After taking the 2008 season off, veteran Jason Goetz was charged for the 2008-2009 season. Rested and healthy, he was ready to dominate. Jason showed improvement throughout the entire season breaking the UW Triple Jump Varsity Record twice in the process. The mark currently stands at 14.59m, which ranks him second in the country and only 12cm out of first place. At the OUA Championships Jason won bronze with a jump of 14.55m. Jason definitely has a bigger jump in him and is determined to take home gold at the CIS Championships. He is also ranked in the top twenty for the long jump and was able to place seventh at the conference championships in this event.

UW’s multi-event specialist Ryan Wight put on a clinic at the OUA Championships with personal best performances in all 5 of the events. After having random good performances in certain pentathlon events and inconsistent results throughout the regular season, he was finally able to put it all together. The most impressive of his feats were in the long and high jump. His high jump of 1.95m moved him into second place leading into 1000m, the gruelling final event of the pentathlon. In the end, Ryan ended up with the bronze, only 4 points out of second place and auto qualification to the national championships. His cloud-grazing high jump moved him into a potential CIS qualification position for that event. With a little luck on his side he could qualify for the CIS Championships in both the high jump and the pentathlon.

Hugo Lopez, a junior out of Newmarket ON, has had gradual performance improvement throughout the entire season leading to a varsity record setting performance in the 60m hurdles (8.56) at York University in mid-February. He narrowly missed making the final in the strong OUA conference running a solid 8.60. Hugo is currently ranked 15^th in the CIS.

The injury, illness, and bad luck plagued men’s sprint relays have had a tough season. Pulled hamstrings, opposing team interference and the flu has prevented the 4x200 and 4x400m teams from performing to their potential. Nearly 10 athletes have cycled through the A team relays filling gaps left due to injury or illness during the season. These teams did however secure some team points at the OUA Championships due to the depth that the team has in this event area. They are hoping to qualify for the CIS Championships where they expect to be healthy and show to the CIS that they are contenders for team points.

Veteran Julia Malleck, in her graduating year, after failing to make the fast section of the 1000m at the OUA Championships decided to focus solely on the 1500m. Her valiant effort led to a 9^th place finish and one team point. Julia was also part of the 4x400m and 4x800m relays both of which scored points. Julia was the lady Warriors highest point getter with 4. Julia also remains as the 16^th ranked 1000m runner in the CIS. Freshman jumper Katrina Vandervoort from Ottawa ON, had a fantastic inaugural season with the Warriors. She is an extremely versatile athlete competing in many events. She came out of the OUA Championships with 9^th place finishes in both the long and triple jump. She also lent herself to the 4x200m relay and scored points in all three of the events she participated in. She currently sits in the second position on Waterloo's all-time best list for the triple jump with a mark of 10.81m. She shows great promise for the future and is definitely someone to watch.

The Warriors overall had a decent showing on both the men’s and women’s teams especially having lost seven athletes to graduation who qualified for the CIS Championships. The men’s team nearly doubled their team points compared to the 2008 season finishing with a total of 23 points and placing 9^th overall. This is the first time since 2006 the men’s team has won a championship medal. The women placed 9^th with a total of 7 points.

Potential CIS Roster

Women

Malleck, Julia               1000m

Vandervoort, Katrina    Triple Jump

Men

Clare, Benjamin            4x200m, 4x400m

Goetz, Jason                 Long Jump, Triple Jump, 4x200m, 4x400m

Govia, Luke                 4x200m, 4x400m

Hartman, Chris             4x400m

Lam, Chris                   4x200m, 4x400m

Lopez, Hugo                60mH

Muirhead, Jacob           4x200m, 4x400m

Noland, Eric                 4x200m, 4x400m

Wight, Ryan                 Pentathlon, High Jump

 
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Jason Dockendorff Head Coach University of Waterloo Track and Field

Kate Bickle Marketing and Promotions University of Waterloo Track and Field