By Mike Hallman
At a tournament where the official weather report was for rain, monsoon rain, and rain of biblical proportions, it’s a wonder they played at all.
The third Canada West field hockey tournament took place at the University of British Columbia Oct. 17-19. The Dinos won half their games, which put them, once again, in third place. This third-place finish means that the Dinos will not be going to Nationals, as only the top two Canada West teams are invited.
The Dinos beat both the University of Manitoba and the University of Alberta; with respective scores of 5-0 and 2-1losing to both the University of Victoria and the University of British Columbia, by identical 2-0 scores.
"We won two and lost two," said defender Melissa Bryden. "The big thing is that we beat the University of Alberta, and that’s really good."
Why is that the big thing? At the second Canada West field hockey tournament, the Dinos were forced to forfeit their game against the University of Victoria, for using an ineligible player. That forfeit, due to the point standings, meant that the Dinos could not win enough games to make it to nationals.
"They screwed us over on a technicality," said defender Katherine Ronca. "If they would have came to us first we could have sorted out the problem, instead they went directly to the officials, which meant there was no way we could have gone to nationals."
Though the team will not be proceeding to the CIS national championship at York University in Toronto, there was some very good news for two players. Elizabeth Allen and Clare Linton were both selected for the Canada West All-Star Team.