Body checks, boulders, and books

The Cougar men’s hockey team’s loss in Edmonton, AB against the Golden Bears on March 15 was no regular loss. For one, the Cougars were playing for a spot in the Canadian Western Finals. From the drop of the puck the Golden Bears proved that they were on a mission. Scoring the first goal of the game at 58 seconds into the very first period Alberta sent a message. This was their house. After five unanswered goals in the first period, and one in the second, Ryan Bender of the Cougars finally answered back with the only goal that the team would score all night. The final score was University of Alberta Golden Bears seven, University of Regina Cougars one. Not exactly what the Cougars were hoping for.

Secondly, it was the end of a Cougar career. Team captain, Shayne Emmons, had played his last game in a Cougars jersey. Emmons first came to the Cougars after a stint in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, where he played with the Weyburn Redwings for two years; previous to that he played in Manitoba for one year. “One of the reasons I came was because of the petroleum engineering here, and another reason is because I was starting my own business in the area”, said Emmons. He received his entrepreneurial gene from his father who was in construction and who had also acquired a gravel pit. Shayne started hanging around the gravel pit and then eventually purchased a piece of equipment and his business started from there.

Last season the Cougars decided to give Emmons the big cheddar—also known as “the C”, or the Captain’s letter. This anointment is not to be taken lightly, head coach Blaine Sautner says that the reason he chose to give Emmons the distinction was because of his seniority and also because, “his maturity level was number one, and the respect that he had from the other players was obvious and guys looked up to him.”

While Emmons was with the Cougars, the biggest challenge that he faced was “juggling” his time. He had a lot to do. There was practice every day, and then games on Fridays and Saturdays, with a recovery day on Sundays. Add on to that the homework from his classes and running his own business, “I was juggling all three things, and there wasn’t enough hours in the day to get done everything I wanted to get done”, he said.

During his tenure with the Cougars, the most memorable time that Emmons can think of is this last week and a half of his career. The team swept Manitoba in the first round of the playoffs, and then came into Alberta and won the first game of the series. Emmons says that in that week and a half span he, “felt like we accomplished the most we had in my whole time here.” For now, Emmons’ time is consumed by university classes and his business venture. He does not have a lot of free time on his hands, “I’m pretty satisfied with where I’m at with that.”

Whistler 2010: a Regina connection

Photo by Peter Reath

With a little under a year to go until the winter Olympics, athletes around the globe are ramping up their training regimes. This is especially true of Canadian athletes who want to perform well in front of their home country. Two such Canadian athletes, born right here in Regina, are Meaghan Simister and Justin Warsylewicz. Simister is vying for a spot on the Canadian women’s Olympic luge team and Warsylewicz is trying to win a spot on the men’s Olympic speed skating team.

Simister, 22, is currently training in Whistler at the Whistler Sliding Center. This is not her first rodeo. In 2006 she was a member of the Olympic team in Torino, Italy qualifying at age 18—which is something of a rarity—after only five years of sliding. Unfortunately, in Torino, she failed to win a medal. But this time around, she is, as the Kanye West song goes, “better, faster, stronger.”

You may be wondering how a woman born on the flat prairies of Saskatchewan gets into the sport of luge. Simister moved with her family from Regina to Calgary when she was four. At age 12 she joined a summer camp in Calgary and loved every minute of it; she hasn’t looked back since. Simister, a very competitive person by nature, says that the main motivating factor pushing her day in and day out is “trying to get a personal best“ at the Olympics. When asked who she admires in the luge world, Simister said the German women’s lugers are at the top of her list. “I try to model myself after how they slide. They pretty much dominate our sport.”
Training for Torino and training for Whistler are two very different experiences for Simister. “Training in Torino was very stressful for me. We didn’t get that many runs, the track was—I would say—extremely difficult for me at the time.”

Whistler, on the other hand, is a totally different story. Simister gets more runs than she did in Torino and likes the Whistler track more because it fits her style a lot better. Also, the track in Whistler is not under construction, as the one Torino was while she was practicing on it in 2006. “I don’t want to say (it was a) let down, but it was. The track wasn’t finished, the facility wasn’t top-notch compared to what it is like here...It’s just night and day.”

