By: Andrew Sarkis
The McMaster women’s basketball team has not looked back since their Oct. 26 opening-night victory, compiling an overall record of 6-2 since then. The Marauders are currently riding a four-game winning streak and have outscored their opponents by an average of 22 points over that span.
The team’s most recent victory came on the road on Nov. 24, which turned out to be an up-and-down matchup against the Brock Badgers. The game was not an easy one for Mac. They squandered a first quarter 21-10 advantage, allowing the Badgers to tie the game up at the half.
Coming down to the latter stages of the fourth quarter, the Badgers attempted to claw their way back into the game by putting down a few late-game shots. Brock’s comeback attempt ended up being unsuccessful as the Marauders prevailed with a 70-61 win.
Head coach Theresa Burns credits the team’s unselfishness and overall comfort level as some of the reasons for their recent success.
“I think we’ve had a lot of nights where we shot the ball well,” Burns said. “I think we are spacing the floor and sharing the ball well. Some of our younger players are really starting to gain confidence and step up their game and look more comfortable. We’re getting contributions from our whole lineup, which is great.”
Additionally, Burns has credited one of the team’s star players, Hilary Hanaka, as a focal point for their recent success.
“Every game we get different contributions from different people,” said Burns. “I think Hilary Hanaka has certainly been a tremendous leader for us, especially since Linnaea Harper got injured. She has an incredibly high basketball IQ. As well as being able to generate offence for herself, she creates offence for other people. She defends for us. She just brings so much leadership to our team. We depend on her for a lot. She’s really turned into a good leader for our group.”
Hanaka’s impressive play has not only been recognized by her coach and teammates, but by the league as well. She was recently honoured with the Ontario University Athletics Athlete of the Week award. Hanaka averaged 30 points over the course of the Marauders’ back-to-back wins against Laurentian and Nipissing. The fourth-year guard recognized the honour as a great individual achievement.
“Individually, it’s obviously a great honour,” Hanaka said. “It’s always a been something that I’ve kind of strived for, to be able to be a leader on the team. This year, we’ve lost a couple of starters and our significant players. Stepping into the captain role this year, I had some big shoes to fill so it’s nice to have that confidence behind me now.”
Hanaka was also quick to credit her teammates as a reason for her individual accomplishment, mentioning their help as a reason for her success.
“I think just for myself and my personal game, that extra step and level of confidence is something that came with that award, knowing that other people are believing in me,” said Hanaka. “So putting in that extra effort is going to get me great places and help my team as well. But I wouldn’t have been able to receive the award without the help of my teammates. They are always willing to push me to the next level and they are half the reason that I’m able to score all those points.”
Sitting atop the Western division in a three-way tie with Lakehead and Windsor, the Marauders are at a good standing in the league. Looking to continue their success, Mac is up for a clash against the league-best Carleton Ravens. The Ravens are currently seated in first in the Eastern division with a record of 8-0. Carleton has dominated their competition, winning the majority of their games by a large margin in commanding fashion.
While the Marauders will be focusing on preparations for the undefeated Carleton Ravens, they will do so by fine-tuning details. Entering the next part of their season, the Marauders will not look to change their approach drastically.
“We want to play at fast pace, and that won’t change no matter who we’re playing,” said Burns. “For us, some of our young group will need better attention to detail. There are little details in our game that just aren’t there completely yet. We can get away with that sometimes, maybe against certain teams, but you can’t get away with that against teams like Carleton.”
Hanaka echoed her coach’s statements, noting that extra time will help the team be able to best prepare for the Ravens.
“We have pretty well the same approach all the time,” Hanaka said, “We’ll do some scouting of the other team and mainly focus on our own team stuff. Coming into this weekend, we’ll probably have an extra couple of days to go over the Carleton stuff, knowing that they’re obviously a very talented team.”
While they will focus their gameplay to accommodate the specific advantages the Ravens boast as a team, the Marauders also know they can rely on their own skill set that has not let them down this season. When something is working, it does not need to be altered.
“We’ll just go in like every other game and know that we’re prepared, and that when we play our game we can put up a good fight against any team that we’re up against,” Hanaka added.
Time will tell how the Marauders will fare against the Ravens, as they are set to square off in a heavyweight match on Dec. 1. This match kicks off a pivotal part in the basketball season and this matchup is one of many important contests the Marauders will have to win on the road to the playoffs.
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By: Ryan Tse
A glance at the score for McMaster’s Nov. 24 matchup against the Brock Badgers shows a 96-87 loss, a familiar result for a struggling team that owns a 1-7 record so far this season. It was yet another close loss, albeit to a strong undefeated Brock side.
A closer look at the box score reveals another familiar result: point guard David McCulloch again led the team with 35 minutes played out of a possible 40 minutes. The fourth-year veteran was effective too. He tallied 26 points, the most for any player on either team. Still, he was unsurprisingly disappointed in the final result.
“We played tough in a lot of games, but it hasn’t been enough,” McCulloch said. “We need to get to the next step. We need to get to that extra gear.”
McCulloch is one of the bright spots in a tough year for the men’s basketball team. He leads the team in minutes played and is second in points per game.
