After weeks of injuries, the majority of the roster laced up their spikes and crossed the finish line in the QSSF/AUS Interlock meet in Montreal, where they proved their worth against some of the top teams in the country with the help of some debut performances.
Connor Darlington, a Canada Summer Games 5000m champion, came in fifth place overall, and Reid, an elite triathlete, came ninth overall to pave the path for the Mac men’s team.
Their top ten finishes helped in securing the team to a third-place finish overall, with other key performers crossing the finish line quickly and promptly to lower the Marauders score.
Captain Blair Morgan was next to cross the line, finishing in 10th place, while Taylor Forbes finished in 20th. Gabe Ghiglione was no more than a couple seconds behind Forbes, and finished in 22nd. Luke Charbonneau finished in 31st place, and rounding out the score for the Maroon and Grey was Jeramie Lai in 35th place.
With both Darlington and Reid racing, there was a difference for the men’s team that will only prove to do better when they have Lionel Sanders in the line-up.
“For this race, Taylor Reid was the biggest difference, as Lionel was out but Connor was in. Come OUAs, obviously Lionel will be a huge difference maker as he should be our top man,” said Morgan.
With Sanders as the top man, if Darlington, Morgan and Forbes race to their potential, the Marauders will vie for a spot on the podium at the OUA Championships, with the Guelph Gryphons, Queen’s Gaels and Windsor Lancers being their main competition within the province.
If Sanders raced at the Montreal meet, and ran the same way he did in Guelph, the team may have beaten the Gaels for second place.
Even without Sanders, the team proved that they have the potential to be a top team not just within the province, but also within the entire country.
“It definitely paid off on both a personal and team level, as it was my best race of the season, and I believe it was the teams as well,” said Morgan on the team’s performance.
On the women’s side, the team finished in third place overall just as the men’s team did. In this race, Maddy McDonald and Courtney Patterson were finally on the start line together, and they crossed the finish line not too far from each other as well.
McDonald had the best showing for the Maroon and Grey, finishing third overall, not too far behind former teammate and Queen’s grad student Victoria Coates who finished second overall.
Patterson finished 11th overall, exactly one minute behind McDonald on the 6 km course.
Crossing the line third for the Marauders was rookie Emily Nowak, who finished 25th overall, and not too far behind her was fourth year Megan Beverley, who has returned to the team after a two and a half year hiatus from competitive running. She finished 27th overall.
In 30th spot was Raquel Burgess. Rounding out the score for the Marauders was captain Chelsea Mackinnon in her debut performance who finished 36th overall, and rookie Phoebe Cseresnyes, who also officially debuted, finishing 41st overall.
When it comes to Mackinnon and Cseresnyes, they are two runners that are coming off of injuries. When they are at their best, and when they reach their potential, they are a force to be reckoned with and can challenge any runner in the top 20 at the OUA Championships.
This is promising for the team heading into the OUA Championships, as they will be duking it out with the Guelph Gryphons, Queen’s Gaels, Western Mustangs and Toronto Varsity Blues for a spot on the podium.
The Marauders will look to prepare themselves for the OUA Championships that take place here in Hamilton at the Chedoke Golf Course on Oct. 26, and the Marauders will be racing to their full potential at the competitive meet. They will get a two-week chance to fine-tune their running before hitting the start-line however, which is something that Morgan and the team are looking forward to.
“I think we will doing some harder stuff this week, and taking it comparatively easy starting next weekend. Hopefully we will be running at our best on the 26th, but as [Coach Sneyd] likes to say, OUAs are the 30% midterm and the CIS Championship is the 70% final, so the final goal is to be running our best in four weeks,”
The Marauders will look to ace the midterm on Oct. 26, before taking on the final challenge on Nov. 9.
Despite their loss against the talented Ryerson Rams on Friday, the women’s volleyball team is in the midst of experiencing one of the greatest preseason runs for the Marauders in the past five years.
This is something that is very encouraging for McMaster, a team that is not used to this kind of success this early on in the season.
