Stephen McDonald
Baseball
Pitcher Stephen McDonald’s heroics came in their game against the Brock Badgers when he held them to just two runs through six innings in the Gaels’ season-opening weekend.
Although they suffered two tough loses, the team showed great improvements from the previous season. With McDonald’s performance this weekend, he gained some much-deserved recognition as a leader and a valuable team asset Losses in both double headers to Guelph and Brock could leave a team reeling but McDonald said they’ll be looking to next weekend’s games against Western and McMaster in Kingston.
“[We’re] moving forward,” he said. “We now have more of an idea of what it’s like to play with each other, keep building as a team, and hopefully get a win in the books.” Music plays a large part in McDonald’s pre-game warm-up. During the game, he’s able to stay energized by jogging in between innings.
“Lately I put on ‘Heart of a Lion’ by Kid Cudi and set it to repeat,” he said.
On a team of primarily young players, McDonald believes his greatest contribution as a teammate is his experience.
“On a young team, it’s tough to say how people will react,” he said. “It’s a true test of character.”
—Jessica Mackay
Samantha Trinier
Rugby
Rugby fell into third-year student’s Samantha Trinier’s lap. After her high school in Toronto started a women’s rugby program in her grade 9 year, her father and brothers encouraged her to get involved in the sport they loved.
“I got involved because my brothers played and my dad played so they really encouraged me,” she said. “It also just seemed like a lot of fun, it was the first year [my high school] had a team and I wanted to try it out. I really liked it and played it all the way through.”
Playing university rugby was not on her mind until she ed the U-17 rugby team.
“The coaches for that team are also the coaches for Queen’s … so [they] definitely encouraged me to come and was one of the big reasons I played,” she said.
Trinier, who scored two tries in the 24-0 win over McMaster, said her position as fullback allows her to build on scoring opportunities that her teammates set up and that their win was a complete team effort.
“Everyone did a good job and pulled their own weight,” she said. “I was the finisher where they set up a nice play and I would be the last person to get the ball and finish the run.”
—Kate Bascom
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