After attending high school in Hamilton, McCulloch was recruited to McMaster and has steadily improved each year. He has gone from averaging 13 minutes and three points a game in his freshman season to now averaging 31 minutes and 19 points in his fourth year.
As one of only two seniors on the team, McCulloch knows that he has a responsibility to take charge of the team and be a leader on and off the court. His dependable play has earned him the respect of his teammates in the past, but this year, he has been challenged by coach Patrick Tatham to be more vocal. He admits this has been a challenge in times, given his quiet, lead-by-example persona.
“I still have a long ways to go,” said McCulloch. “PT [coach Tatham] is always telling me I need to be more vocal. The way I’ve led in the past has always been by example, by trying to be the hardest worker and trying to do all that stuff. Now, it’s about taking the next step and being vocal as a leader.”
“I’m always on Dave to be more vocal,” added Tatham. “I don’t want to be the loudest individual in the room. I think if the loudest person is him, then the guys will buy in that much more because he’s an extension of me. If he’s in, then all the guys are in.”
The evolution of McCulloch’s play is apparent on the court as well. Under Tatham’s new “run and gun” system, the point guard, typically a pass-first player, has been asked to shoot more. So far, so good — McCulloch’s averaged almost 16 field goal attempts per game compared to just 11 last year. He’s also taken more three-point attempts per game, up from four attempts last year to seven this year, and has a higher three-point percentage as well.
McCulloch also attributes his new shoot-first mentality to the confidence that he has gained over his career.
“I have been playing the university game for three or four years, so I can make better decisions,” said McCulloch. “But I am also more confident taking more risks and doing things more out of the box.”
In McCulloch, Tatham sees a talented player who can dominate if he is pushed to play more aggressively.
“He’s absolutely a borderline all-Canadian player,” said Tatham. “We are just going continue to push him and hopefully get him to play out of his comfort zone where he has been the past three years, which is more of a facilitator trying to control the game rather than take over the game.”
The higher-pace style that McCulloch has played has been representative of the whole team, something that is apparent to McCulloch when comparing the past couple of years to this season.
“The past couple of years, we have had really good big men that we can throw the ball in,” explained McCulloch. “It was a slow offence, and we could get some post touches or inside finishes more. This year, we are more of a guard-oriented team. We are pushing the tempo, running and shooting, which fits our team a lot more than in years past.”
Despite his own success, McCulloch is obviously frustrated by the team’s lack of success. He thinks the talent is there, but the team needs to be more consistent.
“Right now, it’s just consistency,” said McCulloch. “We will have good quarters, and we will have horrendous quarters. We have not been shooting the ball as well as we can. We have lost a couple games by six or eight, so if we hit a couple more threes, it’s a different game. It’s about getting through 40 minutes instead of three quarters or just a half.”
McCulloch still likes the potential of the team though. When asked about their new additions, he pointed out the stellar play of Miles Seward and Kareem Collins in particular.
“Miles is scoring the ball,” said McCulloch. “He can score the ball whenever he wants. He’s super confident and really exciting, and he gets our team amped up. Kareem Collins is another guy who has helped our team a lot. He is a super good defender and he can get to the rim whenever he wants. He’s another guy who fits the system perfectly. He’s athletic so he can run the floor.”
Heading into the second half of the season, McCulloch remains optimistic about the team and loves the camraderie.
“It’s good and we’re fun,” McCulloch said. “I love the guys on the team. We play really fast and everyone works really hard. Everyone’s really confident and it is just a fun team. PT’s trying to change the culture a lot: be as hardworking as possible, lift up your teammates and just have fun.”
“Obviously, we’re struggling, but things will change,” McCulloch added. “It’s a new team, a bunch of new players, so the cohesion is not quite there yet. If I had to guess, I think we’ll be really good.”
There still remains a lot of season to be played as the Marauders head into December. However, it is already clear that if the team can turn the season around, McCulloch will be a huge part of it.
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The McMaster Marauders men’s rugby team was among the six Canadian universities invited to the inaugural Canadian University Men’s Rugby Championship this past weekend in Guelph.
Just a week before, the Marauders defended their Ontario University Athletics bronze title in a close match-up against the up-and-coming Laurier Golden Hawks. Their 26-19 win secured their spot in the national championship this past weekend.
“We knew it was going to be a tight game,” said Marauders head coach Dan Pletch. “We lost to Laurier by one point earlier in the season and they play a similar style to us, so we really tried to focus on our defence.”
Although proud of every Mac victory, winning every match is not coach Pletch’s main goal, who is a former Marauder and three-time OUA champion himself.
“My goals are not around wins, losses and championships,” said Pletch. “My goals are always process driven. If you focus on all the processes and things that make for successful teams and successful individuals, the wins and losses take care of themselves.”
Running a player-centric system, the Marauders coaching staff sits down with the players throughout the season and they construct a training plan for the week. Players share what they think their strengths are and what they need to work on.
“Winning or losing the game isn't always within your control,” Pletch said. “But you can control your preparation, your review and your recovery.”