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“As a team we have never done very well in pre-season. It usually takes us into the regular season to become very cohesive on the court,” said veteran libero, Melanie Walsh.
The team showed just how cohesive they can be however, bringing home the bronze medal at the tournament in Winnipeg, Man., and the gold medal at the Gee-Gee tournament in Ottawa.
“The team battled it out hard in Ottawa to bring home the gold and I think it really opened our eyes to our potential for the season,” said middle blocker, Taylor Brisebois.
The team carried this momentum to their games against the RMC Paladins, and the Waterloo Warriors at the McMaster Thanksgiving Classic on Oct. 10, which resulted in two solid wins for the Maroon and Grey.
These were just other confidence-boosting performances that sealed the deal for the Marauders pre-season and solidified them as a dangerous team heading into the regular season, which kicks off Oct. 19, in the Burridge Gymnasium.
“This year, the on-court chemistry happened so quickly” said Walsh on the recent win.
“It definitely builds confidence for us going into regular season knowing that we have already had success together”
The Marauders fell just short of the gold on Oct. 12, against the Ryerson Rams, who won the Thanksgiving Classic final in a 3-2 decision (28-30, 25-18, 18-25, 25-10, 11-15).
The match serves as a learning curve for the Marauders, as they will prepare themselves to face the Ryerson team again on Oct. 19, and this time, the goal is to pull out a win
“We are aware of what they bring to the table and are going to prepare the best we can in order to defeat them,” said Brisebois.
Brisebois, a third-year middle blocker, was injured in the tournament during the Waterloo semi-final match-up, and setter Kayla Ng was injured in the match against the Rams, which was a setback for the Marauders in the final game.
“While coming down from a block I was landed on by one of the opponents. After seeing a doctor it appears to be nothing too serious so hopefully I am fully recovered in about a week” said Brisebois on the injury.
“Kayla was also injured in the gold medal game with her first sprained ankle so hopefully in a few weeks she is fully recovered as well,” added Brisebois.
The Marauders will have to work through the injuries this Saturday afternoon when they will take on the Rams once again – a team that brings back memories of being knocked out of the OUA quarter-finals in February.
For Brisebois, there is a lot of tension in the match-up.
“There is definitely some tension for myself facing Ryerson because of last year’s quarterfinals, and with having friends on the team, and also being coached by Dustin Reid before, but it's all in the spirit of the game and makes me even more excited to face them in season”
For Walsh, the match up will be one of recovery.
“There does not seem to be tension regarding the upcoming Ryerson match, just more of the want for redemption.”
The aforementioned match against Ryerson will take place, Oct. 19 in the Burridge Gym
As for the Ryerson Rams, Brisebois believes that they will be faced with some fierce competition against the Marauders squad.
“We are passionate about working hard and we don't take losing lightly.”
Alexandra Reilly
Assistant Sports Editor
An undefeated record was what we saw this time last season so to experience two brutal loses in a row is not something that any Marauders fan will get used to.
Especially not since the last couple of years have been the team’s best record in school history.
Saturday proved to be pretty close to rock bottom for the team as they lost to their rivals, the Western Mustangs, with a score of 58-15.
“We definitely need to take things a little more seriously,” said defensive star Aram Eisho about the team’s efforts.
“This is my first time losing two in a row and we definitely have a lot of work to do to get ready for next week,” he added.
Ron Joyce Stadium was sold out for the game on Saturday and it was safe to say the Vanier Cup calibre squad stunned the 5,003 fans in attendance.
This season is not going to be as easy as the last.
Crowd support, which wavered through the afternoon’s defeat, was something the team noticed.
“We definitely need the crowd in it the whole way through,” Eisho said.
“It’s never going to be easy but if we can just have them cheering us on while were having ups and downs it would really help,” he added.
The crowd’s lack-of-involvement wasn’t the only thing that proved to be against McMaster on Saturday afternoon. Nick Shortill, Alan Dicks, Mike DiCroce and Marshall Ferguson all went down with injuries that day.
The defense was hit the hardest as Shortill went down with what appeared to be a knee injury and left the game.
