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The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's rugby team fell 34-10 to the Trent Excalibur in their 2014 home opener on Sunday, September 14 at Varsity Centre.
 
Trent got out to a 15-0 lead, as Jessica Hercus, Mirande Pilon and Jillian Hartung scored in the ninth, 18th, and 23rd minutes, respectively.
 
The Blues responded and charged down the field with a great run from team captain Olivia Roberge (Ajax, Ont.), which set up a try from rookie Rachel Pham (Shahran, Saudi Arabia) in the 24th minute.
 
That gave the Blues some momentum as the remainder of the first half was played in Trent territory. Toronto saw some great ball movement from Remi Long, Katrina Cohen-Palacios and Danielle Hayes and with five minutes remaining in the half, sophomore Amanda Sussman of Brampton, Ont., ran it in for the try.
 
U of T trailed Trent 15-10 at the half.
 
Toronto started strong in the second half, led by a long run from Julia Mella and another from Long. Rozhen Asrani brought the ball deep into Trent's end in the 45th minute, but the Excalibur denied the attempt and brought the ball back to midfield.
 
The two teams went back and forth until the 60th minute when Trent's Caleigh Harris pushed her way through for the try and successfully converted to give the visiting team a 12-point cushion.
 
The Excalibur looked as if they would score again but Roberge came up with a big tackle to stop their trek down the field. However, Trent did find the end zone again as Karlie Robinson scored in the 67th minute and Mary Alannah Bailey added another in the 68th minute.
 
The Varsity Blues return to action next Saturday, September 20 as they host the No. 2 Queen's Gaels at Varsity Centre. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. 

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