This includes making sure that their first years are taken care of academically and a mentorship program where upper-year players take care of the younger players. As well as a networking program through their alumni to help upper-year players with their career planning and post-university lives. All of this is done in an effort to develop well-rounded student-athletes.
Five of these well-rounded student-athletes, Connor Byrne, Will Kelly, Jack McRogers, Mitch Richardson and Mike Smith, were recently named OUA 2017 Men’s Rugby All-Stars. The group of All-Stars are made up of both dominant players and success stories.
“We have our top guys, like Kelly and McRogers that want to play for Canada at the highest level,” explained Pletch. “And then we have other guys who come to us and are not very athletic, with a limited skill set. But if they work hard and take advantage of everything that we and the athletic department have to offer, they too can be successful.”
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One of the All-Star Marauders, Richardson, has been a standout player over the last few years and even had the opportunity to play for a national development team of a few weeks this season. He has continued to be a strong player for the Marauders all season long.
While Smith, who started his career as a Marauder with limited rugby experience, continued to work hard and was able to become the best tight prop in the league, and one of the best young props in the country.
Then there is Byrne, who played on the Marauders’ development team, the junior varsity team, for the past four years and now has become a starter in his fifth year.
“He really worked hard over the last four years and remained extremely positive,” Pletch said. “Now he is one of the very best players in the league.”
With five All-Stars and the OUA bronze title, the Marauders were more than excited heading into the first university national championships. For Pletch, getting to compete against the top Canadian teams is a great opportunity that forces everyone to get better and raise the standard of their game.
He also believes that the universities is where Rugby Ontario and Rugby Canada should be focusing their development of young rugby players.
“You're dealing with players in the 18-22 age group which is a real vital time for their development,” said Pletch. “I think the national championship will really highlight that and allow players from across the country to be seen to be selected for national teams.”
The Marauders were able to start off the national championship weekend with a crushing 38-11 win against the Concordia Stingers, but unfortunately fell short 6-31 to the University of British Columbia’s Thunderbirds.
This set the Marauders up for another meeting with the Guelph Gryphons in a bronze medal match, who they had lost to twice in the regular season. This time, the Marauders came out strong and had a dominant and remarkable performance, winning 28-3.
Since the Marauders play club rugby in the offseason, they have been playing for seven months straight. So the team will now take the opportunity to go into a much needed recovery mode. They will shut down completely for two weeks and use the remainder of the year to relax and finish off their academic year as strong as their rugby season.
After the much needed winter break, they will officially start back up in Jan. The coaching staff will sit down with each player in an exit interview to review and set goals for the offseason, and elect what offseason program they want to do. Then come next April, when they are starting their club season, the Marauders will be as prepared as they can be to continue their dominance on the pitch.
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The term “sport” has been questioned lately as the definition is increasingly expanded to include many competitive physical activities that were never thought of as sports before. Where a sport begins and a game or hobby ends is often scrutinized by fans, with non-traditional sports often being excluded. However, the tide is changing.
In Dec. 2016, cheerleading was granted provisional status as an Olympic event, along with Muay Thai. Both sports will have until 2019 to show the International Olympic Committee they have what it takes to make it to the worldwide event.
For a relatively young sport that continues to evolve, cheerleading offers an exciting opportunity for the Olympics to gain a whole new demographic of fans tuning in to the festivities. For cheerleading itself, it gives the dedicated athletes involved in the sport a new way to show the world how cheerleading is a sport — and a tough one at that.
Christa Kocha, head coach of the McMaster cheerleading team, has been involved in the sport since 1998 and has seen it rapidly evolve since her time cheering for the Marauders.
“A lot has changed since I was a cheerleader at Mac,” Kocha said. “The rules and how competitions are run have become very complicated, and they reflect the complications of the sports.”
As explained by Kocha, cheerleading has come a long way from the old days of a group of students standing on the sidelines and leading cheers. Yet, as the sport has evolved, the name has remained the same. The name of the sport can be misleading as most cheerleaders do much more than just lead cheers.
There are basically two major styles of cheerleading: collegiate cheerleading and all-star cheerleading. All-star cheerleading, which according to Kocha is the future of the sport, is primarily focused on competitions that feature a lot of aerobic stunts including jumps, tumbling, dancing and flips. This is all choreographed into a two and a half minute routine and is marked not only on their difficulty and ability to perform it, but also the stylistic choices of the routine.
Collegiate cheerleading also incorporates all of these stunts, but the cheerleaders on a university team also have to make sure they maintain and promote school spirit.
“There is a huge difference between collegiate cheerleading and all-star cheerleading,” Kocha explained. “Collegiate cheerleading involves our team being out there on the field and leading cheers, getting school spirit going which isn’t always easy for a lot of all-star cheerleaders. They have to learn how to lead cheers in a crowd, which doesn’t seem like it is a big deal, but is hard because you have to be on for four hours, smiling and trying to get the crowd engaged, while also performing highly athletic stunts and tricks.”
Nicole Parker, a second-year McMaster cheerleader, is one of many who now come into collegiate cheerleading from an all-star cheerleading gym. Parker also got involved in cheerleading in high school but decided to pursue it beyond that.
