Tag: UQAM

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Arts

Nuit Blanche: Thoughts en lumiere, a rush into a green utopia

We didn’t do Nuit Blanche together, but we might as well have. Two arts writers vs Nuit Blanche. The apathy is real. We were slightly amused. And we’re still thinking too much about the colour green (and outer space?) 

Chloë Lalonde, Arts Editor, etc., The Concordian 

Nuit Blanche only really came onto my radar when I was in CEGEP, I guess some would consider that a late discovery. My best friend and I visited the Musee d’Art Contemporain (MAC) for one of their fantastic nocturnes. We had special drinks, I don’t remember much of the exhibition (it might have been David Altmejd) and exited the museum directly on Ste-Catherine Street. Little did we know of the wonderland that waited for us outside. Ah, a time when you didn’t have to book your slide/ferris wheel/zipline experience in advance… It was the best surprise.

Since then, Nuit Blanche has been lackluster, ridden with food anxiety, too much beer, long lines and the wrong activities (yeah, I’m talking about “wand-making” at Lockhart).

This year I decided I would spend my Saturday evening after a long day of teaching and laying out the arts and opinions sections of the paper, visiting as many galleries as I could manage with my sister. We met up quite early at the Belgo building (372 Ste-Catherine St. W.), before things were popping, and managed to pass by every gallery that was open, before stopping by the very crowded MAC, UQAM’s art gallery, a surprise performance we weren’t expecting and finishing off with Le Livart.

The Belgo is unassuming, if you didn’t already know it was home to 27 galleries, several artist studios, savvy startups and dance studios, it would be hard for you to find out. The exterior isn’t necessarily inviting, neither is the lobby and the adjacent cafe (I found a hair in my crepe and they gave me a free latte.)

It was my sister’s first time there and she had no expectations, but I didn’t want to disappoint. I did force her to cancel her unmade plans with her friends to hang out with me, after all. We rode the elevator up to the fifth floor (which is truly the sixth), and wove our way in and out of galleries uninterested until I started to notice a grand theme. Every gallery featured some kind of moon print. Drawings or lithographs, etchings, paintings––like craters on the moon––everything felt geographical, alluding to the earth and the landscape.

AMER, an artist from Montreal, paints with rust in their exhibition at Galerie Luz, using hydrogen, oxygen and carbon—what AMER considers among the essential elements for the appearance of life. Their work returns to the origin of the medium, with natural hues and industrial materials to reference ancient cave paintings and transmit modern messages over time.

Past a wall separating Galerie Luz in two, lived fibre works that felt entirely alien to AMER’s practice. White and fluffy, interrupted by copper threads and plastics, Mariela Borello’s tapestries connect to the body.

Later, at UQAM’s art gallery, the moon prints returned. Only this time they were in the forms of massive paper tapestries and sculptures disappearing into the floor. These rooms of earth and stone, on until March 21, compiled the incredibly similar practices of Michel Boulanger and Katja Davar.

Boulanger’s Girations, Rouler 1 was absolutely mesmerizing. A jeep-esque vehicle sinks and resurfaces, only to sink again, creating new landscapes with each dip. Davar’s drawings resonate on the same frequency. Each piece is like witnessing the plans for a new earth, land and soil.

The theme this year was “vert,” and events and exhibitions generally referenced the colour, sustainability and the environment throughout. Green is symbolic for many things, most notably, growth, whether natural/environmental, economic or personal, it’s said to be healing and inspire creativity.

Some works were all too literal; Le Livart had an exhibition up the whole month of February based solely on the colour green, and others were just flat out unrelated and overpopulated (collection exhibitions at the MAC).

Oh, and I can’t forget the performance we walked into on our way home, which was, arguably, my sister’s favourite part. Mourning of the Living Past, performed by Inflatable Deities, Canadian artists Jessica Mensch and Emily Pelstring, shook their futuristic “organic sparkly energy” all over UQAM’s Judith-Jasmin pavilion. It truly infected my 18-year-old sister. She danced along with them (behind the crowd) as I filmed her. She also changed her Instagram bio to “organic sparkly energy,” which I’m pretty sure is what the glittery duo chanted into their electronic amplifiers.

Sophia Arnold, Contributor for The Concordian and CUJAH Editor-in-Chief 

For the past five years, since I moved to Montreal, Nuit Blanche has been something to look forward to in the depths of your depressive episodes at the height of winter, mostly because the metro is open all night and the thought of riding public transit at 4 a.m. is overwhelming for a green-minded, uber-despising person. It gives a cosmopolitan New York vibe that Montreal aspires to everyday but can only afford to cave into twice a year (the other night being New Years Eve).

