Thunder Athletics - Fall 2022 Semester in Review
After an extremely successful 2021-22 ACAC campaign, the Thunder kicked off the 2022-23 season in September, eager to build off their success from last season. Even though we’re only halfway through the season and some teams are just getting going, the Thunder have captured two ACAC gold medals, two ACAC Player of the Year awards, and two ACAC coach of the year awards. As the fall semester comes to a close and the Thunder head out on a much earned break, lets have a look at what has happened in the fall semester of the 2022-23 season for CUE Thunder athletics.
GOLF:
The 2022 ACAC Golf Season returned to a pre-COVID formant, with two regional tournaments followed by the championships.
At the North Regional, Joby Raine and Brian Bailer finished tied for 10th in the men’s individual standings, while Aaron Menor also cracked the top 15 on the weekend. In the women’s individual standings, Ella Gifford finished in 1st place with a 12 stroke lead and Lauryn Psutka also finished in the top 15. At the South Regional a few weeks later, Raine and Bailer were once again able to crack the top 15, while Menor finished in the top 20. Braden Pasalic made his season debut, finishing in the top 25. On the women’s side, Gifford once again finished in 1st place, with Psutka finishing in the top 15.
At the ACAC Golf Championships hosted by Concordia Sept. 23-25, Raine and Menor finished in the top 15 in the men’s individual event, with Bailer and Pasalic finishing in the top 20. This gave the Thunder men’s team the ACAC bronze medal in the men’s team event. On the women’s side, Gifford continued her ACAC dominance, once again finishing first to claim the ACAC gold medal in the women’s individual category. Psutka was able to crack the top 10 on the weekend as well, which gave the Thunder women the bronze medal in the team event. Ella Gifford was named to the ACAC Golf All-Conference team, and was named the ACAC 2022-23 Women’s Golfer of the Year, while Thunder head coach Larry Petryk was named the ACAC 2022-23 Golf Coach of the Year. Gifford additionally qualified for the 2022 CCAA Golf National Championships in Ajax, Ontario, where she made the Thunder and ACAC proud, finishing in the top 10, and as the highest ranked individual golfer for the ACAC. In Ajax, Coach Petryk was also named the 2022-23 CCAA Golf Coach of the Year.
CROSS-COUNTRY:
The Thunder cross-country team came into the 2022-23 season looking to stand strong with a mixture of new recruits, and returning veterans, including the defending back-to-back provincial and national champion Leonard Chesoo. With the transition season over, the cross-country schedule returned to having four grand prix events setting up the ACAC Cross-Country Championships, a race hosted by Concordia in 2022.
On the women’s side, fifth year returning runner and dual-sport athlete Emma Derbyshire ran in three of the four races, finishing in the top 10 every time, returning veteran Taylor Chamberlin finished in the top 10 in all races, and rookie M.J. MacDougall had strong showings of her own – finishing in the top 30 in races she ran. On the men’s side, it was status quo for Chesoo, winning 3 of 4 Grand Prix’s. Second year runner Luke Stewart picked up top 25 and top 35 finishes in the two races he ran, Domenico Marchese in the top 45 in his only Grand Prix, and rookie Emilian Dumec picked up two top 30 finishes, a top 40 finish, and a top 45 finish.
With Concordia hosting the 2022 ACAC Cross-Country championships, expectations were high for the Thunder as they had home field advantage. In the women’s race, Chamberlin put in her best race of the season, coming in 7th place. Derbyshire put in another top 15 finish, finishing 11th, while MacDougall put in a top 40 finish. One the men’s side, Leonard Chesoo three-peated as ACAC champion, winning his third straight conference title by 15 seconds. Stewart finished in the top 45, while Marchese and Dumec picked up top 50 finishes.
At the awards banquet, Chesoo grabbed more hardware as he was named to the 2022 ACAC Cross-Country All-Conference team, and was named the 2022 ACAC Men’s Cross-Country Runner of the Year. Chamberlin was also named to the Cross-Country All-Conference team, and Chesoo, Chamberlin, and Derbyshire all qualified for the 2022 CCAA Cross-Country National Championship in Medicine Hat, Alberta. In the women’s race in Medicine Hat, Chamberlin put in a top 30 finish while Derbyshire finished in the top 45 of over 110 runners. Chesoo finished in the top 30 himself, from another field of over 110 runners.
WOMEN’S SOCCER:
After falling short in the bronze medal game in 2021, the Thunder women’s soccer team put the work in over the off-season to come back even stronger as they looked to chase down their first conference title since 2010. That hard work paid off as the women’s soccer program had a historic season in 2022. The Thunder had their best defensive season in program history, only conceding three goals all season – averaging 0.25 goals against per game. This defensive play led the Thunder to an 11-0-1 record and a first place finish in the ACAC’s North Division. On top of that, the Thunder were nationally ranked in the CCAA rankings for seven consecutive weeks.
