Weekend Preview: Kodiaks basketball aims to bounce back; track team heads north to kick off season

Jan. 19, 2023 – The Lethbridge College Kodiaks basketball teams face a pivotal weekend as they play highly ranked Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) teams in home-and-home matchups Meanwhile, the indoor track team will kick off what fans hope will be a stellar season with its first Grand Prix in Edmonton.

Both Kodiaks men’s and women’s basketball look to bounce back from tough losses last week in this weekend’s home-and-home matchups against St. Mary’s Lightning. The Kodiaks will host the Lightning on Friday before travelling to Calgary Saturday for a rematch.  

The Kodiaks will send the largest team in the college’s history to the Running Room Grand Prix #1 hosted by Concordia University of Edmonton for Saturday’s season opener. The team is hoping to make strides in the next months and improve on last year’s successes, which included a third-place finish overall for the men’s team and individual medals.

Basketball

WOMEN’S

Kodiaks (7W-5L) vs St. Mary's Lightning (10W-1L) 

·         Friday, Jan. 20 | 6 p.m. at Val Matteotti Gymnasium 

·         Saturday, Jan. 21 | 6 p.m. at St. Mary's University

The Kodiaks women’s basketball team dropped to fourth place in the ACAC south division standings. Picking up their first win of the new semester start will be difficult as St. Mary’s Lightning sits at the top of the south division and are looking to continue their eight-game winning streak. Matlin Jacobs (fifth year, General Studies, Cardston) will be a player to watch this weekend. After serving as an assistant coach in the first half of the season, she laced up for last week’s game and should provide leadership and additional scoring touch on the court. Kitawna Sparks (second year, Open Studies, Taber) has also stepped into a leadership role this season, ranking third in the conference by averaging 17.7 points per game.

MEN’S 

Kodiaks (9W-3L) vs St. Mary's Lightning (8W-3L) 

·         Friday, Jan. 20 | 8 p.m. at Val Matteotti Gymnasium 

·         Saturday, Jan. 21 | 8 p.m. at St. Mary's University

The Kodiaks men’s basketball team is aiming to solidify its number one position in the south division this weekend as they face second place St. Mary’s. Key players to look out for are Mason Hoffman (first year, General Studies, Yorkton, Sask.) as he is coming off a hot week that saw him named the Kodiaks Athlete of the Week. Keep an eye out for Paycen Blackmore (second year, Business Administration – Accounting, Magrath) as well, as he has proven to be an offence leader averaging 15.2 point per game. The Kodiaks will be looking to these two leaders to contribute this weekend.

Indoor Track

ACAC Grand Prix #1

Saturday, Jan. 21 | Kinsmen Sport Centre (Edmonton), hosted by Concordia University of Edmonton

There is a lot of excitement stirring from Lethbridge College’s indoor track athletes as the largest team ever fielded in Kodiaks history prepares for their first meet. Some key male runners to look out for are rookies Brock Jensen (first year, General Studies, Lethbridge) competing in 3000 meters and Owen Stewart (first year, General Studies, Lethbridge) competing in 1000 meters. On the female side their team caption Maria Boix Frias (second year, Massage Therapy, Banyoles, Spain) will look to transfer her success from the cross country season to the track.