© Sports the other press e fFlashGordon e dcsportseditor@yahoo.ca November 19, 2003 Men’s Soccer Team Makes Trip to National Soccer Tournament Adam Gordon Centre for Sport Partnering- Up to Form Badminton Academy Adam Gordon Centre for Sport At the beginning of the 2003 season, the Royals were touted as one of the teams to watch. Their roster bolstered several talent- third in the nation. Coach Joe Ormerod is already looking to next year for another opportunity to win a national champi- onship but feels no shame in third place. “It’s slightly disap- pointing because we felt we had a team that could win it this year,” says Ormerod. His team showed a lot of heart bouncing back from their loss to Seneca to win the bronze medal. The ed, young athletes many of whom were returning players. After a 2002 Provincial Championship gold medal and silver in the National Championships, there was much speculation that the Royals could be a contender to win a national title. To add to the prestige and the pressure, Douglas College co-hosted the event with UCFV. The Royals finished their season strong in second place in BCCAA League and took silver in the provincials. A berth in the national tournament pitted the Royals against Seneca College from Ontario. It was a close game but in the end a heart-breaking 2—1 loss. Their hope for national gold dimmed. A slim chance lay with Mount Royal College. If they could defeat Seneca, Douglas would play for the gold but Mount Royal also fell to Seneca; Douglas moved on to the Bronze coach and his team were pleased with the way the tournament was executed and appreciated all of the efforts of the organizers. It was truly a “top-class” event, declared Ormerod. Douglas College’s Athletic Program produces quality sports teams and provides opportunities for student athletes to advance in their sport. One such example happened for Matt Ormerod, a star on the men’s soccer team. After his stellar sea- son and tournament play, Matt was offered a U-23 Canada National Team tryout and a chance to tryout with the The Sports Institute will begin an unprecedented partnership in Januar Vancouver White Caps. His success is a tribute to the programs p P Pp y F prog 2004 with Badminton BC’s Technical Director, Arif (Al) Mawani to provide leadership for the Douglas College Badminton Academy. Miwani is a for- mer badminton coach of Douglas College from 1985-92 through some very successful years. In fact, most of the National Championship banners hang- ing in the gymnasium are attributed to his coaching prowess. His influence goes beyond his time at Douglas College since former pupil, Chantal Jobin, took over as coach in the late 90s. It was a welcome and natural merger for an old friend to team up with Douglas College again. In conjunction with Program Director, David Munro, all of the Sports Institute’s badminton activities have been incorporated under one umbrella, The Douglas College Badminton Academy. Mawani brings a wealth of experience to the first-ever Douglas College Badminton Academy, where his coach- mentoring program will provide coach- es for the BCCAA varsity team. The Sports Institute will funnel much of the BC’s top talents through the Badminton Academy furthering the influence of Douglas College’s Athletic Programs in the Lower Mainland. The college play- ers gain an excellent opportunity to develop their badminton skills and coaching expertise in an incredible proactive environment as a Douglas College Royal. Popularity of the sport at Douglas College allows members of the bad- minton community to benefit from the technical and coaching workshops offered to players and coaches. The Sports Institute continues to promote badminton through the Academy with drop-in sessions available to anyone young or experienced on Tuesday and Thursday in Coquitlam. In addition, youth camps during spring breaks and summers will be organized under Mawani. It is truly a unique initiative since no other college in BC offers so much all in one place. Mawani will make Douglas College synonymous with badminton in the Mainland. Lower Medal Game versus a team from Quebec available at Douglas College. The Royals defeated Champlain College 2—1 and finished Women’s Rugby Dave Pearcy OP Contributor Sat, Nov. 8 Premier Division: Douglas 20 UVIc 5 Douglas travelled to Vancouver Island for a rematch with a UVic team that had almost handed them their first defeat of the season a month previously. Despite the early morning ferry trip, the team showed great resolve from the opening kick-off and had UVic under pressure immediately. Maintaining possession and territorial advantage for most of the half, Douglas dominated and put the game out of reach. Laura Kinnear- Harmse, Carly Albiston, and Corinne Jacobsen scored tries on short runs to put the Royal City ladies up 15-0. Amber Cummings rambled 50 metres down the touchline to give DRC a commanding 20-0 lead. UVic exploited a defensive breakdown to score on a long run just before halftime. Douglas was less cohesive in the sec- BRS Page 24 e http://www.otherpress.ca ond half, as it appeared many players were now feeling the effects of being roused at 5am for the first major road trip of the season. Neither team managed to score in the final 40 minutes, although the game ended with Douglas in posses- sion within inches of the try line. Hard running, Carly Albiston had an out- standing game as she made many pene- trating runs through the defense. Unfortunately, Carly had to leave the pitch in the second half with an ankle injury and may be lost for the next few league matches. Sun, Nov. 9 2nd Division: Douglas 3 Pocomo 29 This game featured the second place 2nd Division team (Douglas) against the sec- ond place 1st Division team (Pocomo) in a league interlock contest. Each team had lost just once this season to teams in their respective divisions. Although this was only the third ever meeting between the two teams, the game was very intense from the start, as Douglas and Pocomo have been arch-rivals in men’s rugby for 30 years. Pocomo showed some superior ball- handling in the backs to score two con- verted tries in the first half Douglas came very close to scoring just before the intermission as Agnes Stefek chased down a kick ahead by fly-half Candace Barry, but was unable to gain possession near the Pocomo try line. Douglas threatened in the early moments of the second half, but the Pocomo defense held up and Barry was wide on a kick at goal. In the last 20 minutes, the superior fitness of the 1st Division team took over and Pocomo ran in three more tries sandwiched around a successful penalty goal by Barry. Douglas came closest to a major score on the final play of the game as Mel Skolovy was held up as she crossed the Pocomo line.