Weekend Recap - Week 8

Week 8 of the ACAC season was another busy one for the Thunder with Basketball, Cross Country, Hockey, Soccer, and Volleyball all taking place throughout the week and weekend. Here’s what happened over the week for the Thunder.

Basketball

Thunder Basketball opened the weekend at home on Friday against the King’s University Eagles. Women’s basketball fell to King’s 78-58. The Eagles got off to a hot start, grabbing a 17-5 lead in the first quarter. Despite a competitive second quarter, where Concordia outscored King’s 19-15, the Thunder couldn’t close the gap. The third and fourth quarters saw King's continue to extend their lead further with a 17-14 advantage in the third and a 29-20 difference in the fourth. Chloe Sutherland led the Thunder with 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists, while Haley Cleland chipped in 15 points whlie leading the team with 7 rebounds and 3 blocks. 

On the men’s side, King’s pulled off the 105-94 victory over the Thunder on Friday night. A high scoring game saw King’s lead 49-44 at the end of two quarters. After a tight first half, King’s pulled away in the third quarter, where they outscored Concordia 25-14. Concordia fought back in the fourth quarter outsourcing King’s 36-31, but it wasn’t enough to close the gap. Fourth year guard O’Ryan Wallace was the player of the game for the Thunder, putting up a ridiculous 43 points while playing a team high 37 minutes.

The second game of the weekend for both teams was a Saturday road game at the King’s University. The women’s team was in tough on this day, losing to the Eagles 89-32. Georgia Bowman was a standout performer for the Thunder, leading the team with 13 points. 

Men’s basketball had a different story for their game, defeating the Eagles 81-72. The Thunder got off to a great start, finishing the first quarter with a 26-22 lead. By halftime that lead was extended to 52-39. King’s pushed back with a 21-15 third quarter but the Concordia defence stepped up in the fourth quarter, limiting King’s to 12 points. O’Ryan Wallace showed up big again for the Thunder, putting up a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds. Milton Lendein also had a double-double of his own on the night with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Fourth year guard Yaadvir Dhaliwal led the Thunder in scoring with 20 points.

Thunder Basketball has one game each this weekend, hosting the Ambrose Lions at Ralph King Athletic Centre on Friday November 1st. 

Cross Country

Thunder Cross Country traveled to Calgary for the ACAC Cross Country Championships hosted by St. Mary’s University. 

Women’s Cross Country finished 5th overall as a team. Ashlee Walker led the women’s team yet again, finishing in 6th overall with a time of 25:54. At the end of the championship, Walker received an All-Conference award for her fantastic first season. Second year runner Laurel Van der Giessen finished in the Top 20, and 4th year Jaycee May finished in the Top 35. 

Men’s Cross Country saw Jason Kwong as the top runner in the 8km run, finishing 38th overall with a time of 35:28. Elkan Ekhator finished in the Top 50, and Noah McCutcheon finished in the Top 55. 

Here were the top times for the Thunder in the Women’s 6km and the Men’s 8km. 

Women’s 6km

Ashlee Walker - 25:54

Laurel Van der Giessen - 27:59

Jaycee May - 29:28

Men’s 8km

Jason Kwong - 35:28

Elkan Ekhator - 37:47

Noah McCutcheon - 38:11

As this marks the completion of the ACAC Cross Country Season, Ashlee Walker has been selected to run at CCAA National Championships held in Windsor Ontario. The women’s 6km race will take place on Saturday November 9th. 

Hockey

Thunder Hockey spent the weekend playing two games against the SAIT Trojans. Friday’s home game saw the Thunder come back from a 2-0 deficit to win the game 3-2 in overtime.

After no scoring in the first period, the Trojans scored two goals in the second and entered the third period with a 2-0 lead. In the third period Ryley Morgan cut the lead in half with his first goal of the season and Dylan Handel followed that up with a powerplay goal to tie the game 2-2. In overtime it was third year forward Isaac Leik who scored the game winning goal for Concordia on a wrap around play behind the net.

Saturday’s road game against SAIT was a tough one, as the Thunder fell to the Trojans 5-2. SAIT again jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the first period, but Zachary Carlson got the Thunder on the board to finish the first period at 2-1. The Trojans then scored three unanswered goals, making the score 5-1 halfway through the third period. Dylan Handel scored his second goal of the weekend to make the game 5-2 late in the third, but the Trojans took the win.

Next up for Thunder Hockey is a 2023 ACAC Final rematch against the Red Deer Polytechnic Kings. Friday November 1st will be a road game in Red Deer, while Saturday November 2nd will be a home game at Clareview Recreation Centre vs. Red Deer. 

Soccer

For the first time since 2010, the Concordia Women’s Soccer team are ACAC Champions after defeating the 2023 champion SAIT Trojans in the final by a score of 2-1. Tournament all-stars for the Thunder included goalkeeper Madison Kempster and striker Abigail Burton. Concordia's game winning goal scorer, Pietramala, was named the tournament MVP.

A season as successful as Women’s Soccer in 2024 came with plenty of awards. Head Coach Gadeer Sobh won the ACAC North Coach of the Year in her first year at the helm, Vanessa Pietramala received the ACAC North Player of the Year award for the second season in a row, and Pietramala, defender Mallory McDonald-Cockrall, and goalkeeper Madison Kempster each received an All-Conference award.

Thunder Women’s Soccer will now compete for a national title, as they travel to Squamish, BC for the 2024 CCAA Women's Soccer Championship. The championship runs from Wednesday November 6th to Saturday November 9th. For the full ACAC Championship recap, check out our write up on the women’s soccer team’s weekend here.

Volleyball

Thunder Volleyball opened their 2024/25 with two games each against the King’s University Eagles.

Friday was a road game at King’s for the Thunder. Women’s Volleyball lost in straight sets with scores of 25-15 (TKU), 25-20 (TKU), and 25-21 (TKU). Rookie Outside Hitter Stephanie Kendziora was an impact player for the team racking up 11 kills and 3 digs. Men’s Volleyball also fell to King’s, but in four sets with scores of 25-16 (CUE), 25-18 (TKU), 25-10 (TKU), and 25-19 (TKU) . Tyson Assaly played a big role for the Thunder men on this day, contributing with 5 kills, 3 blocks, and 1 dig. 

Saturday saw Thunder Volleyball host their home opener against King’s. A tough day for both teams as the men and women fell in straight sets to the Eagles. Standouts for the Thunder were Setters Kayla Burns for the women’s team with 22 assists, 5 digs, and 1 kill as well as Zach Fernandez for the men’s team with 15 assists, 3 digs, 2 kills, and 1 block. 

Thunder Volleyball play on the road this coming week, going up against Ambrose University on Friday November 1st.