This Week In Cougar Athletics

Friday (all times CST)
Women’s Basketball – at Winnipeg, 6:00 PM (Winnipeg, Man.)
Men’s Hockey – vs. Alberta, 7:00 PM (The Co-operators Centre)
Women’s Volleyball – vs. MacEwan, 7:00 PM (CKHS)
Men’s Basketball – at Winnipeg, 8:00 PM (Winnipeg, Man.)
Women’s Hockey – at Alberta, 8:00 PM (Edmonton, Alta.)

Saturday (all times CST)
Men’s Hockey – vs. Alberta, 3:00 PM (The Co-operators Centre)
Women’s Hockey – at Alberta, 3:00 PM (Edmonton, Alta.)
Men’s Basketball – at Winnipeg, 5:00 PM (Winnipeg, Man.)
Women’s Volleyball – vs. MacEwan, 7:00 PM (CKHS)
Women’s Basketball – at Winnipeg, 7:00 PM (Winnipeg, Man.)

Women’s Volleyball – The Cougars (10-8) have now won four consecutive matches and sit all alone in fifth place in the Canada West standings after a home weekend sweep over Brandon last weekend. They beat the Bobcats in three sets on Friday, then followed that up with a four-set victory on Saturday. The homestand continues this weekend with a pair of critical late-season tilts against MacEwan (8-8), one of three teams currently sitting with a .500 conference record. The Cougars and the Griffins will play at 7:00 on both Friday night and Saturday night at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.

Men’s Hockey – The Cougars came away with a weekend split against Manitoba last weekend at The Co-operators Centre, losing 5-2 on Friday but winning 6-3 on Saturday thanks to a pair of Zak Zborovsky goals and 24 saves by goaltender Brandon Holtby in two periods of work. The Cougars will be back at home this coming weekend against the No. 2-ranked Alberta Golden Bears. The teams will meet at The Co-operators Centre at 7:00 on Friday night and at 3:00 on Saturday afternoon.

Women’s Basketball (U SPORTS Ranking: No. 9) – The Cougars (13-3) took both ends of a weekend doubleheader over Thompson Rivers in Kamloops, winning 75-52 on Friday and by a 72-44 margin on Saturday. Battling for a top-four spot in the conference with just four games left in Canada West play, the Cougars play a pair of road games at Winnipeg this Friday (6:00 PM) and Saturday (7:00 PM).

Men’s Basketball – The Cougars (12-4) had a huge road sweep over Thompson Rivers last weekend, registering a wild come-from-behind 88-87 overtime win on Friday and following that up with an 84-77 win on Saturday. The team has two more road games this weekend, as they’ll make the trip east to square off with a quality Winnipeg team that enters Friday’s game with an 11-5 record. Tip-off is set for 8:00 on Friday night and 5:00 on Saturday night as the men’s contest leads off the doubleheader.

Women’s Hockey – The Cougars suffered a pair of road losses to Canada West-leading Manitoba last weekend, dropping 3-1 and 7-3 decisions to the No. 2-ranked Bisons in Winnipeg. The team will face off against another ranked opponent on the road this weekend, as the Cougars will head up to Edmonton for games against the No. 4-ranked Alberta Pandas on Friday night (7:00 MST) and Saturday afternoon (2:00 MST).

Swimming (Men’s U SPORTS Ranking: No. 9) – The Cougars competed in the Toronto Grand Prix and the Winter Invitational this past weekend at the University of Toronto. Kareem Tarek Mohammed became the ninth Cougar to qualify for the U SPORTS meet after winning the 1500-metre freestyle in a time of 15:43.81 on Sunday. Brian Palaschuk ended up with a total of five first-place finishes, winning three events at the long-course Grand Prix and two more at the short-course Winter Invitational. The Cougars’ final tune-up meet before nationals will be at the Goldfins Brainsport Winter Classic in Saskatoon in early February.

Track & Field – Joely Welburn added another U SPORTS standard over the weekend at the Golden Bear Open in Edmonton, automatically qualifying in the long jump with a leap of 5.91 metres which placed her second in the event. Welburn, who hit the national standard in the high jump earlier this season, also teamed up with Skylar Smith, Michaela Allen, and Laura Huck to take down the school’s 4x400-metre relay record on Saturday. Greg Hetterley also broke a U of R record on the men’s side after winning the 1500-metre run in a time of 3:53.48. The Cougars will have this weekend off before returning to competition at the Bison Classic on Feb. 1 and Feb. 2 in Winnipeg.