Archive News 2015-2016 | uwaterlootrackfield

Gary Simons joins UWTF Staff as Throws Coach

Simons Joins UWTF

September 17, 2015

Head Coach Shane Ferth is pleased to announce the hiring of Gary Simons, the next throws coach of the Waterloo Warriors track and field program.

Simons takes over for Ian Morton who was the head throws coach for the Warriors since 2008 and was an important figure in the success of the pentathletes at the OUA and CIS Championships. "We are sad to see Ian go, but are excited to have Gary join the team. Gary's knowledge and experience will no doubt be an asset."

Gary has over 30 years' experience as a throws coach. While teaching at Thousand Islands Secondary he coached multiple high school competitors to OFSAA gold. As a club coach he helped athletes win provincial and national medals in shot put, javelin and hammer throw. He is currently the throws coach for St. David CSS and is looking forward to working with the University of Waterloo team.

UWTF Tops Presidents Academic Honour Roll

2015 Honour Roll

October 6, 2015

On Tuesday, October 6, the Office of the President recognized the

2014-15 Warrior student-athletes who are on the academic honour roll.

This award is handed out to those students who have maintained an

average of 80% and higher while competing for an interuniversity sport.
The University of Waterloo annually enjoys one of the highest

percentages of academic all-Canadian student-athletes in the country.

This year, 171 student-athletes were honoured for their accomplishment

which makes up 30% of the student-athlete population at UWaterloo.

Consistently, UWaterloo student-athletes have demonstrated an

excellence both in the classroom and on the playing field and it is

something to be proud of.

"Within a department and campus culture that stresses the importance

of academic excellence, it is great to see the academic success of our

student-athletes being celebrated," commented director of athletics and

recreation, Roly Webster. "It is amazing to see our student-athletes

model the importance of wellness that contributes to the vibrant

student experience inside and outside of the classroom that we want all of our students to experience."

The proud student-athletes received their awards in front of their fellow teammates, influential professors, coaches, and distinguished individuals at the University of Waterloo.

2014-15 Top Achievers:

Five student-athletes were recognized this year as the top academic achievers in the classroom. These students included Alexandra McGowan (cross country/track), Reid Hayes (cross country/track), Hella-Franziska Hoffman (squash), Jennifer Mead (field hockey), and Anthony Spanopulos (soccer).

Alexandra McGowan was the top female undergrad student for the year after her first year competing with the cross country and track teams. She maintained an astounding average of 94.9% while studying Chemical Engineering.

The top male undergrad student went to Reid Hayes with an incredible average of 97.8% while competing alongside McGowan on the cross country and track teams. Hayes is now in his second year studying Physics.

The honour for top female graduate student was shared amongst Hoffman and Mead who both posted averages of 93%. Hoffman is taking her PhD in Computer Science while competing for the squash team while Mead is an Earth Science Masters student and member of the Warrior field hockey team.

The final top achiever for 2014-15 was Anthony Spanopulos, a goalkeeper for the men's soccer team who had an average of 96.9% taking a Masters in Math.

See complete list of honour roll students

Warriors Mo Yassin Wins Silver at Egypt Championships

Mo - Egypt Champs

October 30, 2015

Mo Yassin (fourth year, Waterloo), currently on his co-op term in Palo Alto, California at Tesla Motors, traveled to his birth country of Egypt to compete in the 2015 Egypt Track & Field Championships at Cairo International Stadium. At a time when most track and field athletes are in their base season Yassin was preparing to compete at the National level meet only three months after completing his very successful outdoor season with the Waterloo Track Club.

Yassin's focus has typically been on the 100m and 200m (pbs of 10.76 and 21.89 respectively) but his coach Omar in Egypt felt he would have more success in the 200m and 400m among his Egyptian colleagues. In only his third 400m race Yassin posted a personal best of 50.03 - a 0.75 second improvement over his previous best - qualifying for the 400m final where he placed 7th overall. Following day one, Yassin easily made it through to the 200m final where he won the silver medal in a time of 22.00 just behind the reigning champion.

Competing for the Zamalek Sporting Club Yassin ran the second leg of the 4x400m relay where he won his second silver medal of the meet.

Yassin said his experience at the championships was "very different" than how national championships are run in North America. Being much less organized, Yassin said he had to focus on staying mentally prepared for his races despite any confusion with the oragnization of the meet.

After returning to Palo Alto Yassin will continue his training under Coach Ferth's direction preparing for his 2016 indoor season with goals to qualify for the CIS Championships in the 60m and 300m along with being part of the mens sprints relays. The indoor season will be used as momentum building up for the 2016 Canadian and Egyption Championships.

October 30, 2015

Competing for the Zamalek Sporting Club Yassin ran the second leg of the 4x400m relay where he won his second silver medal of the meet.

Warriors begin season with strong results at Bob Vigars Open

Bob Vigars Open

December 10, 2015

This past weekend the Warriors officially opened their season at the Bob

Vigars Classic at Western University. The team came away with an

excellent set of performances including 19 personal bests, 9 team standard

qualifiers, 2 season's bests and one UWTF top 10 performance.

The Warrior short sprint crew started the day off with the 60m dash. On

the women's side, Sian Smart(Kingston) (Kingston, Jamaica) and Tegan

Sauer (Kitchener) (Kitchener) lead the way with 3rd (7.97) and 4th (8.00)

place finishes respectively. The women's team continued to dominate with

solid 200m performances, where Sauer took silver (27.54) and Kelsi Darmon

(Fergus) (Fergus) took the bronze (27.66). Also competing was Naomi

Lance (Kitchener) who had an outstanding meet taking silver in the 60m

dash (7.96) and setting a new meet record in the 200m (25.77). Lance

plans to resume studies at UW this winter and build upon her outstanding

2014/2015 season, where she helped the Warrior ladies earn a 6th place

finish in the 4x200m relay at the CIS Championships, as well as claimed an

individual 5th in the 300m.

On the men's side of the short sprints, Michael Phillips (Sussex, NB) took charge and claimed the bronze in the men's 60m dash in a new personal best time of 7.26. He followed this with another personal best and a gold medal in the 200m, crossing the line in 23.40. The Warriors took a clean sweep of the podium, with Samuel Martinello (Kitchener) and Max Stewart (Oakville) grabbing the silver and bronze in 23.50 and 23.81 respectively.

Nathan Meadows (Victoria, BC) also had a great day, claiming the men's 600m title in a very respectable new personal best of 1:23.85. He added to that the top Warrior split in the men's 4x400m relay, passing the baton off after a blazing opening leg of 51.80. Not to be outdone by her male teammate, Rachel Bronzovich (Oakville) (Oakville) took the women's 600m title in 1:38.96 and also had the fastest 4x400m split (61.4).

Adam Richardson (Ottawa) and James Milton (Kitchener) (Kitchener) lead the Warrior's distance crew taking titles in the 1000m and 1500m respectively. Both ran smart races, pacing themselves appropriately and kicking down opponents. Richardson crossed the line in 2:35.83, while Milton took his race in 4:07.77. Richardson added to his day an OUA standard time in the men's 3000m taking on a loaded field. He finished in 10th with 8:49.37, which was enough to qualify for the OUA championships in February.

