Team News

Royals Learn the ‘Bear Necessities’

Team Meal at the Bodnar's

The Douglas College Royals women’s basketball team took some time out of their hectic schedule to visit Jenn Bodnar’s family farm in Agassiz. The team was treated to Mama Bodnar’s amazing home cooking and enjoyed a feast that they will never forget. There were even special dishes for the picky vegetarians in the group! It was a fantastic meal by a phenomenal cook!

The team then learned the ‘bear’ necessities, hearing the stories of bears that wander in to the fields, looking for food. As you can see, the cows and the crops must be protected. It was an entertaining and educational experience for the group.

Thanks so much to the Bodnars for opening their home to us. We had a fabulous time and do appreciate the hospitality.

Royals Sweep Bearcats

Amanda Fielding
Photo Jerald Walliser

The Douglas College women saw their hard work pay off this weekend, with two hard-earned victories over the Columbia Bible College Bearcats in Abbotsford. The wins were truly a team effort, as every member of the Royals squad made valuable contributions to the group’s success.

On Friday night, in front of a raucous crowd that included special guests, the Maple Ridge Ramblers grade 8 boys basketball team, the Royals got off to a great start and took a seven point lead in to the locker room at the half. The girls never looked back, diving on the floor to come up with loose balls, leaping in the air to corral rebounds and executing for scores against the team that beat them early in the pre-season.

Douglas never trailed in the game, the result of determined defence and a balanced scoring attack. Cyndi Lawson, Val Anderson and Quincie Onyejekwe had twelve points each, and the Royals were led by Jenn Bodnar’s game-high seventeen. The Royals had to deal with some foul trouble, and needed the contributions of every player to hang on for the 60-53 victory.

Saturday night saw Douglas get off to a quick start, looking to build on the previous night’s victory. The defence held the Bearcats to just six points in each of the first two quarters, giving the Royals a comfortable sixteen point lead, which they were able to protect by making free throws and getting defensive stops against the streaky shooting Bearcats. Elena Kinakin and Amanda Fielding set the tone for the Douglas defence for the weekend, splitting the defensive transition responsibilities and playing valuable minutes for the Royals. Cyndi Lawson protected the paint, sending the Bearcats back with a couple of monster blocks down the stretch on Saturday night.

Saturday was a special night for Quincie Onyejekwe, who contributed a double-double, scoring twelve points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Teammate Val Anderson hit nine of ten free throws as part of her thirteen point night, and Jenn Bodnar again led the Royals’ scoring attack, with fifteen points in the 63-54 victory.

Val-ley Girl!

Valerie Anderson
Photo Jerald Walliser

Val Anderson (WJ Mouat, Abbotsford) played her best game of the season on Friday night, and one of the best Coach MacLeod has seen by a freshman in the BCCAA. She had 15 points and 6 rebounds in a losing cause for the Royals, and added a blocked shot and two steals, along with taking two charges.

Val is one of the Royals team captains and leaders, on and off the basketball court. Val dominated the game with her energy, diving all over the floor for loose balls, and going hard to the offensive glass – so hard, in fact, that she picked up two fouls at the offensive end trying to go get the ball. Val played her heart out for a game-high 31+ minutes, and did not take a possession off. There is no ‘quit’ in this girl.

Val represents the Women’s Basketball team on Douglas College’s Student-Athlete Council, and is enrolled in Sciences at Douglas. Val has a black belt in karate and works for the SPCA.

Cindy "Biggie" Lawson honored during Senior Night

Cindy Lawson & Coach MacLeod
Photo Sean Velasco

*taken from Coach MacLeod's speech during the presentation*

I am going to speak from the heart, but I can tell you now that I will not be able to articulate what an amazing person Cyndi is, and how important she has been to the development of the women’s basketball program that we are building at Douglas.

Cyndi played volleyball in high school; she was a very good volleyball player. She went to university and played volleyball, receiving the Millenium Entrance Scholarship. She did not play high school basketball after grade nine.

Three and a half years ago, Cyndi decided to come to Douglas College to be closer to home. Our women’s volleyball team did not have a spot for her so she emailed me. In her email she noted that she was 6’3, so of course we told her to come on out!

