Five StFX teams ranked in the CIS Top 10
CIS TOP TEN TUESDAY (#6)
Calgary, UNB open at No. 1 in hockey
OTTAWA (CIS) – The Calgary Dinos and UNB Varsity Reds top the first CIS national rankings of 2012-13 in women’s and men’s hockey, respectively.
In other CIS sports, St. Francis Xavier (women’s rugby), Ottawa (women’s soccer), York (men’s soccer) and Guelph (women’s & men’s cross country) all maintain their No. 1 status.
Calgary opens at No. 1 in women’s hockey for the first time in program history, seven months after claiming its first-ever national title in the sport. The Dinos are once again among the favourites to win it all this year as they return most of their key players, including Canadian hockey icon Hayley Wickenheiser, goaltender Amanda Tapp, who was named MVP of the 2012 CIS tournament, all-Canadian rearguard Stephanie Ramsay, as well as Russian Olympian Iya Gavrilova.
The reigning champs are off to a great start this fall. After going 4-0-1 versus CIS opponents in pre-season action, they opened conference play last weekend with a two-game sweep of Lethbridge, 4-1 and 5-2. The Dinos (2-0-0) travel to Vancouver later this week for a Friday-Saturday doubleheader against UBC (1-0-1).
Rounding out the first coaches’ poll of the campaign are No. 2 McGill, No. 3 Montreal, No. 4 Alberta (2-0-0), No. 5 StFX, No. 6 Guelph (2-0-0), No. 7 Laurier (1-1-0), No. 8 Western (2-0-0), No. 9 Queen’s (1-1-0), and Ottawa and UPEI in a tie for tenth place.
In men’s hockey, UBC opens at No. 1 for the second straight year, and for the fourth time in six seasons. The V-Reds claimed the CIS banner three times in the past six years (2007, 2009, 2011) but were upset on home ice by Western in the final pool-play game of the 2012 University Cup championship.
The perennial AUS powerhouse has been impressive so far this fall with a 4-1 pre-season mark versus CIS rivals, including a 7-2 road win over defending national champ McGill, and also pushed the AHL’s Portland Pirates to a shootout before falling by 2-1. The V-Reds kick off conference play this weekend with home games versus St. Thomas and Moncton.
McGill, which captured the first University Cup title in school history last spring, opens lower than expected in the national rankings, at No. 5, following a disappointing 0-2 start in league play. After winning three of four pre-season contests, the Redmen were upset 6-5 by Concordia last Friday in their conference opener, before losing 5-2 at home to UQTR on Saturday.
Rounding out the first media poll of the season are No. 2 Alberta (2-0-0), No. 3 UQTR (2-0-0), No. 4 Saskatchewan (2-0-0), No. 6 Western, No. 7 Calgary (2-0-0), No. 8 Moncton, No. 9 StFX and No. 10 Lakehead (2-0-0).
In women’s rugby, top-ranked StFX crushed Acadia 90-0 last Thursday to improve to 6-0 in league play. The X-Women, who have outscored their rivals 512-3 in their first six outings, visit St. Thomas (0-5) on Friday.
In women’s soccer, No. 1 Ottawa (12-0-1) blanked Laurentian 3-0 and Nipissing 2-0 over the past weekend and has now dominated its rivals 40-1 in OUA conference action. The Gee-Gees host Carleton (7-4-2) on Friday and Trent (3-7-1) on Sunday.
In men’s soccer, top-ranked York (10-0-1) scored a 1-0 road win over Guelph in its lone contest of the past week. The Lions visit UOIT (3-9-1) Wednesday and host Brock (1-7-2) on Sunday.
In cross-country running, Guelph leads both the women’s and men’s rankings for the third straight week. The Gryphons have captured the last seven national team banners in women’s competition and have won six straight men’s championships, both CIS record streaks.
WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
(points) / (previous rankings)
1. Guelph 97.6 points / (1)
2. McMaster 91.8 / (2)
3. Victoria 73.5 / (3)
4. McGill 60.6 / (5)
5. Western 57.6 / (4)
6. Toronto 45.3 / (6)
7. Calgary 28.8 / (10)
8. StFX 28.2 / (7)
9. Queen’s 27.1 / (8)
10. Saskatchewan 21.8 / (9)
MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
(points) / (previous rankings)
1. Guelph 99.3 points / (1)
2. Victoria 78.7 / (3)
3. Windsor 76.0 / (2)
4. Queen’s 60.0 / (5)
5. Regina 54.0 / (6)
6. Laval 50.7 / (4)
7. McMaster 34.7 / (7)
T8. StFX 19.3 / (8)
T8. Toronto 19.3 / (9)
10. Calgary 18.7 / (NR)
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
(regular season record) / (previous rankings)
1. Calgary (2-0-0) / (-)
2. McGill (0-0-0) / (-)
3. Montreal (0-0-0) / (-)
4. Alberta (2-0-0) / (-)
5. StFX (0-0-0) / (-)
6. Guelph (2-0-0) / (-)
7. Wilfrid Laurier (1-1-0) / (-)
8. Western (2-0-0) / (-)
9. Queen’s (1-1-0) / (-)
T10. Ottawa (0-0-0) / (-)
T10. UPEI (0-0-0) / (-)
Also receiving votes: Moncton, Toronto, Manitoba.
