With the winter semester coming to an end and exams just around the corner, it’s almost report card season — and the same applies to our very own Varsity Blues. With this season concluding, The Varsity presents the second semester Blues’ report card, subjectively grading each of the 10 men’s, 10 women’s, and two co-ed winter sports teams, their season placement, and this season’s MVP. 

It was a strong winter semester for both the men’s and women’s teams. Particularly impressive was the badminton team, who won the only national championship this year in any Varsity Blues sport. Eight sports secured a provincial title: badminton, men’s fencing, men’s water polo, women’s fencing, women’s hockey, women’s water polo, men’s swimming, and women’s swimming. 

Men’s and Women’s Sessional GPA: 3.34

Cumulative Fall and Winter GPA: 3.2

Men’s Sports

Men’s Sessional GPA: 3.28

Badminton

The men’s badminton team had a phenomenal season, securing a team gold at the national tournament 2025 YONEX Canadian University/College Championships. 

The Blues also secured a gold medal in the individual events, with doubles pair Nathan Mills and Harold Tan crowned as men’s doubles champions. At the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) provincials, the Blues secured their second straight banner and their 11th program title. Tan and Peter Briggs secured provincial all-star nominations, while head coach Nicky Aung secured OUA Coach of the Year. 

The team events for both the national and provincial tournaments are mixed events, with both the men’s and women’s teams contributing to the Blues remaining the premier badminton program in Canada.

Grade: A+

Team MVP: Harold Tan

Basketball 

The men’s basketball team had a rollercoaster season. Unfortunately, the Blues missed the playoffs just one year after their historic run to the OUA semifinals last season. 

The Blues’ fourth-year duo of Iñaki Alvarez and Lenny Weber were sensational all season long, with the former breaking 1,000 career points and the latter leading the OUA in rebounds per game. At the end of the day, an eight-game losing streak in the middle of the season sunk the Blues’ playoff hopes, with the team being unable to catch up in the standings. 

While falling short of expectations, the team played a fun brand of basketball and will look to rebuild for next year following the graduation of several key players. Overall, a lukewarm season.

Grade: C

Team MVP: Lenny Webber

Curling 

It was a strong regular season for the men’s curling team, but the Blues fell short at the provincial tournament — bowing out in the quarterfinals. The Blues had a winning record at every intercollegiate tournament in the regular season, finishing 9–2 on the season with the highlight of the year being a tournament win at the McMaster Invitational Bonspiel in January. 

Unfortunately at provincials, the Blues were knocked out by second-seeded Carleton Ravens in the OUA quarterfinals following two days of round-robin matches. Considering that the team’s stated goal was to secure a podium medal and better last year’s fourth-place finish, first-year Head Coach Susan Baird will no doubt be disappointed with a top-eight result. A phenomenal regular season with a hiccup at the final exam. 

Grade: B-

Team MVP: N/A

Fencing

What more is there to say about the juggernaut that is the men’s fencing team? 

The Blues secured their extraordinary ninth consecutive OUA banner this season. Their league-leading 39th provincial title means that the Blues have won 48 per cent of all available championships since the tournament’s inception in 1938. It was also a gold rush for the individual events, with Leon Xiao securing a gold in épée; Mike Howard securing a gold in foil; and rookie Matthew Teng securing gold in sabre at the OUA. 

No notes for the fencing team. Perhaps this OUA tournament is becoming a bit of a bird course.

Grade: A+

Team MVP: Leon Xiao, Mike Howard, and Matthew Teng 

Figure Skating 

The Varsity Blues men’s figure skating team is quite literally a one-man army — fifth-year veteran Hugo Li is the only men’s figure skater on the Blues. While the men’s and women’s teams compete as one, Team Captain Li grabbed valuable points all season in the men’s and pair categories for the team. 

The Blues secured a silver medal at the provincial championships, with Li impressing in multiple categories. The all-important skater grabbed a win in the Star 8–9 Dance alongside his partner Katelyn Pavlidis; a win in the Senior Pair Freeskate with his partner Gabriella Guo; a silver in the Open Men’s Freeskate; and a third-place finish in the Fours Freeskate. 

Grade: A

Team MVP: Hugo Li

Hockey

The men’s hockey team’s season came to an end on March 15 when they lost against the Queen’s Golden Gaels in the OUA bronze medal game. It was a wonderful season for the Blues in what has been an ascension for the program over the last few years. 

They finished the regular season with a 17–11–0 record, placing second in the OUA West conference. The Blues entered the playoffs with a quarterfinal matchup against the Windsor Lancers, as their playoff journey began with an exciting 5–2 comeback win on February 27. 

The Blues completed the sweep two days later to secure a semifinal berth against their rivals, the TMU Bold. Although Toronto showed tremendous effort in the series — including a gritty 3–2 Game 1 victory — they could not see it through and fell to the Bold in three games. 