The team was also lost without some of their key starters on Saturday: left tackle Matt Sewell, defensive back Joey Cupido and safety Mike Daly all did not dress in maroon for the Western game.
With a 1-2 regular season so far, the remainder of the team’s season hangs in the balance.
“We are going to look at some of our core mistakes and coach it up and we have to find a way to put the pieces back together and get ready for York University,” head coach Stefan Ptaszek said.
“We’ll do all of those things and try and get this back to 2-2 and we’ll go from there,” Ptaszek added.
Up next are the low scoring York Lions, but the ultimate test will be when McMaster faces the currently 2-0 Guelph Gryphons on the road.
The York game kicks off this Saturday Sept. 14 at 1:00 p.m. and will be broadcast on Hamilton’s Cable 14 and CHML 900 Live.
McMaster’s award-winning coaching staff could be getting a little more help.
As reported first by The Waterloo Record, former Laurier head coach Gary Jeffries is close to joining the Marauders as a special-teams co-ordinator.
After a 3-5 record in the 2012 season, the Golden Hawk athletic department dismissed Jeffries despite a 40-year service to the football program.
Jeffries tie to McMaster is CIS Coach of the Year Stefan Ptaszek, who worked together in 2005 to bring the Laurier Golden Hawks a Vanier Cup.
The 66-year old is taking his first post outside of the Laurier community.
While Jeffries will serve most of his time with the special-teams unit, he’s expected to bolster Mac’s recruiting game – specifically in the Waterloo area. Widely regarded as one of the most loved coaches in the world of Canadian football, Jeffries takes an already strong staff to another level.
Waterloo sources have confirmed the move, but there has been no word from the Hamilton side. The Silhouette will post updates as received.
In one of their closer competitions this year, McMaster's football team beat the Queen's Gaels 33-20 Saturday afternoon at Ron Joyce Stadium.
Read about how the game transpired on the @SilSports Twitter feed.
There’s no American football stereotype that properly fits Joey Cupido.
In the OUA, without the luxury of copiously recorded combined statistics, it is nearly impossible to determine who is the fastest, who is the strongest or which player can jump the highest. If there were such a discussion, the fourth-year cornerback for McMaster would surely be involved.
Standing at 5’10”, Joey Cupido is not the most physically imposing corner in the province, but the Hamilton native doesn’t seem to care.
"We feel like we can stop anyone. We definitely feel we are the best defense in the country,” an exuberant Cupido said after last year’s Yates’ Cup semi-final game.
Fortunately, the Marauders came out on top in that game by a score of 43-13 over a streaking Queen’s team. Gael’s Quarterback Ryan Mitchell threw a total of five interceptions in the game, four to Cupido. It was a performance that earned the outspoken Cupido his place at the top of CIS record books for interceptions in a game.
Was it a fluke? Possibly, but Cupido’s performance against Queen’s was not an outlier. That type of ball-hawking play was a staple of the Marauders secondary last year as the team made its drive towards the Vanier Cup.
This season, in addition to Cupido, the Marauders will bring back corners Allan Dicks and Steven Ventresca, as well as safety Michael Daly.
After playing a large roll in the defenses’ success just a year ago,
"The secondary as a unit, we play together. We are not a selfish group. We let the game come to us,” said the third-year Ventresca, describing how teamwork and patience are imperative for his teammates.
In 2011/12, McMaster was ranked atop the OUA in interceptions with 19 during the regular season. Michael Daly led the team with five, Ventresca had four, Cupido contributed three and Allan Dicks, known more for his hard hits, grabbed two.
“We like to let quarterbacks sit in the pocket and make decisions,” said Ventresca, who is also from Hamilton. “Our ability to read routes is improving. That comes from watching film, which makes it easier to recognize routes and when to jump. Knowing when to make plays and when not to make plays is a huge reason why we have been so successful in the past.”
So far, this season has been much of the same for the Marauders. With only marginal room to improve, the Maroon and Grey are off to an even better start than last year.
