Women’s Basketball: Cascades drop exhibition decision to T-Birds
The University of the Fraser Valley women’s basketball team opened its exhibition schedule with a 74-57 road loss to the UBC Thunderbirds on Thursday evening.
The veteran-laden T-Birds got off to a strong start on the boards, out-rebounding the Cascades 18-9 in the first quarter as they opened a 19-7 lead. They expanded the margin to 33-19 at the half, and kept UFV at bay from there.
“It was a game that we need to experience,” said Cascades head coach Al Tuchscherer, whose relatively youthful roster features five rookies. “They’re a team that’s been brewing for the past couple years, so they’re ahead of us in a lot of ways. It was a good learning experience for us, and it’s going to make practice a lot easier, when we get in there and start talking about some of these things.
“We really struggled with boarding the basketball, particularly early in the game, and we struggled with the pace and physicality they wanted to play with. I think we’re capable of doing those things, we just don’t know what that looks like yet.”
There were several distinctly bright spots for the Cascades, most notably the play of fourth-year forward Taylor Claggett and rookie guard Abby Zawada. Claggett fashioned her standard double-double stat line: 12 points, 13 rebounds, and six assists. Zawada, meanwhile, came alive after halftime – after attempting just one field goal in the first half, she went 4-for-6 from downtown after the break to tie Claggett for team-high scoring honours.
“It was good to see her adjust a little bit, hunt her shot a little bit more, and for us to find her,” Tuchscherer said of Zawada. “Taylor was Taylor tonight. We need her to be that player, and we need her to even do more now.”
Victoria Jacobse chipped in with seven points for the Cascades, and Elissa Vreugdenhil added six points and six boards.
Keylyn Filewich paced the T-Birds’ effort on the glass, hauling down eight of her game-high 16 rebounds in the first quarter alone, and she added 11 points. Madison Legault (12 points) and Maddison Penn (11) also scored in double figures for the hosts, who out-boarded the Cascades 46-36 for the game.
Men’s Golf: Three Cascades named PACWEST all-stars, Bertram co-winner of coach of the year award
The University of the Fraser Valley golf program made an impressive awards haul this week as the PACWEST conference announced its 2018 season honourees.
A trio of Cascades men’s golfers – Daniel Campbell, Zach Olson and Kyle Claggett – have been named PACWEST all-stars after finishing among the top five in aggregate scoring over the course of the conference’s three regular-season tournaments.
Additionally, UFV head coach Chris Bertram has been voted co-winner of the PACWEST coach of the year, sharing the award with Christine Wong of the Langara Falcons.
“When you have three of the top five, you know the team is clicking,” Bertram said, reflecting on the Cascades’ trio of all-star nods. “It’s a reflection of how solid we’ve been as a team this whole fall season. Daniel has picked up where he left off last season. Zach got a win and was solid through the first three events of the fall. And of course Kyle having a great sophomore season and playing some really nice golf.”
Campbell finished second overall in the PACWEST aggregate standings through the three regular-season events, accruing 427 strokes for a 71.2 scoring average per round. That left the Bellingham, Wash. product four strokes back of Wyatt Brook of the Vancouver Island University Mariners, who took home the PACWEST player of the year award.
Olson, a fifth-year Cascade from Strathmore, Alta., is the only UFV golfer to earn an individual tourney title this season to date. He won last weekend’s UFV Invitational by four strokes, and finished third overall in the regular season with 429 total strokes.
After a steady ascent as a rookie, Claggett has been outstanding as a sophomore. The Mission, B.C. product tied for second at each of the past two PACWEST tourneys – the UBC Okanagan Invitational, and the UFV Invitational – and finished fourth overall at 432 strokes.
The balance of the PACWEST men’s golf all-star team features VIU’s Brook and Jacob Vanderpas of the Langara Falcons.
This season marks the sixth occasion that Bertram has won the PACWEST coach of the year award, having previously won it in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016. While he’s sharing this year’s award with Wong, Bertram’s name will go forward as the PACWEST nominee for the CCAA national coach of the year award, an accolade he’s earned on three prior occasions (2013, 2014, 2016).
Now in his 14th year at the helm of the UFV golf program, Bertram has built the Cascades into a national powerhouse. The men’s and women’s teams swept the CCAA national team championships last fall, and both also medaled at the 2018 Canadian University/College championships – the men taking gold to cap a dream season, and the women taking bronze.
This fall, the Cascades men’s team dominated the PACWEST’s regular-season events, winning all three by a combined 48 strokes.
Up next for the Cascades men’s squad is the PACWEST championship, hosted by VIU. That event runs Friday through Sunday at Nanaimo Golf Club.