Veteran high jumper David Nightingale (Kitchener) (Kitchener) led the field events squad taking gold in the men's high jump in a personal best-tying jump of 1.90m. This marks Nightingale's 3rd performance at the height. With several solid attempts at 1.95m, and a new personal best in the men's 60m dash, the Warriors expect strong performances from Nightingale in the New Year. Rookie thrower Tylynne McEvoy also had a good day, throwing a new personal best of 8.10m in the women's weight throw. Despite being new to the event, this toss puts her 10th on the UWTF all-time list.

The Warriors will spend the next month training as they prepare for the New Year. With a few key athletes nursing injuries, away on co-op, or jumping back into studies this winter, we are very excited for what's to come.

Neil Widmeyer

December 14, 2015

The Department of Athletics is sad to announce that hall of fame member Neil Widmeyer passed away peacefully

on Friday, December 11 surrounded by his loved ones.

Widmeyer was the assistant men's basketball coach from 1966-69 and head coach of the track and field program

from 1966-70. Widmeyer played an important role in the development and expansion of the track and field

program and was a leader in his recruitment and training methods.

Widmeyer led the Warrior track team to two provincial championships (1969 & 1970) and had a winning

percentage of 83% in interuniversity competition.

Widmeyer was an adoring and devoted husband to his wife of 54 years, Elizabeth Roselyn "Lynn" (nee Hipwell).

He was a loving and heroic father to children Kim Welch, Kelly (Jon) and Greg. He was the remarkably proud

and hands-on "Big Guy" of grandkids: Zachary, Megan, Madeline, and Emily.

Widmeyer was a fun-loving friend with an infectious smile, genuine kindness and empathy. Academics and athletes mourn the loss of Dr. Neil Widmeyer, affectionately known as 'Doc Wid", who was a pioneer in the field of Sports Psychology. He taught for over 30 years at the University of Waterloo and was an inspiring professor and a valued mentor to countless graduate students. His research and teachings brought great insight into topics such as team cohesion as well as aggression and violence in sports with both professional and amateur athletes.

Additionally, Doc Wid was part of the Guelph Storm hockey organization for 21 years as their Sports Psychologist, helping players in all aspects of mental preparation.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Canadian National Team boxer and 2016 Olympic hopeful, Mandy Bujold would be greatly appreciated. Contributions can be made on-line at www.mandybujold.com or at the funeral home with the options of cheque, cash, and debit.

Neil's family will receive relatives and friends on Thursday, December 17, from 1-3 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. at the Henry Walser Funeral Home, 507 Frederick Street, Kitchener, (519) 749-8467.

The funeral service will take place Friday, December 18th at 1:00 p.m. in the chapel of the Henry Walser Funeral Home followed by a reception.

UWTF Mourns Loss of Former Head Coach Neil Widmeyer

Warriors On Point at Windsor Can-Am Classic

Windsor Can-Am 2016

January 11, 2016

This past weekend, the University of Waterloo Varsity Track and Field Team travelled west to St. Denis

Centre in Windsor for the 35th Annual Can Am Track Classic. This was the Warriors’ first true test of the

2015/2016 season. A small group of 15 athletes rose to the challenge, coming away from the meet with

9 season’s bests, 8 lifetime bests, and 1 CIS automatic qualifying mark!

The Warriors’ clear star was Naomi Lance (Kitchener) who ran a spectacular 300m dash, crossing the line

in 39.94 and placing 3rd among university athletes. Lance’s fantastically-executed race simultaneously

broke her own personal best, and the coveted 40-second barrier. Throughout last year’s 2014/2015

season, Lance ran 40.52 or faster on 6 separate occasions without ever dipping under 40. The time also

was enough to squeeze under the CIS auto-qualify standard of 39.98. With her time, she automatically

qualifies for the CIS championships at York University in March. Lance has made consistent and steady

improvements during her time with the Warriors Track and Field program. Her hard work and dedication

have truly paid off and both the coaching staff and her teammates are very proud of her. Expect big

things from Lance for the rest of the 2015/2016 season!

Several of Lance’s teammates also had some great performances. Sian Smart (Kingston, Jamaica) ran a

personal best-tying 7.80 in the women’s 60m dash. The time was enough to qualify her for the final

where she finished 7th. In additional to Lance, the Warriors had a handful of others run great 300m

dashes. On the men’s side, Samuel Martinello (Kitchener) crossed the line in a season’s best time of 36.26,

just ahead of teammate Oliver Grant (Kitchener) who ran a new personal best time of 36.45. Rookies

Josh Lorentz (Peterborough) and Max Stewart (Oakville) also ran solid races, both finishing in personal

best times of 36.89 and 37.17 respectively. On the women’s side, Kelsi Darmon (Fergus) ran a solid 42.82,

a gimproving upon her last year’s season opener by a considerable margin. The Warriors also had some solid 600m performances, as Josh Lorentz ran a new personal best of 1:25.26 for the men and Rachel Bronzovich ran a season’s best of 1:38.49 for the women. Rookie Akiva Goldberg (Toronto) added a great 1000m race to the Warrior’s accomplishments. He crossed the line in a massive personal best time of 2:35.70, improving upon his previous best by over 3 seconds.

Lastly, the Warriors ran some solid relays. Lance lead the ladies’ 4x200m, carrying the baton for 24.5s, a new personal best split. Both the men’s and women’s 4x200m relay teams had season’s bests, finishing the competition with 5th and 6th places respectively. The men finished the competition with a solid 4x400m, where the Warriors battled hard against the Western Mustangs, but ultimately finished second in an exciting race and currently ranked third in the CIS.

Next up for the Warriors is the Don Wright Team Challenge at Western University on January 16th.

Don Wright 2016

Warriors Come Away with 5 Gold Medals at Don Wright Team Challenge

January 18, 2016

This past weekend, the Waterloo track and field team travelled

to Western University to compete at the annual Don Wright

Team Challenge. The Warriors came away with 11 lifetime

personal bests, 10 seasons bests, 10 top three finishes, and 1

incredible school record.

The meet started off with the women’s 60m preliminary round,

where Sian Smart (Kingston, Jamaica) and Naomi Lance

(Kitchener) both won their heats in times of 7.84 and 7.97

respectively. Automatically advancing to the final, the two

Warrior women were determined to fight hard for the gold

medal. It was a very close call in the final round, but Smart

managed to take the gold with a new personal best time of

7.79 (breaking the 7.80 barrier!), placing her 6th on the

UWTF Top 10 list and 12th in the CIS. Lance came away with

silver and a time of 7.83, which greatly improved her personal

best and sets her 10th on the UWTF list.

In the men’s 60m dash, Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) continued the sprint group’s success by running the second fastest qualifying time in the preliminary round (7.13). Knowing he could run faster, Yassin got his game face on for the final. Running a very smooth but strong race, Yassin managed to capture the gold medal with a time of 7.05, and astoundingly, considering he has just come off a coop turn in California working 70hr weeks and minimal training, 0.06 off his personal best. In the men’s 300m dash, Samuel Martinello (Kitchener) added another medal to the team’s collection by running a time of 36.40 and placing third overall.

