Thunder Athletics - Fall 2023 Semester In Review

The start of the 2023/2024 season has been a successful one for the Thunder. Even though we’re only halfway through the season and some teams are just getting going, Concordia has already captured numerous awards and broken various school records. As another Fall semester comes to an end, it’s time to take a look back at how the Thunder closed out 2023. 

Golf

2023 brought another year of success for the Golf program. At the North Regional, hosted by Concordia, the team finished 3rd in the mixed team event, 2nd in the men’s team event, and 1st in the women’s team event. The men’s team was led by Hayden Prins finishing 5th as well as Riley Higdon (13th), Aaron Menor (15th), and Joby Raine (16th) all finishing in the Top 20 individually. All three women finished in the Top 10 individually, with Ella Gifford finishing in 1st, Lauryn Psutka finishing in 7th, and Ava Stach finishing 10th.

At the South Regional in Medicine Hat, our men’s team again finished 2nd, led by Higdon (5th), Prins (6th), and Raine (8th), who all finished in the Top 10 individually. Our women’s team finished 1st, leading the event by 15 strokes. It was a repeat performance for the women, as all three finished in the Top 10 individually yet again, with Gifford finishing in 1st, Psutka finishing in 7th, and Stach finishing 10th.

At ACAC Championships in Red Deer, the team captured championships in the women’s team event and mixed team event, while claiming 2nd in the men’s team event. Prins, Higdon, and Raine finished in the Top 10 for the men, while Gifford, Psutka, and Stach finished in the Top 10 for the women for the third tournament in a row. Their success in the ACAC led to a trip to CCAA National Championships for Ella on the women’s side, as well as the entire men’s team.

The success didn't stop there as the program saw Ella Gifford, Riley Higdon, and Hayden Prins selected as ACAC All-Conference Athletes. The team also took home some hardware with Gifford winning the 2023 ACAC Female Golfer of the Year award for the second year in a row and Prins taking home the 2023 Men’s Golf Rookie of the Year award.

There’s tons of momentum for the golf program going into the new year, with sights on more championships in 2024.

Cross Country

The Thunder cross-country team came into the 2023-24 season looking to stand strong with a mixture of first and second year athletes, as well as returning veterans.

2023 was another banner year for returning veteran Leonard Chesoo, who finished in the top 5 in all three races he competed in, including a first-place finish in the 8km race at Grand Prix #4 hosted by U of A Augustana with a time of 26:24. He then finished the ACAC season capturing 2nd place at the ACAC Championships 8km race with a time of 26:21. From there, Chesoo qualified for CCAA National Championships where he won a CCAA title in the 8km race with a time of 24:37. His third CCAA title in 5 years. With an ACAC 2nd place finish and a CCAA gold medal, Chesoo was named both a ACAC All-Conference and CCAA All-Canadian athlete for the 2023 season.

With the cross-country season now complete, the group looks towards indoor track, which gets started on January 27th at Kinsmen Sports Centre. Concordia will host the first meet of the indoor track season.

Women’s Soccer

It was a year of awards, medals, and new records for the women’s soccer team as they capped off their season going 11-0-1, allowing only 2 goals all regular season. To finish the year, the team won bronze at this year’s ACAC Championships. This season saw Breanna Callander, Monica Dickson, Audrey French, and Vanessa Pietramala each earn ACAC All-Conference selections, with Pietramala also earning ACAC North Player of the Year, CCAA All-Canadian, and CCAA Women’s Soccer Player of the Year. Coach Franco Imbrogno also won ACAC North Women’s Soccer Coach of the Year for the second year in a row, and for the fourth time of his ACAC career.

The success continued for the program as the group broke 4 different team records by the end of the season. Callander now owns the record for most goals scored in a Thunder career with 40, Dickson set the record for most clean sheets in a season with 9, Pietramala set the record for most assists in a season with 16 and she currently holds the career record for Thunder assists with 27. With 7 graduating seniors this season, the team will look to continue where they’ve left off with the program’s success in 2024.

