Ss

8

Both Falcons
basketball
teams suffer
defeats

Women lose to Camosun as
men are downed in
tournament by Quest

By SIMONE PFEIFFER

en’s and men’s basketball teams

played and lost pre-season games
at home against their competitors in
the provincial league.

On Friday evening, the women’s
team was defeated 38-48 by the Camo-
sun Chargers.

But Falcons’ coaches Mike Evans
and Greg Eng were positive about their
team’s performance.

“It’s early in the season, this was an
exhibition game and we've got a lot of
rookies who are trying to figure out the
system,” said Eng.

“Although we didn’t win, we’re quite
happy with the way we played.”

Evans echoed Eng’s sentiments. “We
played a good game. It’s a very good
team, but we’re small and we lost our
biggest player this year. That hurt us
hard.”

Evans also noted the challenges fac-
ing anew team. “I love my team, they’re
a great group of girls...we’re getting to
know each other as we go along.” he
said.

Denise Busayong, one of the Falcons’
top players, said they’ve worked hard
to improve following last week’s alum-
ni game and “are slowly getting to
where we want to be.”

The women’s team will compete
against Kwantlen this Saturday.

The men’s team also played a three-
game tournament to kick off the sea-
son, last Saturday.

In the final game against Quest, the
team lost by just one point.

“Tt was a good day for us to see other
teams in the league. I saw a lot of prog-
ress,” said coach Paul Eberhardt.

“We've got a deep team with strong
players. Brody Greig, Jeff Chu, Elliot
Mason, Glenn Ruby. Big group, really
solid.”

As for their hopes for the season, he
said that they plan to go after both the
provincial and national champion-
ships.

Brody Greig shares his coach’s confi-
dence in the team.

“We hope to win it all, I think we’re a
strong enough team to do so,” he said.

The Falcons will play the University
of Northern B.C. on October 27".

T: past weekend, Langara’s wom-

RICHARD HODGES photo
A Langara player holds off his Capilano opponent in a match-up this past Sunday

Weins goal gives Falcons win

Victory also gives
coach Shankland
one over on old
rival Dailly

By RICHARD HODGES

n a Thanksgiving Sunday meeting

between rivals Langara Falcons and

hosts Capilano Blues, both soccer

teams conspired to beat the stuffing
out of each other, with Langara coming
out on top.

Aided by a 20 year competitive feud
between Langara coach David Shank-
land and Capilano coach Paul Dailly
that stretches back to their playing
days in Scotland, the game featured
fouls, injuries, and yellow cards.

In the end it featured just one goal,
an early second half strike by Brett
Weins that gave the Falcons all they
needed to down the Blues. It was
Weins’ fourth goal of the year.

“There’s a bit of a rivalry and we
pasted them 4-1 last time so they were
looking for revenge,” said goalkeeping
coach Paul Segovia. “I thought we
played better yesterday [in a 2-1 loss to
Vancouver Island University] than we
did today.”

Segovia also credited goalkeeper
Noah Pawlowski with a superb shutout
and making a number of crucial saves,
including a couple during a frantic run
of corners at the end of the first half.

The Falcons also had strong perfor-
mances from midfielders Konstantin
Vasic and Mynor Campos Jr.

With the win, the Falcons remain
two points ahead of Thompson Rivers
University for the final playoff spot in
the PACWEST with just two weekends
remaining in the season. Thompson
Rivers University hosts the Falcons
this Sunday in a vital match-up.

In the injury bay, the Falcons lost for-
ward Zako Fuat Majeed to a dislocated
shoulder while Campos Jr re-aggravat-
ed a knee strain. The Blues’ Lukas Sta-
warski was initially feared to have bro-
ken his leg but was seen walking after
the game.

Upcoming matches

October 13 away at UBC Okanagan
Ocotber 14 away at Thompson Rivers University

October 20 vs Kwantlen Polytechnic Univserity

October 21 vs Douglas College

Langara boxer's loss ends 3-bout winning streak

Jerik Brown loses cham-
pionship match in just
under two minutes against
George Vourtsis Friday at
the Cascades Casino

By SAM REYNOLDS

and semi-pro amateur boxer, the

title match of last Friday’s Clash at
the Langley Cascades Casino was his
Fat City moment.

Brown, 25, describes the 1972 boxing
drama Fat City as his favourite boxing
movie “because it isn’t a ‘Cinderella’
story.”

The welterweight (between 140-147
pounds) economics major was paired
against George Vourtsis of the Sun-

F:: Jerik Brown, a Langara student

shine Coast Boxing Club for the city
championship in the main event of the
evening — a fight expected to be a
shoe-in for Brown, who was on a three-
bout winning streak.

It ended in a victory for Vourtsis in
under two minutes after he delivered a
frenetic and punishing series of un-
blockable one-two blows to the chest.

Before the fight, Brown said that
Vourtis, while shorter, has a similar
fighting style to himself relying on a
combination of jabs and uppercuts.

“Tll be working the jab and trying to
get him to bring his head down,” Brown
said. “When he does that I'll be waiting
with the uppercut — in theory.”

In the dressing room before the fight
Brown’s trainer seemed confident he
would be able to beat Vourtsis.

He couldn’t.

Vourtsis was awarded a technical

knockout as the referee stopped the
fight because of swelling on Brown’s
forehead.

Dave Allison, a promoter for the
event, called the match-up between
Brown and Vourtsis “a highlight fight
of the year” because of how intensely
both fighters competed to earn the po-
sition. Vourtsis reportedly broke his
hand in the qualifying bout for this
match.

Though Vourtsis took the title in the
end, when asked before the fight about
his opponent Brown had sportsman-
like remarks.

“He looks like a nice guy,’ Brown
said. “I’ve never fought someone who
wasn’t a nice guy.”

Watch the full fight online at
langaravoice.com

LEV JACKSON photo

Langara’s Jerik Brown sports a goose egg after the fight