Ss Soccer teams recruiting Aspiring players should be prepared to train outside of practice and work with constructive criticsm By DEANNA CHENG t Langara’s soccer recruitment few: coaches are looking for ambitious people who will play with pride and are “prepared to com- mit fully to the team,” according to Fal- cons soccer player Valery Romanchik. The open camps are an opportu- nity to evaluate and weed the players out, said David Shankland, the men’s soccer coach. A few players leave after each season, so Shankland looks for technically sound players to replace specific positions. Women’s soccer coach Ryan Birt said he looks for “skill on the ball, and being calm and composed [with an] understanding of drills and the game.” He also DARA RYKISS Falcons soccer wants players player who put in effort and can work with construc- tive criticism. Those interested have to be committed to train outside of practice and always communicate with others on the field, said women’s soccer team member Dara Rykiss. Both Shankland and Birt agree their strength is in teamwork. “For a team sport, cohesion is a massive, massive factor,” Birt said. One weakness of the men’s soccer team is its mental strength. There is no time to linger on past mistakes, said Shankland. “Playing games every Saturday and Sunday for two months straight, it takes a physical toll but it also takes a mental toll on you,” he said. The next men’s soccer ID camp is on Saturday, April 20 at Trillium Park. The next camp for women’s soccer is in the first week of August. ( JADE ARIGNON photo The Langara Falcons huddle during the nationals tournament last weekend. The tournament was held at John Abbott College in Quebec. Men's team wins bronze Falcons wrap up season with third place in nationals tournament By SERA AKDOGAN angara welcomed the men’s bas- ketball team with open arms Monday as they came back from thenationals. The Langara Fal- cons didn’t come home empty-handed, taking home bronze in the national tournament. Harlem College took silver, while Vancouver Island University took gold. “Tam so proud of the character the boys showed coming back to win two games after such a devastating loss in the semi-finals,” said coach Paul Eberhardt. “While our goal was to win the gold I am still extremely proud of what this team has accom- plished this season.” The Falcons were the number one ranked team going into the tourna- ment, held at John Abbott College in Sainte Anne de Bellevue, Quebec March 14-16. The team went against the John Abboit Islanders and grabbed an easy 90-63 victory. Scoring 16 points was Devin McMurtry who also pulled down nine rebounds, while Jitinder Lohcham scored 16 points and eight rebounds. Matt Madewan scored 15 points, and Daniel Hobden also contributed to the win by scoring nine points. “It was a good start for us as we gota chance to play in the gym and get PAUL EBERHARDT our legs after the Men’s basketball long travel time,” ©oaeh Eberhardt said. “We played in Vancouver Island University [wong gold] which is ironic because we’ve beaten them four times. It was a little discouraging for us because they are the team we never lost to until now.” The Falcons finished the season with an impressive 25 wins and two losses, and won the PacWest championships, which qualified them for the nationals. Star player Brody Greig was congratulated as a runner-up for the player of the year award and Devin MecMurty was recognized for being an academic all-Canadian. Eberhardt was selected as the CCAA National Coach of the Year “Tam truly humbled to receive this award especially with all of the other amazing coached who were nominated,” said Eberhardt. He is Results: National tournament 1ST: HARLEM COLLEGE 2ND: VANCOUVER ISLAND UNIVERSITY 3RD: LANGARA COLLEGE Source: PacWest BC the semi-finals and lost by one. also PacWest coach of the year. gram. Niall Shannon photo Aspiring speedskaters practicing at the new speedskating development program at the Oval. Skaters flock to new program that is first of its kind on the West Coast, headed by Olympic coach By NIALL SHANNON ere’s a new program for those who love to skate and love even more the feeling of speeding along the rink. A speed skating development program is beginning at the Rich- mond Olympic Oval. It’s for those who are comfortable with skating, but want to try out something different, according to David Morrison, head coach of the pro- “We're really are at the threshold here of something fresh and new here,” said Morrison. The Short Track Legacy Program will offer various camps and sessions starting in April for different levels of skaters. In the past, Morrison has had a lot of success converting hockey skaters into competent speed skaters in a short amount of time. It usually takes only eight months to a year. “Ideally, those interested are already a good skater but they’d like to try something different,” said Morrison. The program is unique to B.C. Before, many aspiring speedskaters would have needed to move to Montreal. It’s also innovative as it focuses on the technical aspect of the sport. It’s not always the fastest who wins, it’s the most technically competent, according to Morrison. Morrison, trained competitors for the 2011 Canada Winter Games and Calling skaters of all levels was a speed skating coach for the Gloucester Concordes Speed Skating Club in Ontario for almost 20 years. He’s looking to work with the speed skating clubs in the area. One such club is the Richmond Rockets, whose members regularly practise at the Oval. “T love [speed skating], I’ve been doing it three years,” said Rockets member Jackie Humber as she laced up for a practice at the Oval. “The program sounds great, to be honest, it’s pretty unique, it offers something different,” added Hum- ber. Morrison is looking forward to the opportunity to do something not seen across Canada. “Tt’s really exciting. I would encourage people to come and try it out, see what it’s all about, and I certainly look forward to seeing everyone out on the ice.”