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| Kaitlin Willoughby is all smiles after a goal. |
The University of Saskatchewan Huskies had a tough Christmas
season over how the resignation of football head coach Brian Towriss played out,
but there are still lots of good people who are involved with that athletics
program.
Due to the awkward news conference that happened on Dec. 19,
2016 to announce Towriss was stepping down, fury went up around Huskies alums
and current players from football and the other sports that comprise the 15
total teams from the athletics program. Supporters from all the program’s teams
were also very unhappy about that move.
The fury was so great that an apology
was released by U of S president Peter Stoicheff regarding how that situation
was handled.
While a lot of former athletes and current ones were upset
over that situation, an educated guess leaves me to believe the memories and
attachment to the Huskies logo and colours will make the hurt feelings
disappear over time. I believe some alums and supporters have already started
to return to games after about a couple of weeks despite saying they wouldn’t
be back for a lengthy time.
In the present, there is still a second half of the U Sports
season that needs to be played out, and the Huskies teams that are in action
can still do some special things.
The Huskies teams are still represented by a large number of
quality individuals. As the Huskies like to give out what they call their seven
major awards at the end of every season, here are seven outstanding individuals
that represent the green and white.
Kaitlin Willoughby
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| Kaitlin Willoughby breaks up ice for the Huskies. |
Actually, trying to dislike this 21-year-old Prince Albert
product is like trying to hate Bambi. You just can’t do it.
As a rookie in 2013-14, the speedy and skilled forward
cemented her spot in the history of the Huskies hockey program, when she scored
the double overtime winner in a series deciding Game 3 of the Canada West
championship to give the Huskies a 2-1 victory over the U of Regina Cougars at
the ancient Rutherford Rink.
The win marked the first time the Huskies women’s
team won a Canada West title, and they would capture a bronze medal at
nationals. She also happened to become the U Sports rookie of the year
collecting 10 goals and 15 assists in 28 regular season games.
Her production wasn’t just a one-year thing. In 102 regular
season games, Willoughby has piled up 38 goals and 49 assists despite always
facing extra attention from the opposition. She has eight goals and eight
assists in 20 games this season, and she will play for Canada’s women’s team at
the FISU Winter Universiade, which runs Jan. 29 to Feb. 8 in Almaty,
Kazakhstan.
Willoughby is loved by her teammates on any of her teams
past and present and by a large number of players from the other Huskies teams.
While she is sweet, she can get fired up on the ice, if someone takes a liberty
or cheap shot at one of her teammates or her. It is a side her opponents would
be wise not to bring out of her or you might find out she can be traditional
P.A. Raiders tough.
On a night by night basis, Willoughby alone makes it worth
the price of admission to attend any Huskies women’s hockey game, and she is a
player you can never go wrong with supporting.
Emmalyn Copping
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| Emmalyn Copping nails a kill. |
The Calgary, Alta., product arrived on campus before the
start of the 2013-14 campaign to play for the Huskies women’s volleyball team.
She quickly established herself as a standout outside hitter averaging 2.53
kills per set and 2.04 digs per set in her career, and she has also made her
life in “the Bridge City.”
Usually, players that live outside of Saskatoon return home
for the summer months. Copping ended up working full time in Saskatoon. She
became well known as first a courteous server at Earls before moving on to keep
customers upbeat when they pass through the doors of Hudsons.
She kept a fairly busy schedule in summer. When she wasn’t training to prepare for
volleyball season, Copping was working.
On the court, Copping helped bring respect back to the
Huskies women’s volleyball team. The Huskies were last a powerhouse squad back
in the 2001-02 campaign posting a 16-4 regular season record, when setter
Carlee Thorsen and middle Lindsay Bothner were stars for the green and white. Since that time, the Huskies have often struggled to earn five wins in regular
season play.
With Copping, the Huskies posted a 9-13 mark in her first
year in 2013-14 and a 10-14 record last season. Both of those marks are the
best records the Huskies have posted since the 2001-02 campaign.
Before she joined the Huskies, Copping spent one season with
the Medicine Hat College Rattlers women’s volleyball team of the Alberta
Colleges Athletic Conference in 2012-13. She shined on and off the court there
and became really well known for keeping an eye on the two young sons of then
Rattlers men’s volleyball coach Steve Russell.