Team Leaders

-          #10 Breanna Callander - 13 G, 5 A, 31 P

-          #4 Vanessa Pietramala - 9 G, 16 A, 34 P

-          #1 Monica Dickson - 9 W, 23 SV, .958 SV%, 9 SO

Men’s Soccer

The men’s soccer program proved to be competitive all season, finishing with a 4-6-2 record good for 5th place in the ACAC north, just outside of the playoffs. The Thunder attack was led by Ahmed Abubaker, who was also the ACAC goals leader with 12 and ACAC scoring leader with 29 points. Shockingly enough, he did not earn an ACAC All-Conference selection after his spectacular season. Records continue to be broken for Thunder Athletics with third year goalkeeper Rostyslav Leha setting a new program record for career saves with 113. The Thunder finished the season on a three-game winning streak and look to take that momentum into 2024 to make noise in the ACAC North Division.

Team Leaders

-          #9 Ahmed Abubaker - 12 G, 5 A, 29 P, 19 SOG

-          #10 Jayden Munguia-Scott - 2 G, 4 A, 8 P, 11 SOG

-          #1 Rostyslav Leha - 4 W, 49 SV, .700 SV%

Women’s Basketball

After coming off a fantastic 2022-23 season, the Thunder women's basketball program looked to continue their winning ways to start the year. The team currently sits at 4-6 on the season, good for 4th place in the North Division. They currently hold a playoff spot as they head into the winter break. The Thunder offence is led by fourth year forward Rachel Harvey who is 5th in league scoring with 17.1 points per game and 3rd in ACAC field goal percentage (.569%). Harvey is also showing up on the defensive side of the ball, leading the Thunder with 9.1 rebounds per game and leading the CCAA in blocks per game with 2.2. Fifth year forward Hannah Mitchell has also become a key player for the Thunder, leading the team with 2.3 assists per game and 1.5 steals per game, while also finishing the fall second on the team in rebounds per game (6.6). Rookie guard Chloe DeKlerk is making a name for herself in her first year, second on the Thunder in assists per game and third in rebounds per game, while also landing in the top 25 in ACAC scoring with 10.7 points per game. Women’s basketball returns to action in the second half against The Kings University’s Eagles on January 13th as they look to stay in the playoff hunt.

Team Leaders

-          #11 Rachel Harvey - 17.1 PPG, .569 FG%, 9.1 RPG, 2.2 BPG (leads the CCAA)

-          #5 Hannah Mitchell - 9.7 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.5 SPG

-          #8 Chloe DeKlerk - 10.7 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 1.6 APG, 1.2 SPG, .793 FT%

Men’s Basketball

After not making the playoffs in the 2022-23 season, the Thunder men’s basketball team entered this season looking to improve in the standings. Sitting in fourth place in the ACAC North Division with a 4-6 record through the first semester, the Thunder are right back in a playoff spot. Fourth year guard Yaadvir Dhaliwal sits in the top 15 in scoring in the ACAC averaging 17.1 points per game, while second year guard Mirza Todorovac leads the ACAC in three-point percentage, shooting .556%. Along with Dhaliwal, fifth year forward Nick Gibb leads the Thunder attack averaging 12.9 points per game, while forward Kyler Dutka leads the team defensively with 8.3 rebounds per game, and 1.4 blocks per game. The Thunder return to action in the new year on January 13th as they face The Kings University’s Eagles.

Team Leaders

-          #7 Yaadvir Dhaliwal - 17.1 PPG, .824 FT%, 6.0 RPG, 2.5 APG

-          #10 Nick Gibb - 12.9 PPG, .800 FT%, RPG 3.8, 1.9 SPG

-          #18 Kyler Dutka -10.0 PPG, .469 FG%, 8.3 RPG. 1.4 BPG

Women’s Volleyball

Thunder women’s volleyball are in the thick of the playoff run in the tough and competitive ACAC North Division. The program is heading into the winter break with a 3-8 record, just outside of a playoff spot. Fifth year libero Renae Regal leads the ACAC in digs with 169 and digs per set with 4.57. She also currently holds the Thunder records for digs in a season with 343 and digs per set in a season with 4.64. Second year setter Jenna May is in the ACAC top 15 in assists with 141, and second-year hitter Jolene Cooke is 12th in the ACAC with 81 kills. The Thunder return from Christmas break on January 12th as they welcome the Lethbridge College Kodiaks to kick off the second half of the season at Ralph King Athletic Centre.