Warsylewicz, 23, is also training right now, hoping to win a spot on the Canadian Olympic speed skating team. Warsylewicz moved from Regina to Calgary when he was 17 years old to train in Calgary at the oval. That same year he won the World Junior Championship and earned a spot on the Canadian national team. He then went on to earn a position on the Canadian Olympic speed skating team.

In 2006, Warsylewicz competed in the Torino Olympics in the 1,500 metre, 5,000 metre, and Team Pursuit events. Unfortunately he was unsuccessful in his drive for a medal in the individual events, but he and his teammates won a Silver medal in the men’s Team Pursuit event. “It was pretty cool. I was just really excited to be at the Olympics to begin with,” he recalled.

Warsylewicz says the oval in Whistler is “amazing” and that the facility is very beautiful. His rigorous six-day-per-week training schedule consists of three hours of training in the morning followed by a recovery period of three hours and then another two to three hours of training to finish off the day. On top of this physically taxing schedule, Warsylewicz finds the time to take correspondence courses through Athabasca University.

Warsylewicz says that training for Whistler next year is pretty similar to what his training for Torino was like in 2006 with one major difference. “Now I’m four years older and I kind of know what to expect, in terms of the Olympics. So I think I’m a little more experienced that way...I know what I need to be my best.”

If he skates his best Warsylewicz says he has a good shot at making the 2010 Olympic team, but doesn’t want to make any predictions quite yet. “The competition is always tight. You can’t have a bad race and expect that you’ll make the team.”

Since the 2010 Olympics are being held in Canada, the Canadian government has increased its funding for its amateur athletes. Both Simister and Warsylewicz are receiving government funding by way of carding, which means the higher they are ranked, the more funding they will receive. Amateur athletes in Canada also receive money though a newly-created program called Own The Podium (OTP). “As amateur athletes leading up to this Olympics we’re sitting pretty good. I think the best ever that any amateur athlete in Canada has ever done,” said Warsylewicz.

Photo by Arno Hoogveld

2009 CIS women's tournament highlights

Here are a few highlights of the CIS women's tournament that was held in Regina from March 6-8. The last time the Cougars hosted the national tournament it was 1979; 30 years ago. Stay tuned for a feature piece that follows the Cougars through the tournament.

Curling For A Cause

Gary Scherle shows off the tournament trophy.

It’s winter, so that means there are two things that the citizens of Regina can be sure of. There are some side streets in need of serious ploughing and the curling season is just starting to get interesting. With playdowns for many clubs coming up right around the corner, and practice sheet time at a premium, it is nice to see there are some people in the curling community who can take time out of their busy schedules for a greater good. One such member of that community is Gary Scherle, who is currently getting things ready for the annual Mighty Geese Charity Classic.

Putting on this bonspiel is no easy feat, and not something that Scherle can do all by himself. “It is a lot of work, it takes a lot of help from friends and family to put it on” said Scherle. Finding a club that’s able to provide the number of sheets needed for this tournament is also an issue this time of the year.

Enter Scott Comfort. Comfort, manager of the Tartan Curling Club, was able to provide a home for the bonspiel this year, but it did take some work. “We’re booked solid for every Saturday night...so for a big event like this it was kind of hard to squeeze it in” said Comfort. It didn’t hurt that Comfort was already aware that the tournament had been running for a few years prior. He was the manager at the Callie Curling Club last year, where the tournament was held. “I’ve heard nothing but good things about the event,” he said.

The reason the event is so well received is because it’s a project that’s close to Scherle’s heart, so there is extra effort put into it. Scherle says the motivation behind starting the tournament and wanting it to be the best experience possible for all is because his mother, Darlene Scherle, suffers from MS.

“We’ve been participating in the MS walk every year, and we just thought it would be a creative way to raise money” said Scherle.

When it comes to supporting charities such as the MS Society, Comfort also believes that it’s an important thing to be a part of.

“We always try to do whatever we can for charity...and it’s nice to have someone else showing some initiative” said Comfort.

After the first tournament was completed in 2006, Scherle knew that he had started something special. “It was something that we knew was going to continue on for many years”, he said.

To date the bonspiel has raised over $6,000 for the MS Society; this year Scherle expects to raise at least $2,500. As the years pass, and the bonspiel continues to grow—as is hoped—this will certainly mean more money headed to the MS Society.

This bonspiel is definitely a one-of-a-kind experience. With each game comprised of just three ends, players from all skill levels are encouraged to enter. It doesn’t matter if you’re Al Schick or Al Bundy, everyone is welcome. Teams are required to come up with a team name and the more outlandish the better. Teams are also encouraged to wear costumes; creativity is appreciated.