When the Huskies make community appearances, Copping, who is
positive and sweet, shines when she interacts with young fans.
Copping is currently playing her final season of U Sports
eligibility. You can bet she will do her best to help the Huskies earn their
first Canada West playoff berth since that 2001-02 campaign.
Matt Forbes
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| Matt Forbes (#13) looks to drive the ball for the Huskies. |
So far this season, the Huskies have already equaled last
season’s total of regular season victories at eight. The Huskies are 8-4 in 12
games this season after posting an 8-12 record in 2015-16.
Forbes was supposed to play out his final campaign of U Sports
eligibility last season, but the 6-foot-6 post suffered a foot injury in the
Huskies first pre-season game that sidelined him for the entire campaign. So
far this season, the Regina Beach product is back in top form averaging 13.3
points per game and 8.3 rebounds per game.
While he usually matches up against players that are taller
in height than he is, Forbes still changes the dynamics of the inside game for
the Huskies both offensively and defensively in a good way. When Forbes isn’t
in the lineup, it presents a huge void for the Huskies to fill.
In 2014-15, Forbes was instrumental in helping the Huskies
post a 15-5 regular season record averaging 13.4 points and 7.0 rebounds a
game. He helped the Huskies advance to the Canada West championship game, where
they fell 70-67 to the U of Victoria Vikes. That result allowed the Huskies to
make an appearance at nationals.
Away from the court, Forbes can often be found working as a
staffer at other Huskies events. He is also one of the friendliest players on
the Huskies men’s hoops team, and he is comfortable with talking to anyone that
greets him out of the blue. Forbes also made the Huskies all-academic second
team in 2012 and 2015.
With Forbes in the fold, the Huskies have a good chance to
make another deep playoff run.
Ben Getzlaf
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| Huskies receiver Ben Getzlaf (#86) collides with a defensive back. |
The Holy Cross High School graduate had the expected modest
first season catching six passes for 74 yards and one touchdown. Traditionally,
the Huskies football program likes young players to focus on developing for a
couple of seasons before seeing significant field time. For a first year player
fresh out of high school, Getzlaf saw a lot more field time than most players
in his position normally receive.
In high school, he starred for the Crusaders and played on
two of Saskatchewan’s teams that took part in the Football Canada Cup. Getzlaf
also suited up for Canada’s under-18 team for the International Bowl series
that ran Jan. 31 to Feb. 1 last year in Arlington, Texas.
When he joined the Huskies, a number of the team’s veterans
were impressed with the skill set Getzlaf had. Standing 5-foot-11 and weighing
180 pounds, Getzlaf makes his living on the field as a possession receiver that
runs crisp routes.
Getzlaf’s second cousin is veteran CFLer Chris Getzlaf, and
both like to avoid the limelight if they can.
One of Ben Getzlaf’s visibly most embarrassing moments came,
when he had to pose for some pictures for a feature that ran on him in the
Saskatoon Express about a year ago. In a scene you might see on a signing day
for a United States university team, Getzlaf put on a Huskies football hat and
posed for a photo holding a football out towards the camera with one hand.
The whole picture shoot was done in front of about six
players from the Holy Cross Crusaders senior girls’ basketball team, who
laughed and gave him the gears. Getzlaf turned blushing red.
In future seasons, expect Getzlaf to one day become the
Huskies silent and modest star pass catcher.
Kendall McFaull
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| Kendall McFaull raised the Dr. W.G. Hardy Trophy. |
A product of Rosetown, Sask., McFaull is remembered by minor
hockey coaches in the Saskatoon area for being extremely coachable.
Before joining the Huskies, McFaull established himself as a
high-character guy during his four seasons toiling on the blue-line with the
WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors. After his 17-year-old season in the 2009-10 campaign,
McFaull, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 210 pounds, was selected in the sixth
round and 155th overall in the NHL Entry Draft by the Atlanta
Thrashers, who relocated to Winnipeg to become the second version of the Jets.
With the Warriors, McFaull, who was the team’s captain in
his final WHL campaign in 2012-13, established himself as a solid defensive
defenceman who is tough to play against in front of the net, and he had the
ability to chip in the odd point here and there. He carried that reputation on
to the U of Saskatchewan campus.
McFaull played a key role on the Huskies back end during
their trips to the University Cup national championship tournament in 2014 and
2016.
