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Big weekend for UFV Cascades athletics

Basketball, volleyball teams hosting important games all weekend
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UFV’s Taylor Claggett has had a strong start to the season for the Cascades women’s basketball team. (Ben Lypka/Abbotsford News)

It’s set to be a packed weekend of action for the University of the Fraser Valley athletic department.

The Cascades men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball teams host important conference games, with playoffs looming for the volleyball squads.

The women’s basketball team aims to return to their winning ways when they welcome the Winnipeg Wesmen on Friday and Saturday.

The women are coming off a solid performance on the road last Saturday, taking the U SPORTS No. 1-ranked Regina Cougars down to the wire before falling 68-60.

“I feel like we’re really making strides in our game right now,” Cascades head coach Al Tuchscherer said. “Kind of the problem for us is, we’re one game behind. We lose, we learn lessons, and we improve. We’ve got to hopefully get out in front of these games and earn some Ws. I like the path that we’re on, and the determination that we’re playing with.”

Both teams enter the game with records of two wins and four losses. Games tip off at 6 p.m. on Friday and 5 p.m. on Saturday.

The men’s basketball team also welcomes the Wesmen, the same team that eliminated them in round one of the Canada West playoffs last spring.

“We have a lot of new faces at this stage, and we’re looking for every opportunity to get out there and play, and get back in the win column,” said men’s head coach Adam Friesen.

Both teams have a record of one win and five losses. Games tip off at 8 p.m. on Friday and 7 p.m. on Saturday.

The men’s and women’s volleyball teams host the College of the Rockies Avalanche teams for games on Saturday and Sunday.

The women are ranked third in the PACWEST and seventh in the country, while their opponents from Cranbrook are fourth in the PACWEST and 11th in Canada.

“In our league, there’s no weekends off – this is a very strong team coming in here,” Cascades head coach Mike Gilray said.

The men are tied with COTR for fourth in the PACWEST.

“I’d like to see us put together two complete games,” UFV head coach Kyle Donen said. “We need to make our overall game a smarter one.”

Games occur at the Envision Athletic Centre on Saturday at 1 p.m. for the women and 3 p.m. for the men. Sunday’s games shift to Abbotsford Senior Secondary, with the women playing at 11 a.m. and the men at 1 p.m.



Ben Lypka

About the Author: Ben Lypka

I joined the Abbotsford News in 2015.
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