Track and field
The Bison track and field team parted ways this past weekend as some athletes traveled to Minneapolis to compete in the Jack Johnson Classic and the others remained on campus to compete in the Grand Prix No. 5 at Max Bell. The event at the U of M saw athletes of all ages competing in the long jump, the triple jump, shot put, hurdles, relays, high jump, pole vault and sprints.
Highlights from the Jack Johnson Classic include the women’s 60m dash where Caley Miskimmin finished first in her heat (7.63) and Lisa Wong finished fourth (7.69). In the women’s 600m run Jennifer Campbell finished with a first place, both Michelle Lavoie and Chantal Auger had second place finishes and Meghan Woo placed third (1:36.19). The Bison men dominated the 200m dash as Mack Gajadhar placed first (23.65), Kris Geyson and Ray Stewart placed second, Steven Poole and Roy Duodo-Sarpong had third place finishes, and Jamie McMaster finished with a fourth.
Hockey
Last Friday the men’s hockey team opened a back-to-back series against the Calgary Dinos with a 6-1 loss. The Bisons’ star goalie Steve Christie allowed five goals on a total of 21 shots before being pulled for backup Jesse Deckert to start the third period. Manitoba’s lone goal came in the second period when forward Jared Walker scored his fourth of the season slipping the puck past Calgary goalie Dustin Butler. The following night the men’s team avenged their loss and defeated the University of Calgary by a score of 3-2, pulling ahead into second spot in the Canada West standings by two points. Both games on Jan. 22 and 23 were played at the Father David Bauer Arena, in Calgary.
The women’s hockey team also played back-to-back games against the Calgary Dinos last weekend, but did so as the home team. In two games at the Max Bell Centre, the Bisons were able to sweep their series against the Dinos by scores of 2-1 and 1-0. Manitoba goalie Stacey Corfield earned a shutout Saturday and in total allowed only one goal in 31 shots. With the wins, the women’s team now has a stranglehold on the second spot in the Canada West standings and will go into action this weekend against UBC enjoying a 13-point lead over their fifth place opponent.
Volleyball
The women’s volleyball team suffered an upset loss in their first game against the University of Alberta Pandas on Friday, falling by a score of 3-1 (25-23, 23-25, 25-20, 25-17). After splitting the first two sets the Bisons looked poised to take control of the game with a commanding 10-5 lead in the third. U of A, however, battled back to take the next two sets and seal the victory for the Pandas. On their second night of action the number two ranked Bisons beat the number four ranked Pandas 3-0 (25-20, 25-18, 25-14). In two games Kristi Hunter and Kate Wasyliw led the Bisons with a total of 23 and 22 kills respectively.
The visiting men’s team didn’t fare any better Friday night against the number four ranked Pandas as they lost the first of their two game series by a score of 3-2 (27-25, 22-25, 25-19, 23-25, 15-11). The Herd came out with an impressive effort but weren’t able to overcome the skill and the solid defensive play of the Alberta team which collected a total 18 blocks during the game. In their second game the Bisons were again defeated by the Pandas 3-1 (25-12, 25-23, 22-25, 25-15). With the two victories over the weekend Alberta has now secured the top spot in the Canada West standings.
Basketball
Both the men’s and the women’s basketball teams played visitor to the host Trinity Western University on Friday. The men’s team lost the first of their two game road trip 97-89. Manitoba shot 46.9 per cent from the field (30-64), 42.9 per cent from the three point line (15-35) and 58.3 percent from the foul line (14-24). On the same night the women’s team came from behind to beat TWU by a score of 58-52 in a game that saw the Bisons outscore their opponents 20-10 in the fourth quarter.
The following night the men’s and women’s teams continued their road trip playing visitor to Simon Fraser University where the men fell by a score of 79-68. With the loss the men’s team now holds a 4-11 record in conference play. The women’s team also lost their second game of the weekend, falling to the SFU Clan 89-48. The win marked the number one ranked Clan’s record 51st straight victory in conference play and improved their season record to 13-0 while the Bisons now sit in seventh place with a record of 6-9.
Swimming
In the Canada West Swimming Championship (Jan. 22-24) the defending men’s and women’s champions from the University of Calgary continued their dominance over the rest of the conference winning more than 20 medals through the first two days of competition.
The Bisons’ Riley Pickerl was first in the men’s 400m freestyle with a time of 3:57.84 and he also placed second in the men’s 800m freestyle with a time of 15:47.63. UBC’s Martha McCabe posted a new record in the 400 IM with a time of 4:42.97, nearly two seconds better than teammate and previous record holder, Hanna Pierse’s, 2009 record. The Bison men’s swim team is now fifth in the Canada West standings and the women’s team is ranked sixth.
