2010-11 Canada West Swimming: UBC hosts conference finals Jan. 28-30

Photo credit Lightcrafters

CANADA WEST - The 2011 Canada West swimming championships take place January 28-30 at UBC in Vancouver.

Medalists from the Canada West championships along with all swimmers that meet the CIS time standards will qualify for the CIS championships, which hit the pool at the University of Calgary Aquatic Centre, February 24-26.

Webcast (finals)

LiveStats

CIS RANKINGS
Men
1. Calgary / 456 pts / (1)
2. Toronto / 366 / (2)
3. Laval / 348 / (3)
4. Alberta / 297 / (4)
5. Dalhousie / 190 / (5)
6. UBC / 160 / (6)
7. Ottawa / 151 / (7)
8. Victoria / 140 / (8)
9. McGill / 112 / (9)
10. Montreal / 106 / (10)

Women
1. Calgary / 634 pts / (1)
2. UBC / 319 / (2)
3. Toronto / 296 / (3)
4. Montreal / 263 / (4)
5. Laval / 183 / (5)
6. Western / 125 / (6)
7. Alberta / 109 / (T7)
8. Dalhousie / 108 / (T7)
9. Guelph / 107 / (9)
10. McMaster / 80 / (10)

ALBERTA GOLDEN BEARS & PANDAS

Men
2009-10 Canada West championship: 3rd
2009-10 CIS championship: 7th
Last CW title: 1995-96
Last CIS title: none

Women
2009-10 CW: 3rd
2009-10 CIS: 6th
Last CW title: 1992-93
Last CIS title: none

Key additions: Gavin D’Amico, Jeremy Kubik, Alana Wood, Brandon Myers
Key departures: Lauren Gillespie, Jim Phelan

EDMONTON - Both University of Alberta teams – the Golden Bears and Pandas - have landed in the bronze position for the last three years, but the Golden Bears have been conference bronze medalists for 10 years and counting.

Alberta’s men’s team has a chance to upset the traditional balance of power that has featured either the Calgary Dinos or the UBC Thunderbirds in the gold and silver positions.  Buoyed by strong performances from their relay teams as well as individuals like Josh Au, Kent Aitchison, Brian Yakiwchuk, Brent Trevisan, Scott Stewart and Robert MacKinnon, Alberta’s men’s team is poised to shake off the third place blues, and slip into a second place finish.

On the women’s side, rookie Alana Wood has shown she belongs, having already qualified for the CIS championship in the 100m fly.  She is surrounded by a crew of veteran Pandas that should take the team to a fourth consecutive bronze medal finish at Canada West.  Kristyn Flanagan, Bobbie Mielnichuk, Lindsay Morton, Sasha Sproule, Kayla Voytechek, Cari Harr, as well as Dana Armstrong and Tsue Andersen will lead the Pandas this weekend in Vancouver.

U of A Athletics

UBC THUNDERBIRDS (HOST)

Men
2010 CW: 2nd
2010 CIS: 3rd
Last CW title: 2006
Last CIS title: 2009

Women
2010 CW: 1st
2010 CIS: 2nd
Last CW title: 2010
Last CIS title: 2008

VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds are looking leverage home pool advantage this weekend when they host 2011 CW swimming championships.

The women will be in tough as they defend their conference title but will have veterans stars such as Martha McCabe, a double finalist at the 2010 Commonwealth Games, and Hanna Pierse supported by a strong rookie class that includes Savannah King and Pierse’s younger sister, Fionnuala.

The men’s team will be looking to dethrone the Calgary Dinos as conference title holders and will rely on veterans Rory Biskupski, Duncan Furrer, and Kelly Aspinall, a former Dino, to lead the charge.

“This weekend is about going after both team titles. Calgary is very strong on both sides but we have been working hard on the walls and will look to use them to our advantage. Quickness and speed off every turn will be a huge focus for the team,” said UBC coach Chad Webb.

gothunderbirds.ca

CALGARY DINOS

Men
2009-10 CW: 1st
2009-10 CIS: 1st
Last CW title: 2010
Last CIS title: 2010

Women
2009-10 CW: 2nd
2009-10 CIS: 1st
Last CW title: 2009
Last CIS title: 2010

CALGARY - For the first time ever, the Calgary Dinos enter the season as the defending national champions in both men’s and women’s swimming – and there will be targets on their backs as they dive into the Canada West swimming championships this weekend at the UBC Aquatic Centre in Vancouver.

They’ll get the chance to repeat their titles in their home pool Feb. 24-26 when the University of Calgary hosts the CIS swimming championships. The more immediate goal, however, is the conference meet where the men go in as defending champs while the women look to regain the title lost last year.

The Dinos women boast a deep, experienced, and fast group that is ranked No. 1 in the CIS Top 10 by more than 300 points over second-ranked UBC. Led by Erica Morningstar, the 2008 Olympian who is undefeated in 14 races at the CIS championships in her career, Calgary boasts quality at virtually every stroke and every distance.

Complementing Morningstar are fifth-year senior Kevyn Peterson in the freestyle and the IM, Breanna Hendriks in the distance events, and the versatile Seanna Mitchell. Allison Long was the 2010 CIS rookie of the year, while head coach Mike Blondal expects big things from rookie Fiona Doyle, who hails from Limerick, Ireland.