MEN’S HOCKEY
(regular season record) / votes (first-place votes) / (previous rankings)
1. UNB (0-0-0) / 152 pts (8) / (-)
2. Alberta (2-0-0) / 143 (5) / (-)
3. UQTR (2-0-0) / 117 (1) / (-)
4. Saskatchewan (2-0-0) / 102 / (-)
5. McGill (0-2-0) / 74 (3) / (-)
6. Western (0-0-0) / 58 / (-)
7. Calgary (2-0-0) / 54 / (-)
8. Moncton (0-0-0) / 49 / (-)
9. StFX (0-0-0) / 46 / (-)
10. Lakehead (2-0-0) / 42 / (-)
Also receiving votes: Saint Mary’s (21), Manitoba (14), Windsor (14), Acadia (13), Concordia (8), Nipissing (6), UPEI (5), York (4), Brock (3), Regina (3), UBC (2), Ottawa (2), Wilfrid Laurier (2), Carleton (1).
WOMEN’S RUGBY
(regular season record) / votes (first-place votes) / (previous rankings)
1. StFX (6-0) / 93 points (6) / (1)
2. Guelph (6-0) / 84 (3) / (2)
3. Queen’s (6-0) / 66 / (3)
4. Laval (6-0) / 55 / (4)
5. Calgary (3-0) / 50 / (5)
6. Lethbridge (2-1) / 44 / (6)
7. Alberta (2-0) / 39 / (8)
8. Concordia (6-0) / 33 / (7)
9. McGill (4-2) / 16 / (9)
10. Waterloo (5-1) / 13 / (NR)
Other teams receiving votes: Acadia (6), McMaster (3), Western (1), Ottawa (1).
WOMEN’S SOCCER
(regular season record) / votes / (previous rankings)
1. Ottawa (12-0-1) / 50 points / (1)
2. Montreal (7-1-0) / 44 / (4)
3. Trinity Western (8-1-0) / 38 / (2)
4. Alberta (5-0-3) / 36 / (8)
5. Wilfrid Laurier (9-1-2) / 30 / (3)
6. McGill (6-1-0) / 24 / (6)
7. Cape Breton (5-0-2) / 17 / (9)
8. Victoria (7-1-1) / 14 / (5)
9. UBC (6-1-2) / 11 / (10)
10. Queen’s (8-2-2) / 8 / (7)
Other teams receiving votes: McMaster (3).
MEN’S SOCCER
(regular season record) / votes / (previous rankings)
1. York (10-0-1) / 49 points / (1)
2. UBC (8-0-0) / 46 / (2)
3. Saint Mary’s (5-0-2) / 38 / (3)
4. Alberta (6-1-2) / 36 / (4)
5. Trinity Western (6-0-2) / 24 / (5)
6. McMaster (9-1-1) / 23 / (6)
7. Queen’s (8-1-2) / 22 / (7)
8. Laval (4-1-1) / 17 / (8)
9. Sherbrooke (4-2-1) / 8 / (9)
10. Carleton (8-2-2) / 6 / (10)
FRC – CIS Football Top 10 (#7)
McMaster still No. 1, Laval up to No. 3 following big win
OTTAWA (CIS) – The reigning Vanier Cup champion McMaster Marauders top the Football Reporters of Canada – CIS rankings for the seventh time in as many polls this season.
The Marauders (6-0) once again received 29 first-place votes and 299 points from the 30-member FRC panel, with the remaining first-place nod going to the Calgary Dinos (5-0), who earned 268 points to remain comfortably in second place for the fifth consecutive week.
There are a number of changes behind the leading duo in the new media poll with five teams on the move.
The No. 3 Laval Rouge et Or (6-0) and No. 4 Queen’s Gaels (5-1) both gain one position; the No. 5 Montreal Carabins (5-1) are down two spots; the No. 6 Regina Rams (4-1) stay put; the No. 7 Guelph Gryphons (5-1) are up two; the No. 8 Manitoba Bisons (3-2) hold on to their previous position; the No. 9 Western Mustangs (3-3) are down a pair; and the No. 10 Acadia Axemen (4-1) also stay put.
The No. 4 ranking is a season best for Queen’s, while Guelph had not been ranked this high nationally since reaching fourth place in October of 1997 (Oct. 21 poll).
Results by Top-10 teams this past week were McMaster 54, York 14 (at York); Laval 30, Montreal 11 (at Laval); Queen’s 24, Windsor 7 (at Windsor); Guelph 42, Western 39 (at Guelph); Acadia 41, StFX 14 (at StFX).
Calgary, Regina and Manitoba all enjoyed a break in the Canada West schedule.
