U SPORTS TOP 10 TUESDAY (#19): Quartet of changes at the top
TORONTO (U SPORTS) – Four new U SPORTS programs find themselves in the No.1 position in the final Top 10 rankings of January.
In women's basketball, the Regina Cougars (17-1) – hosts of the 2018 U SPORTS Women's Basketball Final 8 – take over the pole position from defending national champion McGill (8-2). The Cougars swept Winnipeg at home in a weekend series with 70-59 and 89-72 scores, while, the Martlets split a home-and-home series with Bishop's. Regina visits Saskatchewan for two games this weekend.
In men's hockey, AUS rivals in the StFX X-Men (21-1-4) and UNB Varsity Reds (21-2-3) swap positions at the top once again, after the X-Men picked up 4-2 and 3-2 victories over then-No.7 Acadia and then-No.6 Saint Mary's respectively. StFX hosts Dalhousie and Moncton this weekend.
Finally a pair of new leaders have emerged on the volleyball court in the UBC Thunderbirds and UBC Okanagan Heat. In men's volleyball, UBC (16-2) knocked the idle and two-time reigning champion Trinity Western Spartans (17-1) – who had held the pole position since Feb. 21 of last season – off their perch, thanks to 3-1 and 3-0 wins at home against Brandon. The Thunderbirds head to Regina on Friday and Saturday. One the women's side, UBC Okanagan (14-4) defeated Saskatchewan by the same scores to leap over their campus rivals. The Heat host Winnipeg in back-to-back games this weekend.
In other U SPORTS rankings, Carleton (men's basketball), UBC (men's and women's swimming), Guelph (men's and women's track and field), Alberta (women's hockey, men's wrestling) and Brock (women's wrestling) all remain national leaders for another week.