Since graduating from PECI in June, Picton’s Drew Spencer has been turning heads in the rugby world. At the Canada Summer Games in St. John’s in August, she suited up for the U18 Team Ontario Blues. The team made it all the way to the finals, losing in a heartbreaker to British Columbia.

This fall, in her freshman season with Queen’s University’s Golden Gaels, Ms. Spencer quickly became an integral part of the club, which marched all the way through the Ontario Championships. The season culminated with an appearance at USports national tournament.

Ms. Spencer has been eagerly taking it all in. In Newfoundland, she was part of the leadership group and praised for her work at the tournament. Even before she moved to the Limestone City in September to study General Science/Concurrent Education, she was visiting campus to work out with her future teammates.

“Being in that environment, even in the off-season, really helped me understand the culture and how much there was to learn from the coaches and players,” she said. 

Team Ontario staffer Stephanie Chin has been watching Ms. Spencer since she was competing at the U15 level. The County native has “a physicality about her” that has led to her early success.

“Drew is exceptional for her age. Queen’s produces elite players that go on to represent Canada at the Olympics and World Cups so it’s the right fit for her,” Ms. Chin said.

Gaels Head Coach Dan Valley has been keeping tabs on Ms. Spencer since her junior years suiting up for the PECI Panthers. He was thrilled when she committed to the Queen’s program.

“We were pretty confident we knew what she would be capable of when we were speaking with her and it’s been pretty cool to see her come in as freshman and put together the season she had,” said Mr. Valley.

The Gaels capped off an undefeated OUA season in style, taking the 2025 Ontario title at Nixon Field October 24th by way of a 61-21 defeat of visiting Guelph.

At the USports National Championship in British Columbia, the Gaels dropped a semi-final heartbreaker to the host UBC Thunderbirds 20-14. In the bronze final, Queen’s rebounded nicely in an OUA championship rematch, besting the Guelph Gryphons 28-26.

As a testament to her development curve, Ms. Spencer was the only Queen’s freshman on the club’s active roster at the national championships.

“She plays with a physicality and a confidence well beyond her years. There was never a moment this season that was too big for her,” Mr. Valley noted. “She came into the bronze medal game where we had a slim lead with the intention of locking that game down and she did it.”

Mr. Valley said he wouldn’t be surprised to see a day when Ms. Spencer is a member of Team Canada.

“She’s not even close to hitting her ceiling yet. If you told me in a couple of years she was representing Canada, I wouldn’t at all be surprised. The natural talent level combined with her incredible work ethic could take her to some pretty cool places in this sport in the near future.”