With their domination of York, the top-ranked Marauders moved to 6-0 in league play for the first time since 2003 - when they went 8-0 in conference action for the second straight year – and extended to 16 games their overall winning streak dating back to Week 3 of the 2011 schedule, three shy of the all-time CIS mark set by Laval from 2004 to 2005.
The defending national champs and all-star quarterback Kyle Quinlan, who leads the country with 15 touchdown passes and has yet to throw an interception this season, can clinch first place in the OUA on Saturday with a home victory against Windsor (3-3).
In the most anticipated matchup of Week 6, Sunday in Quebec City, third-ranked Laval sent a message to its RSEQ rivals and to the rest of the country with a convincing 30-11 win over previously undefeated Montreal. The result extended Laval’s CIS-record streak to 54 straight overall victories on home turf dating back to 2004, but more importantly it gave the Rouge et Or a 19-point cushion going into Saturday’s rematch at Montreal. Point differential in head-to-head competition will serve as the first tiebreaker should the archrivals finish the campaign with identical records.
In the other Top-10 battle of the past weekend, Saturday in Guelph, the No. 7 Gryphons built a 33-7 lead by halftime and then held on to upset visiting Western 42-39. Things don’t get any easier this week for the upstart Gryphons as they host No. 4 Queen’s for a contest that will most likely decide second place in Ontario.
Queen’s is coming off a solid 24-7 road win against Windsor.
FRC – CIS FOOTBALL TOP 10 (#7)
Pts (1st place) Last week
1. McMaster (6-0) 299 (29) 1
2. Calgary (5-0) 268 (1) 2
3. Laval (6-0) 243 4
4. Queen’s (5-1) 190 5
5. Montreal (5-1) 180 3
6. Regina (4-1) 146 6
7. Guelph (5-1) 114 9
8. Manitoba (3-2) 94 8
9. Western (3-3) 48 7
10. Acadia (4-1) 43 10
Other teams receiving votes: Sherbrooke (7).
No. 1 McMaster (6-0): Top 10 ranking: No change... Last week: 54-14 win at York (1-5)... This week: Host Windsor (3-3) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 2 Calgary (5-0): Top 10 ranking: No change... Last week: Bye... This week: Visit Alberta (0-5) Friday at 7 p.m. MT...
No. 3 Laval (6-0): Top 10 ranking: Up one position... Last week: 30-11 home win over then-No. 3 Montreal (5-1)... This week: Visit No. 5 Montreal (5-1) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 4 Queen’s (5-1): Top 10 ranking: Up one position... Last week: 24-7 win at Windsor (3-3)... This week: Visit No. 7 Guelph (5-1) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 5 Montreal (5-1): Top 10 ranking: Down two positions... Last week: 30-11 loss at then-No. 4 Laval (6-0)... This week: Host No. 3 Laval (6-0) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 6 Regina (4-1): Top 10 ranking: No change... Last week: Bye... This week: Visit UBC (1-4) Saturday at 2 p.m. PT...
No. 7 Guelph (5-1): Top 10 ranking: Up two positions... Last week: 42-39 home win over then-No. 7 Western (3-3)... This week: Host No. 4 Queen’s (5-1) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 8 Manitoba (3-2): Top 10 ranking: No change... Last week: Bye... This week: Visit Saskatchewan (2-3) Friday at 7 p.m. CT...
No. 9 Western (3-3): Top 10 ranking: Down two positions... Last week: 42-39 loss at then-No. 9 Guelph (5-1)... This week: Host Laurier (3-3) Saturday at 1 p.m. ET...
No. 10 Acadia (4-1): Top 10 ranking: No change... Last week: 41-14 win at StFX (1-4)... This week: Host StFX (1-4) Saturday at 2 p.m. AT...
REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE: WEEK 7 (all times local)
October 12
19:00 No. 8 Manitoba (3-2) at Saskatchewan (2-3)
19:00 No. 2 Calgary (5-0) at Alberta (0-5), Shaw (TV) & CanadaWest.tv (web)
October 13
13:00 Windsor (3-3) at No. 1 McMaster (6-0), theScore (TV & web)
13:00 No. 3 Laval (6-0) at No. 5 Montreal (5-1), Radio-Canada (TV & web)
13:00 No. 4 Queen’s (5-1) at No. 7 Guelph (5-1), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 Laurier (3-3) at No. 9 Western (3-3), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 Bishop’s (2-4) at Sherbrooke (3-3)
13:00 Concordia (2-4) at McGill (2-4), SSNCanada.ca (web)
13:00 York (1-5) at Toronto (2-4), SSNCanada.ca (web) & Rogers (TV – tape delayed to Sunday)
13:00 Waterloo (1-5) at Ottawa (1-5), SSNCanada.ca (web)
14:00 StFX (1-4) at No. 10 Acadia (4-1), www.acadiaathletics.ca (web)
14:00 Saint Mary’s (2-3) at Mount Allison (1-4), Eastlink (TV & web) & sportscanada.tv (web)
14:00 No. 6 Regina (4-1) at UBC (1-4), CanadaWest.tv (web)
-CIS-