ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ

by Earl Zukerman

STE. ANNE DE BELLEVUE, Que. – Tanya Boiteau of Calgary and Zoe Fielding of Quispamsis, N.B., scored two tries apiece as undefeated St. Francis Xavier overwhelmed ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ 46-0 to capture the McEwen Cup, an exhibition women’s university rugby game, at McEwen Field in Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Que., Sunday.

Also scoring for the X-Women was Megan Pritchard and Asya Bartley, both natives of Ottawa, plus Kim Armstrong of Barrie, Ont., and Ghislaine Landry of Toronto. Courtnay Malcolm, a winger from New Glasgow, N.S., rounded out the scoring with six points from three conversions.

The Cup was established in 2004 in honor of the McEwen family of Ormstown, Que., who donated land for ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ Athletics playing fields on the University’s suburban campus, located in the West Island region of Montreal.

The Martlets initiated this annual challenge match with St. FX, perennial champions of the Atlantic conference, in order that both teams better prepare for the CIS national championships. ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ won the inaugural McEwen Cup 26-16 at home in 2004 and the game has rotated between the two campuses each year. St.FX has now captured the event four consecutive years, with scores of 12-5, 29-5, 26-7 and 46-0, respectively.

The X-Women finished atop the AUS conference with a 6-0 record, outscoring opponents by a lopsided 416-0 margin. They are believed to be only the second team in CIS women’s rugby history to win each regular season game via shutout. According to available records, ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ was the last CIS team to accomplish the feat, winning all five games in 1998, outscoring their five Quebec conference opponents by a 168-0 margin.

St.FX has earned a first-round playoff bye and will host the winner of the Oct. 18 AUS semifinal between Acadia and Saint Mary’s in the league championship game, scheduled for Oct. 25.

The Martlets finished second in the now six-team Quebec conference with a 4-2 record and will host third-place Concordia (4-2) in the QSSF semifinal on Oct. 19. ÎÛÎÛ²ÝÝ®ÊÓƵ won the only meeting between the teams this season with a 14-10 decision at Concordia, Sept. 7.

The Quebec final is slated for Oct. 19, followed by the CIS national championship tourney at Lethbridge, Alta., Oct. 30-Nov. 2.