REDS Fall To Hurricanes

(FREDERICTON, NB) The UNB REDS women's rugby team closed out the ACAA regular season on Saturday, in a 24-7 loss to the Holland College Hurricanes at UNB's College Field.

Holland College's Tori Hogan converted three kicks, as well as a try and a penalty kick.

"I played last year and we lost on this field, so it feels a lot better to come out and have a win here. It feels great," said Hogan.

Despite the loss, REDS Head Coach Bailey Andrews said the match was a confidence builder for her squad.

"This game was really important, for not only our team to see what they can do, but show where they can go."

The Hurricanes finish the year undefeated at 7-0. The REDS, 4-3 on the season, secure third place in the conference.

Scoring opened with a Hurricanes try, as Madison Tingley powered through the UNB back line. Hogan made the conversion to give Holland a 7-0 lead midway through the first half.

The REDS responded right away by going deep into Hurricanes territory but ultimately failed to convert.

Not long after, though, UNB's Hannah Loggie found a gap in the Hurricanes defense for a try and UNB's first points of the afternoon. Emily Thornton's conversion gave the REDS a 7-7 tie.

In the final minutes of the first half, the Hurricanes regained the lead on a penalty kick. Only moments later, a try and conversion from Hogan put the Hurricanes up 17-7.

Holland came roaring out of the gates in the second half, as Marissa Themeles made a try almost immediately to add to the Hurricanes' lead.

UNB's Gabby Powers made tackles to stop several Holland breakaways and was an important part of the REDS effort to hold the Hurricanes scoreless for the rest of the second half.

"Defense has always been a coaching philosophy for my sister and I," said UNB Head Coach Bailey Andrews, "That has been a main priority for us this season. We've been doing a lot of work in practice on our line speed and our tackling, and it really showed."

With UNB struggling to score, the match would end in a 24-7 victory for the Hurricanes.

Hogan praised her Hurricane teammates and said she has "high hopes" for playoffs. Her squad will face either St. Thomas or Dalhousie AC in next weekend's ACAA semi-finals.

UNB is set to play Mount Allison next weekend. A win will earn them a spot in the ACAA rugby final on November 12.

"We get more rugby, I'm excited to see what they can do," said Andrews.

Recap by: Peter Jewett/for UNB Athletics

Photos by: Kunal Mahajan/for UNB Athletics