Football
On Thursday, SFU Athletics hired former BC Lions player and running backs coach Kelly Bates to be the head coach of the Clan football team. Bates replaces Jacques Chapdelaine, who left the team in December to become the offensive coordinator with the Saskatchewan Roughriders. He beat out BC Lions receivers coach Khari Jones, with whom he worked last season.
NFL bound?
Former SFU wide receivers Lemar Durant and Bobby Pospischil tried out at the NFL regional combines in Denver, CO on February 21. If successful, they will be invited to the NFL Super Regional Combines on March 21 in Tempe, AZ, where they will be watched by NFL scouts.
Whitecaps
The Whitecaps announced last Tuesday that they have signed former Clan forward Jovan Blagojevic to play with the Whitecaps FC 2, where he will play for former SFU coach Alan Koch. Former Clan teammate defender Alexander Kleefeldt will also join the team’s pre-season roster.
Women’s Basketball
Women’s basketball senior Katie Lowen was named to the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Academic All-conference Team for sporting a 3.29 GPA in Business Administration. This is her second straight year achieving the award, and she joins 20 other SFU student athletes who have received the honour this season.
Swimming
On February 21 and 22, the SFU swim teams hosted the University of Tokei, Japan. Clan freshman Adrian VanderHelm broke an SFU record for the 400-metre individual medley. “Adrian is swimming well. The [individual medley] is not an event we have prepared him for, and he set the school record,” head coach Liam Donnelly told SFU Athletics.
Softball
An SFU-UBC softball matchup that was supposed to serve as the home opener last Tuesday was postponed by SFU Athletics last Monday. In addition, it was announced that a previously-postponed doubleheader against UBC, originally scheduled for Tuesday, March 31 will be played on Wednesday, April 6 at North Delta with the games starting at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Basketball
Both men’s and women’s basketball finished their regular seasons last week, with both playing Western Washington — the men on Thursday and women on Friday. While the men’s season has ended, the women’s team will continue on to the NCAA playoffs, with the GNAC tournament starting March 4 in Billings, MT.
With files from SFU Athletics
