The Sr. Boys Volleyball team qualified the ASAA 3A Provincial Championships this past weekend, in Medicine Hat. Although the boys attended the same tournament last yea the team did not get the result it wanted, so this year the veteran players had something to prove. Crescent Heights High School in Medicine Hat would host this year’s event, and what a show they put on! Everything from the volunteers, to the opening Ceremonies, players and coach’s banquet, to the facilities in which we played in, were impeccable! The boys started pool play on Thursday, defeating Eagle Butte from Dunmore, in 3 sets (15-13). Friday had the boys playing 3 matches, against Parkland Composite, Peace Wapiti Academy and Calgary Christian. Although the Lakers would fall to both Parkland (in 3 sets, 17-19) and Peace Wapiti (in 2 sets), the boys would rally together to win their final match against Calgary Christian, 18-16 in the third set. The team would now face J.A. Williams (Lac Le Biche) Saturday morning, in a “do or die” scenario. A win clinched the Lakers 2nd place in their pool, winning in convincing fashion, 25-11, 25-11. This put the team in a quarter-final match up against the Barrhead Gryphons, defending Provincial Champions. It didn’t look promising for the Lakers after the first set, as they dropped it 17-25. The second set started off very slow for the team as well, and they found themselves down 11-21. After taking a time-out, the boys seemed to come back out with new life, going on an 8 point run making it 19-21. Unfortunately, a hitting error gave the next point to Barrhead, and the Gryphons would eventually win the set and match. The Lakers finished the weekend with an overall record of 3-3, and finished tied for 5th/6th out of 12 teams, a very good showing for the team. Team captain and grade 12 player, Alex Cook, summed up the weekend as a great overall experience, with no regrets. The team left everything they had on the court, and that’s all Coach Wood could ask for. Congratulations Lakers for a great tournament and an amazing 2011 season! Thanks to coach Theresa Wood for her expertise and commitment to the team.
ROCKY VIEW ALL-STAR FOOTBALL BANQUET
Congratulations to six members of the Cowboys football team that received awards at the Rocky View Football league All-Star banquet. This event took place at George McDougall High School, in Airdrie, on Monday November 28. Named to the league all-star team were Trevor Costello, Jesse Seddon, Hunter Karl and Tristan Mc Murdo. The Heart Award winner was Fletcher Freund. The final award was presented to Brad Taubert, selected the league’s Outstanding Quarterback. Congratulations to all of the award recipients. The awards are a reflection of your outstanding season and career.
JV GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
The 2011-2012 edition of the Junior Varsity Girls’ Basketball Team tipped off the basketball schedule on the weekend by winning gold at the HTA Knight’s Season Opener in Okotoks. The girls took to the court on Friday against the Falcons from Foothills Composite. The Falcons kept it close in the early stages but the Lady Lakers went on a 26-2 run late in the first quarter and took a 52-24 lead into half time. The girls battled hard in the second half and moved on to the championship semi-final with a convincing 72-48 victory. On Saturday morning, the Lady Lakers faced the always-tough host HTA team and it proved to be a great battle. Again, the score was close throughout the first quarter but the Lakers, led by Kendall Armstrong, Madison Stoye and Ashley Cavers began to dominate late in first half and posting a 50-20 half-time lead. The teams fought hard in the second half but in the end, it was the Lady Lakers advancing to the final with a 71-45 triumph. Saturday’s championship evening meant a date with the W.R. Meyers Rebels from Taber. Led by the strong play of grade-nine guards Laura Costello and Makayla Boisjoli, the team jumped out to an early start but the Rebels stormed back to tie the game at 21. The key in the game was the third quarter as the Lady Lakers outscored their opponents 18-2 and hung on in the fourth for a hard-fought 44-27 win. It was a successful start to the season and this year’s version of the Junior Lady Lakers will continue to work hard and play some exciting basketball. This week the team takes on Bow Valley in a league game on Wednesday and, on Friday, travels to Taber to play in the Meyers Tournament.
VARSITY GIRLS’ BASKETBALL
The Varsity Girls’ Basketball Team will have a busy week to open their season. On Wednesday they will have their home league opener against Bow Valley at 6:00. On the weekend they will travel to SAIT to compete in the Silver Belle Tournament. The team has had to deal with a number of injuries and some sickness, but are getting healthy, finally. The Lady Lakers are a young team with only two grade 12’s and are looking forward to an outstanding season.
JV BOYS’ BASKETBALL
The JV Boys’ team will be on the road this week as they travel to Cochrane to play Bow Valley at 6:00 on Wednesday. The team is a mix of 9’s and 10’s for league games with some 11’s playing in tournaments. This young team will improve each week out.
VARSITY BOYS’ BASKETBALL
The Varsity Boys’ look to have an outstanding season, building on their Provincial bronze medal performance from last season. The team has a league bye this week, but will play an exhibition game on Wednesday at 7:00. This weekend the team will travel to High River to participate in the Highwood Invitational. Look for this team to be an exciting one to watch.
[box]ATHLETE OF THE WEEK-LAURA COSTELLO
Laura had a dominating weekend of basketball. She helped her team win the gold medal at the HTA tournament in Okotoks, averaging 12 points, 12 rebounds and 10 steals per contest. She is an incredible athlete and an excellent team mate. This talented 9th grader is a coach’s dream and will have an outstanding basketball season and career.[/box]
[box]ATHLETE OF THE WEEK-Keith Davis
Despite breaking his finger 2 weeks prior, Keith Davis decided that he couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to play in the ASAA 3A Provincial Championships this past weekend. Throughout the season, Keith has shown a great deal of leadership when it comes to running the defense and passing for the team. This weekend he stepped it up one more notch. Keith passed the ball very well, and made some incredible defensive plays. Keith helped the Lakers get into the quarter final game with his outstanding play. [/box]