Cyndi’s nickname is “Biggie.” She got that nickname because when we did scout reports and talked about other teams, we would always discuss how we would defend the other team’s biggies. Because we didn’t have one! So when Cyndi became of member of our group, she became our Biggie and we were thrilled to have her! She joined us in December 2006, and learned on the fly – our first weekend of league play after the winter break that year was the road trip to Prince George. Cyndi had to learn how to sub in the game and she even got to the foul line and figured that out on the go as well. She scored four points and had six rebounds in her debut.

Cyndi was an excellent addition to our group, and was accepted and well-liked immediately because of her sense of humour and willingness to be a vocal leader. Cyndi has grown into that role and has become one of the leaders of our group. Cyndi has been through a lot to get to where she is today – at the end of her first season, she hurt her ankle on our last weekend. We taped her up and she played, and played her heart out. When she went to the doctor when the season ended, she discovered that there was a fracture in her ankle. It was then that we learned how tough this girl was.

Jen Bodnar sings the National Anthem
Photo Sean Velasco

Last season was a difficult one for Cyndi-she blew out her knee before Christmas and did not play in the second half of the season at all. She was, however, a valuable contributor to our group nonetheless, as she was a vocal leader from the bench and took advantage of the opportunity to watch and learn more about the game. Cyndi had surgery to replace her ACL in February and was back on the court in April, preparing for her senior season.

This year we have a very young group, having returned only three players from last year’s team. Cyndi has been one of our leaders and has helped demonstrate how invested you have to be, and has helped hold this group together through our challenges and growing pains. Cyndi spends every Sunday, our only off day, coaching grade 2/3 little kids hoops out in Maple Ridge. The little kids love her and she has done a fantastic job teaching them basketball skills and giving them a chance to learn about and love the game.

Cyndi is one of our team’s representatives on the Student Athlete Council, she works at the College for Campus Recreation, and she will speak on behalf of the athletes at our upcoming Student-Athlete Recruit Night. Cyndi will complete her diploma in Criminology this semester, with the goal of eventually completing a degree in Criminology.

I am so proud of the growth that Cyndi has shown in her time at Douglas College. And I, and we, have been so blessed to have a student-athlete and a person like Cyndi as part of our group. She has some exciting opportunities ahead of her, and while we wish her the greatest of successes after her playing career at Douglas is done, we want you to know, Biggie, that you will always be a part of our group, and we will always have a spot for you here.

Although there are still lots of games to play this season, this is the last game that Cyndi will play in the Douglas gym, and so tonight we want to recognize and celebrate our Biggie for all she is and all she has done for the women’s basketball program at Douglas College. Congratulations on a fabulous basketball career, Cyndi!

4th Annual Winter Classic

4th Annual Winter Classic
Photo Jerald Walliser

The Douglas College Women’s Basketball team held the 4th Annual Winter Classic Senior Girls Basketball tournament this past week in the gym at the New West campus. The tournament featured eight of the best teams from the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley, and it was a thrill to have so many top-ranked teams, enthusiastic coaches and great players in the gym competing.

Abbotsford’s WJ Mouat, alma mater of current Royal freshman Val Anderson, won the tournament, defeating Mission’s Heritage Park in the final game on Wednesday. Mouat narrowly beat Maple Ridge (alma mater of Douglas College coaches Bianca Jarvis and Katie MacLeod) by one point on a buzzer-beater in the semi-final. Heritage Park reached the final with a win over Brookswood Secondary from Langley, which produced current Douglas College Royal Chelsea Church, who is recovering from knee surgery and will return to the court in the spring. Brookswood defeated Maple Ridge to claim third place in the tournament.

This annual event consistently produces excellent games, and provides a wonderful opportunity for Coach MacLeod to see some of the best high school players in the province right here in the Douglas gym! Members of this year’s Royals squad, many of whom played in the tournament in past years, organize the tournament, doing all the scorekeeping and selecting the Players of the Game.

Royals volunteer at Light the Lake festival

Team pic at Light the Lake

The Women's Basketball team assisted the Douglas College community by volunteering at the annual Light the Lake fastival, which promotes art, culture and community spirit. The girls made the most of the crisp, gorgeous dat at Coquitlam's Lagarge Lake Park, helping to string the thousands of lights that would transform the park into a sparkling holiday fairland for the Douglas College Foundation's annual fundraising event.