After finishing first, the Thunder picked up a crucial bye to the semi-finals at the 2022 ACAC Women’s Soccer Championships. There, they met the rival NAIT Ooks where they picked up a 3-0 victory to book their ticket in the ACAC Championship game. Taking on the Red Deer Queens, the Thunder couldn’t get their offence going as they fell 1-0 in the championship game to pick up the ACAC silver medal for women’s soccer in 2022. Head Coach Frank Imbrogno won his third ACAC Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year award in 2022, while four Thunder athletes were named to the 2022 ACAC Women’s Soccer All-Conference Team, and one named a 2022 CCAA Women’s Soccer All-Canadian:
#7 Madison Gamache
#4 Vanessa Pietramala
#13 Amy Fayant
#2 Elizabeth Crothers (CCAA All-Canadian)
MEN’S SOCCER:
With new head coach Thiago Silva taking over in late July, the men’s soccer program had a steep hill to climb. They opened the season with a bang, defeating Portage 7-1, and ended up proving to be competitive all season, finishing with a 3-2-7 record and in 5th place in the ACAC north, just outside of the playoffs. The Thunder attack was led by Jacob Kwizera, who was also in the top 20 of ACAC scoring, finishing with four goals and two assists through nine matches. Second year goalie Rostyslav Leha set a new program record with 64 saves on the season, also good enough for second in the ACAC in 2022. The Thunder finished the season with seven points out of their final five matches, and under the leadership of Coach Silva, have the groundwork laid to make noise in the ACAC North Division in 2023.
Team Leaders –
#11 Jacob Kwizera: 4 G, 2 A, 15 S, 14 SOG
#12 Pawel Pilat: 3 G, 2 A, 9 S, 6 SOG
#1 Rostyslav Leha: 3 W, 64 SV, .640 SVP
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL:
After landing one of the best recruiting classes in program history, the Thunder’s women’s basketball team came into this season with only one thing on mind: at ACAC conference championship. Through nine games and the first semester, those expectations have proved within reach, as the Thunder are 9-0 at the break, sitting in first place in the ACAC North Division and being ranked #2 in the CCAA national rankings. The Thunder attack is led by rookie forward Kourtney Oss, who is 8th place in the ACAC in scoring, averaging 16.0 points per game, and leads the ACAC in rebounding with 12.6 rebounds per game. Fifth year guard Kaelyn Bryks is sitting in the top 10 in scoring averaging 14.4 points per game, and third year forward Rachel Harvey is in the top 10 in rebounding (9.4 RPG). All three of Oss, Bryks and Harvey are averaging more than 10 points per game through the Thunder’s run. Women’s basketball returns to action in the second half, and looks to stay undefeated, against the Augustana Vikings on January 13.
Team Leaders –
#9 Kaelyn Bryks: 14.4 ppg, .469 FG%, .237 3P%, .682 FT%, 2.7 rpg, 0.7 apg
#11 Rachel Harvey: 12.9 ppg, .407 FG%, .222 3P%, .733 FT%, 9.4 rpg, 2.1 bpg
#10 Kourtney Oss: 16.0 ppg, .560 FG%, .400 3P%, .480 FT%, 12.6 rpg, 2.1 bpg
MEN’S BASKETBALL:
Losing in the first round of the playoffs in the 2021-22 season, the Thunder men’s basketball team entered this season looking to build off of last season’s playoff appearance. Sitting in third place in the ACAC North Division with a 5-4 record through the first semester, the Thunder are right in the thick of the playoff race. Third year guard Yaadvir Dhaliwal sits in the top 15 in scoring in the ACAC averaging 17.7 points per game and the top 15 in three-point percentage shooting .413, while second year guard Nyasha Mubayiwa is third in the ACAC in assists per game with 4.1. Along with Dhaliwal, third year forward Alex MacLean leads the Thunder attack averaging 14.1 points per game. The Thunder return to action in the new year on the weekend of January 13 and 14 as they have a home and home series with the Augustana Vikings.
Team Leaders –
#14 Alex MacLean: 14.1 ppg, .516 FG%, .375 3P%, .667 FT%, 4.6 rpg
#7 Yaadvir Dhaliwal: 17.7 ppg, .454 FG%, .413 3P%, .750 FT%, 5.8 rpg
#1 Nyasha Mubayiwa: 6.9 ppg, .451 FG%, .500 3P%, .933 FT%, 4.1 apg
WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL:
During Dione Kristel’s first full season and in the thick of the playoff run in the tough and competitive ACAC North Division, the women’s volleyball program is heading into the winter break with a 2-8 record, just outside of a playoff spot. Fourth year libero Renae Regal leads the ACAC in digs with 160, fifth year setter Emma Derbyshire is in the top 15 in assists with 119, and second-year hitter Jolene Cooke is 13th in the ACAC with 82 kills. Third year hitter is in the ACAC’s top 15 in kills (79, 14th place) and digs (90, 12th place). The Thunder return from Christmas break on January 13th as they welcome the Red Deer Queens to kick off the second half of the season.