Blondal will field 14 male swimmers. Jason Block leads the way as the team’s captain after sweeping the breaststroke events at the 2010 national meet in Toronto. Sophomore Bogdan Knezevic will look to build on his national rookie-of-the-year season in breaststroke and freestyle events, while freshman Gleb Suvorov of is expected to threaten in the backstroke.

godinos.com

LETHBRIDGE PRONGHORNS

Men
2009-10 CW: 6th
2009-10 CIS: 15th
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

Women
2009-10 CW: 5th
2009-10 CIS: 17th
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

LETHBRIDGE - Once again the Lethbridge Pronghorn swim team’s goal is to move up the Canada West rankings. The task for the Horns is going to be a difficult one based on pre-rankings and the depth of the teams ahead of the Horns. Seventeen Pronghorn student-athletes will be taking to the waters with individual and team purpose.

On the individual front, several swimmers will be looking to make the CIS qualifying time standard. “Currently we have three swimmers, Jeffrey Nicol, Ryan Thornley, and Jessica Kelly under the CIS cut,” stated Head Coach Brad Mori “It would be great to pick up at least two more men in order to fill out the relays. Realistically, I think we have three or four men who are going to make a good run at it.”

The three CIS qualifiers present the Horns’ best medal chances. Nicol, the current school record holder, is pre-ranked third in the 200 Breast and was the lone Horns to win a medal last year in Lethbridge. Kelly and Thornley are in the top five in several sprint events.

uleth.ca/horns

MANITOBA BISONS

Men
2009-10 CW: 5th
2009-10 CIS: 14th
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

Women
2009-10 CW: 6th
2009-10 CIS: N/A
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

WINNIPEG – Both Bison teams (seven women, eight men) have young swimmers who will gain valuable experience and should compete along with a couple of swimmers poised to make finals. The men’s squad is currently ranked 12th in the CIS and fifth highest for Canada West schools while the women’s side is ranked 18th in the CIS and sixth highest for Canada West schools.

For the men’s side this season, the big splash has been former Canada West champion Braeden Taylor, who returned after a one year absence, He recently set a new provincial short course record in the men’s 100m breaststroke. During the Prairie Winter, Taylor was also first in the 200m breaststroke and second in the 50m breaststroke. He is ranked first in the CIS in both the 100m and 200m breaststroke.

Casey Gergely is the second Bison male to qualify for the CIS Nationals, ranked 6th in Canada West in the 100m butterfly and 7th in the 200m butterfly.

Seven female swimmers have qualified for 2011 CIS Nationals. In the 50m freestyle Julie Therrien is ranked 8th in Canada West. Kerri-Ann Bochen, 100m and 200m breaststroke, is ranked 8th in Canada West.

gobisons.ca

REGINA COUGARS

Men
2010 CW: 7th
2010 CIS: N/A
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

Women
2010 CW: 7th
2010 CIS: 19th
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

REGINA - First-year swimmer Jessica Winter is expected to lead Regina at the 2011 Canada West swimming championships.

Winter, who hails from Regina, is the lone Cougar swimmer to have hit a CIS standard this season. She enters the conference meet ranked sixth in Canada West in both the 200 and 800 freestyle and eighth in the 400 free style. She has registered season bests of 2:04.44 in the 200, 4:24.82 in the 400, and 9:04.86 in the 800 – all of which are CIS standards.
 
Maggi Pettit and Erika Brown will also compete for the women’s team, while Hector Fukushi and Craig Soutar will represent the Cougars on the men’s side.

The team is coached by first-year boss Sylvain Pineau. Former U of R swimmer Cody Hitchcock will assist Pineau at the conference meet.

reginacougars.com

VICTORIA VIKES

Men
2010 CW: 4th
2010 CIS: 11th
Last CW title: none
Last CIS title: none

Women
2010 CW: 4th
2010 CIS: 8th
Last CW title: 1979-80
Last CIS title: none

VICTORIA - While the Canada West meet will be important to a few Victoria Vikes who need to reach CIS qualifying times, head coach Peter Vizsolyi said this meet is more geared as a part of preparations for the CIS championships.

Nick Sinclair leads the Vikes men. The 2010 Canada West male swimmer of the year and male rookie of the year hauled in six medals at the 2010 Canada West championships including four gold medals. Ella Darling, who won two silver medals in 2010’s Canada West competition, including a silver medal in the 50-metre backstroke, is once again a top medal-threat for the Vikes women. Four rookies on the women's side and one male freshman make their Canada West championship debut for UVic.

Sinclair, 2010 Canada West Swimmer of the Year and Rookie of the Year, is a backstroke and freestyle specialist who won four gold medals and two silvers at the 2010 Canada West finals. UVic’s Derek Doerksen, a 2010 Canada West silver medalist in the 200-metre backstroke and men’s 400-metre IM relay, could make waves again in the backstroke. From Liverpool, England, Ben Partridge, a fourth-year engineering student, is the only Vikes swimmer competing in his fifth year of eligibility.

govikesgo.com

About Canada West Universities Athletic Association
Canada West is consistently the most decorated of the four conferences in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), winning at least 10 CIS national titles every year since 1997-98. Comprised of 14 schools, from the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, Canada West produces numerous major award winners and Academic All-Canadian student-athletes each year, with many going on to athletic success around the globe in pro leagues or events such as the Olympics, Paralympics or Universiade Games.

-Canada West-