GUELPH, Ont. – The reigning OUA champion Guelph Gryphons women's rugby team will kick off a new season on Saturday, August 30 as they play host to the Brock Badgers in the opening game of the 2025 OUA regular season schedule.
The Gryphons enter the new season as the defending conference champions, following their
dramatic OUA title victory over Queen's a season ago, and will look to add yet another banner to the program's rich championship history in 2025.
Last season, the Gryphons finished the regular season with a record of 5-1 before defeating the Queen's Gaels in the OUA title game in the playoffs. The Gryphons went on to finish 5th at nationals, and will now re-set for a brand new season of OUA and U SPORTS women's rugby action.
Helping lead the way for the Gryphons in 2025 is fifth-year bio-medical science major,
Taylor McKnight. The four-time U SPORTS All-Canadian will miss the early portion of the season, with McKnight having earned the prestigious call up to Canada's senior national team for the 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup (Aug. 22 – Sept. 27) currently being played in England. Despite McKnight's absence, the Gryphons boast plenty of proven returning talent on the 2025 squad.
Lara Jorgensen (Aurora, ON) returns for her final season for the Gryphons at centre, with the microbiology major being named a Gryphon captain for her final season at U of G.
Addy Holmes (Waterloo, ON) returns for her third season as a Gryphon following a sensational 2024 campaign in which she was named OUA MVP.
Tausani Levale (Abbotsford, B.C.) came through one of the biggest kicks in program history last October, with her last-second convert giving the Gryphons the OUA title on the final play of the game in the 2024 OUA Championship game in Kingston. Levale, who majors in indigenous studies, returns for her third season as a Gryphon. Taking on a leadership role in 2025 is fifth-year lock,
Imogen Barnard (Caledon, ON). Third-year standout,
Madeline Di Girolamo (Vaughan, ON) returns to the Gryphon front row and is poised for another impactful season with the Gryphons. Among the newcomers to this year's squad is
Candace Kelly (Stratford, ON), who arrives at U of G to pursue her Masters in Leadership after having represented Canada in Rugby League.
The Gryphons and Badgers season-opening match on Saturday, August 30 gets underway at 1pm, with the game being played at the University of Guelph's Alumni Stadium. Tickets for the game are available online at gryphons.ca/tickets. Should the Gryphons once again impress at the conference level in 2025 and earn a spot at nationals, the team would be west coast-bound, with the 2025 U SPORTS Women's Rugby Championships set to take place in Vancouver, B.C. and hosted by UBC (Oct. 29 – Nov. 2).
