Weekly Dino Digest: Jan. 10-12
By Maggie Hsu, January 11, 2024—
The Winter 2025 semester is upon us and the Dinos are kicking things off in style with a packed schedule of 16 events across six sports. It’s the perfect way to get hyped for the new term with every game being high-stakes as teams make their final playoff pushes. As always, all Dinos home games are free with your UCID. Tickets can be purchased online with your student ID number. Check out the master schedule and grab a couple of friends to cheer on your Dinos!
Track and Field
Track season officially launched back in December with the Dinos Opener where Dawn Richardson-Wilson automatically qualified for the U SPORTS Championships with a race-winning time of 7.42 seconds in the women’s 60-meter dash. Almost a month later on January 5th, the Dinos competed in the Jack Simpson Open where 2023-24 Academic All-Canadian Sienna MacDonald earned her qualifier to the U SPORTS Championships with her time of 8.31 seconds in the women’s 60-meter hurdles.
This weekend, the Dinos travel to Saskatoon for the Sanderson Classic where more athletes will aim to punch their tickets for the Track & Field Championships in Windsor.
Basketball
Dinos basketball returns to regular season play as they visit the Winnipeg Wesmen this weekend.
The women’s team played a couple of warm-up games last weekend as they played host to the UBCO Heat for some out-of-season play in Jack Simpson Gym. Winning both games, they appear to be prepared to keep this momentum up as they try to claw their way up the standings as they currently sit fifth in the Canada West Prairie Division with a 5-3 record. A successful weekend could see them leapfrog into fourth place, depending on results from the MRU vs. Saskatchewan series this weekend.
Meanwhile, the men’s team goes into this weekend locked in a three-way tie for first with Manitoba and Winnipeg. They will have a tough series ahead of them but they have the upper hand as they average a second-place 91.6 points per game, a clear edge over Winnipeg who only averages 79.4 points.
Don’t miss next weekend’s Pack the Jack on Friday where both teams play their biggest games of the season.
Volleyball
After over a month off, Dinos volleyball returns to Jack Simpson Gym.
The women’s team enters a high-stakes matchup against the Saskatchewan Huskies with both teams tied at 3-7 and battling for the final playoff spot. This series could be pivotal, as only eight games remain after this weekend.
The men’s team, fresh from competing in California’s North American Challenge, faces the Huskies as well. Currently sitting seventh, the team aims to climb higher in the standings with critical matchups ahead.
Catch the action this weekend: women’s games start Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 5:30 p.m., followed by the men’s games at 7:30 p.m on Friday and 4 p.m.
Hockey
The Dinos’ hockey teams had a tough start to 2025, dropping their New Year’s series against cross-town rivals MRU. This weekend offers a chance to bounce back.
The men’s team faces the Alberta Golden Bears with puck drop on Friday scheduled for 7 p.m. at Father David Bauer Arena before heading to Edmonton on Saturday. Missing Head Coach Mark Howell and top-scoring forward Colson Gengenbach, who are both representing Canada at the FISU World University Games, the Dinos face an uphill battle.
The women’s team plays the inverse schedule, starting in Edmonton before returning home Saturday at 7 p.m. After a heartbreaking 0-1 loss to the Pandas last week that saw the Dinos almost push the scoreless game into overtime before the Pandas snuck the puck by goalie Amelia Awad with less than four minutes left in the game, the team looks to turn the tide in front of a home crowd.
Swimming
After a short escape from the cold and snow in Florida for their annual training trip, the Dinos return to the pool for the first time since the Canada West Championships for a dual meet in Toronto. The Dinos capped off the CW Championships with team silver medals for both the men’s and women’s programs with 26 individual medals, totaling 32 including medals in relay races.
Historically, Toronto and Calgary have two of the top programs in the nation. This meet will serve as an opportunity for both teams to compete against each other and improve their times and potentially set new records in preparation for the U SPORTS Championships in March.
Wrestling
The Dinos are back on the mat in Edmonton on Saturday for the Golden Bear Open. The women’s team look to continue the defense of their Canada West banner and this meet will be a primer for the Canada West Championship Meet in February.