Forward Owen Robinson had a sensational playoff run with four goals and two assists, after finishing the regular season as the OUA scoring leader with 38 points. He was named a U SPORTS First-Team All-Canadian to cap off his year. Solid marks for the Blues, who will head into next season with unfinished business and the elusive championship on their minds.

Grade: A-

Team MVP: Owen Robinson

Squash

The men’s squash team finished top four at the 2025 OUA Squash Championships in what was a solid season for the squad. After winning bronze at last year’s tournament, the Blues were unable to follow up with another medal as they were defeated by Queens with a convincing team score of 5–1. Shamil Khan became the second Blues men’s squash player to win OUA Rookie of the Year, while Will Harris continued his phenomenal career with his second OUA All-Star selection. 

The Blues will look to build on this campaign next year, where they will hopefully make it to the finals and challenge Western’s 41-year title streak.

Grade: B-

Team MVP: Will Harris 

Swimming

The historically strong U of T swimming program produced another fine season, winning the provincial championship and finishing second place at nationals. Securing the provincial championship is a bare minimum at this point, as the Blues have made it 21 years of consecutive gold medal finishes to add to their league-leading 71 banners in program history. 

Ben Loewen had a terrific individual season. He was named the 2025 OUA men’s swimmer of the year and won four individual gold medals at provincials, three of which came in OUA record time. It was a Blues sweep of the OUA awards with Dave Ling, Brock MacDonald, and Byron MacDonald winning Coach of the Year, Nathan Thomas winning Rookie of the Year, and Jacob Gallant winning the Dr. Jeno Tehani Individual Medley Excellence Awards. 

At nationals, the Blues finished in an impressive second place, securing ten silver and six bronze medals. Thomas was awarded national Rookie of the Year honours to complete his breakout season while Loewen picked up three silvers and a bronze to round out his phenomenal season. However, considering the Blues’ dominance in the OUA and their national title last year, they are graded on a harsh curve. 

At this point, only a national title can secure the team an A+.

Grade: A

Team MVP: Ben Loewen

Track and Field

The men’s track and field team had a strong season, finishing fourth at the OUA Championships and then sixth at the U SPORTS tournament. 

The high jumpers had a particularly strong season, with veteran Aiden Grout securing his second U SPORTS gold medal and rookie Alec Brent earning silver at nationals. 

The sprints program also saw great success, with second-year Logan Duley setting a new school record of 6.78 seconds in the 60-metre dash. Captain Phikelela “PK” Moyo came close behind with 6.80 seconds — becoming second on the U of T all-time record list. 

Although the Blues fell short in earning team medals at OUAs and U SPORTS, they had a solid season considering the various injuries to the team that were sustained throughout.

Grade: B 

Team MVP: Aiden Grout

Volleyball

The men’s volleyball ended their regular season scorching hot, winning their last nine games to secure third place in the OUA with a 15–5 record. The Blues’ run was halted in the OUA quarterfinals when they were swept in straight sets by the underdog Western Mustangs — losing with set scores 25–20, 25–19, 25–19. The defeat soured an otherwise positive season for the Blues, in which four players received OUA honours. 

Jayden Talsma was named a First Team All-Star, Hunter Arulpragasam was named a Second Team All-Star, and first-years Iannis Toma and Luka Minic concluded their impressive debut season with OUA All-Rookie honours. Toma was further named to the U SPORTS All-Rookie Team. 

The Blues have had a streak of regular season success, but after a second straight exit in the quarterfinals, the team needs to dig deep to get to the championship next year. With a promising crop of rookies immediately making an impact, the future’s looking bright. 

Grade: B

Team MVP: Jayden Talsma

Water Polo 

The men’s water polo team had a great season, winning the provincial equivalent National Collegiate Water Polo (NCWP) gold medal after a successful 9–2 regular season. The Blues are a championship mainstay, securing their eighth straight provincial banner this season, and 37th in program history. 

Attacker Omer Sayli was named Championship MVP for his clutch performance in the final against the Mustangs, while his brother Ali Sayli was named the NCWP Outstanding Goalie. Head Coach Emre Tali secured Coach of the Year honours in his debut season. The Sayli brothers were also named to the NCWP All-Canadian first team, while rookie Bowen Moravek was named to the second team.

Grade: A+ 

Team MVP: Omer Sayli and Aki Sayli

Wrestling

The Varsity Blues wrestling team had a quiet season, finishing eighth overall in the OUA competition. The team then sent four wrestlers to the national U SPORTS Championships, where the Blues finished 11th overall in the team standings. 

