By Daniel Pagan
Like a certain train engine, the University of Calgary Dinos field hockey team is the “little team that could” across that huge Canadian Interuniversity Sports landscape. Unfortunately, they could have tried harder this year, but their potential is starting to show. The year started off positively with head coach Jenn Swagar and experienced players like Courtney Campbell returning, along with a number of new players. They also scored a coup when phenom Carolina Romeo put her Dinos uniform on for the first time. However, they fell victim to pressure from strong teams such as the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds. The team was an emotionally young one that was deflated by errors.
In the final four games they banded together to put on stellar efforts to win two games. Alas, it was too late to save their CIS Nationals dreams and they were denied once again. But unlike the humiliations suffered in the past, their record was 2-8-2, the best since 2003. Swagar has found a team chemistry she can work on in the off-season. If the team focuses on reacting positively to pressure, the Dinos field hockey team will be a serious contender next year.