Ss Langara Falcons’ midfielder Carlos Marquez dribbles past defenders from Douglas College in a game last season. Ex-Whitecap leads Falcons Reigning Rookte of the Year helps Falcons back to winning ways By MADELYN FORSYTH high turnover in players plagued the Langara Falcons soccer team last September but Carlos Mar- quez’s years of experience made him stand out. The title Rookie of the Year only adds to the 20-year-old’s long list of achieve- ments. Marquez was part of the provin- cial team for three years as well as play- ing for the Richmond United Metro for six years before being signed to the Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency program in 2010. Marquez was not signed by the Whitecaps last year and has been focus- ing on his studies and improving his game with the Falcons. Head coach Marc Rizzardo said Marquez is focused on taking the “college route” right now and will then try for the professional league again. “He is extremely skillful and knowl- edgeable,” said Rizzardo. “He’s just got that extra experience that sometimes sets him aside from other people.” Rizzardo highlighted the fact that most opposing teams didn’t know what to expect when faced with Marquez last season. Nicholas Chen, defenceman for the Falcons, has been playing with Marquez for almost eight years. Chen described him as a laid-back player who rarely gets overwhelmed on the field. “His pre-game mentality is always re- laxed, he never stresses,” said Chen. “One thing that stands out is his ability to beat players one on one and create scoring opportunities.” Marquez has been able to power through when things haven’t gone his way. Even though the residency pro- gram didn’t work out for him last year, he was able to look past it and see the positives in an otherwise disappointing situation. LAURA MAY photo 66 One thing that stands out is his ability to beat play- ers one-on- one COACH RIZZARDO Greig: Metta World Peace approves Langara Falcons’ point guard leads the basketball team to a 13-1 record in the PacWest standings By MIKE HODDER Brody Greig and the Langara Fal- cons are the No. 1 men’s college bas- ketball team in Canada. Falcons’ head coach Paul Eberhardt said Greig, voted Pac West player of the week earlier this month, caught the eye of New York Knicks forward Metta World Peace in an off-season scrim- mage match at a Richmond high school. “We did some workouts with Metta last sum- mer,” said Eber- hardt. “After the first game the first comment he made was, ‘Who is that guy? He can really play.” You don’t have to take World Peace’s word for it, Greig’s record speaks for itself. “He’s No.1 for as- sists. No one’s even close to him, but he’s also in the top 10 for both scoring and rebounds and for a point guard that’s pretty rare,” said Eberhardt. “He just thrives in the up-tempo sys- tem that we run. He’s so talented at fast-pace basket- ball.” The Falcons are averaging more than 100 points a game, dominating the 2018-14 season, earning the team a 13-1 record. Known for their fast-paced of- fence, they’re also shutting down their opponents left, right and centre. Grieg says this is due to Eberhardt’s defensive strategy of, “score more points than the other team.” The Fal- cons took home two back-to-back road wins last weekend against Camosun and league rivals, Vancouver Island University. With the playoffs on the horizon, all eyes are on Langara to win the Pac- West championship, something Greig believes is going to happen. “We can score. We’ve got eight or nine guys that can really score the ball,” said Grieg. “If we keep playing good defense I think we can make that happen.” [: not hard to see why point guard BRODY GREIG Langara Falcons Point Guard 66 We’ve got eight or nine guys that can really score the ball Langara looks to smash Douglas The Falcons badminton team hope for a win in Kamloops against rivals Douglas College By EDRICK DUDANG team hopes to secure their lead in the PacWest standings this Friday at Thompson Rivers University. The team is currently ahead of reign- ing champions Douglas College Royals. Langara won the first tournament of the season at Douglas College but lost to the Royals at the second tournament held at Vancouver Island University, which Te: Langara Falcons badminton placed the Falcons at second. “They [Douglas College] have a pow- erhouse team,” said coach Marc Petre- man. However, given the strong perfor- mance Langara put out against Douglas College in the first half of the season, Petremen believes they can win. “If we played to our full potential, I re- ally believe we can win,” said Petreman, looking back to their victory at Douglas College. Petreman believes Douglas College is their main threat. The other schools, “all have a couple of strong teams. How- ever, we have the overall stronger team.” Ashley Jang, who plays in the mixed doubles and the women’s doubles teams, is also extremely confident that the Falcons can take home the gold. She is recovering from a torn ACL, injured in August 2012. Despite the set- back, she and Nathan Choi placed sec- ond in both tournaments in the mixed- doubles bracket. In addition, she and Florina Lau placed second and third in the women’s doubles bracket in both tournaments. She praised her new team and is glad that her teammates are giving it their all. “This team is good compared to other years,” said Jang. “About 90 per cent of our practices, everyone shows up.” She also believes that she is returning to her full potential as her knee heals, and expects to be in first place. EDRICK DUDANG photo Langara Falcons Andrew Li practices his backhand.