Queen's Men's and Women's Lacrosse, Baseball, and Fastpitch opened their league seasons while Queen's Field Hockey had a successful pre-season tune-up tournament.
Queen's Women's Lacrosse
The Gaels opened their OUA season at home against the Toronto Varsity Blues and Ontario Tech Ridgebacks this past weekend.
In the opening match against Toronto, Queen's would get off to a quick start, scoring seven goals in the opening quarter. First-year attacker Leah Quinn scored her first three goals as a Gael. The momentum continued into the second quarter, as the Gaels would score five more. Queen's would roll to a 19-4 win.
In the afternoon game against Ontario Tech, strong defense and goaltending kept the Ridgebacks off the scoreboard until the fourth quarter. The Gaels would put up 21, led by strong offensive performances by Brooke Rutledge (three goals, four assists) and Tara Meikle (five goals, one assist).
The team is back in action next Saturday at Toronto as they face the host team, as well as a rematch of the 2022 OUA Championship game against the Trent Excalibur.
Queen's Field Hockey
Queen's Field Hockey had great success at their pre-season tournament hosted by the University of Toronto this weekend. This was the team's first opportunity to play together this season, and they could not have been more thrilled with the results.
In the Gaels first game against the York Lions, the team tried a new formation, and came out just short, losing 1-0. A number of returning players thrived in unfamiliar positions, such as fourth-year forward-turned-defender, Vera Bulowski. This game was very evenly-matched and Queen's is excited to face York again at the end of the regular season.
The outcome of our second game was a massive win against a tough opponent, the Guelph Gryphons. Rookie Ainsley Sheahan put the Gaels on the scoreboard with an amazing tip off a penalty corner in the first half. In the second half, second-year Monica Johnston put the Gaels up 2-0 with another perfectly executed corner. On defence, second-year Emma Ferber, a forward-turned-defence, made a great save on the goal line. The final score was 2-1 for Queen's. The Gaels can't wait to play Guelph at home next Saturday on Tindall Field.
On Sunday the team faced the Waterloo Warriors and host Toronto Varsity Blues. The day kicked off with a close game against Waterloo. Veterans Nina Watson, Emily Bracken, Lauren Breakell, and Ellie Duggan controlled the middle of the pitch with ease, maintaining possession and attacking tirelessly. The team came up short, ending with a 1-0 loss. Queen's is hopeful they can change the result next weekend when they travel to Waterloo on Sunday.
The last game of the weekend was against the undefeated hosts. Queen's bounced back from their tight loss to Waterloo and maintained composure and a strong sense of urgency the entire game. The defence, led by captains Jennie Izatt in net and Tasha Stanford, created a brick wall that the Varsity Blues could not beat. The game ended 0-0.
Queen's Men's Lacrosse
Queen's Men's Lacrosse opened their season midweek last week before playing their second game of the season over the weekend.
The Gaels fell in a tight 8-5 contest to the Trent Excalibur on Wednesday before rebounding to defeat the Bishop's Gaiters 9-7 on Saturday.
Queen's Men's Baseball
Queen's Men's Baseball opened their OUA season with two doubleheaders over the weekend, finishing with a 2-2 record.
On Saturday, the Gaels took on the Toronto Varsity Blues, opening with a 6-2 loss before a 6-3 win.
On Sunday, Queen's faced the Laurentian Voyageurs. After opening with a 9-0 win, the Gaels fell 8-7 in the second game.
Queen's Fastpitch
Queen's Fastpitch opened their Ontario University Softball (OUS) schedule over the weekend, playing two doubleheaders. The Gaels finished the weekend with a 1-3 record.
On Saturday, Queen's faced the Western Mustangs and dropped both games by a 7-0 score.
On Sunday, Queen's split their series with the Windsor Lancers, opening with a 7-4 loss before bouncing back with a 7-1 win.
