Track team heads to Regina

trevor.kenney — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 16:35:22 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Pronghorn Track and Field team is off to Regina for the Canada West Championship meet this weekend.

For the second consecutive year, the Horns have qualified 30 athletes for the conference championship meet. Over the last two seasons, the Horns have qualified the largest teams in program history; an indication the new training facility is paying dividends.

The Horns head to the championship meet with a relatively young team and expectations are that the squad will post a number of personal-best efforts and have a handful of medal contenders. The men's team leads the way and is ranked 11th in the CIS heading into the conference event.

The biggest addition to the Horns squad is the return of Olympian Jim Steacy. After taking last season off to focus on the hammer throw and his Olympic quest, he will complete his fifth and final year of eligibility with the Horns this spring. Steacy enters the season still undefeated in his CIS career in the weight throw, and is ranked fourth in the world in weight throw.

Steacy will be the favorite to win the weight throw and shot put events at both the Canada West and CIS Championships and finish his career as one of the most decorated Pronghorn track and field athletes ever. To date, he has accumulated seven Canada West medals and seven CIS medals. In total, he has won 12 gold medals, including six at each meet.

Defending CIS weight throw champion Heather Steacy is another favorite to medal for the Horns. The two-time defending Canada West and CIS champion in weight, Steacy has had some early season struggles, but has slowly inched towards her personal best distances.

Kyle Murray, Brett Bromley, and Dominic Mudayai will lead a contingent of rookies who show promise and expect to rise to the occasion at the conference meet. Mudayai enters his first Canada West championships ranked third in men's long jump, while Bromley is ranked fourth in Canada West in the men's triple jump event. Sophomore sprinter Murray looks to continue his ascent in the 300 metres and challenge for a medal.

Athletes of the Week

Swimmer Kristy Gabruck and men's hockey forward Lucio Pucci-Danielle were named Pronghorn Athletes of the Week after strong performances in Canada West athletics.

Gabruck, a fourth-year breaststroke specialist out of Taber, had another successful CIS Championship meet. Gabruck set personal best marks in each of her distances and placed 11th in the 50-metre final, achieving the Swim Canada National qualifying time.

Gabruck will wrap up the winter competitive season in two weeks at the Swimming Canada Nationals in Toronto.

Pucci-Danielle, a third-year forward, had his best weekend of the season as the Horns played in their final regular season games.

Friday night, Pucci-Danielle picked up a goal and an assist in the Horns' 5-4 shootout loss to the CIS #2 ranked Alberta Golden Bears. The next night, while not hitting the scoresheet, Pucci-Danielle had another strong night for the Horns in a 2-1 loss.

Horns host swimming, track meets

trevor.kenney — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 16:58:31 +0000

Pronghorn Athletics hosts a rare weekend of Canada West action when both the track and swimming programs have home dates.

Pronghorn Track

The U of L track team hosts a throws and jumping meet Saturday in the 1st Choice Savings Centre gym. Highlighting the meet is Pronghorn thrower and Canadian Olympian Jim Steacy, who will compete in the men's weight throw event at 12 p.m. The day begins at 9:30 a.m. with the long jump, followed by the men's weight throw. The women's weight throw, with Pronghorn thrower and defending CIS champion Heather Steacy in the field, then takes over at 1:30 p.m. The men's and women's shot put events round out the meet at 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. respectively.

Pronghorn Swimming

The Max Bell Regional Aquatic Centre will serve as the host site for the Pronghorn Classic swim meet. The Horns enter the competition having posted some positive results at the recent Canada West championship meet. The club is building towards the Feb. 19-21 CIS Championships that will be hosted by ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of British Columbia.

The Horns have already qualified four swimmers for the national meet, but this weekend is the first of two remaining opportunities for other members of the Horns' team to reach their qualifying mark.

The meet kicks off Friday at 4 p.m. and runs through Sunday morning. There are two sessions on Saturday, at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., and a final Sunday morning session at 10 a.m.

Men's Hockey

The men's hockey team (12-8-0) returns to action after having a bye last weekend, traveling to Vancouver to face the UBC Thunderbirds (6-12-2).

The Horns have fallen to fourth in the conference, trailing the Manitoba Bisons by three points but hold four games in hand on the Bisons.

After setting a new team mark for consecutive conference wins at eight games, the Horns were swept by the CIS #4 ranked Saskatchewan Huskies in Saskatoon two weeks ago and dropped out of the CIS Top 10 rankings.

In their only weekend set with the Thunderbirds earlier this season, the Horns split two games in Lethbridge, winning the first game, 7-2, before losing the next night, 4-3.

The puck drops both nights at 7:30 p.m. at the newly renovated Thunderbird Arena. Live scoring updates for both games can be found at this Canada West hockey scores link.

Women's Hockey

The women's hockey team (2-17-1) hits the road for their second-to-last weekend of the season, traveling to Saskatoon to face the Saskatchewan Huskies (8-9-1).

Men's Basketball

The Horns men's basketball team (4-14) is still mathematically alive for a post-season berth in the Central Division, but will need some help to qualify. The Horns trail the Saskatchewan Huskies by three games for the final position and face a tough weekend on the road.

The Horns travel to the West Coast to face the CIS third-ranked UBC Thunderbirds (17-2) and the sixth-ranked Victoria Vikes (14-5). Tip-off for Friday night's matchup with UBC is set for 9 p.m. MST and you can click on this UBC live radio link to listen to the game.

Saturday night's encounter against Victoria is available by clicking on this Victoria live radio link. Tip-off for Saturday night is set for 8 p.m. MST.

Women's Basketball

The women's basketball team (3-15) was officially eliminated from post-season contention last weekend and travels to the West Coast to face the same two schools as the men's team.

Friday night the Horns face the Thunderbirds (10-9), who have clinched a playoff spot in the Pacific Division, while Saturday the Horns conclude the road portion of their conference schedule versus the CIS sixth-ranked Victoria Vikes (13-6). Both games can be heard on streaming radio by following the same links as above.

UNews - long jump

Track team heads to Regina

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Horns host swimming, track meets

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