Nuit Blanche attracts all kinds of people: those who have kids and want to take them on the mini Ferris wheel at Place des Arts before retiring after “doing Nuit Blanche,” tourists who are just happy to be wherever they end up (admittedly, me the first two years…), and Montrealers who know where to be and will not give you the time of day if “you’re not from Montreal.”

My night started at Le Livart. I had been there a few times before but never on Nuit Blanche, although my partner had and was enamoured with the basement dance floor. The layout of the place reflects its roots as an old residential home, and still allows for artists-in-residence to use the upstairs rooms as studios. For Nuit Blanche, they had many artists exhibiting their works on the ground floor, and opened the upstairs, inviting you to speak with the gallery’s resident artists.

The exhibition went through all the various interpretations of this year’s theme, green, in all its facets. Livart expanded on the ideas presented in Vert, Histoire d’une couleur by Michel Pastoureau, who highlights green as a central colour in the role of art history. As you enter, Renaud Séguin’s green, ‘cabinet of curiosity’ style room welcomes you into a literal green space. Filled with found objects, from candy wrappers to paint colour samples, and some iconic references, like a picture of The Green Lady (@greenladyofbrooklyn), it’s like entering a commodity forest; our new image of green.

Other rooms in the gallery welcomed the interpretation of ‘green’ to be detourned headlights,  bricolage wreaths placed on the ground and large-scale photography. Due to the variety of mediums included, when you left Le Livart you were very aware what role the colour and ideology of green plays in contemporary art.

Next stop was Palais des Congrès, where we saw some of the works featured in this year’s Art Souterrain underground exhibitions, running until March 22. The piece we spent the most time with was the automated metro doors in sequence that opened as you walked through the hallway of them. It was an unexpected yet retrospectively predictable surprise seeing as the delapidated metro cars are the subject of many interactive installations throughout the city, highlighting the history and development of an iconic feature of Montreal daily life.

Next on the agenda; Phi Centre. I don’t really know where to begin with this one. As a self identifying ‘antenna,’ Phi Centre hosts a variety of events showcasing the latest tech developments, and this night was no exception. The show, Simulation/Acceleration, was built on the premise of human connectivity, digital capitalism and environmental degradation, exploring the topic with Virtual Reality (VR), augmented reality and a green screen interactive performance. DJ sets also took place throughout the night with visuals.

Life on the green screen was the highlight of the show. Mesmerized by the piercing gaze and dynamic movement of the performers in an array of outfits and positions, it was an ominous presence that rarely broke—apart from when viewers were invited to enter the green screen setup and the rare drunk guy did a peace sign. The screen showing the results of the green screen performance embodied the premise of the show, deconstructing the commonplace ideas of humans as apart from the environment and autonomous players in a hyperconnected world.

After a necessary food detour, we headed to Places des Arts, which was a short stop. Eying it through the crowds of people, we decided to skip it this year as it has an overdone, commercial vibe that we weren’t looking for (signified by the giant maple syrup cans).

Final stop: Eastern Bloc. The event aimed to create an urban oasis and safe space for freedom of expression and being, which it did through Allison Moore’s installation, The Enchanted Woods and various DJ sets with a dance floor in the usual exhibition space. Running until 4 a.m., it felt like a liberation from winter and greyness, taking you out of time and space to a utopic non-place—even though they ran out of drinks and you had to wait 30 minutes for the bathroom, which kind of brought you back down to earth.

All in all, it was an extensive, involved and jovial evening. But, we wish this programming was accessible at a substantial level throughout the year. In one evening, you go to four events before your corporeal limit is reached and you miss events that cannot be experienced again. In an ideal green utopia devoid of money, the metro would run 24 hours a day and every night would be an opportunity to engage with your local and international communities in such a monumental way, like the way you can on Nuit Blanche.

 

 

 

 

Graphic by @sundaeghost

Photos by Chloë Lalonde and Sophia Arnold.

Categories
Sports

From terrifying to just inaccurate: A look at RSEQ mascots

Stingers mascot Buzz joined the cheerleading team. Photo by Hannah Ewen.

Ah, mascots, the unspoken heroes of sporting events.

Nothing completes a sporting event quite like a giant anthropomorphic monstrosity making their way up the nosebleeds while beating a drum. It’s dangerous work! One wrong step and you can go flailing down the stairs, or you can catch the ire of coaches and players. Let us never forget Harvey the Hound having his tongue ripped out by Edmonton Oilers head coach Craig MacTavish. Gritty has been a bad (good?) hallucination for the better part of a year. In honour of these brave men and women, we took a look at all of the mascots from each Quebec university.

Gaiter – Bishop’s University

Photo courtesy of Bishop’s University

Barney the Dino – I mean, Gaiter, is the giant purple alligator of Bishop’s University. The team name isn’t even named after the animal, but *checks notes* boot coverings? I’m all for taking creative liberties with the mascot, so I guess a purple alligator beats a pair of Timbs hyping the crowd up at games.

