Erin Bickerton
women’s water polo
As a goaltender, Erin Bickerton’s role is typically to guard the defensive end of the pool. Last weekend, however, she proved she is also a threat on the offensive end.
Bickerton, PhysEd ’08, scored the game-winning goal for the Gaels’ water polo team in a 9-8 victory over the Carleton Ravens last Sunday in Ottawa.
“It was fluky,” she said. “It was the end of the third quarter and time was running out; there was six seconds so I figured I would wing it.
“It hit the goal post then the goalie’s arm, then her head and then it went in.” Style points aside, the goal made for a strong start to the Gaels’ regular season, giving them their second victory of the weekend.
They also beat the University of Toronto Varsity Blues 10-7 on Saturday.
Bickerton said the victory over Carleton was an important one.
“We’ve never beaten Carleton as long as I’ve been here so, for us, this is huge and it just shows our potential.”
Going into the season the Gaels have changed their style of play to focus more on attacking, she said.
Despite the change, Bickerton said she still has to be at the top of her game.
She added that she felt extra pressure last weekend because she trained in Ottawa before coming to Queen’s and many of her old coaches and teammates were at the game.
“I had to succeed to my potential but it also helped to motivate me,” she said.
The Gaels hope to continue their winning streak against McMaster and York at home on Oct. 28.
Tyler Lewis
Men’s soccer
Goalkeeper Tyler Lewis was a key figure in last Saturday’s 1-0 upset win over the top-ranked Toronto Varsity Blues to improve the Gaels record to7-3-1.
As the Gaels heads into playoffs, each game is critical but Lewis said beating the first place team is especially important for the team’s confidence.
“We’ve been peaking going into the last part of the season,” Lewis said. “We were pretty excited to play, we knew we had the potential to upset them and the guys like playing in big games.”
They also beat Toronto 2-1 last month and Lewis said he thinks their success can be partly attributed to their similar playing styles. He said both teams are tactical and it makes for close games.
Lewis said despite the confidence boost that comes from defeating such a strong team, playing them never gets easier.
“It is a lot of pressure when it comes down to the wire,” he said. “Our defensive line has been doing exceptionally well which has really been crucial.
“But I also enjoy playing in big, high pressure games,” he added.
The team’s main goal is to win their next three games in order to get a bye through the first round of playoffs.
He said the team was disappointed that last Sunday’s game against Ryerson was cancelled because of field conditions but right now they’re looking ahead to this weekend’s doubleheader against RMC.
“We need to come out, play our game and not take them too lightly and get a solid six points.”
By Agnes Herra, contributor
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