Kodiaks ready for action packed weekend

Feb. 3, 2022 – The Val Matteotti Gym will be rocking over the next three days as the Lethbridge College Kodiaks prepare to host one of their busiest weekends of the season.

Kodiaks volleyball gets things started tonight when they welcome the Olds College Broncos in an important Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) south division clash. The Kodiaks teams will then head to Calgary on Saturday and Sunday for big games against SAIT. 

Kodiaks basketball hosts St. Mary’s University on Friday night in what will be the Kodiaks final home games of the regular season. The teams will reconvene in Calgary on Saturday night for a rematch. 

Meanwhile, Kodiaks futsal kicks off regular season play on Saturday with games against Ambrose University and Medicine Hat College.

Fans will be permitted to attend Kodiaks homes games this weekend. Restrictions remain in place, including limited capacity and a masking policy that will be strictly enforced. No food or drink will be allowed inside the Val Matteotti Gymnasium. 

The Kodiaks men’s and women’s basketball teams are undefeated in 2022 and are riding five and nine game winning streaks, respectively. The Kodiaks men’s volleyball team swept Ambrose University last weekend, while the women’s team will look to build momentum coming off a weekend split with the Lions. Both Kodiaks futsal teams will be eager for a fast start to their regular season play as they fight for a berth in the 2022 ACAC Futsal Championships. 

Volleyball

WOMEN’S

Kodiaks (6-3) vs Olds College Broncos (4-6) 

• 6 p.m. Thursday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium 

Kodiaks (6-3) vs SAIT Trojans (4-7) 

• 6 p.m. Saturday at SAIT
• 2 p.m. Sunday at SAIT

Lethbridge College is currently in second place in the ACAC south division and will look to cement their playoff position with a trio of games against rivals from Olds College and SAIT. The team is coming off a weekend split that saw them defeat Ambrose at home, before falling on the road in the rematch on Saturday. 

Jamie Brown (fourth year, Exercise Science, Fort Macleod) is third in the ACAC with 3.75 kills per set. Setter Johanna Dixon (second year, General Studies, Calgary) is averaging 8.03 assists per set, fifth most in the conference. Mack Lewicki (fourth year, Open Studies, Taber) has been a go-to offensive threat for the Kodiaks, totaling 72 kills in eight matches. 

MEN’S

Kodiaks (7-3) vs Olds College Broncos (4-6) 

• 8 p.m. Thursday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium

Kodiaks (7-3) vs SAIT Trojans (6-4) 

• 8 p.m. Saturday at SAIT
• 4 p.m. Sunday at SAIT 

The Kodiaks men will be eager to put some distance between themselves and the Broncos and Trojans in the standings this weekend. The Kodiaks have won seven of their previous eight games and have already defeated the Broncos twice this season.  

Moes (second year, Renewable Resource Management, Barrhead) needs 12 kills to reach 100 on the season. Libero Malcolm Fisher (third year, General Studies, Lethbridge) is currently fifth in the conference with 2.07 digs per set.

Basketball

WOMEN’S

Kodiaks (10-1) vs St. Mary’s University Lightning (9-1) 

• 6 p.m. Friday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium
• 6 p.m. Saturday at St. Mary’s 

First place will be on the line in this highly anticipated matchup between two of the strongest teams in the ACAC. St. Mary’s leads the conference in points per game and steals, meaning the Kodiaks will need to take care of the basketball and find a way to contain a high powered STMU offence. The Kodiaks enter the weekend on a nine game win streak and have gone undefeated so far in 2022.

Kirsten Barwegen (fourth year, Open Studies, Lethbridge) and rookie Courtney Deemter (first year, Nursing, Calgary) continue to lead the Kodiaks in scoring and are top five in the ACAC in PPG. Montana Berezay (second year, General Studies, Magrath) was 7-8 from beyond the arc last Friday, upping her 3PT percentage to 38.4%, fourth best in the conference.

MEN’S

Kodiaks (9-2) vs St. Mary’s University Lightning (7-1) 

• 8 p.m. Friday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium
• 8 p.m. Saturday at St. Mary’s

First place will also be on the line in the men’s matchup. St. Mary’s has suffered just one loss during its regular season campaign thus far and can tie Lethbridge for first place in the ACAC south division with a weekend sweep. Lethbridge is coming off an impressive sweep of Ambrose last weekend and has now won five games in a row. 

Rookie Paycen Blackmore (first year, Business Administration Accounting, Magrath) is third in the conference in shooting percentage (59%). Veteran guard Orin Porter Jr. (fifth year, Computer Information Technology, Nevada) continues to lead the offence by averaging 17.9 points per game. Porter Jr. and Jackson Kasko (fifth year, General Studies Psychology and Sociology, Coaldale) will each be playing in their final regular season home game for the Kodiaks.

Futsal

WOMEN’S

Kodiaks (0-0) vs Medicine Hat College Rattlers (0-0)  

• 10 a.m. Saturday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium

Kodiaks (0-0) vs Ambrose University Lions (0-0)   

• 4 p.m. Saturday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium 

MEN’S

Kodiaks (0-0) vs Medicine Hat College Rattlers (0-0)  

• 11:15 a.m. Saturday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium

Kodiaks (0-0) vs Ambrose University Lions (0-0)   

• 5:15 p.m. Saturday at Val Matteotti Gymnasium

The Kodiaks futsal teams have bene placed in a pool with Ambrose University and Medicine Hat College, with the teams competing for a spot in the 2022 ACAC Futsal Championships which will be held March 24-26 in Lloydminster. The teams will meet again on Feb. 26 in Calgary to complete regular season play.

ACACTV partners with Telus Optik TV  – The ACAC is excited to announce a new partnership with Telus Optik TV. All conference games available on ACACTV will now also be televised on Telus Optik TV (Channel 1998). Fans can continue to watch the Kodiaks on ACACTV Pay Per View. 

Learn more about the Kodiaks at gokodiaks.ca and follow along all season on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. High-quality photos are available to download from the Kodiaks Flickr account.