Queen’s with 26 points, only one point up on Ryerson.

But such is life in the CIS. Due to geographical circumstances, unbalanced conferences and schedules are something that all teams have to deal with.

Concordia’s head coach, Kevin Figsby, is not frustrated with the fact that, this season, the East is better than the West, pointing out it is “cyclical” and that in past years the West has been better than the East.

The biggest change Figsby would like to see, though, is the balancing of the conference schedule. As it stands, Concordia plays four games a year against McGill and UQTR (perennially strong teams), while teams like Queen’s and Toronto play four games a year against RMC (a perennially weaker team). All teams in each conference also have to play four “crossover” games, often resulting in long bus rides. This year Concordia had to play Windsor, a 12-hour drive away.

“We’ve got the same teams competing for the same [playoff spots] with an unbalanced schedule,” explained Figsby. He also pointed out that the West Division has nine teams vying for eight spots, compared to the East where 10 teams are jockeying for the same number of positions.

Changes have been proposed during meetings, but ultimately the majority has ruled to leave the present system in place.

“The coaches’ association has looked at [changing the system],” said Figsby. “We’ve debated over it and we’ve voted over it. There’s always a diverse conversation that goes on around the table, and obviously for competitive reasons some people don’t want to go to a full conference schedule. You can also look at the [West Division] and they’re pretty content having eight out of nine teams make it, so why would they vote to do anything different?”

For Figsby, perhaps the most frustrating thing is not having more universities in Quebec with men’s hockey programs, thus making it possible for a Quebec conference to exist, and sparing schools like Concordia, McGill and UQTR trips to Ontario. “I still can’t figure out how we can have as much passion about hockey in Quebec, and have one francophone school [in Quebec] with men’s hockey,” he said referring to UQTR.

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Stingers Buzz

Women’s basketball

Concordia 70 UQAM 53

A third-quarter explosion was enough to propel the Stingers women past an overmatched UQAM team for the second time in a row. After beating the Citadins by 25 points in their last game, the Stingers moved to 5-0 with a 70-53 victory at Loyola campus on Saturday night.
Concordia took an eight-point lead into halftime before blowing the game wide open in the third quarter. The Stingers went on a 9-0 run midway through the quarter and put the game out of reach.
Concordia dominated UQAM in every statistical aspect of the game. The Stingers forced more turnovers and grabbed more rebounds, which were keys to the 17 point victory. On the offensive glass Concordia out-rebounded the Citadins 17-8, mirroring the teams’ last meeting, where the Stingers were much more successful at creating second-chance opportunities.
Stingers guard Kaylah Barrett continued her spectacular play, leading the team with 26 points and grabbing 10 rebounds, for her first double-double of the season. Barrett’s play so far this season is the main reason the Stingers are perfect this far into January for the first time in a decade.
It remains to be seen how long it will take for the rest of the country to notice the Stingers; as of Monday night, they were still not ranked in the CIS top 10, despite their perfect start.

Men’s hockey

Queen’s 9 Concordia 2
Concordia 6 RMC 1

It was a weekend for extremes for the men’s hockey team: extreme blow-outs, extreme weather and extreme fatigue.
The stressful and prolonged trip through the Friday night snow storm to get to Kingston to face the Queen’s Gaels must have had an affect on the team’s performance. The Stingers ended up trailing 4-0 after the first period, and goalie Nicholas Champion was pulled after the second period, having given up seven goals on 19 shots.
The Stingers arrived back in Montreal around 3 a.m. Saturday morning, only to play an afternoon game against the RMC Paladins at 2 p.m.
The Stingers, clearly fatigued, were still able to jump out to a 2-0 lead just two minutes into the game on goals from George Lovatsis and Olivier Jannard. Concordia dominated in the second period, out-shooting the Paladins 16-8 and stretching the score to 5-1.
With just nine seconds remaining, and the game out of reach, Concordia’s Adam Strumas lined up RMC’s Eric Lalonde for a hip-check as Lalonde was streaking down the wing. Lalonde felt like Strumas went too low on the hit, got up and proceeded to viciously cross-check Strumas, igniting some late game fisticuffs.
“Our guy lined him up with a clean hit that [Lalonde] obviously thought was dirty,” said coach Kevin Figsby. “But that’s still no reason to get up and start cross-checking someone in the face.”
Goalie Peter Karvouniaris stopped 39 of 40 shots, getting his fourth win of the season.
Concordia faces off against UQTR next Wednesday night at home at 8:30 p.m.