The highlight for the Blues was 76-kilogram weight class rookie Josiah Mayers-Noel, who picked up an admirable fourth-place finish in his first-ever national competition. The other Blues wrestlers had solid results as Jacob Fritz placed seventh in the 72-kilogram bracket; Keegan McMartin placed eighth in the 82-kilogram bracket; and rookie Omar Al-Lahham placed eighth in the 90-kilogram bracket. There’s much to be hopeful for first-year Head Coach Dene Ringuette’s team. 

The Blues had only sent one and two wrestlers in the previous two national competitions, and the emergence of youthful talent promises future success for the program.

Grade: C+

Team MVP: Josiah Mayers-Noel 

Women’s Sports

Women’s Sessional GPA: 3.39

Badminton

Competing as one team alongside the men, the Varsity Blues women’s badminton team swept the national and provincial gold medals this season, grabbing back-to-back provincial banners. The Blues are a badminton powerhouse and proved they are clutch when it matters most. 

At nationals, they avenged last year’s silver medal finish in a redemption rematch against the Waterloo Warriors. In the individual events, Varsity Blues’ Jackie Dent partnered with Waterloo Warrior Emily Xia to win gold in the women’s doubles event. Chloe Choi — who was defeated by Dent and Xia in the doubles semifinal — secured national bronze. Team Canada badminton player Dent won bronze in the mixed doubles event alongside her brother and Waterloo Warrior Thomas Dent. 

Another high-flying season for the Blues. The badminton team are the only national champions from U of T this season.

Grade: A+

Team MVP: Jackie Dent

Basketball 

Unfortunately, it was a quiet season for the women’s basketball team. 

The Blues finished the year with an overall record of 2–20; their two wins coming against Algoma and Lakehead. Second-year guard Raya Hafez led the team in scoring this year with 11.4 points per game and fourth-year guard Kaylee Williams was the team’s lead playmaker, setting team highs in assists and steals. The Blues have failed to record a winning record since the 2014–2015 season, when they were 10–9, but this year was their lowest record in the past decade. 

This is the kind of season first-year Head Coach Dianne Ros would like to forget about and regroup for next year.

Grade: D+

Team MVP: Raya Hafez

Curling 

The women’s curling team finished their season with a 1–3 record during round-robin play at the OUA Women’s Curling Championship. This gave the squad an overall season record of 6–11, and 2–8 in conference play. 

While this was not an outstanding season, it is one that can be built upon — especially given the team’s youth. Highlights of the season included winning two out of three games at the U of T Intercollegiate Bonspiel and starting the Championship round-robin with a dominant 12–3 victory over the York Lions. 

Grade: C

Team MVP: N/A

Fencing

The women’s fencing team were dominant as ever, securing their sixth OUA banner in seven years this season. In the finals, the Blues were fueled by outstanding performances from the épée and sabre squads — both of which topped the podium — while the foil team contributed with a bronze medal finish. In the individual events, Lilla Mucsi claimed gold in épée, while Janna Elshakankiri earned bronze in sabre to consolidate the Blues’ points at the tournament. 

After their five-year straight provincial championship streak snapped last season with a silver medal, the women’s fencing team bounced back this year to prove that 2024 was just a blip in their sparkling resume, capturing their 16th title in program history. 

Grade: A+

Team MVP: Lilla Mucsi

Figure Skating 

The Varsity Blues figure skating team are an OUA mainstay, with this season’s silver medal being U of T’s second-straight silver and ninth consecutive season with a podium finish. The Blues flexed their well-rounded roster, picking up medals in 11 of 14 events at provincials. 

The medal rush had many Blues grabbing podium finishes in their respective categories: Katelyn Pavlidis nabbed gold in the 8–9 Dance alongside partner Hugo Li. Li and Gabriella Guo were good for gold in the Senior Pair Freeskate, along with Nicole Chan and Olivia Pulsifer in the Couples Artistic. Guo grabbed another gold in the Novice Short Program while Victoria Bocknek rounded out the first-place finishes in the Gold Freeskate. 

A haul of five gold medals, 11 total medals, and a silver OUA finish — not too shabby for the graceful skaters. 

Grade: A-

Team MVP: Gabriella Guo

Hockey

The Blues had a dominant season, finishing strong to win the OUA McCaw Cup in a redemption game against Waterloo Warriors after falling last year in overtime. Their 20th OUA banner in program history is also their third title in five seasons, as Head Coach Vicky Sunohara’s team proved once again that they are amongst Ontario’s best with a perfect playoff tournament. Blues rookie goaltender Lyla McKinnon, who led all goalies in the playoffs with a remarkable .953 save percentage grabbed Finals MVP, while forward Ashley Delahey received OUA Second Team All-Star for leading the Blues with 25 points in 26 regular season games. 

At the U SPORTS quarterfinals, the Blues shut out the University of New Brunswick Reds 2–0 but could not overcome Bishop’s University in the semifinal — falling 2–1 in a tightly contested battle. The Blues then secured the bronze medal, beating the Concordia Stingers 3–1, but they will no doubt be disappointed they could not match last year’s silver medal finish. 