No mascot – Université de Montreal

UDEM doesn’t have a mascot, but if they did, it would probably be the personification of the shin splints I get walking up all the stairs on their campus.

Marty the Martlet – McGill University

Photo courtesy of the McGill Athletic Departmen

McGill went the route of basing their mascot off of the bird that graces their university flag instead of the uhhhh… Other name their athletic teams used to go by. The massive red bird wears a vest with the McGill logo on it, which I assume is mandatory for all McGill students and staff. Marty also rocks a fanny pack – unclear yet whether it’s Gucci or Supreme. Instead of pants, Marty goes for a kilt, much to the dismay of anyone looking up. Despite rocking some bold fashion choices, for some reason it’s canon that the mascot’s favourite poutine topping is duck, which I’m still trying to wrap my head around in deciding if that’s badass or terrifying.

Sherlo – Sherbrooke University

I can’t be the only one that only sees Squanch from Rick and Morty right?

Victor – Université de Laval

Laval has been an absolute athletic juggernaut the past 20 years, especially in football, claiming national title after national title. So it makes sense that they’re a little cocky. Victor, the bald eagle mascot of the university, personifies that cockiness to a tee. If I listen carefully, I can hear it telling me “on es les best suce ma bite”.

Buzz – Concordia University

Concordia’s first official mascot, “The Stinger”. Archive photo by Jonas Papaurelis.

Who could forget Buzz. The bug, the myth, the legend. Buzz has been a part of Concordia culture forever. Evolving from nightmare-inducing, to only slightly terrifying, Buzz is a constant at every Stingers game and is pretty reminiscent of that one fever dream you had when you were 7. He’s also the only mascot to not wear anything covering their lower-body like the insect-version of Porky Pig.

I also found this phenomenal Concordia promo video from 2008. And let me tell you, it’s just *chef’s kiss*. Where to even start? The horror-movie-killer-esque first person? The suit and tie? The fact that he’s (still) not wearing any pants? Wherever you tune in, it’s incredible and there are some wholesome moments mixed in there that almost make Buzz not the scariest thing in the world.

 

Feature photo by Hannah Ewen

Categories
Student Life

Fashion Preview welcomes local designers

Coquette en Soie’s collection features silky dresses with vibrant colours. Photo by Sandra Hercegova.

The fashion runway show is expanding fashion in Canada and internationally

Supporting and facilitating the visibility of Montreal fashion designers on a national and international scale is the goal of Fashion Preview. For its eighth edition, the event gathered over 2,000 visitors from Oct. 17 to 19.   “Fashion Preview, in its three days of parades and presentations of collections, allows us to discover the talents of tomorrow and to understand, through their work, the culture and the esthetics of the young people of Montreal,” said journalist Elisabeth Clauss from the magazine Elle Belgique.

To support the local industry, each edition of Fashion Preview is a thematic runway show featuring the latest creations of students from local fashion programs at Cégep Marie-Victorin, École des sciences de la gestion de l’Université du Québec à Montréal (ESG-UQAM) and LaSalle College. “The idea behind Fashion Preview is to showcase the work of up-and-coming fashion designers,” said Marie-Eve Faust, a professor at UQAM’s fashion school.

Oscar Mendoza’s models gathering at the end of his runway show. Photo by Sandra Hercegova.

On Oct. 18, Fashion Preview hosted four runway shows featuring the collections of local brands, including Oneself, Coquette en Soie, Oscar Mendoza and Helmer. Oneself presented an elegant collection that approached women’s femininity with naivety and youthfulness. “It’s inspired by the 70s. It’s the contrast between the young adult and the mature adult,” said Sophie Cardinal, the designer of Oneself. “Even though, as women, we grow up, we still have this inner child within us. In this collection, I tried to point towards that aspect of women.”

This was the designer’s third collection for Oneself, and Cardinal is already anticipating a flair of colour for her upcoming summer collection. “The colours will be brighter because I find that Montreal is lacking in that area,” she said, adding that colours such as red, green and purple will be trending next summer. “I’m currently inspired by the sun and its tones. Everything that is rainbow-like and flashy because it’s in style these days.”

A model from Sonia Cardinal’s Oneself collection. Photo by Sandra Hercegova.

The core of Cardinal’s designs are inspired by vintage styles. “Three quarters of my wardrobe is vintage clothing so it’s important for me to have that touch in my collections,” she said. According to Cardinal, featuring her collection at Fashion Preview took a lot of preparation. “Doing it alone, it was a lot of work, but the team here at Fashion Preview are very attentionate,” she said. For the show, Cardinal was given the freedom to choose models who fit her brand image and develop a connection with them before the event.

