Women's Basketball News
Legend of the Loewen DiCurzio Stepping Back into Mentorship Role
After an incredible ten seasons at the helm of the Blazers Women's Basketball program, head coach Joe DiCurzio has made the difficult decision to take a step back from head coaching into a coaching mentorship position with the team for the 2023/24 season.
DiCurzio came to the Blazers in 2013 and re-built the program into the massive success story it is today. Prior to his arrival, the program's only conference title wins were back-to-back in the 2006/07 and 2007/08 seasons in what was the Central Plains Athletic Conference, which later became the Manitoba Colleges Athletic Conference where the team competes today. With their 2022/23 MCAC Championship win at home this past February, Blazers Women's Basketball completed five consecutive title wins, taking home the banner in 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, and 2023 with the 2021 season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team also won the Northern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championship in 2020, and featured in the NIAC Championship final this past spring in their first year back after the lifted travel restrictions allowed them to once again challenge their cross-border rivals from the Northern states.
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Blazers WBB Look to Reach New Heights with Addition of Bergen
The CMU Women's Basketball program is very pleased to announce the commitment of Sara Bergen for the 2023-24 MCAC and NIAC seasons. The local St Mary's Academy and Manitoba Provincial Team product will be a commanding force around the basket for the Blazers this season.
Coming off a high school season plagued by injuries, Bergen is as motivated as ever to bring her game to the next level with the Blazers as the team chases a sixth-consecutive MCAC Championship, and looks to make another run at a double-championship season as the team did in 2020 capturing the NIAC Championship Title as well. In her senior year at St Mary's Bergen had the misfortune of breaking her right (shooting) hand just prior to the season start, and not wanting to miss out on her final year of high school play, she taught herself to shoot left handed in order to still be an asset to her team. When she was finally healthy enough to be inserted back into the lineup her impact was immediately felt, helping lift the team to a top ten ranking in the province before her season got cut short due to an ankle injury only two weeks after getting back on the court. Her dedication to the game garnered her an MHSAA Graduating All-Star selection in the "AAAA" tier earlier this year. Bergen's grade eleven high school season was a better indication of the impact she can have on a team, when she helped her Flames to a semi-finals appearance at the 2022 Provincial Championships. After entering the tournament as the seventh-ranked team in Manitoba, Bergen and her Flames dispatched the Miles Mac Buckeyes before upsetting the second-seeded Daniel McIntyre Maroons en route to their final four appearance. Bergen's varsity coach, Joel Neufeld weighed in on his star forward and the influence she can have on a squad stating "Sara is a great leader on and off the basketball court. She has also demonstrated a fantastic work ethic to improve all facets of her game and will be an excellent addition to any team."
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Girmay Ready to Bring Her Passion for the Game to Blazers Women's Basketball
The CMU Women's Basketball program is very pleased to announce the commitment of Betty Girmay for the 2023-24 MCAC and NIAC seasons. The River East Collegiate product will bring a strong three-point game and play-making ability from the point to the Blazers this year.
Girmay and her high school River East Kodiaks squad had a strong showing in the MHSAA "AAAA" division this year, maintaining a top ten ranking in the province throughout the season, taking home third place wins in two of their four tournaments heading into Manitoba Provincial Championships. Girmay received All-Star and MVP recognition in those top-three tournament finishes at the Sisler Spartans Classic and Crocus Plains Tournament to go along with her KPAC conference All-Star and MHSAA Graduating All-Star awards. The Kodiaks were a dominant force in KPAC Tier 1, dropping only one regular season match to the Garden City Gophers, who they met again in the division final. River East entered the provincial championship as the sixth seed, and after a win over the hosts Crocus Plains, the Kodiaks found themselves up against their rivals the Gophers in the quarter-finals, but once again Garden City came out on top on their run to the provincial finals. Kodiaks varsity girls head coach Kristen Asmundson weighed in on what Girmay has brought to their program the past few years: "Betty has been an important part of Kodiaks basketball the past four years leading our JV and Varsity teams at the point guard position. In this role, she stood out mostly for her three-point shooting and deceptive ball handling skills. Betty has so much love and passion for basketball, you can see it when she competes and by how much time she puts into improving her game. Betty has been a part of Winnipeg Wolves, TAP and the provincial team, and will be a nice addition to the Blazers program and we look forward to seeing how she progresses there."
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Blazers Women's Basketball Make Landmark Signing with Victoria Welsh
The CMU Women's Basketball program is very pleased to announce the commitment of Victoria Welsh for the 2023-24 MCAC and NIAC seasons. The Landmark Collegiate product will be a versatile combo forward/guard addition to the Blazers roster for the coming year.
Welsh will bring another dimension to the Blazers next season having competed within the "AA" boys division of the Manitoba High School Athletic Association for both of her varsity seasons. Coming from a relatively small school often comes with the need to fill in where necessary, and after the varsity boys coach for her high shcool Landmark 96ers approached her to tryout for his team in her grade 11 year, Welsh proved herself on the court and was given a spot on the squad, receiving full support from her new teammates. The change was received a little less amicably by opposing teams, but despite some backlash Welsh continued on, defying the typical gender boundaries. Now in her senior year she has garnered a reputation as a worthy opponent and has used her experiences as motivation to continue to improve and bring her game to the next level. Her high school coach, Matt Feakes, weighed in on what the Blazers latest signing brings to the court, noting "Victoria has a great drive to play basketball the right way. She understands the game, shares the ball, and has good skills. She never shrinks back from the big moments."
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Blazers WBB Flush with Versatile Talent after Addition of Royal
The CMU Women's Basketball program is very pleased to announce the commitment of Hannah Grobb for the 2023-24 MCAC and NIAC seasons. The Lord Selkirk Regional Comprehensive Secondary School captain will be a versatile combo forward/guard addition to the Blazers roster for the coming year.
The Selkirk, Manitoba native will be trading her Selkirk Royal blue for the green and gold of the Blazers this upcoming season after being a standout on her high school squad for the past two varsity seasons. While the team missed out on the highly competitive MHSAA "AAAA" Provincial Championships, her squad featured at three tournaments this season, including the Crocus Plains Java Jam in Brandon, as well as a third place finish at their home "Royal Rumble Varsity Girls Basketball Tournament," and a semi-finals appearance at the Tec Voc Varsity Girls Basketball Tournament. Grobb received tournament MVP honours at the latter two, which attests to the impact she had on her team both on the court and from a leadership perspective. Never one to step down from a challenge, Grobb featured at several different positions throughout her high school career, with the ability to slot in at point or shooting guard with appearances as a small forward as well.
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