Runners do OUA proud at Notre Dame Meet

This past weekend, the prestigious University Notre Dame held its annual invitational Meyo Track and Field Meet. Select runners from Guelph, McMaster, Toronto, Western and Windsor posted some impressive results against top NCAA track schools.

Here are some notables:

Guelph
--Nadine Frost (Bocabec, NB) finished second in the women's 1000 m with a time of 2:51.89.
--Jess Vanhie and Lydia Frost finished 5th and 7th respectively in the same race
--Kyle Boormsa (Guelph, ON) was 4th in the men's mile with a 4:01.79
--Dustin Gamble (Guelph, ON) finished 4th in the men's 800m

McMaster
--Jillian Wyman (Dundas, ON) placed 8th in the women's 800m with a 2:52.80
--Teammate Katie Anderson (Exter, ON) was not far behind at 2:55.69

Western
--Milada Similuk (Ottawa, ON) triple-jumped (is that verb?!?) 11.99 m placing tenth.

Toronto
--Sarah Boyle (Scarborough, ON)and Laura Maessen (Dartmouth, NS) finished 5th and 7th respectively in women's high jump
--Mike Trnkus (Oakville, ON) finished 8th in the 300m dash

Windsor
--Noelle Montcalm (Windsor, ON) took first place running 38.85 in the 300m. She also came in 2nd in the 200m
--Melissa Bishop (Eganville, ON)and Raeleen Hunter (Beaumont, AB) took 5th and 9th respectively in the 800m
--Adam Keller (Hampton, NB)and Matt Walters (North Bay, ON) finished in the top 10 in the men's 1000m

Find full results here



Congrats to all athletes reppin' the OUA in South Bend

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Carr-Harris Cup Thoughts

I expected a better performance from Queen's on the heels of that stinker vs. Ryerson, and I expected RMC to play with a lot of fire against their biggest rival. I was right on both accounts.

- Queen's was much more aggressive on the puck, however I'd still like them to be more physical. Opposing D-men don't really have too much to worry about from the Queen's forecheck if they can make a good pass.

- RMC played very hard, but were undisciplined at times and clearly lacked scoring punch.

- Queen's still has too much trouble getting out of their zone. they are either too hesitant on the break out or just make a bad first pass. If I'm their coach I spend all week on breakouts.

- Kurt Matthewson's double minor in the second period really threw the momentum behind Queen's and seemed to indicate how the game would end.

- Queen's got a little help from Ryerson who knocked off Toronto, but the Gaels definitely need to beat the Rams this Wednesday as they are tied with Carleton and 1 back of the Varsity Blues.

- You gotta love the OUA Hockey races this year. In the West you have the top 4 teams all within 5 points of one another. In the East, you have 3-5 within 1 point. It's Crunch Time!

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A Welcome Change

For those who have not heard - there has been some ground made in the fight to get more Canadians in rightful places in the CFL. This past week Dan Brannagan, Michael Faulds, and Calgary's Erik Glavic were invited to the CFL E-Camp. Also, as you loyal GryphTalk listeners have learned, Guelph's Justin Dunk will be trying out with teams at the wide receiver spot but I would be stunned if they didn't let him throw while he was there. A lot has been made of the struggle to get Canadians in at QB in the CFL but this is definitely welcome news.

From a realistic standpoint, it's hard to ignore that Glavic and Faulds have the best shot at a roster spot. Both are well over 6 feet tall, Glavic has a solid arm and is very mobile while Faulds is probably the best throwing quarterback in the country. Obviously there is the issue of his age and the ceiling on his potential being a bit lower than the other 3, and there is also the status of his knee which we all remember playing a huge factor at the end of this year's Yates Cup. If anyone in the CIS looked like they were built to play QB in the CFL that person would look a hell of a lot like Michael Faulds. That being said, we can't ignore the other two.

Brannagan is coming off of a phenomenal season with the Golden Gaels which as we all know ended in a Yates Cup victory over Western, a Mitchell Bowl victory over Laval, and a Vanier Cup victory over Calgary. In doing so he outdueled 3 of the best QB's in CIS history, and played borderline flawless football in that span. He has proved himself as a winner and has a huge arm. Obviously his size and mechanics may be issues in the eyes of scouts and coaches, but you cannot ignore the resume.

Dunk is a different story. In Justin Dunk you have a guy who is big enough, strong, and very mobile. He has proved himself to be a gamer (maybe even too much of one at times) and is a leader on the field. The main issue for Dunk may be his decision making, but if he can prove to coaches and scouts that he can make the right choices in a game in addition to having a good knowledge of offences, he could also be a good option for teams. At any rate, it would be hard to not envision him at the next level at wide receiver as he has many of the intangibles you would look for.

While the invitations certainly do not guarantee a roster spot for any of these players, it is certainly a good first step into breaking down the barriers surrounding the exclusion of Canadians from certain positions. In fact, Justin Dunk briefly spoke to this point on GryphTalk which can be heard here.

For other takes on this:

Mike Treadgold's opinion is here
The OUA News Release is here

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New GryphTalk Episode

This episode aired on Friday, January 29th. You should definitely check this show out if you haven't already. Mike Treadgold and Ken Cheesy do a great job covering sports at the University of Guelph and within the OUA. This segment has Justin Dunk talking about his football career as well as thoughts about professionals in the upcoming Olympics

Listen Here

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One Terrible Game

I went out to the Kingston Memorial Centre last night to catch some OUA Hockey. The Queen's Golden Gaels took on the less than stellar Ryerson Rams in a game with massive playoff implications for Queen's. You would think that being in the heart of the OUA East playoff race would spur the Gaels on to a hard fought performance ultimately ending in a win against a team that they had beaten one week earlier. Instead they put out a bumbling performance that was almost comical in its sloppiness. The final score read 9-5 Ryerson. I would like to re-iterate that this is, in fact, a hockey game I am talking about - not Lacrosse. Here's a few things I saw:

- Ryerson's forecheck overwhelmed Queen's all game. Ryerson was playing 2-3 men up on the defence which meant that if Queen's could clear the zone they had several good scoring opportunities, but that was a huge If.

- Both goaltenders looked very shaky at times. Ryerson's Paul Gibson appeared to settle down in the 3rd, but Steele De Fazio (Queen's) didn't look confident at all out there.

- On that note, don't quite understand the goalie juggling by Queen's at the end of the game. Down 8-5 Queen's pulls De Fazio in favour of Fraser Nash, only to let De Fazio back in after Nash surrenders the 9th goal during a scrum in front of the net. My guess is that it was an equipment problem but if not, I don't get it.

- Tied 5-5 early in the third, this game could have ended very differently had Payton Liske not taken a dumb hooking penalty during a Queen's 5 on 3 power play

- Ryerson outskated Queen's to every loose puck. They showed great hustle all night.

- Queen's played very soft. They were reluctant to get dirty with the Rams despite being visibly stronger when any hitting did occur.

- It's too bad Ryerson is likely out of the playoff hunt. They are a hard working team - although, if this is just a misguided first impression I will soon find out as they play again in a little over a week.

- A disappointing performance from Queen's they came out flat in the first and third and just seemed to give up after Ryerson scored their 6th goal.

- Carleton and Toronto definitely need to capitalize on the Gaels' recent stumblings; you only get so many chances

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