“It differs from the old stereotypes of mannequin girls that don’t speak or show any emotions,” she said. “Here, I was able to establish different relationships with people and be able to be open to different body types, nationalities and personalities.”

One of the models for Oneself, Fatou Alhya Diagne, told The Concordian about her experience modelling for Fashion Preview. “I already did fashion shows previously, but this was my first official one with press and media,” she said. “It was interesting to see how Oneself’s adapted diversity to their collection.” “Every time I do a show, it reminds me of how important it is to create platforms of representation in order to showcase unity and diversity of people of colour and our communities to the larger fashion industry,” Diagne said. “I’m happy that I was able to be part of this whole fashion show and to have a view of the industry from a closer perspective.”

Fashion Preview also featured several pop-up shops attendees could visit during the show’s intermissions. One of the stands featured the handmade jewelry brand Bijoux Pepine. Founder and designer Perrine Marez is already selling her jewelry in 25 stores across Canada after just one year of designing jewelry full-time. “I want to have jewelry that is made by sand, pigments and spices,” she said. According to Marez, her inspirations come from architecture, graphic art and ancient civilizations such as the Egyptians, Chinese and Aztecs. “My inspiration makes me more open to the world. It reflects my clientele that are more international,” she said.

The second runway show featured a collection of silk dresses by Montreal brand Coquette en Soie. The dresses were elegant and feminine with lots of bold colours. According to the designer, Marie-Josée Mercil, her collection respects the fair trade industry by supporting independent silk producers. Her inspiration for bold colours and creative designs stems from her years spent traveling the world.

Oscar Mendoza, a former UQAM fashion student, also presented his new collection at Fashion Preview. “My collections are the story of a dream, created in a place where reality touches the surreal,” he explained. “I try to metamorphose feelings into shapes, into textures, into ideas that will decorate people’s behaviour or be the expression tool for people’s personas.” “What is fashion for but an instrument to demonstrate who we are, to excel our own self-expression to surpass us and show the world the strong opinions we have,” Mendoza added.

Helmer’s interactive closing runway show featured men wearing sombreros. Photo by Sandra Hercegova.

Photos by Sandra Hercegova

Categories
News

A full week of anti-austerity

Photo by Andrej Ivanov.

Frigid weather remains, yet protests heat up

On Saturday, Feb. 28, what could be considered the closing protest of the eventful anti-austerity week started on a sunny afternoon at Place Émilie-Gamelin, practically hallowed ground for the city’s protest movements.

Continue reading “A full week of anti-austerity”
Categories
Sports

Stingers men’s basketball team gets 2013 rolling with a win and a loss

Photo by Madelayne Hajek
Photo by Madelayne Hajek

The Concordia men’s basketball team returned from the winter break with a dominant performance against the McGill Redmen on Thursday night. The Stingers lost to the Redmen once this season and were looking to get even by winning on the road.

The game started off with both sides exchanging baskets early. Concordia started to turn up the pace and slowly took over the game with their high-tempo performance. McGill managed to stay within a couple of points. Stingers guard Kyle Desmarais’ buzzer-beating three-pointer from half court was the difference at the end of the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Concordia kept up the pace and found success on both sides of the court. Concordia’s man-to-man defence was effective against McGill’s offence. The Stingers were dominant on the boards as well. They finished the game with 46 rebounds, almost twice as many as McGill.

The visiting Stingers team started to pull ahead halfway through the quarter. Seven straight points in one minute and a half put the maroon and gold ahead. McGill narrowed the score line, but Concordia’s high-powering offence allowed them to take a 38-31 lead into the halftime break.

The Stingers exploded in the third quarter, managing to score 27 points. When the score was 41-35 in their favour, Concordia went on a 10-0 run giving them a 16 point lead. They led by as much as 19 points in the quarter. By the end of the frame Con U had a comfortable 18 point lead.

It was all but over in the final quarter. The Redmen were unable to string a few baskets together and mount a comeback. McGill and Concordia traded baskets and each added 18 more points to their total. The Stingers won the game with a final score of 83-65.

Concordia’s play on defence was a big factor in the victory. The team finished with numerous blocks and steals, but the difference was on the boards. The Stingers outrebounded McGill 46-28.

“It started with our defence,” said head coach John Dore. “That’s what helped us on offence. We got a few steals, a few blocks and really outrebounded them.”

“For once, we were talking on defence every time,” said Stingers forward Kafil Eyitayo, who had 17 points and eight rebounds. “We were doing the little things right. Of course there were some lapses, but overall I think we came up big.”

In his first game back from injury, Desmarais finished with a game-high 19 points and picked up eight rebounds and three steals in the 29 minutes he played.

“It was the toughest five months of my life,” he said. “The knee feels good. I still got to work on my cardio and rhythm a little bit, but other than that, it feels amazing.”

