The Lindsay Thurber Raiders are a perennial powerhouse in Alberta female high school volleyball.
As the Alberta Schools Athletic Association 4A back-to-back champs, they don’t intend to deviate from that script in 2019.
“We’re just hoping, as we are every year to be competitive both in Central Alberta and on a provincial scale,” said Raiders coach Kirsten Dezutter.
“We’re looking to build on the success of the program and just work hard, do lots of training and push to be as successful as we can be. That’s always the goal, we always want to compete provincially and I believe in our group.”
Lindsay Thurber has won six 4A provincial titles since 1999 and was the first school to repeat since 2011.
That task will be a bit taller this season as the rest of Central Alberta tries to play catch-up with the Raiders dynastic reign.
Thurber started exhibition play against the Notre Dame Cougars Wednesday, but not everything has come so easy early in the year.
The Raiders dropped the RDC tournament this past weekend, to local rival Hunting Hills.
That’s got Dezutter excited for the regular season challenge in Central Alberta.
“It’s going to be a competitive league for sure, it’s going to be really exciting,” she said.
You would mostly expect that a high school volleyball team can continuously contend at a provincial, with at some point a need for replenishment of talent.
That hasn’t been the case for the Raiders.
Dezutter said five of their starters were on the provincial winning team last year, despite them graduating a handful of players to the university and college level. Chenee Lehman, Elyssa Leedahl, Megan Kelley, Kyra Rawlusyk and Lauren Bettenson are back this season.
“We focus on what it means to be a Raider. There’s a lot of pride in our program and our school,” Dezutter added.
“These girls, a lot of them are new to the team but they’re not new to Raiders pride. That pride, it’s in them and we’re really excited about the prospects of this team… we’re really impressed with what we’re seeing with the new additions, they fit right in. We’re really impressed with how they’re coming together and supporting each other.”
Boys volleyball
The top two male teams in Central Alberta last season also started the season with another battle Wednesday.
It took four sets (25-17, 19-25, 25-15, 25-22) in exhibition play for the Lindsay Thurber Raiders to knock off the Notre Dame Cougars, who won the 4A Central zone title last year.
“Notre Dame is really young. They’re young and they didn’t care that we beat them in the first set, they came right back in the second set. It will still be a good battle,” said Raiders coach Terence McMullen.
“I think we have a chance to really compete with the guys that we have, it still comes down to September is really important to build some of those foundations and things we need to do.”
McMullen noted that most of his starting line is returning from a year ago and that should have them in good shape this season. His group has eight returning players, including grade 12s Spencer Kooman, Colby Nemeth, Jacob Hicks, Cody Noble, Tyrell Boyce and Josh Gagnon.
“We have some really good, talented guys on this team but we also have to learn when and where those things can happen,” McMullen said.
“I am pleased that they are working hard and being receptive. The whole team is trying to get better. We have things to work on.”
That served them well to start the year, as they’ve already picked up one tournament victory– last weekend at the RDC tournament.
Still, McMullen knows they have a long way to go if they home to be a provincial contender in November.
“People are going to have to bring their best to win, that’s always exciting. That’s just good for our league. If we can push each other here, then everyone has a chance to be somewhere else,” McMullen added.
Next Wednesday, both Raiders teams take on the Hunting Hills Lighting at Hunting Hills. Notre Dame will travel to Lacombe to take on the Rams.
Email sports tips to Byron Hackett
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