Weekly Preview Jan. 13 2010

The first roadtrip of 2010 is this weekend as the Sea~Hawks volleyball teams travel together to Halifax for a weekend series against Dalhousie, while the basketball teams make their way to Charlottetown for a set of games against UPEI.

Women’s Volleyball

This weekend Memorial’s women’s volleyball team travel to Halifax, Nova Scotia for a two match weekend series against the Dalhousie University Tigers. The Tigers currently sit 5th in the AUS with a record of 2-6, and are 1-3 in AUS competition are coming off close back-to-back losses against St. FX and UNB this past weekend. A match up to look out for will be between the veteran leaders of either team as power hitter Sasha Wilkins looks to attack the net against 5th year middle blocker Maggie Morrison. Both Wilkins and Morrison were named MVP of their team’s 2008-2009 season.

After missing the first half of the season, NCAA transfer Louise Facca tallied 39 total points in the two 3-2 losses over this weekend and looks to continue her strong play against the Sea~Hawks front line. Memorial are coming off their first win of the season, as they split the home series at the Field House against the Université de Moncton this past weekend. Sophomore Angela Peddle played well enough to earn Memorial Athlete of the Week honours last weekend. She will look to continue improving for the ‘Hawks this weekend.

Men’s Volleyball

The Sea~Hawks men’s volleyball team will be in action for the first time since November 21st as they kick off the second half of their season against a tough Dalhousie Tigers team in Halifax this weekend. Currently atop the AUS rankings at 7-1, the Dalhousie won in convincing fashion last time these two teams met in late October, handing Memorial losses in straight sets on both occasions.

Dalhousie’s high powered offense will be charged by the stellar play of first team all-Canadian Sander Ratsep and second team all-Canadian Max Burt, both of whom trained with the Canada's senior national team this past summer. Burt, a Gander native, is having the one of the most impressive statistical seasons in the AUS, being in the Top 3 for individual AUS statistics (hitting %, kills, service aces, blocks, and points).

The Sea~Hawks will have to be strong defensively to compete, with sophomore standouts Brad Pitcher (2.72 digs/game, 1st AUS) and Scott Hickman (1.12 blocks/game, 3rd AUS) carrying the load for the young team. Head Coach Luke Harris and his team will continue to improve as the season progresses.

Start times for this weekend’s games are 8pm Friday night and 2pm Saturday.

Women’s Basketball

With a sour taste in their mouths of a home loss to St. Francis Xavier this past Monday, the women’s Sea~Hawks look to move further up the AUS ranks as they travel to UPEI this weekend for a two game series.

The Panthers come into this weekend with the worst record in the AUS at 0-8, coming off rough back to back losses to Saint Mary’s where they put up an average of only 40.0 points at The Tower in Halifax.

The Sea~Hawks look to score in bunches against the struggling Panther’s defense behind the competitiveness of Erin Mullaley and Vicki Thistle.

Both Memorial’s offense and defense was clicking on all cylinders in the Sunday night win against the X-Women, putting up 69 points while holding the opposing offense to only 29.2% shooting. Veteran Robyn O’Reilly was a bright spot for the ‘Hawks in Monday’s loss with 13 points off the bench.

Memorial’s weekend loss to St. FX came despite a vigorous late game rally, the Sea~Hawks, now with a record of 7-2, are hoping to maintain that same intensity for a full forty minutes. This weekend marks the only time these teams will play this season. With eight points on the line, this weekend is an important one for the Sea~Hawks if they want to get back to the top of the AUS standings. Memorial are currently tied for ninth in the latest CIS coaches’ poll.

Men’s Basketball

The Sea~Hawks’ men’s basketball team are hoping to find success as they travel to face UPEI in a weekend series in Charlottetown. Like the women, the ‘Hawks will have eight points on the line, which will be critical in their playoff hunt.

Both teams are headed into this weekend coming off a pair of losses, UPEI dropped to 1-6 in the AUS standings after falling to Saint Mary’s this past week. The Panthers show some promise for the future with the young scoring talent of rookie point guard Terrence Brown, currently 4th in the AUS at 18.4 points per game.

Keeping the young rookie under his wing is veteran 6’1 guard Nick Toews, averaging 16.7 points per game with a team-high 4.0 assists per game.

Memorial has struggled to put a full game together yet this season, and will to step their effort in the third and fourth quarter to come away with key wins this weekend.