U of C rugby women set sights on fourth straight championship
The University of Calgary Dinos’ quest for a fourth consecutive conference title takes them south this weekend for the Canada West championship at the University of Lethbridge Community Stadium.
The Dinos will face the host Lethbridge Pronghorns in their semifinal on Friday at 1 p.m., with the other semi featuring the UBC Thunderbirds and Victoria Vikes. The winners of both semifinals will advance to Sunday’s championship final and earn a trip to the U Sports Women’s Rugby Championship in Ottawa.
Friday’s semifinal between the Dinos and the Pronghorns is the third game between the two teams in the past five weeks. The Dinos and ’Horns met for the first time on Sept. 21 in Lethbridge when Calgary came away with a 27-17 win. Last weekend, Calgary hosted the Pronghorns and won 22-5 at Shouldice Park.
VOLLEYBALL WOMEN
The Dinos women’s volleyball team launches the 2019-20 Canada West regular season at home this weekend with two matches against the University of Saskatchewan Huskies. First serve is at 6 p.m. Friday and 4 p.m. Saturday in the Jack Simpson Gym.
The Dinos women have their sights set toward hosting seven other national title hopefuls at the 2020 Usports Championship on March 13-15 in the Jack.
The 2018-19 Dinos went 19-5 during the regular season and earned a spot for the second year running in the Canada West final and will make their third straight appearance at the national tournament next spring looking for the program’s fifth championship.
The Dinos have an experienced core of leaders, holding an impressive total of six fifth-year returning players, including Adriel Goodman, Autumn Davidson, Kennedy Snape, Rachel Solecki and all-canadians Beth Vinnell and Kate Pexman. Pexman is sidelined by injury and won’t start the season on the court, but still brings veteran leadership to the squad.
“We’re excited to kick off the season against Saskatchewan,” Dinos head coach Natalie Gurnsey said. “Our group looks a lot different from last year, but I’m really excited about how it’s all coming together and to see how we can put it all together this year.”
VOLLEYBALL MEN
After an up-and-down pre-season, the Dinos men’s volleyball team opens its 2019-20 campaign for real this weekend as it hosts the Huskies at The Jack.
The matches will follow the women on both Friday and Saturday, with scheduled start times of 7:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. (Canadawest.tv).
The Dinos had some solid results — notably two wins over the Mount Royal Cougars and a tight five-set loss to the Alberta Golden Bears — in their two pre-season tournaments, but also had a couple of performances they’d like back, including a 3-1 loss to the UBC Okanagan Heat to open the Dino Cup.
With plenty of turnover in the lineup and youth at certain positions, some inconsistency is to be expected.
“We have a ton of potential,” Dinos head coach Rod Durrant said. “We’re young in some spots, but we’ve shown we can compete with some teams. However, we have to be really focused on our side of the net to be competitive with everybody.”
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
The Dinos women’s hockey team will look to remain undefeated at home as it faces off against the Manitoba Bisons this weekend at Father David Bauer Arena.
Puck drop will be on Friday at 7 p.m. with the rematch scheduled for 3 p.m. Saturday (Canadawest. tv).
MEN’S HOCKEY
The Dinos will head east to Winnipeg this weekend to try to keep their early success rolling against the host Bisons.
The two-game set is scheduled to get started on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by an afternoon affair at 1 p.m.
SOCCER MEN
With playoff seeding on the line, the Dinos men’s soccer team will play its second instalment of the Crowchild Classic when it takes on Mount Royal in the final-regular season tilt.
The crosstown rivals square off on Saturday at Dinosaur Field, with the match scheduled to begin at 2:15 p.m.
It’s a meaningful contest for the Dinos, as they currently sit tied for second place in the Prairie Division with the Saskatchewan Huskies, each with 19 points. With the top two in each division getting to host the opening round, Calgary will need some help from the other Canada West squads if it is to host a playoff game, as the Huskies have a game-in-hand on the Dinos and will play two games this weekend.