Two days later the Stingers lost to the UQAM Citadins at home 71-69. A UQAM jump shot with eight seconds left in the game gave the Citadins the win. Stingers guard Jean-Andre Moussignac led the team with 18 points.

Concordia will hit the court again on Saturday, Jan. 19 at 4:00 p.m. against the first-place Bishop’s Gaiters. This is a home game at Concordia Gymnasium.

Categories
Sports

An up-and-down week for Stingers women’s basketball

Photo by Madelayne Hajek
Photo by Madelayne Hajek

The Concordia Stingers women’s basketball team took to the court twice this past week with games against McGill and UQÀM. The team had an away game to the Martlets on Thursday night and returned home to face the Citadins on Saturday afternoon.

The Stingers went to McGill full of confidence after a highly successful Concordia-Reebok tournament over the winter break. In the tournament, they defeated the CIS number one and number five ranked teams. These results earned Concordia the number eight spot in the country.

Against the Martlets, it was a far different Concordia team. McGill was hot shooting from the behind-the-ark, sinking eight of their 15 three-point attempts compared to the Stingers’ one successful three pointer. A strong second half secured a 75-44 win for the Martlets.

“McGill came out exactly as I expected,” said Stingers head coach Keith Pruden. “They played hard, they played well, they were very aggressive and we just appeared to be surprised.”

The first quarter was closely contested for seven of the quarter’s 10 minutes. With the Stingers up by a basket, McGill went on an 8-0 scoring run in the final three minutes to secure a six point advantage after one.

In the second quarter, Concordia tried to regain momentum, but to no avail. With 2:30 to play in the quarter, the game was a one possession game as McGill’s lead was slashed down to three points. The Martlets once again got hot in the final minutes and ended up taking a 12 point lead with them into the halftime break. McGill was up 37-25.

The third quarter squashed any hopes of a Stingers comeback victory. For the first four minutes of the frame, both teams added two baskets each to their totals. Concordia would not add any more for the remainder of the quarter. The Martlets scored 18 unanswered points and grabbed a 30 point lead going into the final quarter.

“It didn’t really matter who we put on the floor,” said Pruden. “We were getting very flat performances.”

Both teams traded baskets in the fourth quarter. McGill ended Concordia’s miserable outing, winning by a final score of 75-44.

“We shot the ball extremely poorly,” Pruden said following the game. “McGill was playing a very aggressive defence. If you’re flat on one end of the court, you can’t expect to be intense at the other end of it. We were not taking care of the ball and we weren’t making sure we were getting good shots.”

Two days later, the Stingers played host to RSEQ’s first place team, the UQÀM Citadins. Concordia won the game after a great fourth quarter performance. With six and a half minutes left in the game, UQÀM had a five point lead. The maroon and gold’s strong defence denied the Citadins any more baskets. The Stingers went on a 15-0 run to end the game and win 67-57.

With the victory on Saturday, Concordia regained first place in the RSEQ conference. The team now has five wins and two losses in their seven games played this season.

Concordia will continue its three-game home stretch next Saturday, Jan. 19 when they host the last place and winless Bishop’s Gaiters. The game will start at 2 p.m. at Concordia Gymnasium.

Categories
Sports

Men’s rugby team earn first victory

Concordia won their first men’s rugby game of the season on home field during a rainy Friday night.

“The forwards won us the game,” said assistant coach Jamal Benouahi.

While Concordia’s tries were all scored by the back three, it was an outright dominating performance from the set piece that won the Stingers the game.

Second row Marc Roche had a standout game for the maroon and gold. He credits the team’s work on the practice pitch for the victory.

“It came down to practice,” Roche said. “Tonight it all came together and we drove them the hell off that ball.”

The first half saw both Concordia and Université de Montréal playing rather evenly in terms of possession and defense. The rain made it difficult for both teams to properly handle the ball, as a lot of knock-ons were being handed out.

The low point of the half was a complete meltdown from the Stingers in the 14th minute that lead directly to a Carabins try. The ball made its way down the wing through a series of offloads. Fortunately, this mistake did not decide the outcome. The Stingers pressed hard and defended effectively for the rest of the half.

The team came out flying in the second half. From the start, the Stingers’ back three showed how dangerous they are when they play to their ability and the line is able to provide them with the ball.

Only three minutes in, the Stingers broke down their opponent’s rush. Stinger Caleb Jordan snagged the ball and left defenders in awe with his sharp cuts and quick feet.

Con U’s second try was scored after a series of unorthodox plays forced a penalty and a scrum-down on U de M’s side of the pitch. As they did all game, Concordia won the set piece and took the ball wide to Frederic Kacou. He found an impossible gap sneaking into the try zone.

