As the OUA postseason approaches for women's volleyball team, here is who to keep an eye on in the playoff journey
Another regular season has come and gone for McMaster University’s women's volleyball team. As spring approaches, the team enters the Ontario University Athletics playoffs sitting in fourth place.
The team managed to finish the season with an impressive 14 and six record. They faced losses from Toronto Metropolitan University, Brock University, Waterloo University, Western University and University of Toronto, but showed up big in other matches such as their sweeping wins against Nipissing University and Royal Military College.
As the team heads into the OUA playoffs, there is a lot at stake for the team’s veteran players. The core of this year’s team consists of many graduating stars, including three middle blockers Ellie Hatashita, Ana Strbac and Paige Vrolyk and setter Christina Stratford.
Despite the graduating class, the team has done well in incorporating its younger players. With a long and grueling regular season behind them, this is something that helped the team to be sitting comfortably in fourth place.
“All five of them first year players have been able to contribute in many different ways and all five of them have seen the court in an OUA game, which is something super exciting which doesn’t normally happen, especially in the sport of volleyball with only six on the court. The fact that all five of them have been able to contribute in different ways, it's super important not only for them but for the team in the future,” said Stratford.
Some of the team’s notable younger performers are Sullie Sundara, who leads the team in total kills, and Chayse Victoria who has given an impressive 162 assists this season. Along with help from veteran performers and rookies with experience, the Marauders look back at the regular season with pride, and are looking to continue strongly into the postseason.
“We’ve learned how to battle and we’ve never gone into a game thinking we had it. We knew we had to work. The reality was that we’d never have an easy way out. We’d have to be resilient and find a way to win,” explained Stratford.
"We’ve learned how to battle and we’ve never gone into a game thinking we had it. We knew we had to work. The reality was that we’d never have an easy way out. We’d have to be resilient and find a way to win"
Christina Stratford, McMaster University women's volleyball team setter
The Marauders face the York University Lions in their first playoff match. The two teams are no strangers to each other, as they’ve met twice at The Burridge this season already. Both matches saw the Marauders beat the Lions in convincing fashion, winning three sets to one.
Though the teams have met during the regular season, this does not reflect the do or die nature of the playoffs. The Marauders must win to advance to the semifinals.
“Playoffs is a different game, we’re not going in like “oh it's York we’ll be fine". Our mentality is we’ve got to beat every team we see in front of us until we hold a cup. We’re treating every game as if it were a blank slate,” said Stratford.
Their fourth place finish gives the Marauders hosting rights over sixth place York in the upcoming game. The two teams will meet at The Burridge on Saturday Feb. 25 at 6:00 p.m. in a battle for the Quigley Cup.
Following their Feb. 17 loss to TMU, the Marauders suffer their second loss of the weekend at the hands of the Toronto Varsity Blues
A poor finish to the regular season isn’t what many expected to see for the Marauders men’s volleyball team after starting their season with 18 consecutive wins, yet, it happened. It marks the first time since February 2016 that the team has lost back-to-back regular season games. Ironically, the Toronto Varsity Blues were also a part of that losing streak.
Though the Varsity Blues are a stronger opponent then the Toronto Metropolitan Bold, sitting fourth in the standings coming in, the 2021-2022 provincial championship rematch was still largely a game McMaster was expected to take. At least this time out, unlike against the Bold, the Marauders provided some resistance. They took one set by a score of 25 to 23, while losing another by a slim 27 to 25. The remaining two sets were lost by a score of 25 to 20.
The team remained short handed with Sam Cooper remaining out, and Tyler Pavelic having not played per his absence on the box score. However, Mateusz Wlodarski made his return to the court, and Maxime Gratton, whose availability remained in question, also played, making this loss more concerning than the last.
The two losses come as the final two games of the regular season. The Marauders currently hold the second longest losing streak, just to the 20 loss Royal Military College Paladins. On a positive note, the team still finishes as the sole victor of all 10 home games, while also holding the best record on the road.
The Marauders won’t play again until the Ontario University Athletics playoffs, where the quarterfinals begin on Feb. 25. McMaster will hold home court advantage throughout as the number one seed after finishing three wins above the second place Windsor Lancers.
After last year's curling invitational was cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions, McMaster took the opportunity to host the yearly event at Dundas and preformed phenomenally
Although curling is a sport that can mostly be played in the winter months, it’s back in full swing this January. Just last week, McMaster University hosted their first curling invitational in years after last year's event got cancelled due to COVID-19 restrictions.
This year, both the men’s and women’s teams got to experience the type of competition they’d come against in the upcoming OUA’s, each playing five games against other universities.
