Swimmer's trip to CIS highlights action packed road schedule

The Memorial swimmers trip to nationals at the University of Toronto highlights a busy weekend of road action for the Sea~Hawks. Also in action on the road are the wrestlers, who are travelling to UNB for the CIS qualifying meet. The men’s volleyball team is also in Fredericton for the League Tournament against Dalhousie and UNB while basketball teams are off to Antigonish to take on St. FX in a weekend series on Saturday and Sunday.

Swimmers at CIS this weekend

It is the weekend that four swimmers at Memorial have been waiting for all season long. The Sea~Hawks swim team will be traveling to the University of Toronto this weekend for the CIS Championships. Having one of the best years in recent history, Memorial will send four swimmers to compete in a variety of events. David Forbes and Tim Rusted, both former winners of the Butler Trophy for Memorial Athlete of the Year, have qualified on the men’s side. Kelsie Rogers and Leah Tomblin have qualified on the women’s side, the first time since 2005 that two women have qualified for Memorial.

All of the swimmers are looking to set personal bests across multiple events with the possibility of setting a couple of provincial records. The races begin Thursday and run through Saturday at U of T.

Second year David Forbes will be looking to build on his results from last year at CIS Championships where he made consolation finals once in the 50m Butterfly and finished thirteenth overall. This year Forbes is going into the 50m Butterfly twelfth overall and aiming to make the final heat including the top eight swimmers in the country. He is also ranked eleventh in both the 50m Freestyle and 100m Freestyle. He has the potential to reach the final heat in three of his events. He is also racing the 100m Butterfly which could also be a top sixteen finish. Forbes looks to better his provincial records in both of the 50m events and is within a second of setting the 100m records.

Fifth year Tim Rusted, from Conception Bay South, will be competing at his fourth CIS Championships in a row. His results have improved each year at CIS Championships and he aims to finish his varsity career with career bests and a top sixteen finish in his best event, the 1500m freestyle. His time of 16:17.14 from earlier this year is also within two seconds of the Newfoundland and Labrador provincial record.

Second year Kelsie Rogers will be racing at her first CIS Championships. The Wabush native will be competing in the 50m and 100m Butterfly as well as the 50m and 100m freestyle. Her best event is the 50m freestyle where she is ranked twentieth going into the meet, but is only a tenth of a second away from consolation finals and half of a second away from the finals. Rogers has consistently improved throughout the season and is ready to break through to a second swim at her first CIS Champs.

Second year Leah Tomblin is also attending her first CIS Championships. Tomblin qualified for CIS Championships in the 200m backstroke and is going in ranked twentieth in her best event with her sights also on a second swim. The St. John’s native will also be racing the 50m and 100m backstroke events and the 50m butterfly.

Check back on the Memorial Athletics website and the Sea~Hawks Sportsline (737-7678) throughout the weekend for updates on finishes.

Wrestlers looking to secure berths at CIS this weekend

In a prelude to the biggest show of the season next month, the Sea~Hawks wrestling team will travel to Fredericton for the CIS qualifiers at UNB this weekend. After a few impressive showings during the UNB Open, the Sea~Hawks are coming into this weekend focused on qualifying for the final meet in Calgary.

Six men will be making the trip to Fredericton, the same six who competed at the UNB Open. Matthew Kippenhuck, Jeremy Spence, Ronald Earle, Robbie Zadra, and Jon Smith will all be on the mat in the red and white.

The CIS Qualifiers begin on Friday evening with the weigh-ins, while matches begin early on Saturday morning. In this dual meet style tournament, there will be representation from throughout the East Coast with teams from Concordia, McGill, and UNB also in attendance. The Sea~Hawks will have a tough task ahead as wrestlers will have to place in the top two in their weight class to qualify for CIS Championships.

Check back on the Sea~Hawks website and Sportsline (737-7678) for updates on the qualifiers to the CIS Champs to be held in Calgary, Alberta on March 4th.

Men's volleyball to end season at League Tournament

The Sea~Hawk’s will be taking to the court for the first time since January 31st as they head to UNB for the AUS League tournament in what will be the final action of the year for the ‘Hawks. In a small division packed with talent, the Sea~Hawks have had their difficulties against both UNB and Dalhousie, but look for Memorial to come out competing in their final matches of the year.

Memorial takes to the court in the second match of the tournament versus the Dalhousie Tigers. Currently ranked second in the CIS and comfortably atop the AUS at 14-2, the Tigers will be a tough matchup against the rebuilding Sea~Hawks.

