TORONTO (U Sports) – The University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's soccer team opens the 2016 national tournament versus the Cape Breton Capers on Thursday, November 10 at 1:30 p.m. 

The eight-team tournament, hosted by the Gryphons for the first time since 1992 and the third time overall, concludes next Sunday at Alumni Stadium with the gold-medal final set for 2 p.m. All 11 games from the competition will be webcast live on SportsCanada.TV.

The tournament host and top-seeded Guelph Gryphons head into the 2016 CIS men's soccer championship in search of their first Sam Davidson Memorial Trophy in program history. Rounding out the 2016 draw are the second-seeded Cape Breton Capers (AUS champions), No. 3 Alberta Golden Bears (Canada West champs), No. 4 UQAM Citadins (RSEQ champs), No. 5, UBC Thunderbirds (Canada West finalists), No. 6 York Lions (OUA finalists), No. 7 Toronto Varsity Blues (OUA bronze medallists) and No. 8 Acadia Axemen (AUS finalists).

Thursday's quarter-final matchups include Alberta vs. York at 11 a.m., Cape Breton vs. Toronto at 1:30 p.m., UQAM vs. UBC at 4 p.m., and Guelph vs. Acadia at 7 p.m.

UBC (13), York (5), Alberta (4), and Toronto (1) have also hoisted the Sam Davidson Trophy in the past.

No. 7 Toronto claimed the final OUA berth at the national championship thanks to a bronze medal victory over Ryerson on Sunday. At the OUA final four, the Varsity Blues, who finished second in the east division to their cross-town rivals at 12-2-2, fell to eventual silver medalist York 1-0 before eliminating the Rams with a 2-1 win in the third-place match.

"We are both honoured and excited to represent the OUA East at the upcoming national championship tournament," said Varsity Blues head coach Anthony Capotosto. "We look forward to this special experience to compete among the best teams in the country."

The Gryphons received the top seed after capturing their first OUA title since 1990 on Sunday, dethroning the three-time defending conference champion York Lions via a 3-1 score. No. 6 York, who has won the last two national championships including last season on home turf, swept both regular season matches with Guelph, outscoring the Gryphons 6-3. The Lions will be looking to become the first school to win three consecutive U Sports titles since UBC had four in row from 1989 to 1992. 
 
A year after losing the conference championship, No. 2 Cape Breton redeemed themselves this season, earning their first AUS banner since 2012 with a 3-1 win over No. 8 Acadia. The Capers had previously fallen to the Axmen 2-0 in their long regular season matchup on Oct. 23. Acadia, meanwhile, rode a 9-1-2 record to finish in top spot, and claim their first appearance at the national tournament since 1996. 

Another new champion was crowned this season as No.3 Alberta claimed their first Canada West title since 2011 over perennial powerhouse No.5 UBC – an exciting 2-1 match that was decided by penalty kicks. It was the first meeting between the closely-matched sides since playing to a scoreless draw on Sept. 16. UBC, however, knows a thing or two about winning at the national championship. The Thunderbirds hold the all-time record with 13 Davidson Trophy titles – eight more than any other program – in 18 previous appearances at the tournament, including back-to-back triumphs in 2012 and 2013. The T-Birds' all-time winning percentage at the competition is a ridiculous .883 (41-5-1).  

In the RSEQ, No. 4 UQAM won its third consecutive championship, dispatching Montreal 2-0 in extra time in the semifinals before securing the conference's lone berth with a 2-1 win over UQTR. The Citadins will be looking to improve on back to back fourth-place finishes at the CIS championship after a challenging season on the pitch.

Official championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/msoc/index
 
SAM DAVIDSON MEMORIAL TROPHY CHAMPIONS:

2015 York (at York)
2014 York (at UPEI)
2013 UBC (at UNB)
2012 UBC (at Laval)
2011 Victoria (at Victoria)
2010 York (at Toronto)
2009 Laval (at Trinity Western)
2008 York (at Carleton)
2007 UBC (at UBC)
2006 Alberta (at Alberta)
2005 UBC (at UPEI)
2004 Victoria (at Montreal / McGill)
2003 Alberta (at Montreal / McGill)
2002 Brock (at Carleton)
2001 Laurier (at Saint Mary's)
2000 Laurier (at McMaster)
1999 Western (at Victoria)
1998 Western (at McGill)
1997 McGill (at Dalhousie)
1996 Victoria (at York)
1995 Dalhousie (at UQTR)
1994 UBC (at UBC)
1993 Sherbrooke (at Acadia)
1992 UBC (at Guelph)
1991 UBC (at Queen's)
1990 UBC (at Guelph)
1989 UBC (at UBC)
1988 Toronto (at UBC)
1987 Victoria (at McGill)
1986 UBC (at Toronto)
1985 UBC (at UBC)
1984 UBC (at Carleton)
1983 Laurentian (at Laurentian)
1982 McGill (at McGill)
1981 McGill (at Alberta)
1980 UNB (at UNB)
1979 Alberta (at Alberta)
1978 Manitoba (at Concordia)
1977 York (at Waterloo)
1976 Concordia (at Concordia)
1975 Victoria (at Victoria)
1974 UBC (at Concordia)
1973 Loyola (at Memorial)
1972 Alberta (at York)
1971 Laurentian
1970 Memorial

CHAMPIONSHIP SCHEDULE

Wednesday, Nov. 9
18:30 All-Canadian Awards Banquet (Delta Hotel & Conference Centre)

Thursday, Nov. 10
11:00 Quarter-final 1: Alberta vs. York (SportsCanada.TV)
13:30 Quarter-final 2: Cape Breton vs. Toronto (SportsCanada.TV)
16:00 Quarter-final 3: UQAM vs. UBC (SportsCanada.TV)
19:00 Quarter-final 4: Guelph vs. Acadia (SportsCanada.TV)

Friday, Nov. 11
11:00 Consolation 1: Loser QF 1 vs. Loser QF 2 (SportsCanada.TV)
13:30 Consolation 2: Loser QF 3 vs. Loser QF 4 (SportsCanada.TV)

Saturday, Nov. 12
11:00 Semifinal 1: Winner QF 1 vs. Winner QF 2 (SportsCanada.TV)
13:30 Semifinal 2: Winner QF 3 vs. Winner QF 4 (SportsCanada.TV)
16:00 5th-place game (SportsCanada.TV)

Sunday, Nov. 13
11:00 Bronze medal (SportsCanada.TV)
14:00 Championship final (SportsCanada.TV)
 
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