Weekend Recap: Basketball concludes, indoor track heats up

The Lethbridge Polytechnic Kodiaks completed another chapter in their athletic season this past weekend. The men’s basketball team finished the season after competing in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) championships, while Kodiaks indoor track hosted the last event of the regular season.

Basketball

Halle Aleman (first year, Open Studies, Lethbridge) from the Kodiaks women’s basketball team was honoured at this year’s ACAC Women’s Basketball Championship banquet hosted by The Kings University Eagles in Edmonton. She was named South Rookie of the Year for her competitive play during the regular season.

The Kodiaks men’s basketball team travelled to Caronport, Sask. to compete in the 2025 ACAC Men’s Basketball Championship.

Feb. 27 MBB | Quarterfinal | Kodiaks 84 vs Keyano College Huskies 87

Recap written by Briercrest College and Seminary:

Caronport, Sask., (Feb. 27, 2025) - The second game on day 1 saw quarterfinal action between the Lethbridge Kodiaks and Keyano Huskies.

The Kodiaks set the tone early with a stifling defence that forced multiple Keyano turnovers. Capitalizing on these opportunities, Lethbridge found open looks both inside and from beyond the arc, building an 11-point lead by the end of the quarter.

In the second quarter, Lethbridge continued to dominate, knocking down shots from deep and maintaining relentless defensive pressure, prompting a Keyano timeout early in the period. The Huskies responded with aggressive defence and a few key baskets, but the Kodiaks held firm, heading into halftime with a commanding 47-33 lead over the North Division's top seed.

Keyano came out firing in the third, but Lethbridge held its ground, trading baskets and preserving its lead throughout the third quarter.

The final frame saw intense defensive play from both sides, leading to multiple turnovers and missed shots. Late in the quarter, Keyano's offence found its rhythm, sparked by clutch baskets from Keenan Miller and Omeechi Williams, giving the Huskies their first lead of the game. They extended that lead to 11 with just a minute remaining.

Lethbridge, however, refused to go down quietly. Ryan Degner (fourth year, Open Studies, Lethbridge) and Treydon Barton (third year, General Arts and Science, Raymond) drained crucial three-pointers, while Coleson Lake (fourth year, Business Administration, Eagle, Idaho) added a layup and two clutch free throws to cut the deficit to one. But Keyano held on – Williams iced the game with a pair of free throws, finishing with 19 points and securing the win for the Huskies.

Miller led all scorers with an impressive 31 points for Keyano, while Lake paced Lethbridge with 22.

Feb. 28 MBB | Consolation semi-final | Kodiaks 70 vs Lakeland College Rustlers 76

Recap written by Briercrest College and Seminary:

1st quarter: Both teams came out firing in the first quarter. Lethbridge's Levi Balderson (first year, General Arts and Science, Welling, Alta.) had a strong 11-point quarter, helping his team hold a significant nine-point lead to end the quarter. Allayasa Bray scored five for the Rustlers in the first.  

2nd quarter: In the second quarter, Lakeland did a better job limiting Lethbridge's scoring opportunities and capitalized on more buckets of their own. Chance Samuel scored eight for the Rustlers while Balderson continued to lead the Kodiaks offence with six, finishing the first half with 17 points. By the end of the second, Lakeland reduced the lead to just three points to set themselves up for the second half. 

3rd quarter: An aggressive Lakeland defence slowed down Lethbridge's bigger scorers, and their efficiency from deep helped them overtake Lethbridge for the first time all game. The Rustlers finished the game with a one-point lead going into the final quarter. Samuel continued to dominate, scoring 10 points on 100 per cent shooting from distance. 

4th quarter: Lakeland continued to control both sides of the court as they extended their lead over the Kodiaks. Matthew Bryant led the Rustlers' offence in the fourth quarter with 11 points, while Cody Tollestrup (second year, General Arts and Science, Magrath) worked hard for the Kodiaks on both ends and finished the game with 12 rebounds and 13 points. Lakeland's Samuel finished the game with 23 points on 5/7 from three to lead the Rustlers to a 76-70 victory over the Kodiaks.

March 1 IT | Grand Prix #3 hosted by Lethbridge Polytechnic

The Kodiaks proudly hosted the third ACAC Running Room Grand Prix event at the University of Lethbridge. This marked the first time since 2016 that the Kodiaks indoor track team had the opportunity to host an event, welcoming athletes from seven ACAC schools for an action-packed day of competition.

On the women’s side, Hannah Pilling (first year, Academic Upgrading, Cardston) delivered strong performances in the 1500m, finishing first overall. In the 300m event, the Kodiaks took spots four through eight in a strong showing. The Kodiaks delivered an outstanding performance in the relays, sweeping both the 4x200m and 4x400m events.

On the men’s side, notable performances included Owen Stewart (third year, Business Administration – Accounting, Lethbridge), who secured first place in both the 1500m and 600m events. The 300m sprint was another strong showing for the Kodiaks, with Jonah Hennig (third year, Criminal Justice – Policing, Blackfalds, Alta.) finishing second (37.71 seconds) and first-year runner Tyler Wiebe (first year, Pre-Carpenter Certificate, Coaldale) clinching victory in 37.21 seconds. The Kodiaks also dominated the relay events, winning both the 4x200m and 4x400m races. They set a new ACAC Championship record in the 4x200m relay, crossing the finish line in 1:34.23.

The next event where all teams will compete is the ACAC Indoor Track Championships, taking place in two weeks on March 15 and 16 at the Universiade Pavilion (Butterdome) in Edmonton.