“I always thought that it was something I was supposed to do when I went to high school,” said Parker, who has been cheerleading for six years. “When I would watch all of the movies I was like, ‘oh cheerleaders are the coolest’. When I did high school cheer, someone on the team did all-star cheerleading and said that I was really good and should consider doing it.”
One of the most difficult challenges for collegiate cheerleaders is being able to balance the two styles, since the Marauders compete at all-star competitions during the year against other collegiate teams, like Western and Laurier, in addition to cheering along the sidelines. The team also attends extra events like the McMaster Children’s Hospital employee appreciation day or events surrounding the 53rd Vanier Cup. Not to mention the regular academic pressures on any other student-athlete.
“The toughest part is trying to balance everything and not bringing my stress from school or personal life to cheer practice,” said Parker. “I have two hours to practice and get everything done and not let my emotions get in the way with it.”
Keeping the crowd energized during a game is extremely important for any team, as any athlete can tell you. If a home crowd is quiet and disinterested, the whole idea of a home team advantage disappears. Athletes feed off of the cheers and applause of the crowd and sometimes the fans need a little help from the sidelines.
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In addition to the demands on the team off the field, the physical skill that is required to cheer is evident to anyone who has ever seen a cheer routine.
“It requires you be physically fit and it’s hard,” said Parker. “You are lifting up people, and it is high intensity for two and a half minutes. You are running all over the place, flipping and stuff like that. It’s hard. Because there is a performance factor and looking nice is a factor, they think it should not be a sport because you are marked on if you’re smiling or not.”
Cheerleading is currently classified as a club rather than a varsity team. In addition to public perceptions of cheerleading being considered a sport, there is currently no fully established governing body to help advocate its position. While one is in the works and starting to gain traction in the community, it has yet to fully take hold. This is due to the newness of the sport, especially in Canada. It is well on its way to joining the ranks of the traditional sports.
“I always think it should be considered a varsity sport,” Kocha said. “I understand it is hard because we don’t have the proper governing bodies. There is a tight hold over varsity teams as I suppose there should be. You want to make sure the kids are safe and regulations are being followed and the brand is being represented properly.”
Yet, not being considered a varsity sport also has its benefits and freedoms.
“There are also a lot of benefits to it…. It’s hard,” Kocha added. “There are a lot of things I probably don’t understand with how things are run. And I know that a lot of other university teams that are club teams find a lot more freedom in what they want to do. That’s not necessarily what I want for our team, but I think it is a really complicated situation. I think that is partly our job and our challenge as coaches and members in the community who are we going to do this and make this an actual sport.”
Regardless of their classification, the team still competes regularly against other collegiate teams in level six categories. Level six cheerleading is the highest category of all-star cheerleading, featuring the most complex routines and challenging stunts. Mac’s program offers their athletes the opportunity to compete among the best in Canadian collegiate cheerleading while also allowing them time to focus on their life as a student.
“It is a high-level team,” said Parker. “Level six is pretty difficult, but the good thing about Mac is that they balance your schooling. You are a student first so the competitions don’t interfere with midterms or exams. They give us breaks when exams are coming up and stuff like that.”
To finish off the month, The Marauders will be competing in the Power Cheerleading Athletics Collegiate National Championship. Mac is coming off a fifth place finish last year in the small co-ed division, but this year will be competing in the larger all-girl category that features 10 teams.
“We feel very prepared this year,” Kocha said. “It is always a challenge trying to create a really difficult routine in less than three months. Level six is hard because you are doing a lot of free flipping. So you want to make sure that it is safe for them, but it is challenging at the same time and they can do it. I think we put together a pretty good routine that way this year.”
“We feel pretty confident and I’m proud of the team this year,” Kocha added. “They’ve worked really hard through everything and I think it just shows in their routine. I hope we have a lot of fans there this year that would be great. We try to put on a really good show.”
Whatever position the team places in, Kocha is proud of how well the team has integrated with the school community in recent years and represented school spirit in any setting.
“I’m really happy how we have come together with the school community and I hope it continues that way,” Kocha said. “I really like having them at the games. I think it is really fun for them. I hope the school responds to it and joins in on the fun too.”
At the end of the day, classifications become meaningless. It is not about what word you can point to in a dictionary that defines a sport. A sport is made up of the hard work, sweat and tears that are put into every hour spent preparing for each competition or game. It is defined by the teamwork displayed on the field, court or mat in front of a rowdy cheering crowd. And ultimately, it is one of the few things that works to bring humanity together for one common goal. So whether you are watching or competing, just enjoy it.
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The inaugural motionballU Marathon of Sport McMaster took place on Nov. 18. The event made for an exciting day of athletic competition that teamed up McMaster students with Special Olympics athletes in a variety of sports.
Motionball is a not-for-profit organization that builds awareness and raises funds for the Special Olympics Canada Foundation. Founded by brothers Paul, Mark and Sean Etherington in 2002, the organization has held 20 annual events in 18 cites across Canada and have donated over $8 million to the SOCF.