Team Leaders

-          #2 Reane Regal - 2 K, 68 A, 2 SA, 169 DIGS, 4.57 DPS 

-          #5 Sydney Horyn - 43 K, 3 A, 16 SA, 19 DIGS, 14 BS

-          #6 Jolene Cooke - 81 K, 4 A, 7 SA, 106 DIGS, 9 BS

Men’s Volleyball

Heading into his first season as head coach, Braden Lanctot brought in a recruiting class of thirteen athletes. With the new recruits plus 5 second year players, this makes the Thunder men’s volleyball program one of, if not the youngest group in the ACAC. The Thunder are 1-10 through the first half of the season but have shown flashes of their future potential. Second year libero Parker Hicks finds himself second in the ACAC in digs with 93 and second in the ACAC in digs per set with 2.82. Second year setter Kai Rosnau is top 10 in the ACAC with 209 assists and rookie hitter Alexi Dufour is top 20 in kills with 79. The Thunder will continue their season in the new year, returning to action on January 12th as they go up against the Lethbridge College Kodiaks.

Team Leaders

-          #4 Parker Hicks - 1 K, 6 A, 93 DIGS, DPS 2.82

-          #7 Kai Rosnau - 16 K, 209 A, 13 SA, 45 DIGS, BS 8

-          #9 Alexi Dufour - 79 K, 5 A, 10 SA, 62 DIGS, BS 4

Hockey

After making another deep playoff run in the ACAC Championship in 2022-23, the Thunder men’s hockey program came into 2023-24 looking to add another. The talent level of the men’s hockey division continues to get deeper, with parody all over and any team having a chance to win on any night. The Thunder currently sit at a 3-9 record – holding on to a playoff spot while battling injuries during the first half of the season. Third year forward Zachery Carlson is currently tied for first in the league in goals with 9 through 12 games and is sixth in the ACAC in points with 15. Fourth year forward Rylan Nivon is second on the Thunder and in the top 20 in the ACAC with 10 points. Third year goalie Griffin Bowerman leads the Thunder goaltender group in wins (2), save percentage (.880%), and goals against (3.92). The team comes back from the winter break and resumes their ACAC playoff hunt on January 19th and 20th when they battle Red Deer Polytechnic in a weekend series.

Team Leaders

-          #19 Zachery Carlson - 9 G, 6 A, 15 P

-          #13 Rylan Nivon - 3 G, 7 A, 10 P

-          #30 Griffin Bowerman 2 W, .880 SV%, GAA 3.92

Badminton

The ACAC badminton schedule returned in November, with tournament #1 hosted by Concordia on November 19th. This year's badminton group is young, with 6 out of 10 players being first years. In men’s singles, first year Raphael Motel came up just short in the final to finish in second place. In the women’s singles draw, fourth year Jasleen Kaur and first year Emma Tran, led the group and placed 1st and 2nd. In the men’s doubles event, the new combination of third year Jonnny Su & Raphael Motel finished first, while in the mixed doubles event, Jasleen Kaur and Jonathan Ko finished third after a three-set victory over SAIT. The badminton schedule continues in the new year, with tournament #2 being played on January 21st hosted by SAIT.

Curling

The ACAC curling schedule returned to play this fall, with the fall regional hosted by Lakeland College. Our team’s had strong showings through the first weekend, as the men’s team went 3-2, the women’s team went 4-2, and the mixed team went 1-5. The Thunder are in the thick of the standings in all three events as they look to return to the podium in ACAC play. The winter regional will go down the weekend of January 19th-21st hosted by NAIT at the Avonair Curling Club, followed by the 2023 ACAC Curling Championships at the Airdrie Curling Club hosted by SAIT in February.