Rookie centre Bianca Farella scored three tries to lead the Concordia Stingers to a 35-34 RSEQ victory over the Laval Rouge et Or in the RSEQ women’s rugby championship in Quebec City this afternoon.
“Bianca scored two of her tries on quick strikes in the first five minutes of the second half and that really turned it for us,” said Stinger head coach Graeme McGravie.
It was a wide open game that saw the Stingers lead 15-12 at halftime, but the Rouge et Or battled back and took a 34-30 lead mid-way through the second half.
“We dominated for periods but Laval kept coming back. We dug deep. We played really well and I’m really happy,” said McGravie.
The Stingers also had tries from Erika Ikonomopoulos and Solange De Blois who scored the last points in the game. Jackie Tittley took care of the kicking with two converts and two penalty goals.
The win gives Concordia its fourth Quebec title in the last six years.
In regular season action, the Stingers finished in second place with a 6-1 win-loss record. Laval finished in first place with a perfect 7-0 record.
Concordia and Laval had met just once this fall. The Rouge et Or won the contest 27-22 on Oct. 12.
Laval and Concordia have played each other in the Quebec championship game for six straight years – 2007 through 2012. The Stingers won and advanced to the CIS national championship in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2012.
The Stingers will represent Quebec at the six-team CIS championship hosted by St. Francis Xavier University in Antigonish, N.S., which runs from Nov. 1 to 4.
The last national championship appearance for the Stingers was in 2010 when they won a silver medal.