“Our goal was to help get Canada’s next generation involved in the Special Olympics movement through integrated social and sporting events,” said chairman and co-founder Paul Etherington. To continue to do so, the new motionballU program was designed to integrate their marathon of sport event into all the major universities across Canada over the next two to three years.
For Etherington, it is extremely important for students to get involved in organizations like motionball while they are young.
“As we get older, we quickly realize we have to be more well-rounded as a person,” said Etherington. “Yes, you have to be selfish and focus on your studies, your future career and on your friends and family, but there should be a portion of your everyday life that is giving back to your community.”
One Mac student who has recognized this importance at a young age is Dawson Lucier. The McMaster kinesiology student first heard of motionball at the Kinesiology Games, a student-run kinesiology conference.
After witnessing a presentation by motionball and Special Olympics athletes at the conference, Lucier was inspired to get involved with the organization and is now the student coordinator of motionballU Marathon of Sport McMaster.
“The athletes are very accomplished in their involvement with Special Olympics and to introduce the athletes to students at McMaster and vice versa is very important,” said Lucier. “It changes societal attitudes, increases understanding and it is a great fun day of sporting events for a great cause.”
Like Lucier, Mac kinesiology grad student Nelson Saddler also believes in the importance of integration. Nelson and his brother Spencer, who participated at motionball’s Marathon of Sport Toronto event as a Special Olympic athlete, have loved the organization ever since.
“It’s important to play with them and understand that they’re a part of our team,” said Nelson. “We want to increase integration and education as a whole when it comes to special needs.”
And for Spencer, getting to participate directly with the students makes him feel a part of team.
Over the next few years, Lucier is really looking forward to seeing motionballU Marathon of Sport McMaster grow and hopefully transition to an on campus venue so even more students can participate.
“I know that this will be a highlight event for everyone who attends it,” said Lucier. “It’s going to set the motion forward for motionballU for years to come.”
For the event director of Hamilton’s Marathon of Sport event, Alexandria Haggarty, passionate students like Lucier and Saddler are exactly who she hopes become involved in future Marathon of Sport Hamilton events.
Her brother Mark Haggarty, who has down syndrome, has been involved with the Special Olympics since he was five years old. She has seen first-hand the positive influence the SOCF has had on his life, and has been involved with the organization either traveling around with him, volunteering or coaching on his swim team.
Alexandria first heard about motionball while at Dalhousie University, and immediately knew she had to be involved. It was when she moved back to Ontario that she was able to bring her brother to the Toronto event to experience it for himself.
After participating in Toronto, her brother, who is one of Mac student’s favourite employees at the David Braley Athletic Centre, could not wait for the event to come to his hometown.
“We grew up in Hamilton, so he looked at me immediately and said ‘So when are we doing this in Hamilton?’” said Alexandria. “So the following year we looked into being able to set it up in Hamilton.”
Motionball has now held two events in Hamilton, and they have raised a total of $82,000 for the SOCF.
“MotionballU is a great opportunity for students to get to know the charity,” said Alexandria. “Our hope is that once they graduate if they stay within the area, or even if they move to other cities, they can join on to the full Marathon of Sport events. Hopefully students that will graduate from McMaster will come join the Hamilton event as either volunteers, committee members or participants.”
For students with a passion for sports and a heart for giving back to their community, getting involved with motionball’s Marathon of Sport events is the way to go. The successful McMaster event was hopefully the first of many for any Mac student who missed out.
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By: Sasha Ricciuti
When I started playing on the McMaster men’s soccer team, I did not realize how much I was about to learn over the next five years. To play on a team that exemplified what it means to be a hardworking and successful student-athlete transformed me into the best possible version of myself going into my graduating year.
The things I have learned on and off the field will stick with me forever. These are just a few of the life lessons I’ve taken away from my time as a Marauder.
If there is one thing I can say I underestimated going into my first year on the team, it was the importance of being accountable. Coaches Dino Perri, Joe Valvasori and Anthony Costa immediately taught me what it meant to be accountable, not only for my actions on the field but off the field as well. As student-athletes, we are representing the entire university every time we compete, wherever we travel. Thanks to them, I will never forget the importance of being the best version of myself at all times, no matter if somebody is watching.
Not many people truly understand the time commitment that it takes to be a student-athlete. I quickly learned how committed I had to be in the summer before my first year during the pre-season. Transitioning into the school year, we began practicing five times a week and playing in two games. We also had strength and conditioning training and weekly film sessions through November. This is not always easy as you have to learn to balance school work and having a social life. But irreplaceable moments like playing in a national final in my second year would not have been possible if it was not for those sacrifices.
Having the captaincy my last year, I quickly learned that it is much more than wearing the armband on the field. Having had the chance to play under coach Costa, who is a former Marauder, showed me what it really meant to be good leader. So when it was my turn to lead, I tried my best to model his leadership style. From team talks to handling the laundry to getting to know each rookie on a personal level, being a captain was one of the most important things I have done in my life and a skill I know I will use in the future.
From my first year to my fifth year, the bonds I have made with everyone, from former players to my current teammates, are invaluable to me. As cliché as it sounds, I realized there is truly no “I” in team. We have seen each other at the best of times and the worst, and these friendships will hopefully last a lifetime. Being a Marauder is more than just the play on the field – we are one big family.
