The men’s teams had another strong weekend, winning five of their six games. However, the women struggled, losing all six of their games. Here’s how each team did.
Men’s Hockey
The men’s hockey team was the only men’s team to lose a game this weekend. They split what was technically a pair of home games with the SAIT Trojans, but the Friday game took place in Calgary at Winsport Arena. Both teams dominated the game in their home city, with the Trojans winning on Friday 7-2 and the Ooks winning 7-1 on Saturday. On Friday, Brandon Machado and Kaden Hanas led the Trojans with a goal and two assists each. Former Edmonton Oil Kings goaltender Boston Bilous made 24 saves in the win, and Ryley Osland made 26 saves in the loss.
On Saturday, the Ooks switched to Taryn Kotchorek in net, and the swap worked. Eric Lacombe led the offence with a goal and two assists, while Kotchorek made 22 saves for the win. Boston Bilous made 21 saves on 27 shots before being pulled for Spencer Welke, who made eight saves on nine shots. Up next is a home and away game with Portage College. The home game is on Friday, and both games start at 7 p.m.
Women’s Hockey
The women’s hockey team lost back-to-back games for the first time this season, a 3-2 and 4-3 loss to Lakeland College in overtime and double overtime, respectively. On Friday, it was powerplay troubles, with Lakeland scoring two of their three goals short handed, including the overtime winner. Lakeland opened the scoring short handed under five minutes into the game, which would be the only offence until the 12:34 mark in the third, with the Ooks getting on the board. The Ooks would take the lead with just over two and a half minutes remaining but couldn’t hold on, with Lakeland responding just under a minute later.
All the teams except the men’s hockey team have this weekend off. The women’s hockey team plays two games against SAIT the following weekend, just like the men just did. One at home and one at Winsport Arena, which is still considered a home game. Friday’s game starts at 6:15 p.m., and Saturday’s home game begins at 6 p.m.
Men’s Basketball
The Ooks won both games against the Concordia Thunder this weekend: 88-71 on Friday and 81-73 on Saturday. The Ooks started slow on Friday, ending the first quarter down 20-15 and the first half only up 41-40. But they took over in the second half outscoring the Thunder 47-33, including 26-15 in the fourth quarter to close out the victory. On Saturday, however, the Ooks came firing right away, allowing them to jump to an early lead, 43-34, by the end of the first half. This allowed the Ooks to rest their starters in the fourth quarter with a healthy 63-49 lead at the end of the third quarter. Only one player played more than 30 minutes for the Ooks. Up next, after the weekend off, a home game against Red Deer Polytechnic and Olds College. Both games start at 8 p.m.
Women’s Basketball
The Concordia Thunder continued their dominance in women’s basketball with a pair of wins over the Ooks, 67-58 on Friday and 70-67 on Saturday. The Ooks got off to a slow start on Friday, finding themselves down 39-26 at the half. The Ooks battled at one point bringing the lead down to only two points, but they couldn’t overcome the deficit.
On Saturday, the Ooks came out strong taking an 18-13 lead at the end of the first quarter, but the Thunder showed why they are the top team in the league, taking over the second quarter to take a 42-34 lead into halftime. Once again, the Ooks tried their hardest to come back, outscoring the Thunder 14-8 in the third quarter, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Thunder. Up next, after the weekend off, a home game against Red Deer Polytechnic and Olds College. Both games start at 6 p.m.
Men’s Volleyball
It took only six sets for the Ooks to win two games against the Concordia Thunder, winning both games in straight sets. One encouraging sign is the team only had 19 service errors in both games combined, which is a huge improvement over the past few games. In both games, the Ooks never let the Thunder get comfortable, keeping the pressure on and making sure the Thunder could never go on a run. After the weekend off, the Ooks play their final game of the regular season in Red Deer against Red Deer Polytechnic. The game starts at 8 p.m.
Women’s Volleyball
It wasn’t quite the weekend the women’s volleyball team was looking for. They saw their three-game winning streak snapped, losing two consecutive games to the Concordia Thunder in straight sets. On Friday, the team couldn’t get any momentum, not getting to 20 points in any of the three sets.
It looked like the Ooks were gaining momentum late into the second set on Saturday. Even after dropping the set, they still took that momentum into the third set but couldn’t close it. Up next, after the weekend off, the Ooks play their final game of the regular season in Red Deer against Red Deer Polytechnic. The game starts at 6 p.m.