"Biggie" Makes a Big Impact

Cindy Lawson coaching
Photo Jerald Walliser

Royals senior Cyndi Lawson has been dedicating herself to basketball seven days a week this fall. Lawson spends Sunday afternoons as the Head Coach of the Grade 2/3 division of Maple Ridge Youth Basketball Association’s Steve Nash basketball league, leading youngsters through skills and games that introduce them to basketball.

The thirty-five boys and girls love to play dribble knock-out, ‘duck-duck-dribble’ and ‘pass-pass-shoot’ while roaring around the gym every Sunday. Lawson, who has worked at Douglas College’s summer and spring break camps in the past, prepares practice each week to include entertaining activities which incorporate basketball skill development and lots of fun. The youngsters look up to Cyndi, both literally and figuratively, and are having a great time in their introduction to basketball.

Coach MacLeod happy with team's progress

Erin Vekic
Photo Jerald Walliser

The Vancouver Island University Mariners took two victories from the Royals this weekend, the last of the first half of league play. The Royals, however, played their best game of the season on Friday night, putting up 42 points and playing with great energy, enthusiasm and confidence.

“This young group has come a long way, and we are going in the right direction,” said Head Coach, Katie MacLeod. “It was especially exciting to see the girls build on a solid first half with a strong second half.”

The Royals have struggled to put together back-to-back halves of basketball this season, but on Friday night, against one of the top teams in the league, the girls came ready to play in the second. Led by senior Cyndi Lawson, who battled and got to the free throw line (5/6), the Royals out-worked their opponent in the second half, and out-scored them in the fourth quarter.

It was a balanced attack for the Royals on Friday, who enjoyed outstanding contributions from Lawson, Erin Vekic and Quincie Onyejekwe, who finished with seven points each. Jenn Bodnar led the team in scoring with eleven points, and, as usual, Quincie Onyejekwe dominated the boards, finishing with a game-high 12 rebounds.

Rookie Erin Vekic (Port Coquitlam) had her best game of the season, attacking VIU’s full-court pressure with confidence, while picking up four steals herself, and Val Anderson (Abbotsford) played big minutes in the post, battling with VIU’s big girls all over the court. “We knew Val would have a great weekend when she stepped up at hit a half-court shot at Thursday night’s practice,” said MacLeod with a smile. The half-court shot challenge is a fun tradition with the Royals’ women on the night before a game.

Going in to the winter break, Coach MacLeod feels the Royals have come a long way in the team’s development. “It takes time for a new group to adjust to a new system. The girls are fully invested, and we will use the break as an opportunity to regroup and work hard towards preparing for the second half of the season.”

Old Spaghetti Factory Player of the Week

Quincie Onyejekwe
Photo Jerald Walliser

Over her four years at Douglas College, Quincie has grown in to a leader and major contributor to the women's basketball program. This past summer, she dedicated herself to working hard to prepare for the upcoming season. Quincie, who attended Terry Fox high school in Port Coquitlam, is a leader on and off the court for the 2009-2010 Royals.

In the classroom, Quincie is preparing for a career as a nurse, and has applied to Douglas College's Nursing program for 2010. She is hard-working at our team's weekly Study Hall sessions, and collaborates with her teammates to ensure everyone is getting the support they need in order to get the job done in the classroom.

Quincie is a good teammate and an important part of our group's connectedness. As one of the few returning players this season, Quincie has helped the group bond with her fabulous sense of humour and ability to see the good in people and situations. Quincie is always at the centre of the hilarity and fun that we are having.

Easily recognizable for her boundless effort and energy on the court, Quincie is among the league leaders in all statistical categories, averaging 12 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists per game so far this season, including 20 points and 19 rebounds in two games against UBC-O this past weekend. Quincie can play in the post and on the perimeter, and is both willing and able to do whatever is necessary to help our group succeed.