In the first game of the season, played at home on Sept. 3, Mac rolled over Guelph to the tune of 50-9. Suiting again the following Saturday, the Marauders travelled to Waterloo to beat the Warriors in a 68-21 blowout.
The strong start, of course, has featured stellar play from the defensive backs. Daly has two interceptions; Cupido and Ventresca have one a piece. This group has been up to their usual tricks, as a unit holding opposing passers to 176 yards a game. In comparison, McMaster has passed the ball for an average of 359 yards per contest.
There are some new faces as well. Joining the veteran core this year are two other players to watch in freshman corners Jeremy Kyei and Marek Borucki, who each have an interception this season. Fourth-year player Stephen Dennis also returns to take snaps in the secondary. Dennis was part of the Vanier Cup winning team last year, recording 10 tackles in two playoff games.
On Monday afternoon, in front of a capacity Ron Joyce Stadium, the McMaster Marauders began their 2012 football season.
There to help the team start their season was Jerry Brown, a 2012 Olympic silver medalist who helped Canada to the podium in the men’s eight rowing.
Brown, an offensive lineman for the Marauders from 2004-2007, made an appearance to perform a ceremonial kick-off at his alma mater.
Marauder athletics holds significance in Brown’s journey to the athletics, as Brown credits the football program with giving him the tools to succeed at a world class level in rowing.
“The Marauders gave me a training foundation… it set me up with a discipline in training that I brought into rowing that I wouldn’t have been able to do without that kind of exposure to an intense training program.”
The No. 7 seat man from the silver medal team only began his rowing career four years prior to becoming a decorated Olympian, but starting a sport late is not a new concept to Brown.
Before coming to McMaster, he had not even played football before but the McMaster coaching staff aided his transition.
“I didn’t play football in high school so I came into the program and I spent two years just training hard, putting my head down, and it set me up with a discipline in training that I brought into rowing.”
Brown also gave credit to members of the coaching staff for instilling a work ethic in him.
“All of these guys build your character and you go through experiences; training hard, hardships, winning, losing and everyone just rubs off on you and shapes you a little bit.”
Larry Riley, entering his 19th season on the sideline for the Maroon and Grey, was Brown’s offensive line coach for his career.
Riley played a major role in Brown’s career and the Olympian had high praises for Coach Riley.
“Jason Riley helped me out through some tough times in university. On a personal level, Jason was always very good for helping me get through some of that.”
Brown’s teammate, Doug Cheem, also hails from McMaster and the pair shares a pride for Mac athletics.
“Doug and I are both extremely proud to be Marauders and it’s great to come back. We’re always talking about the Marauders.”
Jerry Brown is a walking example of how taking part in Marauder athletics is more than just a five-year experience; it is a journey that begins in Hamilton and continues on for the rest of an athlete’s life.
With 26 seconds left in the first half of the Marauders 2012 season debut against the Guelph Gryphons, Kyle Quinlan jumped over a sideline advertisement after one of his several first down runs on the day. What would normally be a highlight reel play sealed with a glare at the record-setting opening day crowd, has become the show that Marauder fans and the OUA have come to expect from Saturdays at Ron Joyce.
Rushing the ball ten other times for a total of 109 yards, the nation’s best passer asserted both McMaster’s and his own poise to defend the title of national champions - a task made to be imperative for the Maroon and Grey.
Even the national anthem was drowned out by the buzz in and around the stadium, which featured a large line waiting to enter until well through the first quarter. No pressure at all.
However, with a target on their back and the weight of an entire campus resting on their shoulder pads, the Marauders demonstrated what all the hype was about.
After giving up an early score to the visiting team, Mac settled down on both sides of the ball. Two and outs turned into efficient drives, which soon became an onslaught of Robert Babic receptions for six. The fourth year slot back from Oakville, Ont. who scored three touchdowns in last year’s regular season, caught the ball eight times for 165 yards and two scores on Saturday.
As a result, Babic received player of the game honors - an accolade for which several Marauders could have made a case. One of those players, linebacker Ben D’Aguilar, earned himself a spot as the OUA defensive player of the week recording five tackles and three sacks.
