Dinos playoffs week 3: Dinos make waves in the pool, on the track and on the court
By Maggie Hsu, March 19 2025—
Canada West Player of the Year and First-Team All-Star Nate Petrone’s record-breaking 38-point performance — the most by a Dino in a postseason game — set the pace for the Dinos to defeat the UBC Thunderbirds 109-96 in the Canada West Final on Friday, Mar. 7 at War Memorial Gym in Vancouver, BC.
Petrone blazed through the gates from opening tip-off, going a perfect 8-for-8 from field goal range in the first quarter to quickly rack up 19 points, lifting his team to a 34-24 lead after the opening frame.
Taking a 59-52 lead into halftime, the Dinos would not sit back and aim to finish the game strongly. The Thunderbirds made multiple attempts to energize the hometown crowd early in the third, but Calgary’s offensive efficiency would continue to pepper the U SPORTS Championship hosts. The Dinos extended their lead back to double digits with valuable baskets from Declan Peterson and Third-Team All-Star Noah Wharton.
UBC’s final push came in the fourth quarter as they once again managed to close the Dinos’ lead to just four points at 95-91 with just over seven minutes on the clock and plenty of opportunities to overtake their opponents. But Calgary responded quickly, shutting down the T-birds with a 14-5 run to secure the game and the Canada West Championship.
While Wharton, Petrone and Peterson were powerhouses of the game, Wharton contributing both offensively and defensively, finishing the game with 22 points, five rebounds and five steals. Peterson was perfect from the field, going 7-for-7 to drop 16 points, adding nine rebounds and three blocks.
With the Canada West crown secured, the Dinos now set their sights on the ultimate prize—the national title. Their dominant performance against UBC not only solidifies their status as the top team in the West but also positions them as serious contenders for the INDOCHINO U SPORTS Final 8. As they return to War Memorial Gym next week, Calgary will look to carry this momentum onto the national stage, aiming to turn their conference championship into a storybook finish to the season.
Track and Field: MacDonald shatters U SPORTS records in Windsor
The Dinos wrapped up their 2024-25 track and field season at the U SPORTS Championship meet in Windsor, Ontario, finishing fifth in the women’s standings with 48 points and 13th on the men’s side with 15 points.
Day one saw the Dinos open the meet with dominant performances in the 60-meter sprint, seeing U SPORTS Student-Athlete Community Service Award winner Georgia Oland place fourth with a time of 7.43 seconds and Sienna MacDonald run a personal best of 7.47 seconds to finish sixth-place in the race. The women’s 4 x 200-meter relay team recorded a time of 1:40.53 in their preliminary heat to book a slot in the medal race.
Day two of the meet would see Sienna MacDonald steal the show as she wins national gold in the 60-meter hurdles and long jump, breaking U SPORTS records in both events (7.99 seconds in the hurdles and 6.25 meters in long jump). Noel Vanderzee picked up a bronze medal for his incredible finish in men’s high jump with a jump of 2.09-meters.
Day three featured more top-five finishes as Tatum Wade placed fifth in the 600-meter distance and Tristan Friesen threw the shot put for fifth place with a throw of 15.74 meters. Calgary’s relay teams shined bright as both 4 x 200-meter teams finished fourth and the women’s 4 x 400-meter squad finishing sixth in the final race.
MacDonald’s incredible performance not only earned her the U SPORTS Women’s Athlete of the Meet honour for the second consecutive year but also a call to join Team Canada in Nanjing, China for the 2025 World Athletics Indoor Championships.
Swimming: Dinos shine at U SPORTS Championships
The Dinos delivered an all-star performance at the U SPORTS Swimming Championships in Toronto, bringing home multiple national titles and medals over the three days of competition.
Day one saw Alexanne Lepage defend her gold medal in the 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:05:79, a personal best before she added another gold in the women’s 400-meter individual medley. Rookie Nicholas Duncan would make waves on the national stage, swimming to his own personal best of 59:38 in the men’s 100-meter breaststroke, earning him his first national gold medal. The medal count would grow on the first day of the meet with Thomas McDonald adding a bronze in the men’s 100-meter fly, a silver by the women’s 400-meter freestyle relay squad and a bronze from the men’s 400-meter freestyle relay — bringing the day’s medal count to six.
The Dinos would not slow down on day two of the national meet as Lepage would add a third gold medal to her personal and team medal count via the 200-meter breaststroke. Women’s 400-meter freestyle team member, Hannah Johnsen would add a second silver to her haul in the 100-meter backstroke. Both Lepage and Johnsen would return for the 800-meter freestyle relay to bring the Dinos’ medal count to nine with a bronze medal finish.
Johnsen was not done yet as she returned on day three with a gold medal finish in the 200-meter backstroke. Lepage would remain golden as she picked up her fourth gold medal of the meet in the 50-meter breaststroke. Hunter Payne would continue the run on gold with a first-place finish in the 1500-meter freestyle. Stephen Moore further added to the Dinos’ medal haul with a bronze medal in the 50-meter breaststroke. Lepage and Johnsen will come together again for another silver medal in the 4×400-meter medley relay while the men finished third in the same race.
Both Dinos teams would collectively finish in third place at the end of the meet with the UBC Thunderbirds sweeping the tournament in both divisions.