Team Leaders –
#2 Renae Regal: 0 K, 13 A, 0 SA, 160 DIGS, 0 BS
#4 Emma Derbyshire: 13 K, 119 A, 3 SA, 25 DIGS, 1 BS
#13 Kara McIntrye: 79 K, 1 A, 4 SA, 90 DIGS, 3 BS
MEN’S VOLLEYBALL:
Heading into his second season in charge, Head Coach Ken McLaughlin brought in a recruiting class of nine athletes – making the Thunder men’s volleyball program one of the youngest in the ACAC. The young Thunder are 3-7 through the first half of the season, only four points out of a playoff spot. Fouth year hitter Wyatt Turnbull finds himself in the top 10 in the ACAC in two stat categories: sixth in kills with 120 K and ninth in digs with 65. Rookie setter Rhees Moss is sitting in seventh place in the ACAC with 273 assists. The Thunder will continue their playoff push in the new year, returning to action on January 13th against the south division’s best team, the Red Deer Kings.
Team Leaders –
#5 Wyatt Turnbull: 120 K, 12 A, 9 SA, 65 DIGS, 11 BS
#16 Rhees Moss: 15 K, 273 A, 7 SA, 33 DIGS, 7 BS
#7 Kyle Robertson: 64 K, 3 A, 8 SA, 30 DIGS, 6 BS
HOCKEY:
Having made their first ACAC Championship appearance in 12 years in 2021-22, the Thunder men’s hockey program came into 2022-23 looking to return to the final for the second straight year. Having lost eight players to graduation, the Thunder brought in a large but strong recruiting class looking to not miss a beat. The 2022-23 men’s hockey division is the strongest and toughest the ACAC has had in quite some time, with parody all over and any team having a chance to win on any night. Six of the seven teams are within six points of each other at the halfway break, with the Thunder sitting at a 6-5-1 record – comfortably in a playoff spot and only four points out of first place. Third year forward Pete Tomaras and Keegan Tiringer are both in the top 10 in points 11 each through 10 games. Tomaras is also in second place in the ACAC with 7 goals. Rookie goalie Eric Ward leads the ACAC in wins with six and saves with 320. The come back from the winter break and resume their chase of an ACAC regular season title on January 13th and 14th when they head to Briercrest. The Thunder return home January 20th to welcome the NAIT Ooks.
Team Leaders –
#7 Keegan Tiringer: 4G, 7A, 11P, 16 PIM
#18 Pete Tomaras: 7G, 4A, 11P, 1PPG, 4 PIM
#31 Eric Ward: 6-5-1, 3.34 GAA, .889 SVP, 320 saves
BADMINTON:
The ACAC badminton schedule returned to it’s pre-covid format this year, with tournament #1 taking place on November 20 at Concordia. One of the larger teams in recent history, the Thunder badminton program had athletes in all events. In men’s singles, Johnny Su finished in fourth place with Salvador Robles-Gonzales finishing in eighth place. In the women’s singles draw, defending CCAA player of the year Johnna Rymes picked up where she left off last year, winning the bracket, while her teammate Prabhleen Kaur came in second. In the men’s doubles event, Robles-Gonzales and his partner Brandon Morris came in fourth place while in women’s doubles event, Rymes returned to the top of the podium again, winning the event with her partner Jasleen Kaur. Finally, in the mixed doubles event, Jasleen Kaur and Johnny Su came up just short in the final to finish second. The badminton schedule continues in the new year, with tournament #2 going in late January at NAIT and tournament #3 in early February at King’s. The 2023 ACAC Badminton Championships will be hosted by Concordia February 18-19.
CURLING:
Much like badminton, the ACAC curling schedule returned to some normalcy in the fall of 2022, with the fall and winter regionals returning. The Fall regional was hosted by SAIT, and the Thunder sent down both a men’s and women’s team. Both team’s had strong showings through the first weekend, as the men’s team went 2-3, while the women went 3-2. The Thunder are in the thick of the standings in both events as they look to return to the podium in ACAC play. The winter regional will go down the weekend of January 20 hosted by Concordia at the Avionair Curling Club, followed by the 2023 ACAC Curling Championships in Lloydminster hosted by Lakeland College.