Momma Knows Best
Growing up in London, Ontario, my mom always made it mandatory for me to do swimming lessons, another sport, along with girl guides. Those were my three activities throughout every year of my childhood. I started off playing soccer and then I got into indoor flag football. After a while I asked my mom if I could just play football. She looked into it and football is actually a really cheap sport to play for the season, so it was something my mom could afford.
I was the only girl in the league, the two years that I played.
I played tight end and wide receiver.
The guys on my team adored me. They were my best friends, I was their best friend, everyone was happy I was there, everyone got along.
We had a great time.
That sparked my love for contact sports.
The Early Years
When I got to high school I had the opportunity to play rugby. I’d never played rugby before, and none of the other grade nine girls had ever played before either. When I tried out on the team, everyone said things like “grade nines never start, they never play, it’s your year to learn… Once you get to grade 10 and up, you’ll play.”
First game, they read the starting lineup, and they read my name.
I had a great time playing rugby all throughout high school. Our rugby 15s team was huge, we had like 40 girls on the team. My grade 11 year had one of my favourite teams. I liked that I was back with the girls I started playing with who were in grade 10 when I was in grade 9, but I also had the younger girls with me, who I helped teach along the way.
I actually tore my ACL in a preseason tournament that same year, which was really hard on me. Since I also played basketball in the fall, volleyball in the winter, and rugby in the spring and summer, I had to take some time off to heal which was very tough because I was also captain of those teams.
I’m actually still healing from that injury today.
Laurentian Voyageurs
After high school I decided to go to Laurentian University for Outdoor Adventure Leadership, because it’s the coolest program on the planet, but LU doesn’t have a volleyball team, and they don’t have a rugby team. So, when I got to LU, I joined the Varsity Rowing and Cheer teams.
I had always dreamed of being an all-star cheerleader as a kid, but we couldn’t afford it. So being a part of the LU Cheer team, going to the basket-ball games and doing our little performances, it was fun. We brought home some little medals and every year we got a little better, bit by bit.
It fulfilled part of that childhood dream.
Fleming Knights
In 2020, I applied to go to Fleming and was accepted to the Conservation & Environmental Law Enforcement (CELE) Program. I wanted to get back into team sports and saw that they were having rugby tryouts and said “f*ck it, I’ll try out. The worst thing that could happen is that I don’t make the team.”
I was used to playing rugby 15s and Fleming’s team was rugby 7s, so it was a little different; we only had 10 girls try out and they took all of us. It was definitely a learning curve to play a new version of the sport, but I loved it. I’ve always loved my rugby teams the most because rugby the culture, vibe, and overall energy around rugby is just, SO GOOD.
So, I made the team as Captain — I really take pride in being captain of teams. During the regular season we lost all of our first games, and then somehow we started winning.
I want to be the best for my teammates, and want to create a healthy environment for us because I don’t want my girls to feel how I did when I rowed.
Our 2021 Women’s Rugby 7s team was the cream of the crop. It is probably the healthiest team I’ve ever played on. Since our rugby team is so small we’re really like a sisterhood and we make sure that we protect the shit out of each other on the field.
We actually won bronze that year, which was incredible. That was the coolest thing I’ve ever done.
Montana Rank, on winning her first OCAA medal
I think that having such a small team influences how close we are because you can’t have toxicity when we need to be there for each other.
Having a great coach on top of that who fuels the culture and vibe really makes a difference. OCAA’s 2022 Coach of the Year Donnie Maillet, always engrains in our minds the simple fact that
“If you mess up, do something better next time.”
At the end of the season, he gives us a list of things that he saw that he was proud of. He does little check-ins with us halfway through the season too.
We may have won bronze but this team is worth its weight in gold.
The Hardware
Last year we had our athletic banquet and I won Rookie of the Year for volleyball, and All-Around Athlete of the Year. All Around Athlete means high grades, participation, also being a well-rounded athlete. That really made me proud because I put in a lot of work to maintain my grades, maintain my body in sport, and still go to the gym.
