Midseason Reflections

» Sitting down with women’s basketball coach Courtney Gerwing

Davie Wong
Sports Reporter

I; truly has been a year of equal-
ity—one up, one down—for the
Royals. The women’s soccer team
went to Nationals and the men
bowed out. The men’s basketball
team went o-5 before picking up
wins, and the women have just
dominated. Building momentum
off of an excellent pre-season, the
team has been in the driver’s seat
of their own destiny. With only 1
loss in 7 games, the women look
poised to be a serious challenge
for any team.

The Other Press sat down
with head coach Courtney Ger-
wing to discuss her team’s success
to open the season. “6-1 is a great
start but we know that it is often
a ‘tale of two seasons’ where the
second half can be much different
than the first. We are working
hard to ensure that is not the case
this season from a win-loss per-
spective.”

However, December won't be
a completely quiet month for the
ladies. They have a few exhibition
games planned to keep the team

warm and hopefully build on a few :

aspects. Although their record is
almost spotless, the team has not
been without its struggles. Coach
Gerwing recognizes that better
than anyone. “We have had some
offensive struggles in some games
that we will be focusing on solving
during the break. December gives
us a lot of time to study game film
and work on weaknesses during
practices.”

December also offers a unique :
: court. Many of the players take

: on other responsibilities with the
: team. “Amber Beasley has been a

: key leader amongst the team. She
: ensures that everyone is on the

: same track and has taken steps to
: develop her leadership skills. Her
: ability to be analytical also adds

opportunity for the team. As the
holidays roll right through the
season, it gives the team a chance
to do some bonding. This bonding
has been a key part of Gerwing’s
coaching regime and she believes
that is has given them an edge

of over other teams. “Our team

: chemistry just continues to get

: better and better. We really em-

: phasized that in the beginning

: of the season and do a significant
: amount of work to ensure that

: we are all on the same page... Ev-

: erything the team does, we do to-
: gether, and I think it builds team
: chemistry. At the end of the day,

: that’s the most important thing.’

: That mentality has really shaped

: the team over the years. While

: the focus is on making sure the

: team works hard and nothingis —:
: taken for granted, Gerwing always :
: ensures that the players can enjoy
: the time that they spend with the
: team.

Moving forward, the squad

: will be coming back into the reg-
: ular season with not much space
: to move up in the conference,

: buta lot of space to move down.

: Although the skill level of the

: group continues to climb with :
: every passing year, coach Gerwing :
: believes that they’re well prepared:
: for the challenges that lieahead.
: “Our team mentality has been

: about attacking wins and not

: preventing losses. Our approach

: ensures we take each game one at

atime.”
With every great season,

The players’ hard work
doesn’t end when they leave the

: there have always been star players : invaluable insight to the team,

: on the squad—players that put in
: a little extra and push the team

: farther than thought possible.

: This year however, proves to be

: an anomaly. The team currently

: has more than six different players :
: who have scored into the double
: digits in different games.

: Gerwing noted about the co-cap-
> tain.

But Beasley’s contributions

: don’t just end there. Along with

: Ellen Fallis, Beasley helps to

: manage the team’s monthly news-
: letter which allows them to stay

: connected with their fan base and
: alumni. Other members of the

: team have taken to the cause as

: well.

Lauren Sollero and Simran Bir

: manage the team’s social media

: presence. Their work allows the

: team to keep their fans up to date
: and give a unique point of view to
: the complicated, and sometime

: hilarious, world of collegiate bas-
> ketball.

 

Jettie McLaughlin is the

: team’s fundraising coordinator.

: When she isn't putting in time

: practicing with the team, she’s off
: planning and putting together the
: team’s next fundraising activity. It
: is thanks to her work coordinating :
: such events during the offseason,
: that the team managed to obtain
: new equipment, among other

: things.

But no great team is without

: a great coaching roster. When

: asked about the importance of her
: coaching team, Gerwing had no

: hesitations responding, praising

: her team of coaches for their effort :
: and contributions to the team’s

: success. “My coaching staff have
: been huge for myself, and the

Image by Davie Wong

: team. Katja Fuess has been the

: sole provider of transportation

: to practice which is massive con-
: sidering practices are at 6:15 a.m.
: Both she and Marie-Line Petit

: has played crucial roles in help-

ing the team and myself prepare

: for games. Ashley Melvin is our

: Director of Operations as well

: as our student trainer. Working

: alongside Alvin Tseng, the team’s

: physiotherapist, they have kept

: the team healthy and work hard to
: make sure players that are injured,
: are well taken care of. My life has

: been made easier by all of the staff

and their effort and desire to be a

: part of this great team.”

 

Player profile: Simran Bir

» Prolific sharpshooter for the women’s basketball team

Davie Wong
Sports Reporter

imran Bir is a third year mem-

ber of the women’s basketball
team and plays a key role at the
number five position. Standing
at 5'9”, Bir is not the tallest player
on the court but definitely not
the shortest. What she lacks in
height, she makes up for in skill.
Her shooting ability has been
integral to the team’s ability to
score offensively. When the team
struggles to get into the paint to
score, they know they can rely on
Bir to score from the outside.

Her ability to shoot well

under intense pressure comes

: from her history as a competitive
: swimmer. Unlike other players

: who have been playing basketball
: since their infancy, Bir only start-
: ed playing competitive basket-

: ball near the beginning of high

: school.

Originally, she believed that

: she would be pursuing competi-

: tive swimming going into college,
: but due to her mother’s insis-

: tence on her branching out and

: playing other sports, Bir discov-

: ered basketball. Over time, she

: developed a deep passion for the
: game, favouring the team aspects
: of the sport compared to the indi- :
: vidualistic aspects of swimming.
: Her ability to cope with large

: amounts of pressure wasa huge:
: beneficiary to her when she made :
: the decision to transition to bas- :
: ketball more seriously.

This year, Bir hopes to win

gold at Provincials to earna berth :
: at Nationals. The team has come
: second in the last two years, los-
: ing in the finals to the same team
: both years. :
: Outside of basketball, Bir isa :
: third year student at Douglas en-
: rolled in the Bachelor of Nursing
: program. While unsure about her :
: future, she hopes that basketball
: will bea part of her life, one way

or another, long after she leaves

: Douglas.

  

Image via Douglas Collage Student Servieces on Flickr