The best team memory I have had would most likely be our playoff run in 2014 when we won a national silver medal, which has only been done once before in the program’s history. We finished second in the Ontario University Athletics West that year, and played Western in a grueling quarterfinal matchup where we won 1-0. We would then host the OUA Final Four that year, beating Ryerson in the semifinals in a penalty shoot-out that booked our ticket to nationals in Prince Edward Island. We would go on to win the national quarterfinal and semifinal in penalty shootouts, and play in the national final. Though we fell short losing 1-0 to York in the final, the perseverance we showed that year was outstanding and showed me from an early stage what it meant to be a Marauder.
Another one of my most memorable moments would be scoring a hat trick against Guelph this year. During my five years at Mac, I have beaten every single team I have played against in our division – except for Guelph, who also knocked us out of the playoffs last year. I have also scored against every single team in my five years in our division – except for Guelph. Playing them at home for the first time this season, we would not only beat Guelph for the first time since 2012, but I was also able to score a hat trick in a 4-2 victory. We would also go on to beat Guelph two more times, 2-1 in Guelph and then 1-0 in the Ontario quarterfinal playoffs. That feeling of running down the field after the third goal was surreal, and was easily one of the most memorable moments of my life.
So to anyone reading this, whether you are a rookie just starting your journey or are going into your last year as a Marauder, cherish every moment you have and make the most of every practice, game and playoff run. Learn to be accountable, make sacrifices, show leadership, build friendships and make memories. And by the end of your journey, you too will know what it means to be a Marauder.
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The U Sports Cross-Country Championships, held this year in Victoria, British Columbia, marks the end of the outdoor track season for the McMaster cross-country team.
The University of Guelph’s men’s cross-country team reclaimed their title after being beaten by Université Laval the year before. The Guelph women were not as successful, falling for the first time in 13 years to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues. The women’s race was also the first time the championship has been run as an 8km event, as it was traditionally 6km.
Although McMaster’s men’s team was hoping to medal, they finished just three points behind third-place Laval with an overall score of 90 points. The women’s team came in seventh place, improving from their 2016 eighth-place finish.
“I thought the teams raced really well,” said head coach Paula Schnurr. “This years men’s team is the best cross-country team that McMaster has ever had.”
While only two of the competing women had never been to the U Sports championships, five out of the seven members of the men’s team who attended had never competed at the Canadian university championships, including the 2017 Ontario University Athletics rookie of the year Max Turek and newly named U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian Sergio Raez Villanueva.
“We knew we had a young team at the start so as a coach you’re expecting long term development,” said Schnurr. “But we started to see that this team was better than we anticipated and that really showed at the OUAs.”
With the men consistently ranked between fourth and fifth by U Sports throughout the season, finishing second in the OUA, it started to look like the Marauders had a chance at finishing within the top three. Unfortunately they were ultimately unable to pull through.
“They were disappointed but they all ran as hard as they could,” said Schnurr. “They gave every ounce they had and they delivered as a team. As a coach that’s all I ever ask of them.”
Noting that year-to-year consistency is emblematic of Mac’s program, the women continuing to improve even after losing key runners is something that Schnurr is more than proud of.
Although the team will be losing Jeffery Tweedle, who over the last five years has had a major impact on the McMaster cross-country program, right behind him there are a number of athletes who are ready to fill his running shoes. Raez Villanueva and Turek are just two of the talented athletes the men’s team has to offer.
“We have so much depth on our men’s team and they are constantly improving,” said Schnurr. “That is very exciting for our men’s team’s future.”
For the women's team, Schnurr hopes to create that same level of depth that they have on the men’s side. With a few recruits looking to join Mac’s program, they hope to continue to get stronger and do better over the next few years.
As for the offseason, there essentially is none. Now that the outdoor season is over, the indoor track season begins. With their first race in December, the indoor season spans across January and February. After that, many of the athletes will train with Schnurr in the summer and compete in the six meets Mac plans to host in aims to continually progress and be more successful in the years to come.
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The men’s basketball team was down in Toronto last weekend for some regular season action, facing off against the Ryerson Rams and University of Toronto’s Varsity Blues. The season started off with a strong win over Guelph, but the Marauders arrived at their weekend in Toronto with a different mindset after back-to-back games to the York Lions and Queen’s Gaels.
“The guys came in with a lot of confidence today,” said head coach Patrick Tatham following the Ryerson game. “We had our ego’s bruised last week with Queen’s and York, and I challenged the guys to play better defence, both team defence and one-on-one.”
For Tatham, the former head coach of the Rams and 2016 Ontario University Athletics Coach of the Year, a win against his former team after two crushing losses was all he wanted.
“It’s always weird coming back to where you actually started everything and sitting on the opposite side,” said Tatham. “Coaching against coach Rana, who coached me when I was 14 and 15 years old, and playing against some of the kids that I recruited four or five years ago was just an amazing feeling. But the best feeling would be getting that W.”
