It turned into quite a year for sports in New West in 2017. You may have heard about the high school football team (see page 3), but it wasn’t the only spotlight shining on some terrific performances and achievements.
Here are some of the other amazing people and results from around the Royal City – not always ending in gold, but worthy of recalling just the same:
In her first indoor competition as a member of the Kansas State University track and field team, New Westminster’s Nina Schultz did what comes naturally – posted a handful of personal bests in her first meet. It was the start of a trend, too.
At that first meet, competing in the pentathlon, she registered new PBs in 60-metre hurdles, the high jump, long jump and shot put (11.11m). She also placed fourth in the 800m with a new PB of 2:34.26 minutes.
There would be no sense in noting those new times and distances, unless in pencil, as she continued to set more records, including the under-20 Canadian pentathlon mark, at the NCAA indoor championships in March. Schultz finished that meet third overall, establishing a new Canadian record of 4,340 points, an improvement on her own previous best, set just a month earlier. The NCAA competition also saw new standards for Schultz in the 60m hurdles (8.41 seconds), high jump (1.81m), long jump (6.18m), shot put (12.14m) and 800m (2:26.55).
On the outdoor season, Schultz maintained the same frenetic pace.
Most impressively, the teen breeched the 6,000-point mark with her all-around total (6,021 in seven events).
“I feel that (6,000 points) is a barrier that a lot of younger heptathletes aim to break. Being able to do that in my first heptathlon of the season is fulfilling,” she told the Record. She set another u20 women’s Canadian record at the Jim Click Combined Events in April, where she won the women’s heptathlon with KSU’s fourth-best all-time point total.
The New West Spartans-trained athlete concluded the 2017 season by taking silver at the NCAA championships in the heptathlon.
Along the way she netted the Big 12’s Outstanding Freshman of the Year award, after leading Kansas State to its first conference title since 2002.
An off-season spent on loading up saw the likes of Kevin Crowley, Brett Mydske, Joel McCready and Tye Belanger join the ’Bellies with an eye on a championship.
After a hot-and-cool regular season, where they finished third overall with an 11-6-1 record, New West surged in the playoffs. They first avenged last year’s semifinal loss, beating Maple Ridge in a tense seven-game series, which was decided in overtime.
In the league final, the ’Bellies beat Victoria 4-1 to earn the right to host the Mann Cup championship at Queen’s Park Arena.
And everything seemed on course when the hosts bolted to a 2-0 series lead over the Peterborough Lakers. Only thing was, the Ontario champions used the first two games to gain knowledge and their footing on B.C. soil, and preceded to win the next four to hand New West a disappointing season end.
There were numerous heroes in the marathon year, including netminder Alexis Buque, defenders Brett Mydske (a first team all-star), Mike Messenger and Curtis Hodgson, and forwards Crowley, McCready and Logan Schuss.
How many return for another run at the cup? The team has a new coach – former junior product Rory McDade – behind the bench for 2018, after head coach Steve Goodwin announced his retirement at the end of the season
It could be the beginning of something new, or possibly a new chapter in a reoccurring saga. Every indication is that the club won’t take its foot off the gas pedal, looking for that 25th national crown.
