Top spot latest prize awaiting perfect Dinos
The Calgary Dinos may have already clinched a post-season berth, but there’s still one more fairly big item on their regularseason checklist.
The still-unbeaten Dinos (5-0) can lock down top spot in Canada West and home-field advantage through the Hardy Cup with a win over the Manitoba Bisons (32) Friday (7 p.m., CanadaWest.tv) at McMahon Stadium.
They’ll rely, in part, on the considerable talents of quarterback Adam Sinagra, who has won U Sports offensive player-of-theweek honours three times in five tries so far this season and is averaging 429 yards per game through the air. It doesn’t hurt that three of his receivers — Hunter Karl, Tyson Philpot and Alex Basilis — are among the top 10 in Canada West.
For their part, the Bisons played a minor role in the biggest byeweek story in Canada West when they picked up a win thanks to a Regina Rams’ eligibility violation. The University of Regina self-reported the violation and was stripped of its three wins on the season — one of which came against the Bisons.
As a result, the Rams tumbled to the bottom of the standings with an 0-5 record, while the Bisons’ record improved to 3-2 and lifted them into a second-place tie with the Saskatchewan Huskies with just three games to play.
Still, the Bisons have a potent offence that leads Canada West in rushing and is second in passing only to the Dinos. Quarterback Des Catellier — himself a Calgary native — is averaging nearly 350 yards passing per game and has 16 touchdowns on the year, while running back Jamel Lyles is just under 100 yards per game on average as the conference’s top rusher.
“They have a lot of weapons on offence with their receiving corps and running back,” said Dinos head coach Wayne Harris. “Des Catellier is having a good year and they’ve put a lot of points on the board against everyone they’ve played, so it’s going to be a big test for our defence.”
WOMEN’S SOCCER
The football squad isn’t the only Dinos team with a shot at clinching home-field advantage. The Dinos women’s soccer team (9-1) enters its final home weekend on a nine-game winning streak and can clinch with a win over UNBC (1-63) Saturday or MacEwan University (7-2-1) Sunday. One more win would also give the Dinos women’s squad 10 wins on the season, a record for the program.
MEN’S SOCCER
The weekend also holds some big playoff implications for the men’s soccer team in games against the MacEwan Griffins (Saturday, 2:15 p.m.) and Alberta Golden Bears (Sunday, 2:15 p.m.) The Dinos and Griffins are both looking to clinch a Canada West quarter-final playoff spot as both teams are currently two of the top four contenders in the Prairie Division.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
The Dinos women’s hockey team, meanwhile, will look to bounce back after a tough opening weekend in Manitoba as they host the Saskatchewan Huskies this weekend at Father David Bauer Arena for their home opener. The home opener goes Friday (7 p.m.)
VOLLEYBALL
This weekend’s 32nd annual Dino Cup offers one last opportunity for the Dinos volleyball teams to tune up before the regular season opens next week. The women’s draw will feature two contests between the Dinos and the UBC Okanagan Heat, while a full men’s tournament will see the Dinos face off against the Alberta Golden Bears, Brandon Bobcats and Guelph Gryphons.