The rush to the end of the regular season continues for Bison teams this weekend, with teams both on the bubble and fighting for playoff seeding.
At home are Bison men's hockey and men's volleyball, who will be partnering with Bell Let's Talk on Friday, January 25 to promote and support positive mental health. There will be several organizations that deal with mental health at the games, so you can learn more about the issue.
That, and what else to look forward to, in our weekend preview.
Men's Volleyball vs. Thompson Rivers – January 25 (7 PM), January 26 (6 PM)
WATCH: CanadaWest.tv
UPDATES: follow @BisonWVB and @BisonMVB on Twitter
With six games before playoffs, the Bison men (7-9) sit in the eighth and final playoff spot in Canada West (CW), one game up on UBC and two up on rival Winnipeg. With the Wesmen coming up on the schedule for the Duckworth Challenge, this weekend will offer an important series against the Thompson Rivers WolfPack (7-7).
Manitoba is coming off a weekend split in Saskatoon, where they got a crucial five-set win on Jan. 19 over the Saskatchewan Huskies. Surprisingly, they were led in that match by first-year outside hitter
Ben Carleton, who had 16 kills and ten digs. It's the first game this season that the Brisbane native has led the team in kills (
Dustin Spiring also had 16).
Thompson Rivers also has some international flavor to offer. They're led by German fifth-year Tim Dobbert, who is ripping up stat sheets — his 4.39 kills per set rank second in CW. The WolfPack are also strong from the service line, where they have two of the top five players in the conference in service aces per set (Anton Napolitano – 0.53, Kyle Behiels – 0.51).
Bison men's volleyball tickets are $10 and available at the door, with U of M students and fans 17-and-under in free. On Friday, seven organizations promoting mental health will have booths set up on the second-floor concourse of IGAC. Also, fans in attendance will receive free Bell Let's Talk toques.
Men's Hockey vs. Lethbridge – January 25 (7 PM), January 26 (2 PM)
WATCH: CanadaWest.tv
LISTEN: UMFM.com
UPDATES: follow @umbisonsMHKY on Twitter
The playoffs are still mathematically possible for Manitoba (4-16-2), but it will come down to this weekend. Lethbridge (7-13-2) comes to Wayne Fleming Arena ahead of the Bisons by six points in the race for the final playoff spot; the Bisons will need wins if they want to stay in it over the last two weeks.
Health is finally turning in the Bisons favour after injuries have plagued their season. Fifth-year forward
Brett Stovin was back in the lineup last weekend after missing four games, improving his point total to eight (four goals, four assists). Manitoba split their series with the Regina Cougars, with a 5-2 win on Jan. 18 coming on the back of five different scorers.
Jeremey Leipsic, who has continued to improve in the second half, had two assists in the gam
The visiting Pronghorns are led by fifth-year Thompson, Manitoba native Justin Valentino, who has eight goals and 15 assists so far. In net, third-year Garret Hughson has a record of 7-10-1 with a 0.918 save percentage.
Bison hockey tickets are $10 and available at the door, with U of M students and fans 17-and-under in free. On Friday, seven organizations promoting mental health will have booths set up on the second-floor concourse of IGAC. Also, fans in attendance will receive free Bell Let's Talk toques.
Basketball at Thompson Rivers – January 25 (7/9 PM), January 26 (7/9 PM)
WATCH: CanadaWest.TV
UPDATES: follow @BisonWBB and @BisonMBB
It's crunch time for Bison basketball, as we've reached the final two weekends of the regular season. The final road series for both teams sees them head west to face the Thompson Rivers WolfPack.
The
Bison men (7-9) have won four straight games and it couldn't come at a better time. They continue to be in a fierce battle on the playoff bubble, sitting in a tie for tenth place with Mount Royal and UBC Okanagan. The top 12 teams qualify for playoffs, when they are then seeded by RPI, which factors in strength of schedule.
The WolfPack, meanwhile, are two points back of a post-season spot and need wins to stay alive. They're led by their frontcourt and fifth-year forward Derek Rhodes, who tops the team with 15.5 points per game.
The
Bison women (6-10) find themselves in a similar situation to the guys, as they're tied with rival Winnipeg for 11
th place in CW. They too will play a WolfPack team (4-12) out of playoff position with an outside chance of moving in.
Thompson Rivers is led by the versatile fifth-year guard Michelle Bos, who is averaging 15.7 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. Manitoba, meanwhile, lost both games to Trinity Western last weekend, but continue to enjoy excellent performances from third-year forward
Addison Martin. Martin has 13 or more points in four of her last six games, playing over 23 minutes per game over the last four.
#2 Women's Hockey at Lethbridge – January 25 (8 PM), January 26 (3 PM)
WATCH: CanadaWest.tv
UPDATES: follow @umbisonsWHKY on Twitter
Manitoba found themselves moving up last weekend, both in the CW standings and U SPORTS rankings. Once again tops in the conference by a point and ranked number two in the country, they're looking to keep the good times rolling in Lethbridge.
The Bisons (14-4-2-2) hold a narrow one-point lead on the Alberta Pandas for the top seed in CW, while the Pronghorns (6-12-1-3) are four points back of a playoff spot heading into this weekend.
Manitoba's conference-best power play had even more success against Regina last weekend. Five of their ten goals were on the advantage, which improves them to a blistering 23.4% success rate on the season. That's a full 11 points ahead of Lethbridge, a team that albeit does well on the penalty kill, marking a third-best 88.6%.
The Bisons were led by third-year forward
Sheridan Oswald, who had three goals on the weekend and will look to continue that success in Lethbridge. Oswald is now tied for third on the team in points with 13 (eight goals, five assists).
Track and Field - 2019 Jack Johnson Classic
MEET INFO
LIVE RESULTS
With the 10th annual Bison Classic coming up in just one week, the Bison track and field teams have one more road event before returning home for the signature event of their regular season. This Friday and Saturday, select athletes will be at the University of Minnesota for the 2019 Jack Johnson Classic. Last week, the teams finished seventh combined at the Golden Bear Open and will look to continue their tune-ups. The Bison men have developed a strong reputation already this season, currently ranked fourth in the U SPORTS Top 10 rankings. Of course, the season leads up to Manitoba hosting the 2019 U SPORTS Track & Field Championships from March 7-9, 2019.
Notes from the Range