The final score of the game was 50-9 in favor of the #1 ranked Marauders whose next game comes against the Waterloo Warriors on Saturday September 8 in Waterloo, Ont.
What appears to be an easy start to the schedule for Mac will quickly escalate as only a week later the nationally ranked Queen’s Gaels will come to town.
All things considered, Saturday was an excellent start to what is surely to be the most closely followed season in program history. The national spotlight seems to bring out only the best of not only the football team, but also the entire community.
By the looks of it, the Marauders are at the forefront of the growing popularity of Canadian university football. With exciting performances on the field and competitive title races, maybe one day the Vanier Cup and Hec Creighton will share the same buzz as the same awards south of the border. It’s a good place to start.
Fraser Caldwell
Sports Editor
Marauder teams will be sporting the swoosh for the next five years, after McMaster’s Department of Athletics and Recreation announced a long-term exclusivity deal with the world’s largest sports apparel manufacturer on Feb. 6.
The agreement represents the first such commitment for Nike in Canada, although such exclusive apparel deals are common currency in the NCAA – where schools are often identified by the brand their athletes wear.
Under the terms of the deal, McMaster’s football, basketball, soccer, cross-country and track teams will sport Nike apparel and the number of participating squads is subject to change in future years.
Perhaps most notably, the Marauder basketball teams will wear Jordan brand gear next year, and the merchandise from Nike’s flagship specialty offshoot – inspired by the legendary Michael Jordan – will be available for purchase on campus.
Access to the Jordan brand puts McMaster in elite sporting company, as only five schools in North America sport the iconic merchandise.
Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, but it is widely believed that the agreement represents the most lucrative apparel contract signed by a CIS school.
McMaster’s Director of Athletics and Recreation Jeff Giles explains that negotiations between the university and its new partner began after the release of a request for proposal by McMaster in September.
According to Giles, several companies were impressed with the vision for the future presented by the university, and the Nike proposal that was eventually accepted was only one of a number of such offers.
“We told everyone that we weren’t looking for a typical, cookie-cutter deal,” said Giles. “We wanted a partner that was prepared to work with us through our brand and theirs to promote this university and the things that we do here. Part of that pitch was the way in which – for lack of a better word – we’re trying to reinvent the role of athletics and recreation at the university level.
“Nike and their Canadian distributor T. Litzen could see that we had some ideas and were going to do some amazing things in the next few years We got some very encouraging bids for our package. And at the end of the day, Nike won because they said that they would work with us in terms of branding up here. It was a vote of confidence from Nike and T. Litzen in everything we’re doing here.”
The resulting deal is one that resembles in many ways the exclusivity agreements common to Division I programs in the United States’ NCAA. For his part however, Giles draws the comparison between this most recent deal and those he negotiated in his previous capacity as the President of the CFL for seven years.
“Everyone looks at apparel as a cost, but nobody looks at it as a licensing opportunity,” said the Athletic Director. “Fans want to buy a licensed product – they want to buy wear the athletes are wearing. We did the same thing in the CFL. We consolidated everything – first with Starter, then Adidas, and then Reebok. We grew it to the point where licensing in the CFL is now worth $10 million per year – from almost nothing.
“I came into McMaster and said that we should be able to do the same thing here. We should be able to take all of this apparel and everything we do to outfit our teams and create a licensing opportunity. That’s what the Maroon Shop is all about.”
Whatever comparison one wants to draw, there is no doubting the importance of the deal, and Giles believes that his department’s agreement with Nike has opened eyes across the North American collegiate landscape.
“I think we’ve created some waves,” conceded Giles. “I can imagine there are some big time American schools that want to know why they aren’t Jordan schools. I can’t answer that question and I didn’t want to cause problems down there, but maybe we have.”
While the agreement presents McMaster with a definite financial boon, the Athletic Director stressed that the purpose of the school’s move to exclusivity was not profit, but rather the expansion of the athletic department’s efforts.
