Guelph Dethrone Defending McGill; Crowned 2013 Baggataway Champions

Attackman Ryan Serville was named 2013 Baggataway Cup Most Valuable Player after tallying 22 points in 14 games.
Attackman Ryan Serville was named 2013 Baggataway Cup Most Valuable Player after tallying 22 points in 14 games.

After pulling off upsets over Bishop’s and Brock, the Guelph Gryphons completed the biggest victory of the weekend as they dethrone the defending National Champion McGill Redmen after a 14-11 win to be crowned the 2013 Baggatway Cup Champions.

McGill jumped out to a 4-2 lead in the first quarter but Guelph charged back in the second quarter to knot the game up at six before heading into the locker rooms for halftime.

The Redmen jumped out to a early lead in the third quarter with a pair of goals from sophomore Anders Bjella and junior Connor Goodwin, but it was all Gryphons as they scored four unanswered goals to take the 10-8 lead heading into the final frame.

Edmonton Rush’s Curtis Knight found the back of the cage after a beautiful feed from attackman Ryan Serville who was being doubled by two Redmen defenders. Goodwin netted a pair of goals to bring the Redmen within one goal, but three unanswered goals from Jordan Critch and a pair from freshmen Brett Ulbikas extended the lead to 14-10 and would be good enough to clinch the victory. Lehigh grad Kevin Donovan found the back of the cage with just over four minutes remaining but unfortunately that would not be enough to muster up offense to make a comeback.

After an eight point(4G,4A) performance, Pickering,ON native Serville was named the 2013 Baggataway Cup Most Valuable Player. T

The victory captured the fourth Baggataway championship for the Guelph Gryphons program and their first since 2008. The former Jacksonville University Dolphin found the back of the cage 14 times while adding eight assists for 22 points in just four games.

Serville was not alone in the offensive parade in the finals as Ubikas netted a solid five goals and one assist while Critch added a pair of goals with three assists.

On the defensive side of the ball, fifth year senior defender Ben Vangalen was a force holding McGill’s offensive stud Donovan to just two goals. The Orangeville,ON native was also dominate at the faceoff X winning many draws and was vital in Guelph’s clearing game. Vangalen’s performance was good enough to be named tournament Defensive MVP.

Sophomore Netminder Jeremy Snider was stellar in between the pipes, making many big saves including a huge stop late in the fourth quarter to help prevent a McGill comeback.

Leading the way for McGill was Goodwin who netted a hat-trick and three assists.
The loss was the first for the Redmen in 19 games, dating back to a 11-10 loss to Bishop’s on September 27,2012.

The game was delayed for approximately 30 minutes as Guelph freshman Cooper Catt with a neck injury. He was dispatched to hospital in an ambulance but head coach Sam Kosakowski said he could move his hands and arms and was joking around before heading to the hospital.

With a third seed Guelph downing three of the top teams in Canadian University Lacrosse, it displays the growing parody among the league. Although growth of scholarships to American schools for Canadian athletes has grown greatly, the 2013 CUFLA season and Baggataway championship proves that there still is great collegiate ball up north.

Check back this week for ILWT’s 2013 All Baggataway Cup Teams and other CUFLA feature articles!