Loon Lake Getaway

Team Pic from Loon Lake

The Royals women’s basketball team took time this week to get away together on a team retreat to the Loon Lake Research and Education Centre. The Loon Lake camp is located on the shores of the Loon Lake, within the 5,000 hectare UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest west of the Golden Ears in Maple Ridge. (www.loonlake.ubc.ca) This secluded wilderness setting afforded an opportunity for valuable time spent together, and a chance to strengthen the group’s bond, heading in to a November of league play.

The team stayed together in the Student Centre, a lakeside dormitory and gymnasium complex. The team was able to practice in the Cadillac Fairview Trevor Linden Gymnasium, watch tape in the lodge, as well as participating in team building activities by the fireplace in the great room. The girls enjoyed delicious meals at the Dining Hall, summoned by the hand rung ‘dinner bell’ that can be heard throughout the camp. This was a meaningful experience, allowing for significant learning and trust building within our group.

Royals Overwhelmed by Blues in League Opener

Jenn Bodnar
Photo by Sean Velasco

The Douglas College Royals women’s basketball team experienced a tough start in the first league game of the 2009-2010 season, losing 70-51 to the Capilano University Blues. The young Royals were overwhelmed early, struggling with the Blues’ pressure and falling behind 12-0 to start the game. This was a deficit that would prove too much to overcome, despite the fact that the Royals settled down and played a strong game for the last three quarters.

“We learned a lesson about preparation tonight,” said Coach Katie MacLeod. “It is important to minimize distractions and to be very focused in preparing for games in this league. We did not get off to a great start tonight, but I know that we will learn from this and be much more focused and ready to go in upcoming games.”

The Royals did a much better job in offensive execution in the second quarter, and found their scoring touch, led by Jenn Bodnar (Agassiz) and Quincie Onyejekwe (Port Coquitlam). Onyejekwe, who played her high school basketball at Terry Fox Secondary, has emerged as a leader for Douglas College this season. After finishing in the top ten in rebounding in the league last season as an undersized post player, Quincie has made the move to the perimeter in this, her fourth season with the team, and is willing and able to do whatever is asked of her to help the team succeed. Onyejekewe led the Royals with fourteen points and nine rebounds against Capilano on Friday night.

Down 37-24 at the half, the Royals stormed back in the third quarter, holding the Blues off the scoresheet for the first four minutes of the quarter and cutting the lead to six. Cyndi Lawson (Port Coquitlam) and Val Anderson (Abbotsford), who finished with nine and six rebounds respectively, cleared the glass to secure the defensive stops that helped the Royals creep back in to the game.

The Blues were too much on this night, however, and the Royals were unable to come all the way back, despite excellent efforts from Val Anderson, Jenn Bodnar, Amanda Fielding (Nanaimo), Cyndi Lawson, and Quincie Onyejekwe.

“We relied heavily on our core group of players to get back in to the game,” MacLeod stated, “and, unfortunately, we eventually ran in to foul trouble, and were unable to complete the comeback.”

The Royals are heading off on a team retreat this week, where they will re-group and prepare to host Quest University next weekend.

Pre-Season Kwantlen Tournament

Quincie Onyejekwe
Photo by Jerald Waliser

The Douglas College Women’s basketball team competed in a BCCAA pre-season exhibition tournament at Kwantlen Polytechnic University this past weekend. Led by Tournament All-star Quincie Onyejekwe, the Royals showed great improvement over the three scrimmages against Kwantlen, Camosun, and Quest. The women set the tone for the level at which they will need to play in order to be successful this season in the competitive BCCAA league. With two weeks off before their next exhibition action, the Royals will begin to build to the aggressive, quarter court defense for which they are known, and prepare to shut down their opponents when league play begins in early November.

Women's Basketball Season Opener

Cindy Lawson
Photo by Jerald Waliser

The Douglas College Women’s Basketball team opened the 2009/2010 season on Saturday, September 19 when they hosted the Columbia Bible College Bearcats from down the Trans Canada Highway in Abbotsford. For this first scrimmage of the season, the team set two goals: to set the tone for how hard we will play and to get better at running offense. Douglas was able to execute offense for a number of lay-ups and competed at the ‘Douglas College’ level. The Royals were led by captains Cyndi Lawson (8 points & 5 rebounds) , Quincie Onyjekewe (12 points & 5 rebounds) and Val Anderson (9 rebounds). A large crowd was on hand at the Royals' gym to see an exciting game that came down to the wire The game was a positive start to the Royals' season. The team looks forward to hosting the Alumni this Friday, September 25 at 6:00PM at the New West campus.