The fourth annual Mighty Geese Charity Classic will take place on Feb. 28, 2009. The format consists of an A, B, and C side. The first draw commences at 6:30 p.m. sharp and the tournament concludes when the last rock is thrown in the A-side final.

Cost per team is $120, or $30 per player for a four-player team. All teams are guaranteed three games. There are door prizes, a raffle, a silent auction, and a 50/50 draw with all prizes provided by local Regina businesses.

The top prize this year is an official NHL hockey stick signed by Calgary Flames all-star Robyn Regehr. For more information contact Gary Scherle at 529-2765 and gdscherle@hotmail.com.

Cougar Chemistry Is Key

Coach Taylor & Asst. Coach Burrows talk to the team prior to their game against Alberta

As the end of the season draws near, the University of Regina’s Cougar women’s basketball team find themselves in a very favorable position. Win the next two games and they will be able to claim the third seed in the national Canadian Interuniversity Sport tournament.

Before the start of week 13 in the CIS the Cougars had a record of 11 wins and three losses and were in fifth place nationally; but you would never know it by looking at the national statistical leaders. The representation of Cougar players in the CIS stat categories is minimal, to say the least. With only three players in the top 20 in two out of 10 statistical categories, one would not expect to see the Cougars in the position they currently find themselves.

One of the biggest factors as to why the Cougars are such a strong team is because of the chemistry among the players. “We’re just really balanced, so there’s no one that’s going to be a leading scorer game in and game out...so that is just a testament to how deep we are as a team, as opposed to relying on one or two stars” said coach Dave Taylor.

Chelsea Cassano, fifth year starting post, agrees. “We’re a pretty close team, we all get along, we’re pretty tight.”

For the 421 people in attendance at the Friday night game against the Albert Golden Bears, the Cougars demonstrated the kind of team chemistry that Cassano and coach Taylor were talking about. The first half of the game was a back and forth affair that saw the Cougars get into a bit of foul trouble. But they managed to pull off a 12-point lead heading into halftime. In the third quarter the Cougars came out and turned it on, outscoring Alberta by ten points. They managed to keep their foul situation in check and surge forward en route to a 77-58 victory.

Unfortunately the Cougars were unable to perform as well against their rival, the University of Saskatchewan Huskies, the following day. The first half saw the Cougars being outscored 32-26. After the halftime break the Huskies came back out and finished the job they started in the first half, scoring 26 third quarter points to the Cougars’ 13. The final result was a 76-48 loss for the Cougars.

The weekend split of the two games leaves Cougars sitting in fourth place in the CIS. This means the Cougars should enter the national tournament in the middle of the pack--barring any catastrophic breakdowns.

However, the team has not lost sight of the remaining games ahead, “We still don’t focus on (the tournament) lots, other than to talk about having to play well. We’re really trying to avoid (talking about it), to be honest,” said Taylor.

Cassano said the players are “very excited” about the tournament, and adds, “Having it at home is definitely an advantage... but the games aren’t going to be any different because we are at home We’re still going to have to play as good as we can.”

The CIS national women’s basketball tournament takes place March 6-8. The Cougars will play their first game of the tournament on Friday, March 6, with a scheduled tip-off time of 6 p.m. To purchase your tournament tickets contact 306-585-4371.

Stacy Walker takes a three point shot over Alberta's Nicole Clarke

Chelsea Cassano looks for an offensive rebound opportunity.

First Post - Intro

Well hello there!

I have created this blog for my Journalism 305 (Print II) class. On this blog I will be posting articles I have written, opinions on topics that interest me, and what ever else I can find that is of interest.

So, I guess I'll start with a little information about myself. My name is Sean and I am currently a fourth year student in the Journalism school at the University of Regina. This is my second semester at the J-school and I am enjoying it very much--so far. I have pulled the sports beat for our publication, Ink, which is why you will mainly see sports and sport related stories on this blog. I have been involved and interested in sport since I was around 12 years old, so I am hoping that this beat will be an enjoyable one.
Oh, by the way, I'm a sarcastic person by nature so if you read something that makes you say 'Oh my god, what did he just write?', then it is most likely written sarcastically.

That's all for now folks!
Stay tuned for upcoming stories.