8 THE VOICE, THURSDAY, FEB, 25,2016 EDITOR KEVIN UNDERHILL SS poris The ultimate trip to Poland Justin Chan and Tyus Chow put their ultimate abilities to the test By SCOTT FORBES wo Langara students are attend- ing tryouts this week in the hope of representing Canada at the World Junior Ultimate Champi- onships this summer in Warsaw, Po- land. Competition will be fierce as Justin Chan and Tyus Chow, both kinesiology students, vie with approximately 150 of the best ultimate players across Cana- da for 21 roster spots. Both players were part of the B.C. ju- nior team that came within a point of winning last year’s national champion- ship in Winnipeg, but the chance to make the national junior team is very different. “Honestly, I can’t really com- pare it to any other tryout because they haven’t been this big,” said Chan. Both players are trying to make the team as defenders, and feel they bring unique talents to the tryout. “Defence is a lot about grinding and pushing yourself beyond what you can do and a lot of defenders don’t have that stamina to defend their mark all the way,” said Chan. Chow echoed the sentiment of push- ing himself to the limit of his capabili- ties. “My mentality is to keep going no matter how tired you are, because I re- ally like that feeling of competing with your check and beating them in the mind game of who’s going to last lon- ger,” he said. Jon Hayduk, head coach of the Cana- dian junior men’s team, said the two players bring different skill sets to the tryouts. “Tyus is a very athletic player who brings a determination and a work ethic that is always valuable, and Justin is very quick and explosive, and he’s always good for a couple of good lay- outs a game,” he said. Both players are aware of the chal- lenge of making one of the world’s best junior teams. “It’s pretty intimidating,” said Chan. Chow said a lot of his prepa- ration is about clearing his mind and staying focused on his actions. The tryouts take place at St. George’s School on Feb. 28. WORLD JUNIOR past champions WJUC 2014 wJuc 2008 LECCO, ITA HEILBRONN, GER Champion: Canada Runner up: USA Champion: USA Runner up: Canada WJUC 2012 DUBLIN, IRL Champion: USA Runner up: Colombia wJuc 2008 VANCOUVER, CAN Champion: USA Runner up: Canada Source: http://www.wfdf.org/ sApays) Fy sel ie cae ete i 3 en ss SCOTT FORBES photos Justin Chan (top) and Tyus Chow train for national team tryouts on Langara’s front lawn. Town ‘n Country hosts provincials Junior bowlers from across B.C. will descend on the South Vancouver alley By REUBEN DONGALEN JR. try Bowl will host the Youth Bowl Canada provincial championship on Feb. 27. Youth Bowl Canada and the Canadi- an Tenpin Federation are the two ma- jor bowling leagues in Canada. Youth Bowl Canada contains three competi- tive divisions categorized by age: ban- tams, juniors and seniors. Amanda Tang, a participant in the senior girls’ division, was older than Ss" Vancouver’s Town ’n Coun- most when she developed her interest in bowling. The first-year UBC student hasn’t been bowling for very long in compari- son to some of the other athletes repre- senting Town ’n Country. However, her late start to the sport has motivated her to compete at a high level. “Tjoined in Grade 8, whereas you can see the bantams who are quite young- er. I don’t have as much experience. It’s a challenge trying to catch up with ev- eryone, and be at the competitive level with the same people who have been bowling for a long time,” she said. On the other hand, 16-year-old Kyle Adams, a competitor in the senior boys’ division, has been bowling for almost his entire life, according to his mother Colleen Adams. “Kyle’s been a competitive bowler ever since he got on the lanes 10 years ago,” she said. This year’s provincial championship is not his first experience with high- level competition, and he’s not lacking any experience going into the Feb. 27 event. Mike Gerla, a managing partner at Town *n Country Bowl, recognizes the importance the provincial champion- ships has for the young athletes. “We've hosted it a few times. It’s the provincial finals. The winning bowlers will move onto the national champion- ships in May. Bowling doesn’t have the notoriety as some sports—I[the provin- cial championships] gives the younger athletes a chance to showcase their abilities,” he said. AMANDA TANG Town ’n Country junior bowler 66 It’s a chal- lenge trying to catch up with every- one Falcons start team recruiting The Langara women’s soc- cer team scouts new talent at identification camp By NATALIE DUNSMUIR ith six months to go until the YY ic: Falcons’ next soccer season, coaches for the men’s and women’s teams have started recruit- ing new players. Both coaches are looking for players who have college-level skill, strong work ethics, good attitudes and who will meet Langara’s academic expectations. “At this level, players are all very skilled,” said Ryan Birt, coach of the Fal- cons women’s soccer team. “So it’s kind of ‘what are the things that separate those players?’ And a lot of the time for me it’s work rate, it’s attitude.” On top of scouting at local games, Birt ran an ID camp last week to identify promising athletes. About 20 prospective players showed up at Burnaby Lake for the camp, along with eight members of the current Langara team. Most players were in Grades 11 or 12 and are from schools scattered throughout the Lower Mainland. For them, the Langara team represents a chance to meld academics with soccer. Hannah Partridge, a Grade 12 student at R.A. McMath Secondary School in Richmond is planning on taking market- ing at Langara and has already commit- ted to the women’s soccer team. “Academically it fit for me,” she said. “And I like Ryan. He’s a good coach.” “When you get the academic side of it that’s appealing, and you get the soccer program that’s appealing, then it be- comes a place where kids want to go,” Birt said. According to Mare Rizzardo, coach of the Falcons men’s soccer team, recruit- ment is fairly successful for him, espe- cially since Kwantlen Polytechnic Uni- versity is shutting down its sports department. This season, his team is also attracting the interest of international students as Langara becomes increas- ingly global. “Tt looks like we'll probably have three [international students] on our team,” Rizzardo said. “I probably get one or two, sometimes three, requests a week from an international student.” For Brynn Johnstone, a Grade 12 stu- dent at Delta Secondary School who is hoping to make the Falcons women’s team, soccer is more than just a game. “It’s something I’m really passionate about,” Johnstone said. Zoe Garega, a Grade 11 student, attends the Falcons ID camp.