Women's Basketball takes Chilliwack by "Storm"

 

The Douglas College women’s basketball team was out in Chilliwack on August 25, 2009, presenting a clinic for high school basketball players in the Chilliwack area. Coach MacLeod and her team took Chilliwack Secondary by "STORM" and had a fabulous time working with boys and girls in grades 9 through 12.

The three hour clinic was lead by the student-atheletes from the 2009/2010 edition of the Douglas College women's basketball squad. The Douglas group conducted skills and drills and creative basketball activites to inspire the talented ballers from the 'Wack. It was a positive and rewarding experience for everyone involved, and the Douglas College women look forward to returning to Chilliwack Secondary on September 26, when they will scrimmage UFV in pre-season exhibition action.

Douglas Awarded 2009-10 Female Apprentice Coach Program Grant

Bianca Jarvis
Photo by Jerald Waliser

Nursing student and former Douglas Royal basketball player Bianca Jarvis will be working as an apprentice coach to Katie McLeod, the Douglas College Head Coach.

The Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) is pleased to announce that Bianca was one of the successful candidates for the 2009-10 CCAA Female Apprentice Coach Program. In its fifth year, the CCAA will be offering this unique opportunity to 19 Apprentice Coaches.

The Female Apprentice Coach Program is aimed at targeting the rich source of potential female coaches in the ranks of graduating student-athletes and creating a new coaching position, the apprentice coach. The CCAA is working towards the goal of having at least one female member on the coaching staff of each women’s sports program. Incentives are offered to institutions that offer apprentice coach positions within the CCAA sports of soccer, volleyball, basketball, badminton, golf and cross country running. The grant is identified for professional development opportunities in either NCCP or related coach education, and for operational costs associated with the apprentice coach.

Having played so many sports all my life, I wanted to take all the knowledge I learned and pass it on. In addition, I only ever had one female coach throughout all the sports I played and she was able to do so many amazing things in such a small period of time. I am very thankful to Douglas College, Coach McLeod and the CCAA for providing me with this opportunity to develop both as a coach and a person.

To read more:
http://www.douglas.bc.ca/about/features/bianca-jarvis.html
http://www.ccaa.ca/web/index.php/en/

New Recruit one smart cookie

New Women's Basketball recruit Erin Vekic has been rewarded for her outstanding work both in the classroom and on the court during her years at Terry Fox Secondary in Port Coquitlam by being awarded the President's Entrance Scholarship.

The scholarship is awarded annually to eight high school students entering Douglas College with a minumum 3.5 GPA and offering significant contributions to their school or community. Erin easily earned that, graduating with a stellar 3.75 GPA, while being awarded the Masters Honour Roll, for making honour every semester at Terry Fox.

But her real love doesn't come sitting behind a desk studying, it's from dribbling, shooting, defending, and working her way towards her goal of playing university basketball. Her high school coach, Kely Fridge, couldn't stop with the compliments of Erin, both as a player and as a person. "Erin is a highly motivated individual, always pushing herself to reach her potential, she spends relentless hours in the gym outside of practice time working on her individual skills".

It is this work ethic that has earned her a spot on the 2009-2010 Royals women's basketball team. "She is a wonderful basketball player who will be a leader on the basketball court" says head coach Katie MacLeod. Her outside shooting will be a huge boost to a Royals squad that saw some veteran guards graduate at the end of this past season. Her father, Adrian Vekic, cannot wait to see his daughter in a Royals uniform, "we are so proud of everything Erin accomplished both academically and athletically in high school, and we are excited to see her play at the next level".

Erin will enter Douglas College and begin taking science courses. Although reluctant at first to say what she is striving for after her playing days, she finally lets it slip that she would like to be a veterinarian, admitting though that it could change as she goes through school.

The women's basketball program has begun training for next season. Their season begins September 25th with the annual Alumni game, while the regular season kicks off at home November 6th versus Capilano.