BU captures rugby conference crown

Raegan Ricard and the Brandon University Bobcats called their shot a year ago and made good on it on Sunday.

“Last year we got bronze; this year we got silver. Next year it will be gold for sure,” Ricard said after a heartbreaking loss to the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology in the 2025 Prairie University Women’s Rugby Conference final on home turf.

This time, in Calgary, BU defeated the two-time defending champions 15-12, clinging to a lead that could have evaporated at any moment for what felt like an eternity.

“I feel like I played 80 minutes,” head coach Brian Yon said with a laugh. “Everything you wanted in a championship game.

“The girls were so physical at the breakdown today. We’ve been really working on it lately. That’s where they got us last year, the physicality at the breakdown, and that’s where the roles reversed. I’m just so proud of the girls; just a great day.”

BU knew it’d be a tough final after rumbling past the University of Saskatchewan 40-12 on Friday, then watching SAIT demolish the University of Regina 97-5.

The feeling of watching an undefeated season slip away in a two-point loss last year fuelled the veterans to withstand SAIT’s comeback bid.

According to captain Beth Couling, some of them were living in the moment and focusing on their jobs each play, to the point they didn’t know the circumstances in the final minutes.

“It was just surreal. We had our heads in it,” said captain Beth Couling.

“We didn’t even know we were winning; half of us didn’t realize what the score was, we just knew we were playing rugby and had to get the job done.”

Brooke Miner got Brandon started on the right foot when she picked up a loose ball and ran half the field to score the opening try just six minutes in.

SAIT replied with a try nine minutes later.

Near the end of the first half, Brandon enjoyed a long possession and suddenly flipped the field with a perfect string of passes before Miner dished to Madison Vandal for the score. Yon was impressed with his veteran’s rugby IQ leading to the go-ahead try.

“Vandal felt their player on the outside was a player we could go after,” Yon said.

“Credit to SAIT, they had us under pressure with scrums in the first half. They dominated. We knew we were giving up significant weight there, but I told Brooke, if you get an opportunity, eight pick and go and attack that side. She ended up doing it and it worked out brilliantly for us.”

With that, BU went into halftime up 10-5.

“Our first half was electric. Nothing could have stopped us in the first half,” Couling said. “Yeah, we did get tired in the second half but we didn’t stop. That was everything.”

The Bobcats doubled the lead a few minutes before the hour mark when Minor touched the ball down once again.

SAIT answered quickly, driving the ball deep into BU territory and despite a valiant effort to keep the Trojans out, they punched it over the line right in front of the uprights, then nailed the convert to make it 15-12.

The Trojans pushed hard for the winning score and had one big breakthrough run, but PUWRC rookie of the year Kierstin Van De Kerckhove made a championship-saving tackle.

“She was unbelievable today. If you had to pick a player of the match, she was it. She was on the run; she was on the hunt,” Yon said.

After that, the Bobcats stayed disciplined, didn’t leave anything easy while defending and controlled the ball well to salt the game away.

“It was unreal. There was a little bit of injury time … but we knew it was getting down to the wire. When you get into those situations, it’s about managing the game, managing the clock,” Yon said.

“Once we crossed back over to their half late in the game, I thought they made all the right choices. It did help that the last penalty they took happened to be right in front of us, so the coaching staff could shout directions.”

The final whistle blew, sending the Bobcat players into a frenzy and the coaches down memory lane.

“Our coaching staff, we were talking about that, the history of the program and how far it’s come,” Yon said of the eight-year-old club.

“So many women getting involved in the game, and realistically, to see where we struggled in the beginning to get the culture right in the team … we finally felt the last couple of years that we were really close to getting it right.

“We have a great group of women; we finally had it right and could go out and have some success on the field.”

» tfriesen@brandonsun.com