Varsity Blues figure skaters turned in a respectable fourth place finish at the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) finals on March 3 and 4, after a promising season. Although they put forth a highly commendable effort, the Blues still finished one place down from their result at the same event last year.
All the signs were promising leading up to championship, held at the home rink of the University of Western Ontario. The team had achieved podium positions in the two events before the Ontario final. The team claimed bronze medals at Queens in November, followed by another third at the Laurier Invitational towards the end of January.
The team was therefore in a positive frame of mind and hoping for a medal, but-despite some excellent individual performances-the team fell just short of the podium this time.
The competition was held over two days, and Day One saw the Blues capture a decent number of medals. Captain Erin Hyland managed a third in the Silver Freeskate (Senior) category, while Jillian Andrews and Stephanie Hunt claimed third in the Silver Similar dance event. Aimee Artinian and Laura Stoveld were another pair that won bronze, as they came in third in the Dance Variation.
Day Two saw the Blues step up their efforts. Caityln Paget and Laura Stoveld both grabbed silvers in the Silver Solo Dance and Gold Solo Dance, respectively. Hyland paired with Ellen Simone in the Intermediate Similar Pairs Event, where the duo took bronze, which boosted Hyland’s personal medal total to two.
Third place was also the result achieved by the Bronze Dance Rhythm team.
Craig Lauwerier, the only male on the roster, challenged the field in the Men’s Open division, where he managed a bronze medal and drew the praise of head coach Sylvia Gryniewski: “Craig skated his best program ever.”
Gryniewski had plenty of positives to take home from London to go along with the overall improvements her skaters have made this season. She explained that many of the skaters had peaked at just the right time and produced personal bests, even though the overall result at the OUA championship was disappointing.
Gryniewski gave an enormous amount of praise to Laura Stoveld, who was named Blues competitor of the year.
The future looks good for the Blues. Gryniewski believes the first-year skaters add an extra dimension to the team: “The rookies this season have been a great asset to the team with their enthusiasm and spirit.”
She recognizes that the team is due to lose, through graduation, a number of key team members, but remains confident the younger skaters will meet the challenge of filling these holes: “Each year the skaters who have been on the team for a year or two continue to grow and learn, and I can see them stepping up into the positions left by the graduating students and claiming them for their own with some strong skating.”