Last season in his third year of eligibility, McFaull was
named the Huskies captain and he led the Huskies to a first place finish in the
Canada West conference recording five goals, six assists and a plus-10 rating
in the plus-minus department in 28 regular season outings. In the first game of
the playoff run that saw the Huskies win a Canada West title, McFaull scored
the overtime winner that delivered his side to a 4-3 victory over the U of
Calgary Dinos.
When the Huskies captured the Canada West championship,
McFaull ensured the memory the Huskies late hard working, glue guy forward in
Cody Smuk was part of the celebrations. Smuk passed away from cancer in June of
2015, and McFaull was his teammate on both the Warriors and Huskies.
During the Canada West title celebrations, McFaull skated
around the ice with Smuk’s jersey and he helped bring Smuk’s parents, Marty and
Darla, and fiancée, Stephanie Vause on to the ice for the team picture.
McFaull seems to ensure his Huskies, who lead Canada West
with a 15-3-2 mark, always step in the right direction.
Zak Rempel
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| Zak Rempel serves the ball for the Huskies. |
Way back in the fall of 2013, Rempel joined the Huskies
after a successful two-season run as the star setter for the Medicine Hat
College Rattlers men’s volleyball team of the Alberta Colleges Athletic
Conference. With the Rattlers, Rempel showed strong leadership qualities and
was always front and centre for post-game interviews, and it didn’t matter if
it was good or bad.
In his first two seasons with the Huskies from 2013 to 2015,
Rempel, who stands 6-foot-5, saw decent action as a setter and proved to be
calming influence when things got hectic on the court. Unfortunately, nagging
injuries slowed Rempel down especially at the end of his second season.
After leaving the program for a season, Rempel returned to a
Huskies team that had won a silver medal at the Canada West championship
tournament and advanced to the semifinal in the U Sports national championship
tournament. He also came back to a Huskies team that was deep at setter with
Derek Epp, who was a member of Canada’s junior national team, and Troy Wiebe,
who was in his final year of eligibility.
Rempel moved over to become an outside hitter and is playing
more of a supportive role. The 23-year-old has always been a good influence in
the dressing room, and he will step back to take lesser time on the court to
help the team.
When he has stepped on the court, Rempel has averaged 2.56
kills per set.
Rempel has always carried a sound commitment when it comes
to working out in the gym. With the Huskies just holding on to one of the seven
playoff berths in the Canada West conference with a 7-5 record, you bet Rempel
will be there to help his team in whatever role he is called up to do.
Lisa Thomaidis
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| Lisa Thomaidis is the best coach in Huskies Athletics. |
Way back in 1998, Thomaidis arrived on the U of S campus at
age 26 to become the new head coach of the Huskies women’s basketball team.
Back then, the Huskies seemed to always find themselves at the bottom of the
Canada West standings.
Since that time, Thomaidis built the Huskies into a national
powerhouse winning four Canada West titles, qualifying for the U Sports
nationals in seven of the last eight years and winning the program’s first
national championship in March of last year. She was also named a YWCA Woman of
Distinction in 2009.
When she isn’t coaching the Huskies, Thomaidis is the head
coach of Canada’s national senior women’s basketball team. Under her guidance,
Canada won gold at the Pan-Am games in 2015 and make the quarter-final round at
the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.
On campus, she is looked up to not only by the players she
coaches but also a large number of players that are members of the Huskies
other women’s team.
Thomaidis’s greatest gift is the fact she is able to inspire
great confidence in her players. Due to that fact, her players always improve
greatly as the season progresses.
On the court, Thomaidis’s squads always play a sound team
game and mix things up on the court. They can push the ball up court in
transition or slow things down and break down a defence in half court. On the
defensive side be it press, man or zone, Thomaidis’s teams can do it all.
Away from the court, Thomaidis’s players always seem to be
first rate superstar people who carry themselves extremely well. When all is
said and done, the veteran coach likely sees that as her biggest victory.
While she has coached for a long time, Thomaidis can still
be young at heart too. When the Huskies won the Canada West title last year,
she finished cutting down the net, turned to her players, smiled and said it
was time to go out and party. Her players gleefully responded with big cheers.
If you have any
comments you would like to pass on about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com. Huskies
players have also made two editions of “People Who Rock” columns in this blog.
The first of those columns can be found right here and the second is here.
