Tigers take university field hockey title

Jessie Janes was named to the all-star team. (Nick Pearce Photo)

The Dalhousie Tigers are the reigning 2010 Atlantic University Field Hockey League Champions.

With their 1-0 defeat of the UPEI Panthers on October 17 in Charlottetown, the Tigers netted a huge win for the program, giving the team its first field hockey title since 1981. Tigers head coach Linda Bonin, who has been with the team for 10 years, classified the win as huge.

"The girls really put into action everything they had been working so hard on in practice. I couldn't be happier or more thrilled with the result. They really played their game and I'm so proud of them."

The Tigers played two games on Saturday, October 16, losing their first match to UPEI (0-2) but defeating Acadia in their second game (6-0).

The team advanced to Sunday‚s semi final where they faced the league's top team, Saint Mary's University. Dalhousie's Shelby Moore scored that game's only goal to help the Tigers advance to Sunday's final with a 1-0 win over the top-ranked Huskies.

Two Dalhousie players were named to the Atlantic University Field Hockey League all-star team - Danielle Dempsey from Herring Cove, and Jessie Janes from Halifax. In addition to being named an all-star, Ms. Dempsey also won the outstanding contributor award, which encompasses excellence in both athletics and academics. She scored the deciding goal in the championship game versus UPEI.

As Atlantic League champions, the Tigers have earned the opportunity to represent Atlantic Canada at the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) championship in Toronto, October 29 to 31. Their first game is set for Friday, October 29 at 2 p.m. at Downsview Park against a yet-to-be-determined opponent.

The top two seeds from the Ontario University championship will advance to the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) championship hosted by the University of Guelph from November 4-7.