U SPORTS Top 10 (Jan. 30, 2024): Gryphons Track & Field and Women’s Hockey Move Up in the Latest National Rankings

TORONTO, Ont. – On Tuesday, January 30, 2024, the U SPORTS office released its latest national rankings for the 2023-24 season. Four University of Guelph varsity teams were ranked, highlighted by the Gryphons track & field teams and women’s hockey team all moving up within the top 2 of their respective rankings. The University of Guelph varsity wrestling teams were also ranked in the Top 10, with the women’s wrestling team holding at No. 5 while the men fall into a tie with the Western Mustangs for No. 6. Finally, the Gryphons men’s volleyball team fell one position, but once again remain ranked in the national Top 10 coming in at No. 9. 
 

Gryphon Teams Ranked Nationally (Jan. 30, 2024)

Gryphons Track & Field – No. 1 & 2

The Gryphons men’s track and field team captures top spot in the latest U SPORTS national rankings thanks to a strong showing at the Penn State National Open this past weekend in University Park, Pennsylvania. The weekend was highlighted by a U of G record-setting performance from distance runner Max Davies, who ran the fastest mile in program history with a time of 3:59.24. A 1-2 finish in the men’s long jump from Johnathan Jacob (1st, 7.38ft) and Soloman Arase (2nd, 7.36ft) solidified a fantastic weekend for the Gryphon track and field student-athletes who made the trip south of the border to compete against NCAA talent. The Gryphons women’s track & field team is also up two spots to No. 2, with the 2024 OUA Track and Field Championships less than a month away. South of the border, the Gryphons women’s track and field team saw a record-setting performance, with pentathlon athlete Rebecca Parker breaking a 21-year-old U of G record. Impressive performances from distance runner Cameron Ormond (1st, 1000m, 2:43.75) and sprinters Adenike Abiodun (1st, 60m hurdles, 8.40) and Hailey Reid (2nd, 60m hurdles, 8.42) also highlighted another strong weekend for the program. 

Gryphons Women’s Hockey – No. 2

For the first time since October 28, 2019, the Guelph Gryphons women’s hockey team is ranked as one of the top 2 teams in the nation. The last time the Gryphons were ranked this high was in the opening weeks of the 2019-20 season, when the team was coming off of their first and only national championship in program history. This season’s edition of the Gryphons women’s hockey team has already surpassed the regular season win total of that national championship-winning team and now has the chance to set a new program record for wins in a single regular season, with five games still remaining on their regular season schedule. This past week, the Gryphons captured wins over the Laurier Golden Hawks and No. 6-ranked Nipissing Lakers to bring their regular season record to 20-1-2, just one win shy of the current program record. The Gryphons women’s hockey team is also riding an incredible 12-game win streak, with their last loss coming way back on November 17 (a 1-0 overtime loss to Laurier). The 12-game win streak by the Gryphons women’s hockey team is the second-longest active win streak in all of U SPORTS, next only to the undefeated, and No. 1 nationally-ranked, Concordia Stingers. The last time the OUA West-leading Gryphons even trailed in a game was back on December 1, 2023, when the team trailed the York Lions 2-0 before winning the game, 4-3. Even more impressive, is the fact that the Gryphons have not lost in regulation since October 29, 2023, when they suffered their only regulation loss of the season to the Waterloo Warriors. 

Gryphons Wrestling – No. 5 & 6

Following another successful weekend, the Gryphon wrestling teams are once again among the nation’s best wrestling programs. After seeing several student-athletes earn podium positions this past weekend in London at the Ontario Junior Championships and the Western Open, the Gryphons remain as No. 5 and 6-ranked teams, with the men moving into a tie for 6th position with the Western Mustangs. For the No. 5-ranked U of G women, a quartet of student-athletes reached the podium in Kayla Smith (1st, 50kg) leading the way at the Ontario Junior Championships and Logan Stimson (2nd, 83kg), Claire MacDougall (3rd, 50kg), and Rebecca Redlich (3rd, 68kg) highlighted the U of G performance at the Western Open. On the men’s side, the Gryphons captured 1st-place in the team standings at the Ontario Junior Championships following podium performances from Tyler Barry (1st, 65kg), Clark Jackson (1st, 92kg), Cooper Feke (3rd, 61kg), and Jayden Harrison (3rd, 86kg). At the Western Open it was Baljot Mangat who highlighted the day with a 2nd-place finish in the men’s 82kg weight class. 

Gryphons Men’s Volleyball – No. 9

The final Gryphons varsity team to be featured in the latest U SPORTS rankings was the U of G men’s volleyball team, who fell one spot to No. 9 after splitting their two-game set with the Windsor Lancers this past weekend. In what was potentially a future OUA playoff matchup, the Gryphons fell in a hard-fought five-set match before bouncing back with a convincing 3-1 victory. With the weekend split the Gryphons move to 13-3 on the season and remain in a tie for the top spot in the conference standings with the, now No. 10-ranked, Brock Badgers. The two teams also hold a single-game advantage over the No. 3-ranked McMaster Marauders (12-4) and the No. 5-ranked Queen’s Gaels, however the Gaels currently have two games in hand on the trio of programs ahead of them. The Gryphons now head to their bye week before heading into the final stretch of their regular season schedule with just four games remaining. The next test for the Gryphons will come Feb. 9 and 10 when the team heads to Kingston for a two-game set against the Gaels in their second U SPORTS Top-10 matchup of the season. Following their doubleheader with Queen’s, the Gryphons will return home for their final two games of the season against the TMU Bold (Feb. 16 & 17). 
 

U SPORTS Men’s Track & Field

U SPORTS Women’s Track & Field

U SPORTS Women’s Hockey

U SPORTS Women’s Wrestling

Dropped out: Algoma (10)
 

U SPORTS Men’s Wrestling

U SPORTS Men’s Volleyball

Dropped out: Winnipeg (10)