RUGBY: T-Birds punch playoff ticket despite loss

VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds dropped a hard fought 27-22 match against the Calgary Dinos at the Gerald McGavin Rugby Centre on Friday afternoon, but a sensational try by UBC No. 8 Lyric Atchison was enough to propel the 'Birds into the Canada West playoffs.

"We did all we could today, I think," said UBC head coach Maria Gallo. "I'm proud of the effort today."

An unfortunate break for the 'Birds put them in a deficit in the fourth minute. Against the run of play, Calgary's Emmanuel Anye blocked a kick, recovered the ball and ran it to the end zone from 40 yards out. Cassidy Jones kicked the conversion and it was 7-0 Dinos.

The Dinos added to their lead in the 9th minute when Jones grabbed the ball out of a ruck and plunged into the end zone. The conversion attempt hit the uprights making the score 12-0 Dinos.

Calgary lit up the scoreboard again just minutes later. Some nifty passes across the face off the field resulted in Samantha May having a clear path down the left wing into the scoring area. The conversion was missed and Calgary had jumped out to a 17-0 lead.

After UBC fly-half Mackenzie Carson sustained an upper body injury, causing her to leave the game, the 'Birds seemed to rally around their fallen captain. Some determined running and ball movement by the 'Blue and Gold' allowed Alayna Scramstad to dive into the scoring area from three yards out, right underneath the uprights. Brooke Bazian made the conversion and the score stood at 17-7 Dinos at the half.

The 'Birds came out flying in the second half. In the 43rd minute, Bazian made a probing run across the half-line, juked a Dinos tackler and blasted into the end zone. Bazian converted her own spectacular work and the Dinos were clinging to a 17-14 lead.

But Calgary regained the momentum and padded their lead in the 52nd minute when Jones' swerving run off the left wing put the Dinos up 22-14. The conversion was pushed wide.

The 'Birds answered in the 60th minute, when a winding charge through the heart of the Dinos defence by Atchison made the score 22-19. Bazian was just short on the conversion.

But Calgary stormed right down the field and scored again the 64th minute when some deft passing by the Dinos backfield propelled Charity Corcilles-Harris past the far right pylon. The conversion as missed and the score was 27-19 Dinos.

A Bazian penalty kick pulled the 'Birds to within five, setting up a furious final ten minutes.

But despite relentless pressure from the 'Birds in the Calgary half of the field, they could not make the final push for a deciding score. The referee blew his final whistle and the scoreboard read 27-22 Dinos.

Because the 'Birds came were able to lose by less than seven, they secured an all-important bonus point, giving them seven on the season and earning them a spot in the Canada West playoffs.

"There's nervous excitement now," added Gallo. "I told the girls we are very proud of them. We'll recover from this game physically and then take it from there on Monday."

4th minute - Calgary TRY – Emmanuella Anye (convert by Elysa Sandron) – 7-0 Calgary

9th – Calgary TRY – Cassidy Jones (convert missed) – 12-0 Calgary

13th – Calgary TRY – Samantha May (convert missed) – 17-0 Calgary

38th – UBC TRY – Alayna Scramstad (convert by Brooke Bazian) – 17-7 Calgary

43rd – UBC TRY – Brooke Bazian (convert by Brooke Bazian) – 17-14 Calgary

51st – Calgary TRY – Berlyn Seselha (convert by missed) – 22-14 Calgary

59th – UBC TRY – Lyric Atchison (convert missed) – 22-19 Calgary

62nd – Calgary TRY – Charity Corcilles-Herring (convert missed) – 27-19 Calgary

68th – UBC PENALTY GOAL – Brooke Bazian – 27-22 Calgary

Calgary gets a bonus point for scoring four tries

UBC gets a bonus point for losing by less than seven points