Women’s hockey

McGill 4 Concordia 0

The Christmas break and a trip to Japan wasn’t enough to rid the Concordia Stingers hockey team of its losing ways. The team was defeated again by an over powering McGill squad. The score had the potential to get really ugly if it weren’t for the play of Stingers goalie Marie-Pier Rémillard who managed to get Concordia through two periods of hockey only trailing 3-0, despite being outshot 31-7 and giving McGill seven powerplays in the first two periods.
Rémillard would end up making 40 saves in the loss. Charline Labonté made 13 saves to get the shut out in the winning effort. The loss was Concordia’s fifth in a row as they have now sunk to last place in the conference and are out of the playoffs as of now.

Stingers in the CSU?

The Concordia Student Union is considering adding an extra seat on their council just for student athletes.
The idea was proposed by CSU councillor and men’s rugby player Emran Ghasemi as an attempt to boost Stinger representation at the school. Ghasemi explained student athletes are “unfortunately not recognized for the immense amount of effort they put into their work,” citing low student attendance at games and a general lack of awareness and team spirit at Concordia, compared to other universities.
Former Stingers Women’s rugby centre Jackie Tittley also attended the meeting, speaking to councillors about the life of a student athlete at Concordia.
After a half-hour of debate, the CSU voted neither for or against Ghasemi’s motion, but instead decided to refer the idea to their Policy Committee, inviting Swarm members and Stingers players to take part in further committee discussions. While no one disagreed that student athletes deserve recognition, many councillors expressed concerns that adding a Stingers-specific seat at council is not the answer and would only result in other student groups demanding similar representation.

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Laval gives Concordia playoff pink-slip in RSEQ finals

The Concordia Stingers were hauled down by the Laval Rouge et Or in the RSEQ finals. File photo by Anthony Isabella

With a return trip to the CIS national championship tournament on the line, the Stingers knew they needed to play the game of their lives in Quebec City to advance past a Laval Rouge et Or team they’d lost to twice in the regular season.

The Concordia Stingers were hauled down by the Laval Rouge et Or in the RSEQ finals. Photo by Anthony Isabella

In the first half of Saturday’s game, it looked as though the Stingers women’s rugby team learned from the two previous defeats and were going to atone for the regular season losses in the game that mattered most.

Just over 20 minutes into the first half, Concordia got on the board first on a try by Adara Borys. The Stingers didn’t wait long to score again either. Just over five minutes later, Traci Silva scored a try that would go unconverted, to give the Stingers a 12-0 lead.

Concordia headed into halftime with a 15-3 lead.

And then everything fell apart.

In a span of four minutes during the second half, Laval scored three tries. All were converted, and just like that Concordia’s 15-point lead turned into a nine-point deficit.

“We missed some tackles and they were just able to execute,” said Stingers coach Graeme McGravie.

A youthful Stingers team took a shock to the system, and were unable to close the flood gates against a much more experienced Laval team during the four minute onslaught.

“A lot of our players haven’t been here before, so it was tough for them to refocus and realize we have another 30 minutes to play,” said McGravie. “For the wheels to fall off like that was a shock. It was a blow to the ego.”

The Stingers were also at a disadvantage when veteran centre Latoya Blackwood left the game with a separated shoulder.

Eventually Concordia regrouped and was able to score some tries late. The damage was done, though.

Still, McGravie was proud of his team’s effort not only against Laval, but throughout the whole season.

“It would be easy for me to sit here and say I’m disappointed, but I’m not,” he said. I’m really optimistic about the program moving forward.”

 

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