The icing on the cake came with 11 minutes remaining. Full back Vasken Redwanly got hold of the ball at midfield, after Jordan offloaded to him, letting him take off down the field. Redwanly left every Carabins defender behind before putting the ball down with authority in the far side of the try zone

“We know that we can beat the defense,” said Kacou. “When we get it, we know it’s going to work.”

“I’m proud of the forwards for keeping us in the game when the backs had trouble early,” said Captain Dario Pellizzari.

Getting rid of the goose egg in the win column was a must for the Stingers who now head out on the road.

“We have a platform for our game and we’re going to work from there,” said head coach Clive Gibson.

 

The Stingers head to Bishop’s University to face off against the Gaiters on Friday, Sept. 28 at 8:15 p.m.

Categories
Sports

Con U thrashes UQÀM on the road

After a disappointing draw last Sunday, Concordia’s women’s soccer team hit the road to face the UQÀM Citadins. The Stingers dominated the 90 minutes in all aspects. Two goals in each half secured an important three points.

The maroon and gold kept the same 4-4-2 formation. Head coach Jorge Sanchez made two changes to his starting lineup. Shauna Zilversmit and Gabriela Padvaiskas got the start, replacing Alexandra Dragan and Bella James.

Concordia forward Jennifer Duff was influential in the first 10 minutes of this match. She had a great chance two minutes in, but her header was saved by UQÀM goalkeeper Valérie Labbé. In the 10′ minute, Duff got on the end of a poor UQÀM back pass, but failed to hit an open goal.

One minute later, Duff earned her side a penalty kick after being taken down by an UQÀM defender. She made no mistake sending the ball to the back of the goal.

In the 23′ minute, Duff had another stellar moment. This time, her shot at the UQÀM goalkeeper was spilled, leaving Stingers midfielder Shauna Zilversmit with an easy tap-in.

Ten minutes before halftime, Concordia failed to capitalize on a free kick. The UQÀM back-line was unable to clear the ball, leaving Bella James with an open net but was unable to add the third goal.

The Citadins had one major chance to score. In the 39′ minute, a good combination play left Sabrina Addona with a shot on goal. It led to a corner kick and then the ball found Addona again, but her shot was saved by a sprawling Brittany O’Rourke in goal for the Stingers.

In the second half, Concordia started where they left off. Six minutes in, Duff scored her second goal of the match. She received a ball atop the 18-yard-box, spun around a defender and calmly placed her shot into the corner. This was the first time Concordia scored three goals  in a game this year.

Concordia continued to dominate the match with chance after chance. The ball never seemed to leave the UQÀM half of the field. In the dying moments of the match, the Stingers would make it 4-0. Substitute Frédérique Labelle scored from a good passing play started by Emily Hubbard and James.

“We had a really good start to the game,” said Sanchez. “We got two goals very quickly, so that made us confident. From that moment on, I think we took control of the game.

In previous matches, finishing chances seemed to be the team’s biggest problem. Everything was perfect on Thursday and Sanchez hopes things will be the same on Sunday.

“I think what I’m most satisfied about is that players didn’t use last week’s result as an excuse to underperform,” he said. “They came out strong and wanted to erase last game from their minds, and they did.”

Categories
Sports

Stingers earn draw in a tough away match


The Stingers men’s soccer team picked up another point on Thursday when they crossed town to face the Université du Québec à Montréal Citadins. Anasse Brouk put the Stingers ahead from the penalty spot in the 32′ minute. UQÀM equalized in the 53′ minute after a slip up in Concordia’s back line.

Stingers head coach Lloyd Barker lined his side up in a 4-5-1. Anasse Brouk started up front as the lone striker. The five-man midfield consisted of Sammy Tork, Fabian Troche, Gonzalo Paredes, Gabriel Quinn and Eduardo Mazzonna. Jayson Gallahue, Ramin Mohsenin, Christopher Mirasyedi and Enos Osei made up the back line, ahead of Remo Taraschi in goal.

UQÀM was the better side at the start of the match. Taraschi was forced to make at least three big saves within the first 30 minutes. His first big stop came in the 28′ minute when UQÀM forward Rémi Veilleux found himself alone in front of goal. Taraschi deflected the shot out for a corner. On the ensuing corner, the Con U keeper came up huge when he tipped a lobbed shot over the bar.

In the 32′ minute, the Stingers transitioned quickly up the pitch. Tork made a run into the UQÀM 18-yard-box and was tripped up by a defender. The referee pointed straight for the penalty spot. Brouk stepped up and converted the kick, making up for his missed penalty two matches ago.

Two minutes before half-time, the Stingers were inches from going two-nil up. Osei rolled a ball through the UQÀM penalty area. Brouk was seconds late to the ball and missed a chance to tap in his second goal.

