Preview: Marauders and Gaels Set to Clash in OUA Semifinal at Ron Joyce Stadium

Mac looks to advance to the OUA final for the fourth consecutive season Friday.

A ticket to the OUA final, and the U SPORTS National Championship, is on the line Friday night at Ron Joyce Stadium, as the Marauders and Gaels square off in a conference semifinal.

The two familiar foes, among the traditional power trio in the OUA alongside the division-winning Guelph Gryphons, renew their rivalry after a tightly-contested regular season contest which saw the Marauders hang on for a 21-15 road win in Kingston.

With the OUA earning two entries into the U SPORTS National Championship in 2017, the winner of Friday's semifinal will be headed to Lethbridge, Alberta for the tournament, which opens on November 2.

Compiling a 3-1 conference record and finishing second in the OUA's Shiels Division, the Marauders enjoyed a bye through the quarterfinal stage of the OUA playoffs, and make their postseason debut Friday.

Their opponents, meanwhile, hosted the Trent Excalibur on October 6 and came away with a lopsided 106-0 victory to book their place in the last four.

A balanced offence helped the Marauders past the Gaels in their last meeting, with three different Mac players scoring tries in the win.

Sara Svoboda, Khadira Brouillette and Maddy Seatle all crossed the try line for the Marauders, with Svoboda making good on all three conversion attempts.

Ultimately, it was McMaster's staunch defence in the face of a late Queen's onslaught that kept the Marauders one-score lead intact, and the group will need to be organized and disciplined once again Friday if Mac hopes to gain passage to their fourth consecutive OUA championship game.

The most dangerous of the Gaels many offensive threats comes in the form of fullback Nadia Popov, the 2012 OUA Rookie of the Year, who finished the conference season sixth in scoring with 43 points.

For their part, the Marauders boast a number of influential veterans capable of countering, including the leading trio of centre Britni French, eight Sara Svoboda, and centre Selena Seguin. The duo of Svoboda and Seguin are constant threats to create and exploit line breaks offensively, while French has operated as the backbone of McMaster's defence all season.

A First-Team All-Canadian in 2016, Svoboda led the Marauders in the regular season with a total of 46 points, including four tries.

The winner of Friday's contest will meet the winner of Saturday's match between the Guelph Gryphons and York Lions, with Guelph holding the top seed and hosting right for the championship should they win.

McMaster or Queen's would host the OUA Championship in the event of a Guelph loss.

Game time Friday is 7:00 p.m. at Ron Joyce Stadium, and the game is free to spectators.

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