The Marauders went into the game knowing what it would mean to win for their head coach, but are also aware that they always need to play with a winning mentality no matter who they face.
“We understand that [Ryerson] loves him as a coach and will be glad to see him back even if he’s on the other side, but it doesn’t change how we prepare for the game,” said first-year starter Kareem Collins. “We are going into this game hoping we can win just like any other game.”
Collins is one of the 2016 recruits that both Tatham and former head coach Amos Connolly brought in to revamp the Marauders. Miles Seward, a former National Collegiate Athletics Association Division I player at the University of Northern Colorado, Kitchener natives Sasha Simic and Tyrick Thompson and former Carleton Raven Sheldon McIntosh are among the team’s new faces in this transitional year.
“They really took [playing with more of a defensive mindset] to heart this week in practice and it really showed today,” said Tatham. “We were not only physical and aggressive on the glass, but also defensively and offensively.”
Mac was able to lead by a marginal difference early on in the first half for the first time this season. This was largely due to newcomer Seward, who is already one of the OUA’s leading scorers, averaging 25 points per game. The Marauders were able to end the first quarter 25-20, surprising both the Rams and the several Rams fans attending the school’s Blue & Gold Night game at Coca-Cola Court.
The Marauders were not able to maintain the lead for long after the second half, when Ryerson was able to outscore Mac, and pull ahead to a 44-41 lead in the third quarter. For the rest of the game, the two teams went back and forth matching each other shot for shot.
For veteran player David McCulloch, playing with more discipline was a huge part of the team’s mindset coming into the game against Ryerson.
“We’ve been pretty undisciplined for the last few games,” said McCulloch. “So we really needed to control their tempo and play the game we wanted to play.”
The Marauders executed their game plan extremely well throughout the whole game, but were not able to make the most out of their opportunities when it really mattered. The win started to look in Mac’s favour as Matt Quiring was able to tie the game 69-69 at the 30-second mark. But the Marauders were unable to get the lead because of missed free throws and a stolen inbounds pass.
It was the worst time possible for the Marauders to make such fundamental mistakes after playing extremely disciplined the entire game.
“We really felt like we had the game,” said Seward, who ended the game with a career-high 29 points. “So losing because of our lack of discipline and inability to execute when it mattered the most is unacceptable and what we will be focusing on tomorrow.”
Unfortunately for Mac, the same problems followed them into their next game. They were able to start the game off strong against the Varsity Blues, but lost the lead by the the end of the first quarter. The Mac men were unable to catch up for the remainder of the game.
Reminiscent of their previous match, the Marauders still continued to make mistakes playing catch up. To make matters worse for Mac, Tatham was ejected from the game after receiving two technical fouls for disagreeing with a referee’s call.
Although McCulloch was able to finish the game with a team and career-high of 32 points, the game ultimately just slipped out of the team’s grasp in a close 92-88 loss. Simple mistakes make the biggest differences in tight games like this.
This was the fourth straight loss on the road for the Marauders, but a valuable learning experience for both the team and the coaching staff. With the next two games back at Burridge Gym, the Marauders hope to maintain their 1-0 home win record.
One of the most valuable takeaways from their weekend in Toronto is that the Marauders have what it takes to hang with the best of the best. As they look to face the Laurentian Voyageurs and the Nipissing Lakers this upcoming weekend, they need to not only use their upsets to ignite a fire in them, but get back to basics so they can defend their home court.
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By: Mary Craig
When I was 16 I experienced two milestones in my life. The first was being part of a team that won a Women’s Soccer Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations championship title. The second was coming out as gay. Both of these had a major impact on my life at the time, and still influence my life today.
In life people always look to categorize themselves and others, and this tends to make people believe that we can only belong to one “box” or the other. For me, being a soccer player and being gay are not two separate parts of me, but both part of my identity as a whole.
I personally had a very positive and accepting coming out experience, which I am very lucky and grateful to have had. My family and friends showed me unconditional love and support at the time, and I was never excluded or ostracized for being gay during my high school years of playing sports.
However, when it was time for me to attend McMaster to play soccer at the university level, I was still afraid my teammates, coaches and school would not be as accepting of me being an openly gay athlete.
When you move away from home to attend university, there are a number of obstacles all students face. There is the challenge of getting used to the newness of living on your own in addition to adapting to a new academic level. Plus you’re trying to make new friends, take care of yourself, keep in touch with family and try to stay active, all of which is far from easy.
As a student-athlete I had to keep all of those things in mind while also learning how to balance them with training, workouts and film sessions. On top of all of this, I was feared that me being a lesbian would not fit into my new environment. I knew that being myself was something that could be seen as different from the “norm” and that feeling terrified me.
When you are in high school you recognize or know everyone around you. In university, every day you see and meet new faces from different walks of life. This could either mean you encounter more people who are open-minded, or unfortunately meet those people who are closed-minded. I feared the latter. Like many others, I was scared to come to university because I didn’t know how much of myself I had to be in order to be accepted.
Would my team be awkward around me? Would they make me feel uncomfortable for being a lesbian? It may seem absurd to some to think like this in this day and age, but these were the thoughts running through my mind.
