The 2025 Western Women’s Canadian Football League season ended on the right note for Sarah Wright.
She ran for two five-yard touchdowns to help the Saskatoon Valkyries blank the Edmonton Arctic Pride 28-0 in the WWCFL’s championship game, held June 28 at Commonwealth Stadium.
It was the fifth consecutive title for the Valkyries, winners of 39 consecutive games.
“My team is incredible,” Wright says. “All the girls are like my best friends. If I ever need support or someone to talk to, honestly about anything, they’re always there.
“It’s just a great community to be a part of, especially with all the things that happen in everyone’s lives. It’s nice to be able to go to those people and count on them as well.
“Right from when I came into the team in 2017, the team environment was so incredible.”
It was a natural progression for Wright, whose love of football was well-established by the time she joined the Valkyries.
“I played a lot of flag football in high school,” she recalls. “A bunch of my now-teammates were actually teachers, so they kept shoulder-tapping me in high school to come out and play.
“I went to a couple of camps and I determined that was what I wanted to do. I’ve never looked back. I loved it.”
As much as she enjoyed the flag version of the sport, she instantly embraced the physical aspect of football.
“I will go into any type of contact,” Wright, 26, says with a laugh. “It’s probably not the best for the body as I get older, but it’s just the way that I run and that I fight for yards.”
The Valkyries continued to make gains even though the 2025 season was one of transition in many ways.
“We definitely lost a few key players who have been a part of the success that we had, but we also gained a lot of new ones and younger ones,” says Wright, who serves as the secretary on the Valkyries’ board of directors.
“They really were able to step into those bigger roles. There were some big shoes to fill and they did that. I couldn’t be prouder of them.”
Julia Smith, a second-year member of the Valkyries in 2025, kept alive the winning tradition after taking over as the starting quarterback.
“She was a natural at it,” Wright says. “She had an amazing season.
“Some of our other younger players who had also been putting in the time got a chance to show what they could do and they did that.
“We just continue to keep getting better and getting more girls in. It has just been surreal. I’m so proud to be a part of that and lucky as well.”
The pride extends to how the Valkyries’ players balance their love of the game with day-to-day life outside of football.
Wright, for example, is a social worker at Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon.
“It’s quite a busy job and there’s lots to do with that, but football has always been a great thing to go to afterwards,” she says. “I think they complement each other very well.
“We’ve got so many teachers and people within the community We have students and people who are within their careers. Some girls travel in from out of town.
“We have people at all different parts of their lives. What’s really unique is that we all come together and find that common ground in the game of football. We’re all able to connect on that level and therefore grow and evolve as people as well.
“It has been really special. I couldn’t imagine where things would be if I wasn’t a part of the Valkyries.”
The Valkyries have won 10 championships since the league’s inception in 2011. The Regina Riot has claimed the other three titles.
Both teams receive assistance from the Saskatchewan Roughrider Foundation, which supports amateur football throughout the province.
THE 2025 SASKATOON VALKYRIES
PLAYERS
Quarterbacks: Keira Maffin, Julia Smith, Kelli Young.
Running backs: Teagan Craig, Arden Kleiwer, Drew Lundquist, Sarah Wright.
Receivers: Jada Duchene, Marissa Glanville, Sophia Graham, Rhys Newton, Chloe Prytula, Rachelle Smith, Falyn Swenson, Brittany Ward.
Offensive line: Breanna Allegretto, Kinslee Cousins, Tamara Exner, Lauren Ferguson, Alyssa Funk, Jacey Harris, Ava Janzen, Anik Piche, Calla Wiebe, Alex Wojcichowsky.
Defensive line: Michaella Applin, Shantel Englot, Grace Farthing, Emry Halbgewachs, Hayley Robertson, Victoria Shawchuk.
Linebackers: Phelycia Black, Emmarae Dale, Natasha Englot, Kennedy Mann, Jackie Semple-Dyck, Rachel Usselman, Mackenzie Young.
Defensive backs: Lexi Beuker, Danielle Girolami, Jaimyn Mantyka, Kelsey Murphy, Kaylin O’Neill, Anvi Pawar, Charley Struhar.
COACHES
Head coach: Pat Barry.
Offensive co-ordinator, quarterbacks coach: Marci Halseth.
Defensive co-ordinator, linebackers coach: Wyatt Carleton.
Offensive line coaches: Ethan Paslowski, Jack Sloboda.
Receivers coaches: Chad Braun, Jason Price.
Running backs coaches: Colton Klassen, Liam Murphy.
Defensive line coaches: Steve Kovach, Beth Thompson.
Defensive backs coach: Carter Wingert.
ADMINISTRATION/SUPPORT STAFF
General manager: Michelle Duchene.
Trainers: Taylor Bencharski, Addison Chapman, Kristen Cory, Addison Dasiuk, Xiamara Foster, Jon Gough, Joren Gramlich, Tayha Rolfes, Sam Skaar.
Equipment manager: Cori Thorstad.
Physiotherapists: Angela Braun, Jae Gorgchuk, Michelle Keene, Tagen Sevigny.
Surgeon: Dr. Cole Beavis.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Janna Horn (president), Michelle Duchene (general manager), Pat Barry (head coach), Renee Muyres (treasurer), Sarah Wright (secretary), Lauren Ferguson (sponsorship), Jackie Semple-Dyck (fundraising), Laura Plosz (game-day co-ordinator), Alex Wojcichowsky (marketing and promotions), Drew Lundquist (alumni rep), Alyssa Funk (member at large), Cori Thorstad (member at large).
