THIS WEEK IN COUGAR ATHLETICS

Rams Football – A pair of special teams plays and a pick six in the span of six minutes in the second quarter proved to be too much for the Rams to overcome, losing 42-18 on the road to Manitoba on Friday night to fall to 1-1 on the season. The Rams are back on the road this season, looking to climb back over the .500 mark against Alberta (0-2) on Saturday. Access70 and CKRM’s RM2 feed will carry the game live (5:00 p.m. kickoff).

Women’s Soccer – The Cougars (2-2-0) split over the weekend, losing 1-0 to No. 7-ranked Alberta on Saturday but setting a school record for most goals in a game with a 6-1 victory over Mount Royal on Sunday. Third-year midfielder Kayla McDonald led the offensive charge for the Cougars in the Sunday win, scoring her first two Canada West goals in the victory. Looking to stay in the thick of the Prairie Division playoff race, the Cougars make the short trip west this weekend for a pair of games at Lethbridge (0-3-1).

Women’s Hockey – The Cougars participate in the Mandi Schwartz Challenge at The Co-operators Centre this weekend. They’ll play four games, starting on Thursday night (7:15) against Team Saskatchewan’s U18 team before playing York (Friday, 7:00 p.m.), Manitoba (Saturday, 7:00 p.m.), and Saskatchewan (Sunday, 2:30 p.m.). The Cougars will also meet Saskatchewan on Sept. 27 in Kindersley before starting Canada West play on Oct. 3 and Oct. 4 at home against Manitoba. Find a full tournament schedule for this weekend’s tournament on the women’s hockey page at www.reginacougars.com.

Women’s Basketball – The Cougars begin exhibition play with a pair of games against ACAC competition. They’ll square off with Medicine Hat College on Friday in Moose Jaw before hosting Lakeland College on Sunday afternoon (1:00) on campus at the Centre for Kinesiology, Health & Sport.

Men’s Hockey – The Cougars hosted the University of Regina Summer Challenge over the weekend at The Co-operators Centre, with Calgary taking the non-conference tournament title as the event’s only undefeated team. The Cougars lost 7-5 on Thursday to Saskatchewan, then fell 5-2 to Calgary on Friday and 6-3 to Alberta on Saturday. In one final tune-up before Canada West play starts, the Cougars will play NAIT on Saturday night in North Battleford.

Cross Country – The Cougars dominated their opening meet of the season, as the men’s and women’s teams both had the first five CIS runners across the finish line. Matt Johnson and Adam Strueby blew away the rest of the field in the 8K men’s race, while Avery Westberg finished second overall with a 5K time of 18:55. The teams will now have a weekend off to prepare for the Roy Griak Invitational, which will be hosted by the University of Minnesota on Sept. 27.

(Courtesy Braden Konschuh/Cougar Athletics)