Luckily for me when I came to Mac, I found out I had no reason to be terrified. McMaster University, especially McMaster Athletics could not have been more welcoming.
My teammates, coaches and other student-athletes displayed acceptance and inclusion in every aspect. By choosing to use inclusive language and the support they constantly give me, or seeing rainbow stickers on doors that signify safe spaces around campus and Ron Joyce Stadium all help make me feel more welcome.
The David Braley Athletic Centre doubles as a second home for me at times, and the facility itself is somewhere I feel comfortable being myself and expressing my sexuality. The facility establishes a statement of dignity and inclusion that aims to create a safe space and value all human differences. These statements may not mean much to most, but this is something that I genuinely feel as a student-athlete at McMaster University.
I am grateful to have former teammates who paved the way for gay soccer players like myself and played a huge role in helping me feel more comfortable in who I am. This as well as the clubs and events on campus that make being queer visible, and celebrate the differences among us as students are so amazing to have.
Today I proudly rep both Mac pride and Marauder pride. I haven’t always been proud to be gay, but it is something that I have learned to become over time. I know not everyone has the opportunity to attend or play the sport they love at an institution that makes them feel included, and for that I will never take my time attending McMaster for granted.
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By: Griffin Marsh
The McMaster men’s volleyball team, the Ontario University Athletics defending champions, produced a dominant weekend of matches at Windsor and Western. This is how the team initially intended to start the season before their first OUA game resulted in a shocking loss.
The OUA volleyball season is long. It is challenging and strong performances are asked of teams quickly. These are the lessons that the volleyball team is grappling with as the 2017-2018 season begins to pick up speed.
Now five games into the season, the Marauders sit at a record of 4-1 coming off of a weekend double header on the road at Windsor and Western. In Windsor on Saturday, the Marauders swept the Lancers clean, taking the match 3-0. At Western on Nov. 12, McMaster fought for a five set victory, taking the fifth and deciding set 15-13.
This was a much-needed bounce back for the Marauders, who sat at 2-1 coming into the weekend. This included an eye-opening loss at home to the Ryerson Rams in the season opener. Consistency is key for coach Dave Preston, which does not come overnight.
“I really like the way we are starting to play,” said Preston. “I am not sure I could have said that a couple of weeks ago. I think our efficiency and quality can start to improve a lot, but I do not think there is a coach in the country who could disagree with that for any of their teams.”
For the Marauders, this season has been a roller coaster so far. Following the challenging loss to Ryerson, McMaster won both its next two matches against Waterloo and Guelph in very different fashions.
“Waterloo was the full package,” said Preston. “Then Guelph was kind of a wash because we played two good sets and two average sets. So right now, I think we are pretty much average.”
What was clear in talking to Preston is that no one in that dressing room is striving to be average.
“For us to go from low to super high to average, as a coach, those are rides I that I do not really want to be on,” Preston said.
Shifting the focus back to this past weekend, that search for consistency and excellence in play seemed to begin to express itself. This notably emerged against Windsor, who came into the match ranked fifth in the country.
According to Preston, this was no small feat as Windsor boasts two of the best outside hitters in the country in Pierce Johnson and Brad Gyemi.
Against McMaster, Gyemi was the most effective, scoring 13 points. Yet neither player could easily solve the Marauder defence, a huge key to their success.
The Marauders also finished the Windsor match with a strong middle presence, strong defensive performances and continued to work to limit the serving errors — three places that hurt McMaster against Ryerson.
That makes three road wins in a row for McMaster, something that coach Preston believes to be of great importance.
While the results against Windsor and Western may suggest a different reality for this team, the casual fan may have noticed that McMaster found itself outside the U Sports Top 10 this week for the first time in many years.
When this was raised with coach Preston, he was quick to put the panic button back into the drawer and explain that even when the things have been excellent in previous seasons, the Top 10 was never a point of discussion for this program.
“I think people use the Top 10 for a variety of reasons,” Preston explained. “Some use it to validate, some use it to motivate, some use it to market.”
Coach Preston also clarified that there is a new ranking system being employed by U Sports this year, called aptly, the Volleyball Ranking System.
The VRS combines your results, your opponents’ results and your opponents’ opponents’ results, including the margin of victory within each match, to determine a mathematical ranking.
This system is much more controlled and unbiased compared to the coach’s poll that had been employed in previous years. It also allows for unity between the Top 10 rankings and the eventual National Championship seedings when those are released during the playoffs.
What that means today is that there is very little data on this Marauder team, having played their pre-season against non-U Sports programs, and the data that does exist may not be totally representative of the whole picture.
Either way, this is not phasing Preston and his team.
“We do not think of ourselves as a good team because others think that as well,” explained Preston. “We think of ourselves as a good team because we know what we are capable of and what we want to play.”
Following wins in Windsor and Western, I may have to agree with him. This season may not have initially gone according to plan, but this team will find its groove. When it does, the OUA should watch out, because this team remains primed to compete for an OUA and U Sports Championship this season and well into the future.
The next step in that search for its groove is Nov. 19, as McMaster travels to Brock to face the Badgers at 4 p.m.
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