GUELPH, Ont. - Just under a year ago, the Golden Hawks left the University of Guelph with a trip to B.C. for the national championship on the horizon, despite losing the OUA final. 

This year, their season ends at Varsity Field, where the #2 Gryphons defeated them 47-26 in the semifinal.  

Even still, head coach Phil Murphy is proud of the way his team performed in the final game of what was another outstanding season for the program. 

"That is a very good team," he said about the defending Turner Trophy champions. "We made a couple of errors... and they reacted very well and they scored those extra tries. And at the end of the day, when it comes to teams like Guelph and ours, that's going to be the difference." 

"But I'm absolutely so proud for the guys that put in that monumental effort tonight." 

Guelph flexed their skill early in the game, as Jacob Ince took advantage of a botched lineout by Laurier to open the scoring in the fourth minute. 

Laurier sustained possession in Gryphons territory for the next few minutes, but couldn't break through for a score. Guelph dominated in the scrums and eventually pushed their way in for another try to make it 12-0 in the 21st minute. 

Dylan Di Girolamo gave the Golden Hawks life when he broke several tackles and ran in for a beautiful try in the 32nd minute.  

Just minutes later, Adam McNee made a perfect kick which angled into touch just short of the try line, setting up a Dougal Graham try. McNee's first convert tied the game at 12-12 heading into halftime. 

It was all Guelph to start the second half. Joshua Ince made it 19-12 in the 55th minute, and Gryphons' offence seemed to take flight. They scored three more tries to push the lead to 40-12 with just over ten minutes remaining in the game. 

The Golden Hawks kept battling despite the daunting deficit. Ethan Voskamp ran in to score in the 71st minute. Guelph answered right back, but Laurier once again moved quickly down the pitch to score one more in extra time. 

"Fair play to our guys, we never backed down, we never took our foot off the gas," said Murphy. 

"That's a testament to the character of the players. We've got quite a large number of guys that are that are graduating, but it puts them in good stead for life, to never back down, to never stop trying your hardest. I can't be more proud of these of these guys." 

While the team will be losing many of its core players, including Di Girolamo, McNee, and prop Josh Tinney, Murphy is confident the winning culture he and the team have built in just his first two seasons as head coach is here to stay. 

"Onwards and upwards."