“Last year we were meant to play the invitational at Dundas in January, but it unfortunately got cancelled due to lockdowns at that time. This time, we hosted the event to multiple universities, with Mohawk included, and got a lot of playing time where we clashed against five teams,” said Ben Winchester, a second-year men’s curling player.
Over the two-day period for which the invitational took place, the five games for the men’s team were against Western University, Trent University, York University, Ontario Tech University and University of Toronto. By the end of the weekend, only three games had been accounted for, with the team picking up a win, a draw and a loss.
However, the women’s team had a much more impressive performance, grabbing an impressive four wins and one draw from five games.
“I would say that the way we played during the invitational provided a lot of competition to other universities that took part. It certainly was a good weekend for us, and it gave us confidence ahead of the Brock invitational that is happening in a few weeks,” said Winchester.
Although it is his second year with the curling team, Winchester debuted for the OUA curling team this season. His performances from last season certainly proved to be worthy enough to take part in the highest calibre men’s squad for the upcoming games.
“I am currently in my second year of studies at McMaster, and it’s my second year as a curling team member. However, last year I was a part of the JV squad whereas this year I got the opportunity to partake in the strongest OUA squad that we have,” said Winchester.
As with almost every other athlete, progress is a very important thing to Winchester. The expectations and improvement for the second-year athlete are an important aspect in his varsity experience.
“Personally, I expect myself to further improve this season. I think that it should be every athlete's goal to push themselves to the max and achieve the most that they possibly can. As for the rest of the team, I think that we have a lot of potential to do well this season, especially in the upcoming OUA championships,” said Winchester
Although currently the curling season is at full swing, after the OUA championships the team is expected to go on their off season. Since curling requires very icy conditions in a rink, this is not widely offered during seasons other than winter.
“During the off season, we tend to go our separate ways. Everyone goes home and tries to get as much practice as possible, although it can be hard. It can be hard to find a place to do curling during hotter seasons,” said Winchester.
After a successful invitational at home, McMaster men's and women's team are looking to garner more experience at the Brock Invitational, which takes place on Jan 21. and Jan 22. This will be their final preparation before the main event at the OUA championships which are happening on the weekend of Feb 10.
An extended break sounds great, but it has consequences for students
On Nov. 19, McMaster University announced that our winter semester classes will begin on Jan. 11, 2021, as opposed to Jan. 4, when they were initially supposed to begin. This change was recommended by the virtual learning task force, which consists of 31 faculty, students and staff members.
They stated that the reason for this is to support students’ wellness and mental health and providing faculty and instructors with extra time in preparing for the winter term. Mac also mentions that with this extra week, students who went home will now have an extra week to self-isolate to limit COVID-19 cases.
While I am thankful for an extra week in many aspects, I think it’s important to consider the consequences of this decision.
For example, not all students will be able to enjoy this extended break. Health sciences students, with the exception of the Bachelor of Health Sciences program, are exempt from this break. This means that nursing, midwifery, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, physician assistant, medical students and more are unable to partake in the break, even if they really need it. In addition, graduate students who have planned their thesis defence for the week of Jan. 4 will not have the option to have this break.
Not only does this break already exclude a large group of students, but it may have consequences on our exam period. It’s important to note that the McMaster Daily News article states that classes will be extended into the exam period, that no classes will overlap with exams and that the semester will end as originally planned.
What this means is unclear, but we may no longer have a short break between classes and before exams. An extra week of winter break may also mean that our exam schedule is condensed, which can result in more back-to-back exams.
For me, these potential consequences of an extended winter break seem like a net negative. An extra week off is always good to have, but I’d rather have a break right before exams when I’m a lot more stressed and have my exams spread over a longer period of time.
What this means is unclear, but we may no longer have a short break between classes and before exams. An extra week of winter break may also mean that our exam schedule is condensed, which can result in more back-to-back exams.
Furthermore, if this is the response to added stress from a pandemic, their solution is weak. Other universities, such as the University of Toronto, made a much clearer statement about the reasoning behind the break and also stated that they are continuing to redesign its mental health services.
They also mention that employees who are returning on Jan. 4 will get three extra paid days off which can be used now until Aug. 31, 2021. U of T acknowledged the consequences of the pandemic by noting that students have been feeling a huge amount of stress for several months and that many U of T community members have dealt with unique challenges, such as at-home childcare.
Obviously, U of T has its own set of issues that have yet to be addressed, but it is comforting to know that they have other action items that they are working on to improve the quality of life for students.
