Trojans look towards Conference Championships
MEDICINE HAT, ALTA., (Feb. 16, 2019) — The SAIT Trojans men's and women's volleyball teams played their final Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) regular season games Saturday night against the host Medicine Hat College Rattlers, with each of them losing.
With playoff spots secured and tucked firmly in their pockets on Friday night, both teams used Saturday to give the bulk of their starting lineups the night off.
The women's team fell 3-1 (25-22, 25-16, 16-25, 25-12).
"A lot of players who have been working hard in practice all year got an opportunity tonight, which I think was great," said Trojans head coach Art O'Dwyer. "It helps me as a coach because I get to see what they can do. We see them in practice, but it's a different story in the game, so it was nice to be able to reward them for their hard work."
Anika Dyck (1st year, Calgary, Journalism) led the Trojans with nine kills, while setter Tessa Geier (2nd year, Airdrie, Alta., Business Administration) dished out 25 assists.
Now, O'Dwyer's bunch will focus on the ACAC Championship, which goes Feb. 21-23 in Calgary at Ambrose University.
The Trojans go into the three-day event as the South Division's No. 4 seed, which puts them on a collision course on Thursday, Feb. 21 at 3pm with the North's top ranked King's University Eagles.
The matchup will be tough, as King's finished the season 22-2 and are ranked No. 2 in Canada by the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA).
"We should be confident, because we have played really solid as of late and have come together nicely as a team," O'Dwyer said. "We have been putting teams in trouble with our serve, so that's what we are going to have to do on the weekend. That's the big thing – you have to put pressure on the other team and defend the ball well, and we've been doing well with both of those. We feel good."
The Trojans men's team went five sets before losing to the Rattlers on Saturday 3-2 (25-13, 25-17, 18-25, 20-25, 15-12).
"What I told the guys before the game is that this isn't a reward, but that this is me believing in them to beat a team ranked highly in the league," Trojans head coach Sean McKay explained. "No matter who was out on the court, I wanted them to take the game seriously and go for the win like any other night."
Riley Grusing (2nd year, Calgary, Civil Engineering Technology) had a big game for the Trojans, recording a game-high 17 kills, while adding six digs and two blocks.
The Trojans will now focus on the ACAC Conference Championship, set for Feb. 21-23 in Edmonton and hosted by the NAIT Ooks.
The Trojans enter the event as the defending champions, and will open the tournament by taking on the host Ooks on Thursday at 8pm.
"You have to win three games against three really good teams," McKay said about the event. "I think we have a great shot, in that if we play at our top level, we can take home a championship."