In the longer sprints, second year Rachel Bronzovich (Oakville) continued to impress in the 600m by fighting a strong fight against alumnus Chantel Pilon. Bronzovich crossed the finish line with a time of 1:38.63, earning her the silver medal and Channel the bronze. Not wanting to disappoint on the men’s side, Nathan Meadows ran an impressive 600m race and also captured the silver medal. His time of 1:23.76 is a new personal best and sets him at #9 on the UWTF Top 10 list.

The highlight of the field events came from team newcomer Joerg Ahne (Dresden, Germany). Despite recovering from a recent injury, Ahne was able to overtake the competition and take first place in men’s long jump.

Ending off the meet were the very anticipated 4x200m and 4x400m relays. Sian Smart started the women’s 4x200m relay, running a new personal best split time of 26.4 and passing the baton to Kelsi Darmon (Fergus). Darmon ran the fastest split time of the team (25.8) and with a very smooth handoff to Jenny Carrique (Kitchener) the Warriors got themselves into first place. Not wanting to lose the lead, Tegan Sauer crossed the finish line in first place with a split time of 26.2 and an overall time of 1:45.52. The men’s 4x200m team was also able to capture gold, fending off the Western Mustangs. Yassin, Ahne, Martinello, and Oliver Grant (Kitchener) got the job done for the Warriors despite some inconsistent handoffs (including a lunging pass and a subsequent fall from Ahne!).

The women’s team captured the last medal of the day in the 4x400m race, where Naomi Lance continued to dominate the track with her incredible strength and speed. Receiving the baton well behind the other competitors, Lance judged her pace perfectly, and reeled in her rivals from Western. Lance fought hard enough to earn the team the silver medal with an incredible split time of 55.9. This time was well below her previous personal best and earned her a school record relay split.

The Warriors move into their last hard training block of the season with no meet next weekend before they head to the York Open on January 30th.

2016 York Open

Warriors Find Their Stride at York Open

February 1, 2016

Coming off their final hard two week training block of the season, the Warriors

track and field team laid down some excellent times this past weekend at York

University. The Warriors came away with 16 season's bests, 14 lifetime bests, two

results in the CIS top-12, and a school record relay split!

The meet started off with some fantastic 60m dash performances from both the

men and women. Veteran Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) easily made the finals with

a time of 7.02 in his morning heat. In the final, Yassin managed to crack through

the 7 second barrier, tying his lifetime best of 6.99 securing himself 4th place

among university athletes in a very competitive final. His time of 6.99 currently

ranks him 13th in the CIS.

On the women's side, there were multiple standout performances. Tegan Sauer

(Kitchener), Naomi Lance (Kitchener), and Sian Smart (Kingston) were all fast

enough to earn spots in the afternoon's A and B finals crossing the line in 7.95,

7.86, and 7.71 respectively. Smart's 7.71 was an enormous personal best, bettering

her previous mark by nearly a full tenth of a second. In the final, the trio all

managed to run even faster as Lance and Sauer both crossed the line in 7.84,

good enough for 6th and 7th respectively among university competitors. Smart

took another few hundredths off her time securing bronze in 7.69 and ranks her 7th in the CIS.

In the men's 300m, rookie Joshua Lorentz (Peterborough) ran a huge personal best time of 36.10 finishing 7th. Lorentz executed the race in superb fashion, utilizing his outside lane and pacing himself perfectly throughout the race. With a few more years of consistent training, Lorentz will definitely be a CIS contender and a Warrior leader in the sprints. Sam Martinello (Kitchener) also ran a solid race, crossing the line in a very respectable 36.18, finishing just behind Lorentz in 8th.

Notable performances in the field included Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) and Sian Smart (Kingston) in the men's and women's long jump. While not quite the performance he was looking for, Ahne was still able to take the title in the men's event with a leap of 6.89m. On the women's side, Smart jumped to a season's best 5.41m, good enough for 6th place.

The meet concluded with several relays and saw the Warriors field teams in 5 of the 6 events. The 4 by 200m included solid performances from both the men and women. The men's team ran a respectable 1:31.56, finishing 4th, and included Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) (22.6), Joerg Ahne (Merseburg)(22.7), Samuel Martinello (22.9) and Max Stewart (23.1). On the women's side, Naomi Lance(Kitchener) (24.2), Tegan Sauer (Kitchener) (25.6), Jenny Carrique (Kitchener) (25.9) and Kelsi Darmon(Fergus) (26.7) made up the squad. The team ran a great time, crossing the tape in 1:42.51, and claimed bronze in the event. The solid time now ranks the crew 7th in the CIS. Also notable was Lance's blazing fast 24.2 relay split. The time was fast enough to break the school record in the 200m relay split which was previously held by Olympian Heather Moyse (24.4) and dates back to 1998.

The meet concluded with a solid men's 4 by 400m. Nathan Meadows (Victoria) (Victoria, BC) (50.8), Josh Lorentz (50.9), Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) (52.6) and Max Stewart (53.1) took the baton around the track. The men crossed the line in 3:27.66 and claimed gold in the event. Splits by both Meadows and Lorentz were big personal bests and show a lot of promise for the rest of the season.

The Warriors now move into the heart of the season with CIS qualification on the minds of many athletes. Some top athletes will go to Geneva, Ohio next weekend for the Spire Indoor Track and Field Challenge while the rest of the team will sharpen their spikes before travelling down the 401 for the Windsor Team Challenge February 12-13th. There will be a lot on the line as everyone in the country will be vying for coveted spots at the CIS Championships in March. Let's see if the Warriors can rise to the challenge.

Full results for the competition can be found here: http://www.trackie.com/track-and-field/Results/2016-45th-annual-york-university-open/4719/

History in the Making

February 5, 2016

Being half way through the 2016 season two Warrior athletes who have proved to be the best in UW history are

trying to solidify their historic status by breaking as many records as they can before the 2016 season is over. This

weekend Mo Yassin and Naomi Lance will travel to Geneva,Ohio to compete at the SPIRE Indoor Team Challenge

hosted by the SPIRE Institute. SPIRE‘s stateoftheart track and field complex, founded in 2010, was deemed by

Olympic Gold Medalist Michael Johnson as the best track and field complex in the world. Since opening it’s doors,

SPIRE is known for it’s amazing 300meter eight lane track, a place athletes are willing to travel to across North

America to hit their standards whether it be CIS, NCAA, National or Olympic levels.

Yassin will be competing in the 60m and 200m looking to break the Warrior men’s 200m indoor record of 22.24 held

by Paul Gill in 2000. Considering just months ago Yassin competed at the Egypt National Championships in October

where he ran 22.00 he is well on his way to setting a new school record. Coming off of a season’s best weekend at

the York Open coach Ferth believes the 16 year old record will be erased and replaced with Yassin’s name as well

as a mark below the 22 second barrier. The goal in mind is 21.85, the CIS auto standard (to compete in the

300m) and only 0.04 off of Yassin’s personal best.