There was still time for an UQÀM chance. From a free kick, Concordia was fortunate as a Citadins player’s header barely missed the goal.

This was a very aggressive first half. Both sides had their fair share of fouls. Concordia found success playing down the wings. This led to the penalty kick. After the Stingers scored, they were the better side for the rest of the half.

However, UQÀM was quick to start the second half. Within the first seven minutes, Veilleux had two major chances to tie the match. Taraschi continued his solid play in the Concordia goal. He made saves on both opportunities.
One minute later in the 52′ minute, the Citadins would get their goal. UQAM defender Guillaume Rochon crossed in a ball from the left side. Every Concordia defender, including the goalkeeper, misjudged the ball. It found Sallim Dahman alone with an empty net.

The Stingers replied by bringing on Andrew Bryan and Claude Diesse. Both made an immediate impact on the match. In the 66′ minute, Diesse controlled a pass from Bryan and made an attempt to lob the UQAM keeper. The ball did not dip when it needed to.

In stoppage time, the Stingers could have been awarded another penalty kick, after a player was dragged down in the box. However, the referee kept his whistle in his pocket.

Seconds later, Diesse’s header had the Citadins goalkeeper beat, but the ball was just wide of the left post.
Both teams picked up a point in the 1-1 draw.

“I think we could have gone for the three points,” said Stingers assistant coach Francois Bastien. “But of course, we’ll take a point on the road.”

Last time both schools met, UQÀM came out on top, winning 1-0 at home. Bastien said meetings between both schools are hard to predict.

“It’s always awkward against UQÀM,” he said. “It’s a very disorganized and counter attacking game. Holes get created, players get pulled wide and pockets get created. You just never know what you’re going to get.”

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News

Students arrested at UQAM and U de M

Graphic by Jennifer Kwan
Graphic by Jennifer Kwan

The first week of classes at universities which suspended their winter semesters due to the student strike movement saw clashes between protesters in opposition of the tuition fee increase and Law 12 with administration, security, and Montreal Police.

Hundreds of classes were cancelled at both Université de Montréal and Université du Québec à Montréal as students blocked access to classes in both French-language universities.

Under Law 12, the emergency legislation passed by the Charest Liberals in May aimed to curb protests and allow students to attend class, the winter semester was cancelled at post-secondary institutions paralyzed by the student movement.

The protests at the universities last week forced classes to be cancelled as students physically blocked access to classrooms where confrontations between demonstrators and security, staff and students wishing to attend class ensued.

On the first day of classes at UQAM, a group of masked students roamed the hallways with lists of departments that voted in favour of the student strike in order to empty the classes where the strike was not respected. The students managed to disrupt many courses resulting in professors ending the class early.

At U de M, Montreal Police detained 19 individuals on Monday, Aug. 27 for allegedly violating provisions of the back-to-school legislation Administration of the university asked Montreal Police to intervene after dozens staged protests within the school where a standoff between students and security occurred.

“These people have been released with no conditions,” police Commander Ian Lafreniere told the press last week.

“They received a paper mentioning they are under investigation with Law 12.”

This is the first time Law 12, or Bill 78, has been applied in Montreal.

On Aug. 10, the Montreal Police announced that enforcement of the emergency legislation would only be applied if universities request it. By Tuesday, Aug. 28, more than 30 arrests had been made with regards to Law 12 or general violations of the criminal code.

At UQAM, administration decided to handle the disruptions without the help of the police, in fear of creating more tension at the university. The school’s spokesperson Jenny Desrochers told The Gazette that UQAM did not want to exacerbate the situation by bringing in police officers.

On Wednesday, Aug. 29, U de M decided to cancel classes for the rest of the week for the six faculties that voted to continue their strike. That same day, approximately 100 demonstrators flooded the downtown core.

Marielle Villeneuve, a first-year student at UQAM slated to start school in October, is not worried that protests will stop her from attending her courses.

“I think everyone is annoyed with the student strike,” said Villeneuve. “I don’t think my department will be on strike but I know my courses will be more intense due to time constraints.”

However Villeneuve says she’s awaiting the outcome of the upcoming provincial election to see how the university is affected.

“It’s UQAM, so you don’t really know what’s going to happen,” explained Villeneuve. “I think if Liberals are still in power, there will surely be protests.”

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Sports

UQAM leaves Stingers’ hive with no honey

James Clark (22) rejects Alexandre Bernard in Concordia's five-point home victory. Photo by Navneet Pall

After Concordia’s 68-63 victory at home on Saturday afternoon, the UQAM Citadins’ locker room ranked somewhere between the dentist’s and your in-laws’ house, for places you’d want to be.

James Clark (22) rejects Alexandre Bernard in Concordia's five-point home victory. Photo by Navneet Pall

The Citadins’ second straight loss in as many games against Concordia, drew the ire of their head coach Olga Hrycak, who could be heard from the hallway berating her team for the lackluster performance.

