By Ryan Laverty
Talent: B-
The Dinos men’s team was in way-over-its-head this year. There were a few bright spots over the course of the year, with Darren Clarke and the men’s relay team winning a little hardware at the National Championships. The women’s side was definitely the stronger of the two teams. With standout performers like Amy Barnett, Samantha Anderson and Melissa Van Hal, the women were near the top of the Canada West conference standings all year long. All in all, decent but not great.
Effort: B
No team wants to end a season without giving it their all. In a general sense what the men lacked in talent they made up for in effort. It was a long, trying season for the men, but they stuck it out, and after dropping out of the top 10 rankings following the Canada West championship, they fought back to eighth overall after the CIAU finals. The women’s team did the opposite. After a solid season, marked by several strong individual efforts, they managed to drop from sixth to eighth following the year’s final meet.
Coaching: B+
What can you say about Les Gramantik? He is Canada’s national track and field Head Coach. The guy knows his stuff. He was complemented perfectly by the politically-correct Doug Lamont. These guys extracted solid results out of a young women’s side and relative to last year, a weakened men’s one. Says Gramantik of track and field: "Track is the only sport. Everything else is just a game."
Performance: C
Both the men and the women left something to be desired this year. This university is spoiled with great teams and we come to expect nothing but the best from them. When all was said and done, these teams dropped the ball.
Overall: B-
Song they remind me of: Alabama’s "I’m In a Hurry".