Your Briercrest Clipper teams have all finished the first half of their respective regular seasons. The teams are now enjoying a break from regular season games to prepare for final exams and get ready for the second half of the season.

Volleyball
The men’s volleyball team has had a very successful first half, as they ended on a high note by defeated Mount Royal University in both matches this past weekend. The guys moved back into a tie for first place in the ACAC, as both they and the NAIT Ooks have a record of 8 – 2.

The host for the ACAC Conference Tournament will be determined this weekend, as The King’s University College and Red Deer College both have opportunities to move into first place with a pair of wins in their final first-half matches against Mount Royal and SAIT respectively. The team that finishes in first place at the Christmas break earns the right to host the Conference Tournament at the end of February.

The women’s volleyball team had a tough match-up against the top team in the ACAC this past weekend, and came away with a pair of straight-set losses to Mount Royal. This leaves the ladies four points out of a playoff spot after the first half.

They are still in position to make playoffs with a good run of wins in the second semester, and have a lot of opportunities against teams that are currently just ahead of them in the standings. They will have matches against SAIT, King’s and Red Deer who are all currently tied for the final playoff spot, along with a pair of matches against Augustana who is behind them.

Both the men’s and women’s teams will host the Medicine Hat College Rattlers to kick off their second half on January 7th and 8th. Both teams will also be playing in an exhibition tournament at Mount Royal University on January 2 – 4th, to get ready for regular season action.

Basketball
The men’s basketball team finished off their first half with a pair of losses to the CCAA number five-ranked Lethbridge Kodiaks. The Clippers record dropped to 4 – 6, but they are still in a great position to make playoffs for the first time in a few seasons. They currently sit two points out of a playoff spot behind the SAIT Trojans and Red Deer Kings.

The guys will start the second half on the road against a pair of North Division opponents, as they will face the Concordia Thunder and the Augustana Vikings on January 14th and 15th respectively. Before that, they will have a set of exhibition games in North Dakota from January 3 – 5th, where they will be taking on Dickinson State University, Minot State University, and Williston State College.

Also, there is currently an article posted on our two American players, Christian Sacoman and Matt Meyers, which you should definitely check out on the ACAC website at this link: http://www.acac.ab.ca/pages/posts/sun-to-snow.-basketball-has-no-borders.712.php .

The women also had a pair of losses against the Lethbridge College Kodiaks this past weekend, losing a couple of hard-fought battles to the team they are currently six points behind for the final playoff spot.

The ladies will also open up their second half on the road at Concordia and Augustana and will also be heading to North Dakota for some exhibition matches in early January. The girls have shown resilience and hard work to battle through some tough injuries as they continue to get better each week.

Hockey
The men’s hockey team finished off their first half with a pair of games against the Mount Royal Cougars. Both games were tight as the Clippers battled hard against the second place Cougars, but Mount Royal prevailed in both games, winning 2 – 1 and 3 – 1.

The guys now sit four points behind Portage College for the final playoff spot, although the Voyaguers have one more game this weekend to close out their first half. There are plenty of opportunities ahead for the Clippers, as they have 12 games left in their second half – two games against each team in the league, other than MRU. The SAIT Trojans will be coming to town on January 7th and 8th to start off the second half of the regular season.


Enjoy the Christmas Holiday season! Your Briercrest Clipper teams look forward to your continued support as you cheer them on to the playoffs in the second half!