Lance, who has already made the CIS auto standard in the 300m is competing in the 200m and 400m

looking to break both school records. Already breaking the 4x200m and 4x400m split records for the school

this season it should be an easy task for the 5th year Therapeutic Rec major. In order to break the 200m

record, held by Olympic bobsledder Heather Moyse set in 1998, Lance will need to run 24.96 or faster.

Running a 200m split handtime of 24.2 so far this season Lance should easily set the record but the

challenge will be doing it following her 400m race. Knowing Lance’s strength and having nearly two hours

to recover Coach Ferth sees this as a tough task that Naomi is ready to conquer. The 400m will be an

exciting race as it will be Lance’s first flat 400m race since beginning at UW. Already setting the 400m split

record this season in a handtime of 55.9, which ties the flat 400m record held by Olympian Joan Eddy

(Wenzel) set in 1974 and 1975, the small and mighty Lance is determined to leave UW with as many

records possible. She will need to run 56.13 or faster to take down the 42 year old record. If Lance succeeds

in her tasks this weekend she will have five records in her name.

Looking to return home with three new records and a second CIS auto qualifier, Coach Ferth is excited for

what this weekend will hold and hopes these two top athletes will help put UW on the map. The team

currently has three athletes and one relay team in the top 7 of CIS Rankings. Since 2010 when Ferth took

over the program his athletes have set 20 school records, 115 Top 10 UWTF births, and three OUA medalists

one CIS medalis, 42 Top 8 finished at OUAs and 10 Top 8 finsihed at the CIS Championships.

The weekend following will be another exciting weekend as more records are expected to be
broken in the men’s Long Jump, and the women’s 300m.

Lance Rewrites UWTF Record Books

Lance Record Books

February 8, 2016

This past weekend, Head Coach Shane Ferth took the Warriors' top male and female

athletes,Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) and Naomi Lance (Kitchener) to Geneva, Ohio

forthe 2016 SPIRE Team Challenge. The spectacular facility with its lightning-fast track

drew the Warriors' top talent as the pair were searching for fantastic times. The track

proved to be magic for the Warriors as the pair came away with a plethora of great

performances, records, and CIS top-10 marks.

Lance continued her fantastic season with two absolutely electric races. She started

her day with the 400m, aiming to break the school's 42-year old record set in 1974 by

Joan (Eddy) Wenzel of 55.9h (56.14 ET). Lance went out extremely hard, quickly

making up the stagger on her competitors and was easily first to the cut in mark. She

continued the race, pacing herself flawlessly and demonstrating she was in a class of

her own on the track. She crossed the tape (easily first overall) in 55.54 and earned

her first school record of the day. Despite her fatigue from her outstanding 400m,

Lance grinded her way to another victory and another school record in the 200m. She

executed her first bend with precision, and expertly fought off mounting fatigue on the

final straight in order to cross the line in 24.88. The time beat the previous record of

the well-decorated Heather Moyse (two-time Olympic gold medalist, two-women

bobsleigh, 2010, 2014) of 24.97 from 1998.

Yassin also had an excellent day, starting off with the 60m race qualifying for the final in 8th position. Bettering his time and race execution Yassin crossed the line in a new personal best time of 6.96s for second place in the final. His time now ranks him 10th within the Top 12 qualifying placings for the CIS Championships and 5th in UW History but will need to improve to secure his position. Knowing he is still getting into race shape this is an achievable mark for the 4th year veteran. Yassin followed his 60m performance with a solid 200m. Despite a minor error in the first phase of his race which cost him his goal of setting the varsity record (22.24, Paul Gill 2000) Yassin managed a 22.31 for a new personal indoor best and 2nd best time in UW History.

Next weekend Lance will travel back to SPIRE in hopes to capture her 6th varsity record, this time in the 300m. Lance's performance this weekend in the 400m shows she's up to the challenge of breaking the 36 year old record held by UW Hall of Famer Faye Blackwood who also represented Canada in the 1986 Commonwealth Games and has a plethora of achievements in the sport. Lance will then join her teammates at the Windsor Team Challenge on Saturday in hopes to secure the relays team's position for the CIS Championships in March.

Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) will also be attempting the varsity record in the long jump that was set back in 1972 by Dennis McCann. With a personal best of 7.54m this should come easily but McCann has been the only athlete to break the 7 meter barrier for UW with a jump of 7.16m. Joerg will also team up with Mo Yassin and their fellow relay members to better their times and rankings in the 4x200m and 4x400m.

Sian Smart (Kingston) is hoping to continue her climb in the rankings in the 60m and long jump. She's currently ranked 8th in the CIS and 4th in the OUA in the 60m with a time of 7.69. Mo Yassin will also look to set another personal best in the 60m which ranks him 11th in the CIS and 5th in the OUA. He's also hoping to put himself in the rankings for the 300m where he'll need to run a time of 35.32 or better to be in the CIS Top 12. Yassin's outdoor best is 35.29.

One other Warrior to watch for is rookie Adam Richardson (Ottawa) who is currently on COOP in Ottawa and will be traveling with the Ottawa crew to Boston University to compete in a very deep field of talented athletes at the BU Valentine Invitational. Earlier this season Richardson turned heads with his gold medal race in Ottawa and a huge personal best in the 3000m with a time of 8:24.69 which at the time ranked him 8th in the CIS but now sits 24th (11th in OUA). Looking to improve on his time and earn a spot back in the top 12 he's looking to run under 8:21.90. Taking the last two weekends off Richardson is hungry for his spot at CIS Track & Field Championships.

Complete Results from the 2016 SPIRE Team Challenge

You can watch the Windsor Team Challenge live
Live Results available as well

Windsor Team Challenge

Warriors put together strong meet at Windsor Team Challenge

February 16, 2016

This past weekend, the Waterloo track and field team travelled down

to the University of Windsor to compete at the 27th Annual Team

Challenge. The Warriors came away with some impressive results,

including 11 lifetime personal bests, 10 season's bests, and 2 results

earning a spot on the UW Top 10 list.

Starting off the meet was the women' long jump and 60m heats. Sian

Smart (Kingston) took part in both events making a very busy

morning for the lady Warrior. With a solid first attempt Sian secured

a spot in the long jump final allowing her to switch her focus to the

60m heat. On the track Smart and her teammate Tegan Sauer

(Kitchener) easily won their heats and auto-qualified for the finals

with preliminary times of 7.79 and 7.87 respectively. Following the

heats Smart jetted back to her long jump competition where she had

her best series of jumps ever ending up with a best jump of 5.44m

placing her 6th but improving her season's best. Back to the track

again both ladies were striving for spots on the podium and fought to

cut down their times in the final. Smart pulled ahead of the

competition and crossed the line in 7.69 seconds, tying her personal best and earning her the gold medal. Sauer, not far behind, tied her season's best of 7.84 seconds coming away fifth.

