The RDC Kings go into the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association men’s volleyball championships in London, Ont., ranked second.
The defending champion Kings, who won the ACAC title with a 3-2 win over the Medicine Hat Rattlers Saturday at RDC, will face the host Fanshawe College Falcons in the 6 p.m. (MST) featured game March 9.
The Rattlers have been seeded fifth and clash with the Camosun Chargers of Victoria. The Limoilou Titans of Quebec City, who lost in last year’s national final to RDC, go into the tournament ranked No. 1 and face the Holland Hurricanes of Charlottetown, PEI. The other quarter-final contest sees the Vancouver Island Marineers of Nanaimo taking on the Mohawk Mountaineers of Hamilton.
• The RDC Kings face the North champion Concordia University of Edmonton Thunder in their opening game of the ACAC men’s basketball championships at 3 p.m. Thurday in Medicine Hat.
The Kings tied for second in the South Division at 15-6 with Lethbridge and SAIT behind Medicine Hat, but finished fourth.
The three-day champion opens at 1 p.m. with Lakeland facing SAIT. Lethbridge clashes with NAIT at 6 p.m. and the Augustana Vikings meet MHC at 8 p.m. The semifinals go Friday at 6 and 8 p.m. with the final at 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
• The hockey Kings open their best-of-three ACAC quarter-finals against the Augustana Vikings Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Camrose. The second game is Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Penhold Regional Multiplex with the third game, if necessary, Sunday at 6 p.m. in Camrose.
• The RDC track team will compete in the ACAC indoor championships Friday and Saturday in Lethbridge.
• Meanwhile, two volleyball players shared the Boston Pizza RDC athlete of the week awards.
Kings Regan Fathers, who was tournament MVP at the provincials, received the top male award with tournament all-star McKenna Barthel the top female.
Fathers, a third-year outside hitter from East Fremantle, Western Australia, was named the player of the match for all three RDC games and was a major reason why the Kings captured their second straight ACAC title and fourth in the last five years.
He had 17 kills, four aces and seven digs in a quarter-final win over NAIT, then added 16 kills, four aces and two blocks in a win over Keyano College in the semifinals. In the final — a 3-2 win over Medicine Hat — he had 26 kills, three aces and a block.
Fathers is expected to join the University of Calgary Dinos next season.
Barthel was outstanding as the Queens won bronze at the ACAC women’s championships in Lloydminster.
The third-year Business Administration — Human Resources student was named to the tournament all-star team. She had 10 kills, eight digs and five blocks in a 3-0 quarter-final win over NAIT, seven kills, five digs, two blocks and two aces in a 3-1 loss to Grande Prairie and nine kills, six digs, three blocks and an ace in a 3-0 win over Ambrose in the bronze medal match.
Danny Rode is a retired Advocate reporter, who can be reached at drode@www.reddeeradvocate.com. His work can also be seen at Danny’s blog at rdcathletics.ca