“When we give a game away I’m not very happy, and I mean that, because we can play 10 times better than we did,” the frustrated Hrycak told reporters afterwards.

Offensive rebounding was a specific area of disdain for the fuming coach, who saw her team out-rebounded 17-9 on the offensive glass. “Concordia killed us on the offensive boards; they certainly didn’t kill us with their three-point shooting,” she said, alluding to Concordia’s ugly night beyond the arc, making only three of 18 three-point field goals. Hrycak did commend Concordia, though, for being able to prevail in another tough game. “They have that killer instinct and we just don’t right now.”

The game’s start was also delayed over two hours after Concordia’s Sheldon Moore channeled his inner Shaq in warmups and shattered the glass backboard with a dunk. Unfortunately, the RSEQ is not the NBA, and replacing the backboard was not a quick job, delaying the start of the game over two hours. “We’re not really sure why it took so long,” said Stingers coach John Dore.

While the delay affected both teams, Stingers forward Kafil Eyitayo believes the wait played a part in the Stingers slow start. “To try and get our focus back and then start the game was a little bit hard,” he said.

Concordia looked sloppy in the first quarter, trailing by six into the break. However, the Stingers went on a 10-0 run midway through the second quarter, and took a four point lead into halftime.

In almost a mirror image of last week against UQAM, though, Concordia let the Citadins back into the game by committing several fouls. The result was a 15-point lead getting whittled down to four in just over three minutes.

“It seems like every time we play UQAM we have a big stretch where we just put them on the free-throw line for five minutes straight and all they do is (score points) with no time going off the clock,” said Stingers guard Kyle Desmarais, who scored a season low seven points on the night.

The Citadins were able to hang around, trailing by six in the game’s final minute, before an Evens Laroche jump-shot sealed the victory for Concordia. Laroche led the Stingers in scoring with 17 points and has been arguably their best all-around player the past two games.

Another factor Moore’s dunk had on the game was that the net was not regulation height, after it was improperly installed when the glass was fixed. The rim was 10 feet two inches high for the game, which is two inches higher than regulation. The officials conferred before the game with both coaches and agreed that the game would be played regardless.

“It’s something both teams had to deal with,” said Dore. “But if you look at how many first foul shots were missed at that end of the floor it was a tough adjustment for the players to make.”

The video of the dunk has already made its way on to YouTube and has created some buzz.

“I had some people from Laval who had heard about it, calling me,” said Dore. “It’s good that it has created some conversation about our team.”

Dore is hoping the proper adjustments are made in time for the Stingers’ home game against McGill next Saturday.

The Stingers’ next game is on the road Friday Jan. 20 at 8 p.m. against Laval.

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Sports

Stingers stay perfect!

Magalie Beaulieu (5) runs the floor with Serginha Estimé (11) joining the play in the Stingers 19-point win. Photo by Navneet Pall

The Concordia Stingers women’s basketball team rebounded back from the long Christmas break to maintain its perfect start to the season.

Magalie Beaulieu (5) runs the floor with Serginha Estimé (11) joining the play in the Stingers 19-point win. Photo by Navneet Pall

Concordia dominated down low against the UQAM Citadins last Thursday, out rebounding its opponent 57-31, en route to a 19-point victory.

The Stingers picked up almost as many offensive rebounds, 26, as UQAM did in total. Serginha Estimé led the way for Concordia grabbing nine of her 12 rebounds on the offensive end of the court.

Even with the winning effort, Stingers coach Keith Pruden was not entirely pleased with his team’s play, especially in the game’s opening quarter, where Concordia looked sluggish and confused.

“I wasn’t completely happy with how we played, but I am happy for the win,” said Pruden.

Still, led by leading scorer Kaylah Barrett, the Stingers were able to amass an 11-point lead going into halftime and never let UQAM back in the game after that.

Pruden was more pleased with his team’s effort coming out of the break. “I think in the second half we had a lot more energy and were able to open up the floor better and that made the difference.”

Barrett finished the game with 23 points, making seven of her eight field-goal attempts. Barrett has been hands-down Concordia’s best player all-season and is second in the country in scoring. She was reluctant to take credit for the Stingers’ success, though. “My teammates have been working really hard so that has been a huge part of my individual success,” she said.

Starting the season 4-0, expectations for the women this year are sky high. Still, Pruden is not eager to look too far ahead.

“We are just taking it one game at a time,” he said. “It’s very difficult to go undefeated, I’ve only done it once in my coaching career so it’s not something I even think about. This team has a lot of potential and our goal is to win nationals.”

 

The Stingers’ next game is at home  against UQAM at the Loyola campus gym on Jan. 14 at 6 p.m. 

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