“It’s not about the money,” said Giles of the deal. “It’s about giving our students the best possible experience while they’re here, to provide the programs and services they need to have a tremendous experience. Doing that costs money. This deal works to help us expand those programs and services.
“Many of the athletic departments across Ontario are conducting sport reviews and taking a look to see what they need to cut while they feel tremendous financial pressures. We’re taking a different approach and asking how we can expand our services and do more for our students and staff. This just allows us to do that.”
For teams looking to attract new athletes, the allure of top-tier apparel could be a dealmaker. However, Giles was quick to voice his hope that merchandise alone would not motivate potential Marauders to relocate to the Hamilton campus.
“It can’t hurt,” said the athletic director of the deal’s impact on recruiting. “All that I can judge by is the excitement of our two basketball teams – how excited our players are and tell me that our recruits are. I hope it helps, but I also hope that kids aren’t coming here because they get to wear a Jordan basketball uniform.
“If that’s the icing on the cake, then great. We’re looking for dedicated student athletes and if this means that those athletes choose McMaster, then so be it.”
Fraser Caldwell
Sports Editor
McMaster’s cheerleading squad changed its composition this season and has seen immediate returns on that decision.
On Dec. 3, the Maroon and Grey representatives topped the University Small Co-Ed division of the National and Open Championships, surpassing the other four members of the field.
Team member Janelle Smith believes that her team was confident of their chances at the event, as they are perennial powerhouses within the nation’s cheerleading ranks. The move to a co-ed team from the Marauders traditional all-girl competitive make-up also placed them in a smaller field.
“Truthfully, I don’t think we were all that surprised to win,” said Smith of the December event. “We don’t usually compete in the small co-ed division because we’re usually an all-girl team. The last time we were co-ed was three years ago, but this time around we decided to take a few guys along as well.
“We’ve always been a very strong team – even when we were an all-girl team – and the boys only made us stronger. We understand that there’s a good level of competition but we’re confident and we’ve got an incredible coach.”
Smith explains that the transition to a co-ed team allowed the Marauder cheerleaders more flexibility in their selection of routine pieces, an advantage the team used to full effect in competition.
“It matters most in terms of stunts, particularly the number that we’re allowed to have,” said the fourth-year senior. “We’re able to have more if boys are able to be under a stunt by themselves. The same goes for pyramids. We’re able to do more and vary our stunts more.”
In the wake of their national success, the Maroon and Grey received a unique opportunity: the chance to take part in the Universal Cheerleading Association’s World College Cheerleading Championships in Orlando, FL. The Jan. 15 event saw McMaster’s delegation compete against representatives from Asia and the United States.
“There were teams from Puerto Rico, China and a few US teams,” said Smith of the field in Orlando. “UCA was in their first year of running the World division, so it was quite a bit smaller but still a fantastic competition, and they put it on well.”
Not only was the competition located in Orlando, it was actually staged at Disney World, allowing the team a vacation of sorts alongside the event itself. The trip represented an unusually exotic move for a Marauder squad that typically stays closer to home due to funding challenges.
“It was a great experience being at Disney World,” said Smith of the Florida competition. “It came to us very last minute but our coach was thankfully able to pull some strings. When we got the opportunity, we jumped at it.
“We usually travel to two US competitions in the second semester. Usually they’re fairly close in places like Pittsburgh or New York. A few years ago the team went to Myrtle Beach, but getting the opportunity to go to Disney World was pretty intense. A lot depends on what we can afford.”
Beyond their competitive schedule, the Marauder cheerleaders take an active role in charity work with the help of the Mac Athletes Care organization. Smith indicates that such activities are a conscious part of the team’s effort to diversify their operations.
“We have one member in particular – Lauren Hurst – who is part of the Mac Athletes Care program, and she’s sort of our liaison between the team and the charities. Each week she posts and tries to get the team involved.
“We always want to present the image of a well-rounded team that is interested in the wider Hamilton community.”
The Marauders will continue to demonstrate that balanced approach as they compete at the Cheer Evolution Nationals in Kingston and the Kicks Championship in Montreal while maintaining extra-curricular charity events.
