THIS WEEK IN COUGAR ATHLETICS

Home Events
Women’s Basketball – vs. Brandon, Friday (6:15 p.m.) at CKHS
Men’s Basketball – vs. Brandon, Friday (8:15 p.m.) at CKHS
Women’s Basketball – vs. Brandon, Saturday (5:00 p.m.) at CKHS
Men’s Basketball – vs. Brandon, Saturday (7:00 p.m.) at CKHS
Men’s Hockey – vs. Saskatchewan, Saturday (7:00 p.m.) at The Co-operators Centre

Away Events
Women’s Volleyball – at Trinity Western, Thursday (8:00 p.m. PST) in Langley, B.C. – Match 1
Wrestling – at Canada West Championships, Friday/Saturday in Saskatoon, Sask.
Women’s Hockey – at Manitoba, Friday (3:00 p.m.) in Winnipeg, Man. – Game 1
Men’s Hockey – at Saskatchewan, Friday (7:00 p.m.) in Saskatoon, Sask.
Women’s Volleyball – at Trinity Western, Friday (8:00 p.m. PST) in Langley, B.C. – Match 2
Women’s Hockey – at Manitoba, Saturday (2:00 p.m.) in Winnipeg, Man. – Game 2
Women’s Volleyball – at Trinity Western, Saturday (7:00 p.m. PST) in Langley, B.C. – Match 3
Women’s Hockey – at Manitoba, Sunday (2:00 p.m.) in Winnipeg, Man. – Game 3

Women’s Basketball (CIS Ranking: No. 4) – The Cougars (18-2) can clinch second place in the Prairie Division with a win this weekend, but will need some help on the out-of-town scoreboard in the form of a Saskatchewan win over Alberta to have a chance at finishing first. The U of R won its 13th and 14th consecutive Canada West games last weekend with a pair of victories over Calgary and finish off the conference schedule with two home games against Brandon (Friday, 6:15 p.m. and Saturday, 5:00 p.m.).

Men’s Basketball – The Cougars (4-16) split with Calgary at home last weekend, losing 77-66 on Friday but recovering for a 92-81 win on Saturday. The 2013-14 season concludes this Friday and Saturday at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport as the Cougars will host Brandon to close out the schedule. Game times are set for 8:15 p.m. on Friday and 7:00 p.m. on Saturday.

Men’s Hockey – The Cougars (11-13-2) were tasked with facing No. 1-ranked Alberta at home last weekend and the Golden Bears emerged with the victory on both nights, winning 5-0 on Friday and 5-2 on Saturday. The Cougars could finish anywhere from fourth to seventh in the tight Canada West standings with just two games remaining on the conference schedule, which happen this weekend with a home-and-home against Saskatchewan. The teams play in Saskatoon on Friday night and in Regina at The Co-operators Centre on Saturday (7:00 p.m.).

Women’s Volleyball – It was another weekend sweep for the surging Cougars, who finish the conference schedule at 12-10 after road wins over then-No. 6 UBC Okanagan on both Friday and Saturday. Desiree Ates (347 kills) and rookie setter Leah Shevkenek (860 assists) both set Canada West single-season records for the Cougars, who finish in sixth place in the conference standings and will travel for a best-of-three Canada West quarterfinal series at Trinity Western that begins on Thursday.

Women’s Hockey – The Cougars (11-13-4) went into last weekend knowing they couldn’t move up or down from fifth in the Canada West standings and had a pair of road losses to Alberta, losing 2-1 on Friday and 4-0 on Saturday. The Cougars now turn their attention to the Canada West postseason, as they’ll hit the road for a Canada West quarterfinal series at Manitoba. The best-of-three series will be comprised of afternoon games, including a 3 p.m. start on Friday, a 2 p.m. game time on Saturday, and a 2 p.m. start on Sunday if a third and deciding contest is needed.

Wrestling (Women’s CIS Ranking: No. 10) – Both Cougar wrestling teams head to Saskatoon this weekend for the Canada West Championships hosted by the University of Saskatchewan. The No. 10-ranked women’s team is led by the experienced Kristine Longeau and begins the meet with a 2 p.m. dual against Saskatchewan before wrestling two more times on Friday and once on Saturday. The men’s team returns Jacob Luczak and Matt Fedler from last year’s group that competed for the U of R at the CIS Championships, and the Cougars start at 8 p.m. on Friday before wrestling thrice on Saturday.

Track & Field (Men’s CIS Ranking: No. 7 / Women’s CIS Ranking: No. 10) – The Cougars competed in two meets over the weekend, participating in the SGI Canada Indoor Games on Friday and Saturday on Regina and sending a select group of athletes to the Windsor Team Challenge on Sunday. Jeremy Eckert had one of the highlights, winning the high jump in Windsor after clearing the bar at 2.14 metres in a jump-off. Both teams will now have a weekend off before competing in the 2014 Canada West Track & Field Championships hosted by the University of Alberta.

Men’s Volleyball – The Cougars finish their season at 4-18 after a strong finish which saw them win four of their last six matches, including two wins on Friday and Saturday over UBC Okanagan. The Cougars took out the Heat in four sets on Friday, then turned to rookie setter Alex Cassels in a five-set win on Saturday. Three school single-season records fell this year, including Andrew Nelson in both kills (288) and attack attempts (784) and Rhodri Simmonds in blocks (94). This weekend marked the final matches of the careers of five fifth-year Cougars, including Nathan Cherwaty, Ryan Cherwaty, Caleb Eschbach, Joel Legasse, and Marco Vargas.

(Courtesy Braden Konschuh/U of R Athletics)