On the men's side of the 60m dash, Yassin easily advanced to the final with a preliminary time of 7.06 seconds. Although not advancing to the final, first year Seyi Alao had an impression personal best time of 7.24 making him the second fastest Warrior in the event this season. With a raw talent and so much to learn, Seyi will not doubt work his way up to the top of the UW Top 10 List throughout his career. Coming out of the blocks strong in the final, Yassin crossed the line with a time of 7.02 seconds, placing him 6th overall. His success continued later in the day with the 300m dash, where he destroyed his previous personal best by 0.78 seconds, placing 5th overall and a time of 35.45 seconds. This places Yassin 8th in the OUA, 15th in the CIS, and 9th on the UW Top 10 list. Another notable performance in the 300m was rookie Josh Lorentz who almost broke the 36 second barrier with a time of 36.01. Lorentz continues to impress with each race he runs and the team expects big things from the rookie.

On the long sprints side, Rachel Bronzovich (Oakville) had a very impressive 600m run. The second year athlete ran a smart race fighting through the pain managing to improve her personal best time by almost a full second. Her time of 1:37.45 earned her the silver medal and the #7 spot on the UW Top 10 list. Second year Sabrina Marsh (Sault Ste. Marie) ran a season's best placing 8th overall. Earning points for the team on the men's side was Nathan Meadows (Victoria) who ran a tactical race placing 4th overall.

The most critical events of the day were the 4x200m and 4x400m relays. The women were up first in the 4x200m hoping to run a CIS-worthy time. Despite the fact that Naomi Lance (Kitchener) (the fastest Warrior woman on the team) was off nursing an injury, the team still managed to run an impressive time of 1:42.91 which converts to a season' best and 4th place finish. Their time moves them up in the ranking sitting 8th in the CIS.

Unlike the past couple of years the men have a number of contenders for the 4x200m allowing the Warriors to enter two teams and test all men vying for their spot on the A-team. Both the A and B teams had solid performances, both surpassing the teams seasons best time. The A-team earned the bronze medal with a time of 1:31.30, which currently places them 10th in the CIS. On the A-team was Mo Yassin, Joerg Ahne (Merseburg), Sam Martinello (Kitchener) and Oliver Grant (Kitchener). All but one Warrior produced a season's best split time aiding the team to their improved ranking. On the B-team was Michael Phillips (Sussex), Max Stewart, Josh Lorentz and Alex Manuel (Stouffville). Phillips returning from a nagging hamstring injury had a strong first leg with a season's best time but it was rookie Max Stewart who turned heads and showed he belonged on the A-team this weekend. Stewart ran a very strong race in a time of 22.5h cutting more than half a second off his season's best. Adding Stewart to the A-team next weekend should solidify their position at the CIS championships.

Despite a less than impressive attempt to improve their 4x400m time rookie Josh Lorentz carried the baton around the track in the fastest split time of the day for the Warriors and third fastest among all teams competing. New to the sport Josh's time of 50.4h shows he's ready to carry his team to a great performance at the OUA Championships and will no doubt be one of UW's best long sprinters throughout his career at UW. Fellow rookie Max Stewart also took nearly a second off of his best time in the event but still learning the tactics of running the long sprint races Max will be right up there with Josh in years to come.

Hats off to the top team scorers Sian Smart (Kingston) and Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) who lead the team earning points in every one of their events this weekend.

With less than 2 weeks until OUAs, the Warriors will be travelling to a few different meets next week to try and secure their spots at the CIS Championships in March.

Ahne sets team record in last chance weekend

Last Chance

February 23, 2016

This past weekend the Warriors track and field team was busy, splitting their squad and

hitting three different competitions: the Hal Brown Last Chance Meet at the University of

Toronto, the Guelph Last Chance Meet, and the Marc Denault Invitational at Cornell

University. Despite an up-and-down weekend, the Warriors walked away with 4 lifetime

personal bests, 7 season's bests, 3 UW top 10 performances, 3 CIS top 12 performances,

as well as a new varsity record.

The weekend began Friday evening at the Hal Brown Last Chance Meet. The Warrior

sprint crew had a solid showing with Mohamed Yassin (Waterloo) taking silver (first among

University) in the men's 60m in a solid time of 7.00 while Sian Smart (Kingston) took gold

in the women's race in 7.69. Her time of 7.69 ties Smart's personal best and maintains her

9th place ranking in the CIS.

The main focus of the meet was on the 4x200m relays hoping both the men's and

women's crews would improve on their times and secure their position in the top 12

qualifying teams for the CIS Championships. Both teams ran solid times earning them

both the gold medal, however it was only the men's team who improved their time overall.

Yassin lead the way with a lightning fast 22.2h lead off leg putting the team in a great

position. Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) , Samuel Martinello and Oliver Grant(Kitchener) ran the

other 3 legs and crossed the line in 1:31.12 for a new season's best. The time maintains

the crew's 10th place rank in the CIS. The women's side was lead by Smart who ran a

massive personal best split of 25.2h (nearly a second better), which places her 7th in UW

history. Kelsi Darmon (Fergus), Jenny Carrique (Kitchener) and Tegan Sauer (Kitchener)

added legs to the girls squad, crossing the line in 1:42.98. The Warrior women are

currently placed 8th in the CIS. Both teams had less than perfect hand offs costing them

valuable time. After some fine tuning both teams should be able to shave off a second on

their overall time which will help them place well at the OUA Championships.

Despite some terrible bad luck, mid race collisions, and injury flare ups, the Warriors came

away with only a few notable performances from the Marc Denault Invitational on Saturday. Josh Lorentz tied his personal best 300m time of 36.01 and placed 5th overall, while Jenny Carrique (Kitchener) came away with a solid 300m time despite a misfortunate event with the start. Confusion on the start line and poor sound quality from the starter Jenny was placed into a later heat in lane one in order to "re-run" her race. Not having ran a 300m yet this season she needed to do so to be eligible to compete at the OUA Championships. Although shook up from the first race Jenny battled to the finish running an impressive 41.86 placing her 4th overall, and the second fastest Warrior in the event this season.
Finishing the day was the 4 by 400m relay. Although neither team surpassed their season's bestRachel Bronzovich (Oakville) ran a huge personal best (more than a second) in her leg of the relay running a time of 57.9h which puts her 8th on UW's all time list.

The highlight of the weekend definitely came from Ahne at the Guelph Last Chance competition. Struggling to surpass the 7 metre barrier all season Ahne was determined to jump well and show his competition he is looking to better his 2013 CIS silver medal performance. With a safe first jump Ahne earned his spot in the final where he took his time perfecting his position to gain every centimeter possible. His patience paid off when he jumped 7.13m on his 4th attempt making him the second athlete in UW history to jump over 7 meters. Not satisfied, Ahne fouled his 5th attempt but saved his best for last. On his 6th and final jump Ahne soared to 7.24m. The jump was worth celebrating as it easily crossed the CIS automatic qualification standard of 7.15m. Moreover, Ahne is now ranked second in the CIS and is the new varsity record holder in the event. Despite some injury setbacks earlier in the season, Ahne is definitely coming into form when it counts, and the Warriors are extremely excited to see him perform at OUAs next weekend and the CIS championships in March.

