Canada downs Wales 52-0, moves on to 5th-place final at Women’s Rugby World Cup

BELFAST, Ireland – Elissa Alarie scored two tries and Canada advanced to the fifth-place final of the Women’s Rugby World Cup with a 52-0 rout of Wales on Tuesday.

Brianna Miller had a try and five conversions for Canada, while Barbara Mervin, Jacey Grusnick, Karen Paquin and Cindy Nelles also scored tries as Canada posted its second shutout win over Wales at the tournament.

Latoya Blackwood, whose tackle-busting run helped set up Alarie’s second try, was named player of the match.

“We needed to come out strong and we did a lot of work on the breakdown and the girls had something to prove today,” said captain Kelly Russell. “I’m really proud of the way they rallied together after a bit of a disappointment earlier this week. The girls executed great today and our handling and ball security was much better.

“This is a strong group of women and I’m lucky to be surrounded by them.”

Canada will place Australia in Saturday’s fifth-place match. The Australians defeated Ireland 36-24 on Tuesday.

Canada came into the tournament ranked third in the world and finished runner-up to England in the 2014 World Cup.

The Canadians opened strong with a 98-0 win over Hong Kong followed by a 15-0 victory over Wales. But their hopes of a second straight World Cup medal were dashed after ending the preliminary round with a 48-5 loss to powerhouse New Zealand.

The Black Ferns advanced to the final with a 45-12 semifinal win over the United States on Tuesday. England and France met in the other semifinal.