Most of all, this announcement had me frustrated. I’m worried that because students seem happy about this break — which we’re allowed to be happy about — Mac may think that these measures are good enough to support students during a pandemic. However, a break is not enough for me and it likely isn’t enough for many other students.
The way I see it is that Mac is focusing on strategies to cope with stress when they could be focusing on how to give us a less stressful workload. After all, we wouldn’t need breaks to deal with our increased levels of stress if we had less stress in the first place.
Head coach of the men’s basketball team Patrick Tatham has had an illustrious career. While he was an athlete he played Division 1 basketball at Cleveland State University. He moved on to play overseas for the Sions Herens Basket in Switzerland and the Itzehoe Eagles in Germany, with brief stints in Qatar and Syria.
Following his playing career, Tatham transitioned to coaching. This included jobs with Stoneridge Preparatory School in the states and the Maine Red Claws of the NBA G League. After five years of being assistant coach for the Ryerson University Rams, Tatham became interim head coach from 2015-2016. Now, he is the head coach of our McMaster Marauders. Simply put, the man has seen it all.
Taking part in so many positions was a huge learning experience for Tatham. His ability to transition with ease is one of the reasons for his accomplishments.
“It’s been a nice journey. When I was at Stoneridge I had no clue what I was doing. I just did what I thought I knew to do based off my coaches at Cleveland State. Then coming back home to Stoneridge I took whatever we learned at Cleveland state to try and help the culture at Ryerson because there was no culture at all, we were one of the worst teams in Canada. It was like rolling the dice, you have nothing to lose. Just roll the dice and see what works and what doesn’t work and then make the necessary changes,” said Tatham.
As the saying goes, fortune favours the bold, and it certainly did with Tatham’s coaching style. When he began coaching at Ryerson, the team was struggling. However, the rough patch presented an opportunity for growth given that the team was willing to take risks and innovate.
“I use that blueprint now, here at Mac, there’s already a base and foundation here but it’s about me cleaning up a few things. Just doing all the necessary stuff to make sure all the guys are successful, not just on the court but in the classrooms,” said Tatham.
Tatham’s journey from high school to Division 1 basketball was quite different than what you see nowadays. Typically, top Canadian basketball prospects are noticed either before high school or midway through. Then they go to a preparatory high school in the United States. If they’re good enough, they go to a top college. However, this is not always the case, and it wasn’t for Tatham. He went to Chinguacousy Secondary School in Brampton and from there attended Cleveland State University.
Young Canadian athletes are often told that if they want to follow their dreams, they have to leave Canada. Fewer and fewer Division one scouts are looking to the north for elite-level talent, as the United States is already filled to the brim with talented basketball players. As a result, top Canadian hoopers tend to relocate to the U.S. during high school. Tatham was able to stay home for high school and then play for a top school down south, and he’d like to see more Canadian athletes do the same. In order to accomplish this, Tatham says that U sports needs to do more to incentivize young Canadian athletes to stay at home.
[pjc_slideshow slide_type="basketball-feb-6-2020"]
‘’If we want to retain some of these kids to stay home and play at the U sports level, which is pretty high in my eyes, U sports has to take it upon themselves to really find a way to make the entire playing field very balanced. Offering a little bit more money even if it’s only to five or six scholarship athletes, but I think someway somehow we’ve got to get to a point where we can retain some of these kids that go south . . . and instead get them on a scholarship for four or five years [at home],” said Tatham.
Retention of top Canadian athletes would bring U sports to another level. Can you imagine a league where Shai Gilgeous-Alexander played for McMaster or RJ Barrett played for the University of Toronto? This would bring another degree of respect not only to U sports, but to Canadian athletics in general.
Beyond his vision of a brighter future for Canadian university sports, Tatham focuses on his coaching style. He aims to ensure that his coaching staff is setting a high bar for their program and other programs around the league. He and his staff choose a philosophy of leading by example, setting a precedent of excellence for the team to follow.
“I think within our culture it’s really from the head, heading all the way down to the players and managers. I’ve got to be as consistent as I possibly can and then hopefully my coaches can follow suit and then after the coaches follow suit we all put it down to the players and then the players can follow suit,” said Tatham.
Tatham, or PT as his players know him, uses tough love when it comes to coaching, making sure to always tell players what’s on his mind, whether it’s good or bad. This transparency ensures mutual respect between the coach and team—they always know what he’s thinking, and the team can focus on improving.
Outside of performing on the court, the program has a strong presence in the community. The team holds a yearly summer camp where kids from over Hamilton can come and learn from some of the city’s best athletes. It presents an opportunity for growth, not only for the kids who come to learn how to hoop better, but also for the team and coaches.
