The return of Mountaineers curling is among the most anticipated returns following a silver medal in 2019-2020 and a pair of those athletes return to campus this upcoming season.
Not only does head coach Betty Calic return two veterans in Jarrett Matthews and Jacob Jones, she brings back assistant Matt Kimber who first started on staff as a coach with the women's curling program back in 2012-2013.
Kimber claimed both an OCAA silver medal (2013-2014) and an OCAA bronze medal (2014-2015) coaching the women's program. He also helped coach the men's program to an OCAA silver medal (2019-2020) and bronze medal (2016-2017), alongside Calic.
"Matt possesses many of the qualities that make an assistant coach a valuable asset to the coaching staff," says Calic. "He compliments my skill set and personality. I am more analytical; Matt is able to see beyond the stats and can assist in relationship-orientated issues."
Kimber competed for the Mountaineers curling team for three seasons until he graduated in 2011, earning honour roll recognition each academic year on campus.
During that time, he was skip for two seasons and vice-skip for another. Kimber won the Team Sportsmanship Award at the OCAA Championships during his final two seasons and also won the Mountaineers Curling Coaches Award those same two years.
Matt's background playing at the collegiate level, followed by his active participation in the local Hamilton Victoria Curling Club have helped him succeed over the years developing the Mountaineers curling athletes. Calic says he's a great model for the young curler's he works with.
"Matt contributes to the breakdown of each player's positional work during game scenarios and helps me to develop what is needed to be worked on during practices," added Calic. "I look at Matt as a great role model for how hard you need to work and how doing things the right way is always the best way."
Despite several provincial medals during the tenure of Calic and Kimber, the Mountaineers have yet to claim gold during that span and haven't won one since 2009-2010 on the women's side.
With the return of two strong athletes and an impressive recruiting class, the curling team will be hunting that first-place finish in 2021-2022 as college athletics return across the province.
Beyond Jones and Matthews, Calic and her staff are thrilled with the incoming recruiting class, as well as some additions from last year who haven't yet had the chance to shine on the OCAA stage.
"I'm very excited about the upcoming curling season. The men's team consists of a group of extremely strong curlers. Two athletes [Jones and Matthews] are returning from their silver medal performance in 2019-2020 and will be joined by Jarrett's brother, Joel, and a sought-after recruit in Liam Little. I feel this team has enormous potential," says Calic.
Recruiting high-level curlers has been a strength of the program in recent years which has allowed the team to compete and excel each year while vying for a provincial title.
As the buzz continues to swirl with college athletics returning to campus, the curling team will be an exciting one to follow during 2021-2022.
Calic believes this could be one of their best squads during her tenure with the Mountaineers as she looks to improve upon the OCAA silver medal last time out.
