UBC women’s hockey star finishes med school interview, races to game

UBC Thunderbirds forward Annalise Wong sprinting through the parking lot in full gear except for her skates and hustling into the rink in Elmira, Ont., in the middle of the fifth-place game at the U Sports nationals Sunday morning undoubtedly prompted a few double takes.

UBC’s game with the Waterloo Warriors started at 8 a.m. Eastern. Wong, a Richmond native who’s in her fifth and final year of eligibility, had an interview with the University of Toronto medical school at 9 a.m. that she couldn’t reschedule. She did the interview, taking the call in her hotel room while in her hockey gear. She then got a ride to the rink with her parents, who were in town to watch the tournament. She arrived during the second intermission, laced up her skates and played in the third, helping UBC to a 7-2 triumph in their season finale.

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Wong was one of 12 graduating seniors with UBC, who were making their fifth straight appearance at nationals and chasing the program’s first-ever Canadian title.

They came in as the No. 1 seeds. They were upset 4-3 in a shootout by the No. 8 Montreal Carabins on Friday. UBC downed the No. 5 Ottawa Gee-Gees 2-0 on Saturday to advance to Sunday.

The victory over No. 6 Waterloo, who were the tournament hosts, had UBC finish the season with a 36-3-0 record.

Montreal won the title, beating the No. 2 Concordia Stingers 5-2 on Sunday. They came into the tournament with a 13-9-2 record.

The UBC men’s team lost in the Canada West semifinals, getting swept by the Saskatchewan Huskies. UBC finished 27-6-0.

Saskatchewan were the No. 1 seeds for the men’s nationals in Halifax this weekend but they were upset in the first round as well, falling 4-3 in overtime to the No. 8 Saint Mary’s Huskies, the tournament hosts.

The No. 3 UQTR Patriotes won the title Sunday, beating Saint Mary’s 3-2 in overtime Sunday.

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SEwen@postmedia.com