Photo by Daman Singh

Weekly Dino Digest: Jan. 31 to Feb. 2

By Maggie Hsu, January 31 2025—

It’s a big weekend on the ice for the Dinos! With the conclusion of the Crowchild Classic happening at the Saddledome and the 2025 Canada West Curling Championships going down at the Calgary Curling Club and plenty of other Dinos action taking place, there are 28 games and events for you to take in. As always, all Dinos home games are free (including Pack the Jack!) 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!

Swimming

The Dinos swim team hit the pool in UCalgary Aquatic Centre this weekend to host their final home meet with the annual Colleges Cup. Both the men’s and women’s teams are ranked second in the nation and are in prime condition to make a statement at the 2025 U SPORTS Championships in Toronto on March 6-8.

Curling

It’s a huge weekend for Canada West curling this weekend with eight schools and 16 programs descending on the Calgary Curling Club for the conference championships. A total of 40 games will be played over the next three days to determine who will take home the Canada West titles. The men are coming off of a silver medal last season while the women tied for second but missed out on booking their ticket to Nationals.

The top two teams coming out of this weekend’s tournament in both the men’s and women’s brackets will move on to the 2025 U SPORTS/Curling Canada University Championships that will be hosted in Lethbridge in a month.

Hockey

Not only is it a huge weekend for Dinos sports fans to take in the Crowchild Classic on NHL ice, but there is a lot on the line for both Dinos’ squads.

The sold-out Saddledome crowd will witness the women’s team fight for their playoff lives as they are one Trinity Western win away from being eliminated from playoff contention. Friday’s puck drop is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. while Saturday’s rematch is set for 5 p.m. in Flames Community Arenas.

The men will be fighting for a better playoff position this weekend. With two wins over Trinity Western last weekend, the Dinos will hope to continue this win streak that can help them move closer to overtaking Mount Royal who sit second in the West Division. As it stands right now, the Dinos will face the Alberta Golden Bears in the first round of the playoffs but with a second-place finish, they can have an easier match-up against the MacEwan Griffins. Puck drop at the Saddledome is set for 7:30 p.m. after the women’s game. Their Saturday rematch will be hosted in Father David Bauer Arena with a 7 p.m. puck drop.

Check out a more detailed preview of the Crowchild Classic here.

Volleyball

Both volleyball squads visit Brandon, Manitoba for a couple of weekend series against the Brandon Bobcats.

The men’s team picked up a valuable win over the Trinity Western Spartans to split last weekend’s series, marking the Dinos’ first win over Trinity Western in almost a decade. More importantly, it moved the Dinos to eighth in the league with just four games left in the season. The top 10 teams move on to the playoffs so the Dinos are currently holding a playoff berth but anything can happen over the last two weekends of the season, particularly with the Bobcats who sit right behind the Dinos in the standings ready to knock them down and out.

The women’s team managed to pull out of last weekend with a big win over Trinity Western, breaking a five-game losing streak. Sitting outside of the playoff picture in 11th place, the Dinos will need to finish the next four games of the season off strong and keep an eye on 10th place Regina to keep their playoff dreams alive.

Basketball

After a huge weekend against Mount Royal last weekend, both basketball teams return to Jack Simpson, riding a series sweep over their crosstown rivals.

The women kick start the weekend, playing host to the Brandon Bobcats at 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. The Dinos hold a perfect record in the second semester of the school year, moving them to an 11-3 record, earning them a seventh-place ranking in the latest U SPORTS power rankings. The Dinos expect to add to their undefeated status in 2025 as historically, they have had success over the Bobcats, winning 18 of the last 19 regular-season meetings.

On the men’s side, the number four-ranked Dinos continue a much-needed home schedule. The 11-3 squad is tied for second in the Canada West Prairie Division just one game behind Winnipeg for the top spot. Former MRU Cougars Nate Petrone and Dylan Lutes had a huge weekend on Kenyon Court and hope to bring this energy to Jack Simpson against the 4-10 Bobcats with Friday and Saturday’s tip-offs scheduled for 8 p.m. both nights.

Track and Field

The Dinos’ track and field team are set to host their third and final home meet this weekend for the annual Dinos Classic in Jack Simpson Gym on Sunday at 9:30 a.m.

The Dinos have already qualified for seven events for the U SPORTS Championships and will look for more automatic qualifiers this Sunday as well as next week in Edmonton for the Pandas Challenge Feb. 7-8 before the Canada West Championships to be hosted Feb. 21-22 in Regina.


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