HUSKIES WEEKLY PREVIEW

BASKETBALL 

Omari Wiltshire’s head coaching debut could not have gone any better as the women’s basketball team came home with road victories over the St. Lawrence Surge and the Loyalist Lancers. Defence was the Huskies strong point in those games. The opponent’s shooting percentage average in the first two games was under 30% from the field, which is simply spectacular. After this impressive week, the team was ranked 13^th in the CCAA National rankings.

The team faces their toughest competition to date on Wednesday night when they host the East Division’s other undefeated team, and CCAA 5^th ranked Humber Hawks (2-0). Humber's offence has been extremely efficient, averaging 95.5 points per game to begin the season. The Huskies then travel to Centennial College two days later to battle the Colts (1-1) on Friday evening.

The men’s basketball team opened their season on the road with a couple of heart breakers losing by a combined seven points in their first two games. The biggest area the team needs to improve on moving forward is turnovers. In the first two games, they piled up 42 turnovers, which led to 41 points. The defending OCAA champions remained in the CCAA National ranking at No. 12 this week.

The Huskies are looking to bounce back as they play three games in six days. Their next opponent, Fleming Knights (0-1), are coming off a 96-83 loss to the Algonquin Wolves. The team will then travel East on Friday night to battle the winless Centennial Colts (0-2) and wrap things up on Sunday afternoon against the East Division leading Georgian Grizzlies (2-0) at home. 

Players to Watch

Kayana Granger (women’s basketball): Over the two games, the second-year forward recorded 25 points, 29 rebounds, five assists, two blocks and a steal. She posted double-doubles in both wins against the St. Lawrence Surge and Loyalist Lancers. She was named Huskies athlete of the week for her play. 

Jacob Masters (men’s basketball): The first-year guard did not look out of place in his first two OCAA games as he dropped 43 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block. He was 41% from the field and 38% from three-point range during that span.

VOLLEYBALL

The women’s volleyball team had a solid opening week going 1-1. They swept the Fleming Knights at home Friday night before dropping a five-setter to the Loyalist Lancers. In the loss to Loyalist, they showed character and perseverance after being down 2-0 and fighting back to almost win.

They hit the road for back-to-back games over the weekend starting with a stop against the East Division leading Canadore Panthers (2-0) on Saturday afternoon. Canadore has only dropped one set so far this season. They follow up that match with a battle against the winless Georgian Grizzlies (0-2) on Sunday afternoon. 

The Huskies strength is their balanced attack with Angelique Agustin, Ashley Lau and Emily Braam. One area they do need to improve is serving. The team accumulated 30 service errors in their first two matches last week.

Men’s volleyball head coach, Sam Schachter, enjoyed his first regular-season week going 2-0 to open the 2022 campaign. They began with a shutout victory at home over the Fleming Knights on Friday night and kept the momentum going beating the Loyalist Lancers 3-1 on the road. The offence was firing on all cylinders against the Lancers as three Huskies, Samuel Delgado, Arsam Talebi and Amiel Dela Rosa, all hit double-digits.

On their road trip this upcoming weekend, the Huskies will attempt to keep the winning streak alive as they battle the Canadore Panthers (1-0) on Saturday and Georgian Grizzlies (1-0) on Sunday.

Players to Watch

Angelique Agustin (women’s volleyball): The fourth-year outside hitter was the most consistent offensive threat in both matches for the Huskies. She tallied 22 points on 14 kills, seven aces and one block while adding eight digs last week. 

Amiel Dela Rosa (men’s volleyball): The first-year outside hitter played a pivotal role in the two men’s volleyball victories this past weekend. He recorded 17 points off of 14 kills, two aces and a block while adding eight digs in the two matches. He was named Huskies Athlete of the Week for his impressive week.

ESPORTS

The Esports team (3-0-1) is currently riding a three-game winning streak and is in a great position with only three games remaining in the regular season. This week's matchup could possibly make or break their season since they're battling the Carleton Ravens (3-0-1). Both teams hold the same record, and with the number of teams fighting for the playoffs, this could pole vault the squad in a fantastic spot.

Yeongin Kim has been simply spectacular during this three-game winning streak for the Huskies. In the team's 2-0 victory over the University of New Hampshire last week, he had two quadras, including a situation where he killed four champions by himself. He's currently ranked 148 in North America and top 500 in the world.