The man in the middle will once again be the point of emphasis for the ‘Hawks if they are to make some noise against the perennial conference champs. Gander native Max Burt is now leading the CIS in total blocks with 81 on the season and is making a case to be AUS player of the year with his performances as of late. Burt is also currently in the AUS top two in points, service aces, kills, and hitting percentage. With a powerhouse like Burt in the middle surrounded by high level talent, the ‘Hawks will have to play their best in order to stay with this deep Tigers squad.

But what the Sea~Hawks lack in experience (the average Sea~Hawk has 1.6 years eligibility) they make up for in determination and hustle. Behind fiery setter Brad Pitcher, expect the ‘Hawks to fight until the end against Dalhousie on Saturday. Last season’s AUS rookie of the year Scott Hickman looks to hold the fort defensively for Memorial while coming up with some big kills in the process.

Memorial and Dalhousie will take to the court at 2 p.m. on Saturday (AST).
The AUS tournament then wraps up with the Sea~Hawk’s final match of the 2009-10 season as they take on the UNB Varsity Reds. In their last match up, Memorial and UNB played an entertaining match, with UNB coming out victorious in the 3-1 win. The game was much closer than the scores indicated and was one of the most exceptional overall games put together by Sea~Hawk sophomore Drew Stephens this season. The left side hitter had 12 kills and 2 massive solo blocks against the Reds. The ‘Hawks can only hope squaring up against UNB again will evoke the same play from this promising young attack hitter.

AUS All-Star Tyler Veenhuis’ play against the Sea~Hawks in their last meeting was impressive as he averaged 12.5 points per match with14.0 kills on the weekend. Venezuela native Julio Fernandez and former Sea~Hawk Andrew Costa are coming into this weekend on a recent hot streak.

As the Sea~Hawks move forward it will be important to end the season on a positive note. Expect the Memorial to leave it all on the floor against the Reds as they play the final sets of their season at UNB this weekend. Sunday’s match begins at 10:30 a.m. (AST).

Women's basketball look to keep it rolling against X-Women

The Sea~Hawks will look to keep their winning streak alive when they travel to Antigonish to take on the St. Francis Xavier in a two game weekend series. Memorial finished off their home schedule last weekend at home with two big wins over the UNB Varsity Reds moving them back into second place in the AUS and securing them a first round bye in the playoffs. The Sea~Hawks currently sit at 12-6 in the standings.

The Sea~Hawks will have to contain the up tempo style to play well against a St. FX team that will be focused on moving higher in the standings (currently fourth at 10-7). The X-Women took the second of two games last month when making a trip to the Field House but have struggled as of late, dropping their third in a row to Acadia last weekend. Memorial had trouble containing first year forward Rebecca Sheehan in their 77-70 loss to St. FX, but look for an improved effort from the Sea~Hawks this weekend.

The Sea~Hawks have been hot from outside lately. Robyn O’Rielly and Erin Mullaley hit a combined 13 three pointers over the weekend against UNB, facing a team that does not defend the long ball well (third lowest in defensive three-point percentage) look for Memorial to stretch the floor for open scoring opportunities. O’Rielly, a third year from Witless Bay, has provide a needed scoring boost off the Memorial bench in recent weeks, culminating in Sunday’s outburst when she knocked down six three-pointers.

Expect both teams to step on the court with something to prove as Memorial will look to avenge last month’s loss with a fully healthy Brittany Dalton back in action for the ‘Hawks. The Sea~Hawks will take the hardwood Saturday night in Antigonish at 6 p.m., with the rematch scheduled for Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m. (AST).

Men's basketball to take on top team in the AUS

After playing their final home games of the season, Memorial’s men’s basketball team will hit the road and travel to Antigonish looking for an upset against CIS third ranked St. Francis Xavier. The lone undefeated team of the AUS will be tough competition for a Sea~Hawks team that is coming off a heartbreaking loss to UNB this Sunday after taking the first of two on Saturday night.

The Sea~Hawks will need big games down low from Ante Samodol and Steve Earles to compete with the size of the X-Men. Memorial will also look to third year Jason Shepherd, and rookie Mike Helsby to continue attacking the basket if they are to run with the X-Men. In Saturday’s win, the tandem combined for 42 points and came up with key defensive stops down the stretch.

The deep back court of Will Silver, Christian Upshaw, and Charlie Spurr is one of the best in the country, especially from beyond the arc. St. FX are currently the third best three-point shooting team in the CIS. Memorial will have to contest every shot.

Still mathematically alive for the final playoff spot in the AUS, the ‘Hawks will have to play their best basketball of the season in order to stay alive in the race. The Sea~Hawks will take flight against the X-Men on Saturday evening at 8 p.m., and again on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. (AST).