A little family rivalry is heating up the ice at a major ringette tournament in Guelph, Ont. Dozens of teams from across the country will face off at the 2025 Ringette University Challenge Cup between Dec. 27 and Dec. 31. Among the players are a set of identical twin sisters who were raised in Ottawa. But when they hit the ice, it will be for different teams: one plays for Waterloo’s Wilfrid Laurier University while the other goes to the University of Guelph. “When we decided to both come to these schools, we knew the competitive[ness] was going to be fierce and it is fun too, because we get to see each other on the weekends when we have games,” Abbey McColgan, who plays with the Wilfrid Laurier team, said. Their choice of school is not the only diverging path between the sisters. “Since I also play goalie, she’s forward - It’s always such a big rivalry,” said Kaia McColgan, who goes to the University of Guelph. The sisters won’t get to face each other during the tournament, but they often played against each other in the regular season. “And it’s a lot of fun, too. During our games, when Abbey gets to go shoot on her sister, we’re like ‘C’mon Abbey! Get her!’” said head coach of the Laurier team, Abby Breckles. Kaia said her sister is a strong competitor. “She is a bit of a sharpshooter. I always try to make sure I can shut her down,” Kaia said. Ringette may look like ice hockey at first glance but there are many differences. “You have like a straight stick with no blade and you have to pass over the blue line. So that’s a really important because you have to pass it to your teammates. It’s a lot more skill, a lot more strategy as compared to hockey kind of like a dump and chase,” said Abbey. Abbey’s coach said this year is the first UCC where they had to turn teams away and participants had to qualify to play. “We’re growing - We have 13 teams in the province of Ontario and at least 20 across the country,” said Breckles. It’s a sport that was invented for women in the 1960s and is a female-dominated sport. The sisters are happy they get to enjoy it together. “We get to bond over ringette and the challenge it is,” said Abbey. It’s a sibling rivalry that ends on the ice and stays there. Their parents also try to keep things fair when they catch a match between the two teams. “Usually they’ll just cheer for both of us to have a good game. And my mom always says it’s a good game if it ends at a tie,” said Kaia. The finals of the UCC are Dec. 31.