With less than a week until the OUA Championships, the team is hoping to overcome a few nagging injuries and prepare to perform their very best to secure their spots at the CIS Championships.

Warriors come away with two silver medals from OUA Championship

OUAs

February 29, 2016

The Waterloo track and field team travelled to the University of Windsor

this past weekend to compete with the province's best at the OUA

Championships. The team's hard work and dedication certainly paid off -

the Warriors came away with two silver medals and 8 lifetime personal

best performances, with three individual athlete's as well one relay team

qualifying for the CIS Championships on March 10th-12th at York

University. The small Warrior team finished the competition with 27

points which was good enough for 7th in the OUA.

Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) started off the Warriors' success at the men's

long jump on Friday afternoon. Ahne would tell you himself that his final

mark was far from perfect, but his composure and performance under

pressure was paramount, and helped him come away with a silver

medal. Ahne faulted his first two attempts of the competition, and faced

elimination from the 8-man final if he could not get in a solid jump in

round 3. To the relief of his white-knuckled teammates, Ahne came

through with an 6.80m effort (far from his personal best) which was

enough to move into 4th place. Ahne's misfortunes continued in the final,

as he barely faulted enormous efforts in round 5, exploding off the board, but just beyond the foul line. Ahne remained focussed for round 6, flying down the runway and off of the board riding on the cheers of his teammates and landed a 6.89m jump, passing 3rd and 2nd place by a single centimetre and captured the silver medal and 8 team points. Ahne is currently ranked 2nd in the CIS and will be fighting for gold at CIS.

The Warrior women sprint crew had some impressive results in the 60m dash. In the preliminary heats, Sian Smart (Kingston) continued to improve and ran a new personal best of 7.67, easily advancing to the semi-finals. Smart was ranked 3rd going into the second round, but stumble and injury scare stopped her from advancing to the 7-woman final. Despite this disappointment, her new personal best time in the heats puts Smart at #4 on the UW Top 10 list, and more importantly, has secured her a spot on the track at the CIS Championships. Tegan Sauer (Kitchener) also competed in the 60m dash and auto-advanced to the semi-finals with season's best time of a 7.82. In the second round, Sauer ran an impressive new personal best time of 7.78, finally breaking the 7.80 barrier and placing her #7 on the UW Top 10 list. This secured her a spot in the 60m finals, where she finished 7th overall with a time of 7.79, earning the Warriors 2 team points.

The Warriors' star female athlete Naomi Lance (Kitchener) continued to impress in the 300m dash. Currently fighting a recurring hamstring injury, Lance was unsure she would be able to compete. Despite the injury and the fact that this was only her second 300m race of the season, Lance tore up the track and destroyed her previous best time with a blazing 39.53. This time earned her a well-deserved silver OUA medal and ties her at third with Olympian alumnus Heather Moyse on the UW All Time list. Lance auto-qualified for the CIS Championships weeks ago, but this new time has greatly improved her national ranking. Lance will be gunning for a CIS medal in two weeks' time.

Ending off the meet were the relays, where both the Warrior men and women were hoping to secure their spots at the CIS Championships. After her earlier hamstring tweak, Sian Smart (Kingston) did not participate in the women's 4x200m, and while Naomi Lance (Kitchener) did run, she was forced to take it easy as she couldn't risk further aggravating her previous injury. Kelsi Darmon (Fergus), Jenny Carrique (Kitchener) and Tegan Sauer (Kitchener) ran the other 3 legs of the relay, and the team managed to finish 5th in the OUA with a time of 1:43.16, earning Waterloo 4 team points. The ladies are currently ranked 10th in the CIS and have secured their spot at the CIS championships, where they hope to greatly improve their time and ranking.

The men's 4 by 4 was the final event of the competition, and represented everything that was the Warrior's OUA experience. Not everything went as planned (the men were missing their veteran studMohamed Yassin (Waterloo)) and they faced extremely stiff competition with only a long shot of qualifying for the CIS championships. Despite this the team rallied together (on and off the track) and gave it everything they had. Rookie Josh Lorentz ran an incredible first leg in a new personal best split of 50.3 Josh will be an athlete to watch in the coming years as he has made enormous improvements for only starting track seriously 5 months ago. Nathan Meadows (Victoria) also ran personal best split 50.7, while Oliver Grant (Kitchener) kept them in contention with a season's best 51.4. Running his first 400m of the season, Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) did everything he could and crossed the finish line in an overall time of 3:25.53, a full 5 seconds better than the men had run all season. This time placed the team 6th in the OUA and earned Waterloo 3 points, but wasn't quite enough to secure a spot at the CIS Championships. Despite their shortcomings, the team came away from the track filled with pride knowing they left it all on the track.

The select athletes who qualified to the national level competition will get in a few key workouts before the CIS Championships in two weeks time. Naomi Lance (Kitchener) (women's 300m), Sian Smart(Kingston) (women's 60m), Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) (men's long jump) and the women's 4 by 200m relay squad will be representing the Warriors at York University on March 10th-12th.

Full Results: http://www.windsortiming.com/LiveResults/2016/OUA/

CIS Champs '16

Lance Captures Silver Medal in 300m at CIS Championships

March 12, 2016

Naomi Lance (Kitchener) capped off a tremendous career winning a CIS

silver medal at nationals in the 300m race. Lance ran the finals in a time

of 39.17 and was just .07 back of the gold medal. Her time ranks her

third all-time in UW history and she was named a CIS second-team

all-Canadian for her efforts.

Full Championship Recap

This past weekend, a small group of veteran Warriors travelled to the

Toronto Track and Field Centre at York University to compete with

Canada's best at the CIS Track & Field Championships. The group did not

disappoint as the Warriors came home with a 6th place finish in the

women's 4x200m relay, a 5th place finish in men's long jump, and a CIS

silver medal in the women's 300m dash.

The weekend started off with Sian Smart (Kingston) in the women's 60m

dash. Battling back from a small injury at the Ontario Championships 2 weeks ago Sian looked ready to go. Unfortunately a few steps into the race Sian felt her hamstring injury again. Being the competitive Warriors she is she fought through the best she could but ended up 12th. Sian has made such huge improvements this year that her coaches and teammates are excited to see what she could do next season as she plans to return for a final season. Knowing that her personal best would have earned her a place in the final she's eager to come back stronger than ever.

In her last competition as a Waterloo athlete, veteran sprinter Naomi Lance (Kitchener) had a spectacular weekend, running a personal best in virtually every race. Lance executed brilliantly under the championship's pressure, following her race plans perfectly and battling hard every step of the way. On Thursday evening, with the Warriors second fastest runner and lead off specialist out (Smart), Lance carried her team in the women's 4 by 200m relay with a lightning fast personal best split of 24.0. This incredible time broke her previous school record of 24.2. Kelsi Darmon (Fergus), Jenny Carrique(Kitchener) and Tegan Sauer (Kitchener) added great splits of 25.7, 25.2 (PB), and 25.0 (PB) respectively. Overall the Warriors ran a massive season's best of 1:40.12, which makes them the 3rd best 4x200m relay team in UW history. Moreover, the time put the ladies into 4th place and qualified the group for the faster of two sections in Saturday's final.

