Red Deer Polytechnic basketball players Eduardo Crespo and Amy Szymanek were recognized among the best players in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) Wednesday evening.
Crespo, a forward on the Kings and Queens’ guard Szymanek were named First-Team All-Stars at the ACAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Awards Banquet.
Szymanek helped the Queens accomplish a 12-0 streak in the second half of the season that began back in November. In her final season with the Queens, she averaged just under 16 points per game, which is the highest of her collegiate career.
The Stauffer, Alta. native started 18 of the Queens’ 21 games this season all while working towards a bachelor of education degree. This season she also won athlete of the week and player of the game multiple times.
“Her leadership makes her a huge asset to us,” said Queens head coach Avery Harrison in a media release.
“She is one of those slashing players who slashes and drives. These players are hard to defend because you do not know what they are going to do next. I am not even sure if Amy knows what she is going to do next. She is very unpredictable and that’s really hard to defend.”
The Queens’ long win streak helped them earn second place heading into the ACAC Championship in Lethbridge on March 2-4. On Thursday they played their first game at 1 p.m. against the Keyano College Huskies.
On the men’s side, Crespo helped the Kings make a 13-4 run during the regular season after they began the campaign 0-4. The impressive run earned them fourth place in the South Division but missed out on the ACAC Championship after losing their second play-in game to the St. Mary’s University Lightning.
The Brazilian is in his second year of academic upgrading and this season averaged 20 points per game on nearly 50 per cent from the field.
Head coach of the Kings Darren Graham said Crespo is a player who can play all five positions and compared his to NBA superstar Luka Doncic.
“He can affect the game with his scoring, playmaking, and his rebounding,” Graham said.
“He has a really diverse skill set that allows him to play all five positions on the court. His size combined with his footwork, court vision, shooting, and ability to get to the rim gives him undeniable diversity when it comes to the offensive side of the court.”