Friday, February 3, 2023
Sports
queensjournal.ca • 13
Winter Adapted Games foster connection through sport Students and Kingstonians with disabilities connect for a day at the ARC Lilly Coote Assistant Sports Editor On Saturday Jan. 28, Queen’s hosted the Winter Adapted Games (WAG). The event paired student volunteers with members of the Kingston community who have identified disabilities for a fun-filled day of non-competitive sports and activities. WAG is an annual event organized by Queen’s students in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies and the School of Rehabilitation Therapy. The event first began in 1991, but was put online due to COVID-19 in recent years. 2023 marked the first in-person WAG since 2020, much to the excitement of co-chair Eunice Pang. “I personally have a sister with a disability, and I know events like these really mean a lot to her,” Pang said in an interview with The Journal. Pang was a volunteer buddy during her first year, and later joined the executive team as an event and activity coordinator. Now, as one of the co-chairs, she said seeing the event come to life is more fulfilling.
“The best part, I think, is just being able to offer adaptive sports and games and activities to people with disabilities that unfortunately aren’t able to get that opportunity most of the time because of the barriers in place for accessibility and inclusivity.”
A particpant poses with student volunteers in the pool.
On Friday Jan. 27, the Queen’s Women’s Hockey team shut down the Windsor Lancers 5-1 at the Memorial Centre. Head Coach Mark Hollberg told The Journal he’d made some strategic changes to include a more high-powered offense, which the team showcased beautifully in their match up against the Lancers. In the first period, Emma McKnight sliced through the Lancers’ defense on a breakaway and opened the game with a perfect shorthanded goal. Scout Watkins Southward returned to the Memorial Centre ice for the first time this weekend since helping Canada win gold at the FISU Games, and scored on a deflected
Shelby Sly is in the zone.
SUPPLIED BY JULIA EBISUZAKI-MACKAY
Pang pointed out that one common misconception about WAG is students must be in the School of Kinesiology to join. “You don’t have to be a Kin student to get involved and you don’t necessarily have to like sports to get involved. There’s really
student clubs into their event, including a performance from Queen’s POM Team and a local student acapella group. Other events during the day included karate, crafts, sleigh rides, swimming, cookie decorating and yoga.
shot minutes later to give the Gaels an early 2-0 lead. Less than a minute later, the Lancers scored to cut the Gaels lead to 2-1. However, assists from Quinn Johnston and Sarah Campbell to Rebecca Thompson early in the second period allowed the Gaels to pull ahead by another point. Gaels kept up their momentum and scored on a power play when Sophie Hudson found the back of the net in the third period. The Gaels sat comfortably at 4-1. Then Alyson Reeves deked the Windsor goalie for Queen’s fifth and final goal for good measure. The Gaels dominated on the ice, and goalie Lexi Giorgi was steady in net with 29 saves. Quinn Johnston is a key forward for the Gaels and averages almost one point per
game. She recently did a podcast episode with former player Jaclyn Hawkins, where she said she’s feeling optimistic about the second half of the season. “We know that our best is yet to come,” Johnston said on the Women’s Hockey Life Podcast. “We’ve been doing a new system [with] our group this year, which has been really fun and a good challenge, and I think we’re really starting to own it.” Despite the new offensive strategy implemented in the 2023 season, the Gaels are still struggling with consistency. The team has a 10-12 record, frequently alternating wins and losses. The team watched their three-game win streak slip through their fingers immediately following their Lancer victory on Saturday Jan. 28 with a tough 6-1 loss to Waterloo. The Warriors have been a tough matchup for the Gaels this season; six goals are the most goalie Vanessa Campeau and the Gaels
Gaels beat Lancers 5-1
Lilly Coote Assistant Sports Editor
something for everyone. There’s a lot of different positions you can get paired up with participants, you can run events, you can lead teams. It’s a really great experience that I urge everyone to be part of.” WAG also incorporates different
Each of the event’s 80 participants were partnered with a volunteer buddy. Buddy positions are open to any student in any faculty at Queen’s, and over 100 students participated in the event. “Everything’s on a volunteer basis,” Alex Worden, a public relations representative for WAG, said in an interview with The Journal. “For all the participants, obviously it’s all free. We’ve gotten donations and everything, and fundraised to be able to give them t-shirts, food, and stuff like that.” Similarly to Pang, Worden also began volunteering as a buddy during her first-year at Queen’s, then returned the following year to join the executive team. WAG held different fundraising events this year, including a coat check at the Kinesiology Semi-Formal, clothing drives, and a sticker sale. Worden said raising money throughout the year took a lot of hard work, but seeing the event come to life made it all worth it. “Seeing all of us work together almost every week and knowing how much each individual person is putting in, and then just seeing it all come together as one is kind of amazing.” To find out more information about the event, or to find out how to get involved, visit the Winter Adapted Games website. have allowed all season. Earlier in the season, Campeau, who has been strong all year, made 55 impressive saves against Brock. Head Coach Mark Holmberg told The Journal earlier this season his main priority every season is to “work on and cultivate a championship culture.” With less than a handful of games left before the OUA playoffs later this month, Holmberg and the Gaels are fighting for a spot at the McCaw Cup in mid-March. In addition to playing hard on the ice, the Women’s Hockey team has been participating in charity games to support different organizations in the Kingston area. In light of Bell Lets Talk day and Queen’s Mental Health Promotion Week, the team partnered with The Maddie Project for their Friday game against Windsor. The Gaels are looking to bounce back in back-to-back games against the York Lions this upcoming weekend.
SUPPLIED BY ROBIN KASEM