Still, it’s a testament to the high standard of the women’s hockey team that a national semifinal exit leaves more to be desired. 

Grade: A

Team MVP: Lyla McKinnon

Squash

The Varsity Blues women’s squash team claimed a provincial silver medal, finishing a strong 6–2 record regular season with hardware. Falling 4–3 against the Mustangs in the gold medal match, the Blues were just one game shy of grabbing their first gold medal since 2014. Keira Rawlins and Shirin Batra grabbed OUA All-Star honours, while first-year Head Coach Amr Elmehelmi grabbed Coach of the Year. 

Grade: A-

Team MVP: Keira Rawlins

Swimming

The ever-prevalent Varsity Blues women’s swimming team had another strong season, winning the OUA championships and placing fourth in nationals. It was their 11th consecutive provincial win, exemplifying the Blues’ dominance in the pool. 

Third-year Nina Mollin was named the 2025 OUA Women’s Swimmer of the Year, winning four individual and one relay gold at provincials. Mollin also put on a clinic at nationals, grabbing three national golds to round out her already impressive resume. Teagan Vander Leek and Angelica Bath also earned their first career individual U SPORTS medals, with silvers in the 50-metre freestyle and 200-metre backstroke respectively. 

Still, for a program that was riding a streak of three national championships, missing the U SPORTS podium this year feels like the Blues came a little short. Despite the team’s dominance throughout the year, the Blues just didn’t quite meet expectations, even with various strong individual and relay performances. 

However, Blues’ swim has seen consistent success. With Byron MacDonald behind the bench, who has been head coach of the program since the 1978–1979 season, we trust that the women’s team will bounce back with his expertise. 

Grade: A-

Team MVP: Nina Mollin

Track and Field

The women’s track and field team had another solid season, with several newcomers and rookies showing out across the board, exemplifying the team’s phenomenal depth. The Blues put forth a strong effort to finish fourth at OUAs and eighth at U SPORTS. 

First-year Gloria Etim saw a strong season among a competitive field of sprinters, earning a provincial bronze medal in the 60-metre dash at her first OUA Championship. On the field, Emma Dale secured a silver and bronze medal in high jump at the provincial and national championships respectively. 

Most notably, Julia Agostinelli had an exemplary season with the distance group, picking up bronze medals in the 1,000-metre and 1,500-metre at OUA races, and a 1,500-metre gold at U SPORTS.

Grade: B+ 

Team MVP: Julia Agostinelli 

Volleyball

The women’s volleyball team went 12–8 in the conference: despite falling slightly under last season’s 13–7 record, the Blues redeemed themselves in a solid playoff run. Notably, the eighth-seeded Blues beat the top-ranked Queen’s in a huge upset in the OUA quarterfinal, but fell to McMaster during the straight sets in the semifinal round. 

Veteran Julia Murmann had another great season, leading the team in kills with 289 and earning her fourth straight OUA First Team All-Star honours. She was also named to the U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian, picking up national all-star honours for the third time in her career. Delaney Watson led the team in digs and was named to the OUA Third Team, while rookie Julia Liu earned All-Rookie Team honours. 

Grade: B+ 

Team MVP: Julia Murmann

Water Polo 

The word dominant is an understatement when describing the women’s water polo team. The Blues secured an 11th straight conference title, winning the National Collegiate Water Polo championship gold after routing the Queen’s Gaels 21–2 in the final. The team concluded an undefeated season for the squad in which they had an overall record of 13–0. 

The Blues averaged just over 18 points per contest while allowing under three points against. They showed nothing but outright dominance all year long. 

Several members of the team came away with accolades as well. Sarah August was named Championship MVP and Hana Truchla was named Outstanding Goalie for their outstanding efforts in the final. First-year attacker Julia Mic won the Rookie of the Year award while Head Coach Evan Price won Coach of the Year honours in his first year at the helm. 

A perfect season for the Blues.

Grade: A+

Team MVP: Sarah August 

Wrestling

The Varsity Blues women’s wrestling team is a small team — the women’s team only has four players on their roster compared to the men’s 12 — so it seems harsh to give the team a grade. Last year the Blues only sent one athlete to nationals, and have never won an OUA title. 

Maya Salman was the sole Blues representative at the national championships. Salman was also only one of two Blues competing at the provincial championships, alongside Dany Wang. Salman collected a silver medal earlier in the season at the McMaster Open, while Wang claimed silver at the York Open and grabbed two bronzes: one at the McMaster Open and the other at the TMU Open. 

The pair deserve praise as the Blues’ MVPs. 

Grade: CR

Team MVP: Maya Salman and Dany Wang