For two consecutive years, the Marauders ground out tough, physical victories over the Ottawa Gee-Gees at the national championship tournament, relying on staunch, last-minute defence and the thinnest of margins.
 
That trend ran its course Thursday, as Mac ran out of time, and magic, losing 25-19 to the Gee-Gees in a national quarter-final in Victoria.
 
"This is the third championship in a row that we've played Ottawa and now the combined point difference isn't over five points," said McMaster head coach Shaun Allen. "We are two physical teams that are willing to battle it out, and they got the better of us today."
 
Just a day after being named as a Second Team All-Canadian for the first time in her decorated Marauders career, prop Colleen Irowa led the way for McMaster with a pair of tries in a losing effort.
 
Maddy Seatle added Mac's third try of the day, while veteran fly half Steph Black had a pair of converts and was named as the Marauders Player of the Game.
 
Ottawa crossed the try line four times, with Alexandria Ellis scoring two tries and earning the Gee-Gees Player of the Game honours.
 
Irowa opened the scoring in the first half with Black successfully converting to give McMaster the 7-0 lead, but the defending champions were pegged back before the break when Ellis made good on her first try of the day, and Emma Sandstrom converted for 7-7.
 
Just seven minutes into the second half, Ellis found pay dirt yet again, and although Sandstrom's attempted convert was wide, Ottawa took a 12-7 lead.
 
The lead proved to be short-lived, as Irowa was opportunistic in jumping on a loose ball and splitting the Gee-Gees defence in the 50th minute, running in for a weakly-contested try under the posts. Black's attempted convert was no good, but the damage was done, as the teams stood deadlocked at 12.
 
Momentum swung again just six minutes later, when a long run brought the Gee-Gees feet from the try line, and Jessica Lynn Foran punched in the try moments later on a quick pick and go. Without a convert, Ottawa led 17-12.
 
Heaping on the pressure, Ottawa added to the lead when Samantha Alli broke through the Marauders defence and raced down the left wing before diving across the try line for 22-12.
 
Hope arrived in the form of a try from Seatle in the late stages, as the gap shrunk to just three points with Black's successful convert. But it was too little, too late, and after a Marauders miscue allowed a Sandstrom penalty goal on the final play of the game, it was all over.
 
"Overall I was really happy with our defence for the most part, we tackled like crazy," said Allen. "I was happy with us doing what we were trying to do by spreading them out and moving the ball it was just that last finish that we were missing.
 
"We had our opportunities we just unfortunately didn't finish."
 
NEXT UP: McMaster moves to the consolation side of the bracket, where they will face the Acadia Axewomen at 2:00 p.m. local (5:00 p.m. Eastern) on Saturday, November 5.