Lance continued her fantastic competition in the women's 300m dash on Friday evening. Running with poise and precision, Lance easily won the first of four heats in a new personal best time of 39.37. This time put her in second place overall and auto-qualified her for finals. Despite running faster than she ever had before, Lance appeared as though she had left a bit in the tank for the final later that evening. Roughly two hours later, Lance took her marks in lane 4 against the fastest ladies in the country. In the early stages of the race it looked as though Sheereen Harris of York - the defending CIS champion in the event and top-seeded athlete coming into the championships - would reclaim her title as she flew past Lance from lane 3. However, Lance's race model proved better as Harris began to fade in the final turn. With 50m left, Lance took the lead and it looked as though the race was between her and the charging Ashley Whiteman of Alberta in lane 5. The last 50m was an all-out battle between the pair, with both women lunging for the line. In the end, Whiteman came away with the victory in 39.10 while Lance claimed the silver medal in a new personal best time of 39.17. Despite her defeat, Lance, as well as her coaches, teammates, family and friends were all ecstatic. Lance had run the race of her life and received her first CIS medal and was named 2nd Team All-Canadian in her last individual race as a Warrior athlete: a fantastic accomplishment.

After Lance's incredible race, Joerg Ahne (Merseburg) added a 5th place finish in men's long jump with a leap of 7.04m. Ahne got into foul trouble early in the competition, but remained poised enough to leap to 7.03m and qualify for the 8-man final after faulting his first two attempts. Unfortunately, it wasn't to be Ahne's day as he only improved to 7.04m thereafter. Unlike Lance, Ahne still has several years left of eligibility and will undoubtedly be a leader in the pit and in the relay pool for the Warriors in the coming seasons.

The Warriors' weekend concluded with the women's 4 by 200m final, where the ladies were determined to further improve the team's seasons best and secure a solid CIS final placing. Despite the exhaustion from the previous day's success, Lance ran another blazing split of 24.1. Jenny Carrique (Kitchener)tied her personal best of 25.2, placing her at #7 in UW history, while Tegan Sauer (Kitchener) ran another big personal best of 24.8, placing her at #5. Darmon ran a 25.7 for an overall final time of 1:39.86. This is another huge seasonal best for the team, breaking the 1:40 barrier and securing their spot at #3 in UW history. The Warriors finished 6th overall in the CIS, which was a fantastic improvement from their initial 10th place ranking.

The end of the CIS championships was bittersweet as it marked farewell to Warrior head coach Shane Ferth. Ferth has been with the Warriors for 13 years, first as an athlete, then as an assistant coach, and finally head coach for the past 7 seasons. Ferth is moving to the University of Guelph where he will undoubtedly play a vital role in building their sprints squad. The Warrior family would like to congratulate Ferth on his new role and assure him he will be sorely missed. We wish Coach Ferth and the Gryphons the best of luck in the coming seasons.

Athletic Banquet

Lance, Behenna collect top honours at 56th annual Athletics Banquet

April 2, 2016

The Department of Athletics and Recreation handed out their year-end

hardware at the 56th annual Athletics Banquet on Saturday evening at the

St. George Banquet Hall. A pair of KW locals took home top honours as

Naomi Lance (Kitchener) from the track team and Colin Behenna

(Waterloo) from hockey were named the 2016 Athletes of the Year.

Lance was awarded the Marsden Trophy as female athlete of the year

after a memorable season on the track.

Lance capped off her five year career in style winning both an OUA silver

and CIS silver medal in the 300m race. At the CIS Championship, Lance

ran the finals in a personal best time of 39.17 and was just .07 seconds

back of the gold medal and was named a CIS second-team all-Canadian.

Lance also broke the all-time UW records in the 200m and 400m races at the SPIRE Team Challenge beating out a previous Marsden Trophy Winner and Olympian, Heather Moyse. Lance currently has five Waterloo track records to her name.

Behenna collected the Totzke Trophy as Waterloo's male athlete of the year after his best statistical year with the men's hockey team.

Behenna finished third in the country in scoring with 44 points in 27 games played and was named the OUA West MVP, OUA west first-team all-star and CIS second-team all-Canadian. Behenna led the OUA west division in points, goals, power play goals, short-handed goals, and game-winning goals.

Behenna moved up to third all-time in men's hockey scoring with 150 points in just 109 regular season games. He was also a member of the CIS all-star team that faced off against Team Canada's World Junior Hopefuls.

Other hardware handed out included the annual Warrior Shield of Excellence award recognizing outstanding accomplishments by a graduating student-athlete in their sport, academics and community service.

Lance and Behenna were both double-award winners receiving the shields while three other standout student-athletes received the prestigious award.

Men's golfer Gajan Sivabalasingham (Stouffville) collected a shield after a tremendous five year career with the black and gold. Sivabalasingham capped it off with his second straight Len Shore Trophy as the men's individual champion at the OUA Championship. Sivabalasingham fired a two day total of -1 to claim top spot. He has also been a four-time OUA all-star and has won the OUA team championship three times as a member of the Warriors. Sivabalasingham will represent Canada at the 2016 FISU (World University) Games.

Men's squash player Cameron Seth (Fergus) was another recipient of a shield after a career full of accomplishments'. Seth won his third straight OUA individual title at the 2016 Squash Championship, going undefeated in the tournament. He has been a three-time OUA MVP while leading his team to a team bronze and silver medal the last two seasons at the OUA Championship. Seth was also golden at this year's Canadian University Squash Championship and competed for team Canada at the 2014 World University Squash Championships in India where he finished fifth. He is currently ranked 341st in the world.

Fifth year captain of the men's hockey team Joe Underwood (Canton) won a shield thanks to his tremendous career with the black and gold. Underwood was honoured by the OUA five straight years as a second-team all-star and member of the OUA all-rookie team. He is the second defenceman in the history of the program to crack the 100-point plateau with 102 points in 130 games played. His 130 games played is the second most in the history of the program.

The final Shield of Excellence was handed out to Erich Woolley (New Dundee) of the men's volleyball team. In his final year with the Warriors, Woolley was named an OUA first-team all-star, the first time in his career thanks to his 196 digs. Woolley has also been named the top libero in the country winning the CIS libero of the year award in 2014 after leading the nation in digs with 227. He is also a two-time OUA libero of the year (2013, 2014) and was a member of the OUA all-rookie team in 2012. Woolley posted 959 career digs in 87 career games, good for 11 digs per game.

The Imprint Coach of the Year award was collected by head coach of the swimming team, Jeff Slater.