With CELE there is a huge physical fitness component, we do the same physical testing as OPP so there’s an obstacle course and the beep test etc.. So I had to make sure I was fit and healthy through all that.
My first year was incredible. Captain of my Volleyball and Rugby teams, then winning OCAA and Fleming Athletic awards.
You can’t beat that.
In My Competitive Nature,
I. Can’t. Fail.
I. Can’t. Do. Bad. In. School.
I Have to Be the Best at Whatever I Do.
Work Hard, Play Harder
As part of Coach Donnie’s mid-season check in, he told me after a tournament that he’s not seeing the same passion or aggression from me. So, I said ‘Okay if that’s what you think, then I’m gonna show you that, it’s not true’.
After getting that feedback, when the 2022 season rolled around, I became a 25 scorer, with 4 tries and 20 points. Since I didn’t score a single try last year, I was very much a support player, it felt incredible. Considering how many teams there are, and how many girls are on these teams, to even make the OCAA list is a huge accomplishment and I’m very proud of that.
Pushing to be a top scorer was a big thing for me and this past year at the Championship Game, our team performed even better than last year, taking home a silver medal. We have the smallest team in the league, so we were so proud of ourselves to even get to the point to play for silver.
Having received an automatic bye to the semis for finishing 2nd overall during the regular season, the Knights attended the championship hosted by Loyalist College on Oct. 29. The team handily won their match against Algonquin College 15-7, losing to Durham in the championship game. – FlemingCollege.ca
Going into the Championship Game, it was kindof a crappy feeling because deep down we all knew that we weren’t going to beat them (Durham College). It sucks when you get a silver medal because you LOST, whereas you WIN Bronze and you WIN Gold. So, we all kept a positive attitude, and went out and gave them hell. We had the time of our lives, honestly, we had so much fun. After the Championship Game against Durham, they (The OCAA) awarded us our medals, and it then handed out a couple of specialized awards to both teams. The most unexpected thing happened. It sounded something like this:
Our first OCAA Championship All Star is #7 Rachael King, and our second Championship All Star is #8: Montana Rank”
I did not see it coming.
The OCAA decides in the moment, based on how you play in those championship games. I don’t know what they saw in me, but apparently I played well. I didn’t score in that tournament at all, so I guess it’s the way I supported my team, or my attitude, I don’t know. Whatever it was, that really caught me off guard in the best way. All my teammates commented on it and said things like ‘Montana you look so surprised but you really earned it!’
That was a really incredible moment and I’m very proud of it.
What made it even better, was that my mom drove all the way from London to Loyalist College in Belleville –which is a like 5 hr drive, to see me play 28 minutes of rugby in total. I played 2 games, and she drove all that way.
Very proud mom moment.
Its tough with university sports because I don’t ever get to travel to London for a game; she doesn’t get to see me play.
She was so proud of how I played because rugby games don’t get streamed because a lot of places don’t have the facilities to have an outdoor camera and someone to operate it. Games do get filmed and usually uploaded later.
That was the first time my mom watched me play rugby since I was in grade 10.
7s Rugby is a very different from 15s: the same size field but half the amount of players. So, for her to see how much physical work that I had to put in to support my team, I think she was just really proud of me to be able to really excel at a sport especially at the varsity level and to be recognized for that.
Moving Forward
I’m really pushing to be the best at everything. I’m pushing myself even harder to win Athlete of the Year again.
My GPA is a 3.95 this year. I have the highest level of honours, I’m getting bursaries based on my performance in school, and I’m also being awarded for my performance on the field. I check my ego at the door, I know I’m not the best rugby player on my team, but I want to win.
Written By: Taylor Doyle
Contributions From: Montana Rank
Notes from the Author: Montana and I first met while working in Ontario Parks in 2020. Over the course of two summers we got to know eachother and shared some great moments during that time. Special thanks to Montana for sharing her incredible journey through sport with me.
Go Knights!
SPAD Players Tribune 
Montana, the story of your entry and transition through the years in your personal skills development, is inspirational. Your attitude and intuition seem to have been really advantageouss in supporting those around you. Congratulations. Bravo.
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