North Shore players were all over the pitch for the University of British Columbia as the Thunderbirds scored a thrilling shootout victory over the host University of Victoria Vikes to claim their fifth straight CIS field hockey championship Nov. 8.
UBC got a last-minute goal from Coquitlam's Niki Best to push the final to overtime and the Thunderbirds went on to score a 3-2 win (3-1 in the shootout) to claim the 17th McCrae Cup in team history. Handsworth grad Hannah Haughn was named the tournament MVP.
"One thing I have been telling the team all season is to never give up," Haughn, a fourth-year kinesiology student from North Vancouver, said in a UBC release. "My teammates are amazing. They stick to the game plan from our amazing coach and you can't ask for more from them."
Other North Shore links on the team include fifth-year Collingwood grad Katrina Davis, third-year Rockridge grad Sophie Jones, first-year Rockridge grad Amy Jones, third-year Handsworth grad Megan Hayden, and second-year Handsworth grad Emily Martin. Sophie Jones scored a crucial last-second goal in UBC's final round robin game, a 2-2 tie against the University of Toronto, to keep the Thunderbirds' golden hopes alive.
Haughn, a member of Canada's national team, earned her second national championship MVP award, the first coming during her rookie season in 2012. The four-time All-Canadian was also named the Canada West league MVP for the first time in her stellar UBC career.