“This is the only university in the city of Hamilton so being able to have 200 kids coming to camp for two weeks is something special,” Tatham said. “A lot of the younger kids are going to look up to some of our players and when our players graduate maybe some of those young kids will come to play at Mac. Being able to do the program is not just a great thing for our program but for the city because I think the city needs more basketball camps and I’m just grateful to be a part of it.”
Younger kids from the Hamilton area however are not the only ones being mentored and inspired. Players on the men’s basketball team have access to a mentorship program where men’s basketball alumni come in and talk about life after Mac. The alumni share how the skills they learnt through the basketball program helped them later on in life.
“We’ve been doing a mentor panel for two years. I think that’s been the biggest success in my two years, I think the guys really enjoy the mentor panel and I think alumni enjoy coming back and talking to the current players. So far that’s been the most gratifying thing,” Tatham said.
All in all, the program is in great hands. From competing at an extremely high level as a player to competing for greatness as a coach, Tatham has seen it all. His level of experience and understanding, as well as his connection with fellow staff and players, will be key for the team this season and the years ahead.
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As much as inclusion and diversity have become buzzwords in elections and values upheld by student unions, measures to implement equitable services and plans are often met with resistance.
Recently, the University of Toronto Student Union (UTSU) introduced an Equity Plan which, if fully implemented, will remove representation for most colleges and faculty programs and add ten constituency directors. These directors will represent indigenous students, LGBTQ students, racialized students, women, athletes, international students, mature students, students with disabilities, first years, and commuters.
Although the UTSU’s plan is in its beginning stages and has not yet passed at their Annual General Meeting, it has already become a controversial topic at U of T and beyond.
In an article in the National Post, post-secondary education commentator Robyn Urback condemned the UTSU’s plan for all the wrong reasons. She called it “harrowingly stupid,” and aimed to expose the plan for what she thinks it truly is: an attack on white men. Urback’s article has unfortunately served as a reference point for many U of T undergrads and others who are outraged by this plan. It’s been cited in comments in U of T’s student newspaper The Varsity and other social media platforms as an acceptable rationale for why UTSU’s plan is so “stupid.”
Yet, Urback is missing the point, as are many of those disagreeing with UTSU’s plan. While there are many things to criticize about this Equity Plan, none of these criticisms will be taken seriously if they continue attacking “equity” instead of the “plan.”
The UTSU’s plan is clearly a decision based on inclusion and the desire to give marginalized communities on campus a voice. Since representation of minorities and democratic bodies elected by the majority don’t always go hand in hand, introducing ideas that aim to better represent marginalized groups is an incredibly difficult task.
This attempt to introduce something new and unheard of before in student governments should be criticized constructively and given credit for its radical effort. The exclusion of marginalized identities from student government is undoubtedly an important issue in post-secondary representation.
Can the UTSU’s plan fix this systemic problem? I don’t think so. But I think the UTSU’s board understands the level of reform that needs to take place in student unions.
The plan will certainly increase descriptive representation on student council, making marginalized identities visible, yet it will encourage a culture of placing the responsibility of meeting minority needs to minority members. It limits representation as something that can be achieved only by those whose experiences are identical to their constituents. This assumption of similarity is extremely flawed, given that our reliance on democratic systems is based on our belief that our representatives are capable of addressing our needs regardless of differences.
Instead of emphasizing the idea that women, LGBTQA+ individuals, racialized or disabled students are present in all faculties, across the entire campus and catering to their needs is only the just and equitable thing to do, it will instead encourage the idea that placing one queer, or disabled, or indigenous student on a governing body to represent their communities will create larger cultural impacts. Sure, that one director for racialized students might offer some insight on a policy, but are the creators of this plan hoping that somehow the one voice in the assembly will be more than that? Will it cause an increase in the number of racialized directors elected for other positions on the assembly, for president?
The UTSU’s plan assumes that guaranteeing a seat at the table for these identities will solve complex problems of representation. We want our communities represented, but true success would mean achieving proportional representation in the current structure of student assemblies. It would mean members of marginalized communities being elected by students to represent them without the student union creating mandatory positions. This plan would not work towards breaking down barriers and prejudices that cause the underrepresentation of these groups in the first place.
It seems as though the UTSU forgot what the goal of their plan really is: to create a campus where equity is the norm and marginalized identities no longer have to be referred to as marginalized. By restructuring their student union assembly to have boxes for these marginalized identities, the UTSU will be building a system that secures representation but ignores the deeper problems they are trying to address.