In his ninth year, Slater led the Warriors to five medals at the OUA Championships while one of his swimmers, Jonathan Ramkissoon (Trinidad) broke a five year record in the 100m breast stroke. At the Championship, Slater was named the OUA Coach of the year amongst 12 other coaches in attendance. Slater has seen the likes of Graeme Kemp (Waterloo), sister Bronwyn, Jonathan Ramkissoon (Trinidad), Josie Andres (Thorndale) and many other Warriors compete at the National Championships and has played key roles in their development.

Slater began his coaching career with the University of Waterloo men's water polo team and men's and women's swim teams back in 1989-90. He has been an integral part of Waterloo's swim success that continues to break records in the pool on a yearly basis.

The Federation of Students Rookies of the Year went to Alyson Colpitts (Fredericton) of the women's volleyball team and Jesse Gibbon (Hamilton) of the football team.

Colpitts had a remarkable season with the black and gold leading the team in kills with 150 which ranked her seventh in the province. Colpitts also led the team in kills per set with 2.88 and service aces with 16 in her 52 sets of action. For her incredible rookie campaign, the OUA honoured Colpitts naming her to the all-rookie team and she was also a second-team all-star.

Gibbon was a beast for the Warriors offensive-line and was honoured by the OUA being named to the all-rookie team. Gibbon has also been recognized nationally a couple different times. First he represented Canada at the International Bowl played at AT&T Stadium, home of the Dallas Cowboys, a series of games between USA and Canada that features top student-athletes in football's greatest annual international competition. Second, Gibbon was just recently named to the Canadian National Junior Invitation Roster.

The J.O. Hemphill and Director's awards were won by Brett Mackie (Whitby) and Emily Needles(Thorndale). The awards are presented annually in recognition of students who provide an outstanding administrative contribution to interuniversity athletics.

Mackie, who finished his fourth year with the men's hockey team has dedicated countless hours volunteering in several programs within the athletic department. Mackie has been a succeed clean mentor, a team leader with our Think Pink fundraising campaign, a President's Golf volunteer, has made many presentations as part of our Team-Up program, and has been a member of the IU Council (including an executive) for the past several seasons.

In addition to his great work with the department, he has been equally dedicated to the men's hockey program. For the past two seasons, he has won the Warrior Coaches Award - presented annually to the player who demonstrates the most commitment and dedication to the Warrior Hockey Program as chosen by the coaches.

Needles is inspirational leader and mentor for our department, the women's volleyball team, Renison College and our community. Needles is driven to make a difference in everything she puts her mind to. Her involvement and commitment to help others here at the University of Waterloo has not gone unnoticed.

Needles has been a Team-Up speaker, she was our first-year orientation coordinator this past fall, she helped out with Warrior Events crew and volunteered with Black and Gold Day. As a member of the Women's Volleyball team, she has gone above and beyond, to help her current teammates, future Warriors, and to promote volleyball throughout our community.

The Warrior Campus Service Award presented to a member of the University of Waterloo campus community who has made a meaningful contribution to the advancement of the Department of Athletics and Recreation. Mary Ann Vaughan who enters who 20th year as an economics professor next year was one of two winners. Vaughan is one of Waterloo's biggest fans, especially when it comes to men's hockey and has provided endless support whether it be financially or emotional support for the athletes.

Clive Porter was the other recipient of the award thanks to his 20 years of service to the squash team. Porter has been an integral part of the development of the squash program at Waterloo and has always had a way of connecting with the student-athletes and bringing out the best in each individual.

The final award was the Brian Farrance award presented to a student therapist who has demonstrated excellence, commitment and dedication throughout his/her service to varsity athletics. The winner of was presented to Mikayla MacDonald who was the therapist for football and men's volleyball. Mikayla has also volunteered in a training role with rugby teams outside of her time here at Waterloo. She will graduate from the Kinesiology program this fall.

Thank you to all who attended the banquet and to our dedicated student-athletes for wearing the Warrior shield with pride all season long.

Boston Marathon

Former Warrior Scott Arnald top Canadian at Boston Marathon

April 19, 2016

Article by: Christine Rivet, The Record

Thirty thousand runners. Thirty thousand reasons for running. Thirty thousand

stories to tell.

The 120th running of the granddaddy of them all, the Boston Marathon,

featured runners from across the globe and a bumper crop of participants

from Waterloo Region who tested their resolve against the world-famous

42.2-kilometre course.

Waterloo native Scott Arnald, 34, was the event's top Canadian in a field that

included about 1,200 Canucks. He crossed the finish line in a blistering two

hours, 33 minutes and 46 seconds. He finished 54th overall.

Arnald, a former track star and cross-country runner during his hall of fame

career at the University of Waterloo, is mostly retired from competitive racing

these days.

But his bucket list included a stop at Boston where he ran for the first time on Monday and in the second marathon of his life.

For the methodical, well-prepared environmental sustainability analyst who now lives and works in Guelph, it was just another day at the races.

"I found a couple of guys to run with after 15 miles once we got into the hills and wind so that helped me stay focused when things started to get tough," Arnald wrote in an email to the Record.

"I could tell at 13 miles things were going to get tough as I could already feel some discomfort in my quads. It was tempting to go faster early on but things would have got ugly if I didn't hold back," added the Waterloo Collegiate grad.

Arnald's impressive results didn't surprise his friend and fellow coach at the University of Guelph and Guelph's Speed River Track and Field Club.

"Scott is disciplined and emotionally calm but he can be as funny as heck," said the University of Guelph's head coach Dave Scott-Thomas. "He's a real terrific guy, one of the most decent, kind human beings you will ever meet. And he does it all with a twinkle in his eye.

"We talked before he left about what he was aiming to do. And he almost hit his time right on the nose."

The Ethiopians ruled the day in Boston, winning the men's and women's races for the first time in history and claiming five of the six positions on the victory podium.

Lemi Berhanu Hayle captured the men's division with a time of two hours, 12 minutes and 45 seconds. His countrywoman, Atsede Baysa, took the women's race in 2:29:19.

Kenya's Wesley Korir, a former champion at Boston, and husband of St. Clements' runner Tarah Korir, finished fourth on Monday with a time of 2:14:05. The Korirs, now based in Kenya where Wesley is a member of parliament, could be seen in recent years training across Wellesley Township roads.

Waterloo's Matt Andrews, 43, a managing director of advisory services at Manulife, ran his second marathon at Boston. His appearance included the $13,000 he raised through two years of fundraising for a charity, Pathways to Education.

He finished the gruelling course in four hours and 23 minutes, hampered by a twisted ankle suffered six weeks ago in training.

"I'm pretty proud of the accomplishment," Andrews said in a phone interview. "I'm worried about (Tuesday). I'm stiffening up here now. But (Tuesday) will be telling."

Boston rookie Anne Aschwanden, 24, of Waterloo, an underwriter for group benefits at Manulife, limped to medical services on bare feet at the race's nine-mile marker because of a shoe problem that was ripping her nails from her toes. After getting bandaged up, she continued the route while mostly walking.

"I'm sore but it could have been worse," she said. "I can't even wear my shoes. I'll probably have to wear flip flops to work."

Arnald said he planned to celebrate with 14 friends at a house they rented in nearby Cambridge, Mass. with "some beer and wine."