Last week, the women’s curling team delivered an impressive performance at the 2025 USports Curling Championship in Lethbridge, earning fourth place.
Throughout the five-day tournament, skip Holly Hafeli, third Jorja Kopytko, second Hannah O’Neil and lead Natalie Hafeli played strong, earning the team their fourth top-four finish in recent ‘Pack history.
The championship was off to a rough start for TRU. On the first day, they lost to the eventual champions, the Wilfrid Laurier Golden Hawks, 7-2. However, WolfPack quickly rebounded and dominated two games on the second day, first hunting down the McMaster Marauders with a 10-3 victory before pouncing on the Lethbridge Pronghorns, securing an equally impressive 10-4 win.
Day three of the tournament presented the ‘Pack with equal parts challenge and triumph. In a morning match, the Dalhousie Tigers sank their teeth into the WolfPack, giving the women an 8 to 6 loss.
Despite the minor setback, the women regrouped, securing a 6-3 victory against Guelph Gryphons and a 6-2 win over St. Francis Xavier University Women. The last game of the day was against the Regina Cougars, who defeated the ‘Pack in the match for the Canada West golden medal earlier in the season. The ‘Pack played strategically, scoring single points in the second, third and fourth ends before putting a pair in the sixth to the scoreboard. TRU finished the game with a 5-4 win.
In the semifinal, TRU had a close battle against the McMaster Marauders. The ‘Pack fought hard but eventually fell short in a 5-4 loss. The bronze medal battle against the Dalhousie Tigers was off to a good start, with the WolfPack earning an early 4-1 lead. However, the Tigers regrouped and came back with a 6-5 win over the Pack, leaving them without a podium finish.
TRU earned their spot at the nationals with a silver medal performance at the Canada West Championship earlier this season. While they narrowly missed out on the medals at the USports Championship, their performance demonstrated their strength against the best teams in Canadian university curling.