Lightning Recap – Sept 25th to Oct 1st.

This past week saw all of our St. Mary’s University Lightning teams suit up for action in what proved to be quite a busy week for all of the athletes.

Around the Court

Women’s Basketball had their first taste of action this season, travelling down to the University of Lethbridge for their first preseason match of the year. The women kept it close through half but some early preseason errors added up seeing them fall when the final buzzer went.

On Friday they travelled to a neutral site game to square off against the Red Deer College Queens and with one game under their belt they rectified some short comings from the previous game and cruised to a 64-44 victory. Next preseason action for the women will come this upcoming weekend as they once again travel to Lethbridge for the Kodiaks Harvest tournament. They play on Thursday, Oct. 5 at 6 p.m., Friday, Oct. 6 at 12:00 p.m. and finish off the tournament on Saturday, Oct. 7 at 4 p.m.

The Lightning Men’s Basketball team hosted a preseason exhibition academy this weekend, playing host to Kings University, Keyano College and Grande Prairie Regional College. The men had a strong weekend – coming away with a 2-1 record, falling to Grande Prairie by just 3 points on Saturday afternoon. The men showed growth this weekend and things are shaping up for an exciting year. They also travel to Lethbridge this weekend to compete in the Kodiak Harvest tournament. Games are Friday, Oct.6 at 4 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 7 at 2 p.m.

On Track

Our cross-country team travelled to Red Deer College to compete in the ACAC Grand Prix #4 also the site for the provincial championship on Oct 28. The women saw 49 ACAC competitors race, in what was a full field of competition over the weekend. St. Mary’s Rebecca Johnson lead the way for the Lightning crossing the line in eighth place and posting a personal best time of 25:50. The women’s team all posted personal bests in this race and are getting stronger every week. The men’s race saw 54 ACAC competitors compete and first year standout Donovan Miller lead the way for the Lightning finishing in 39th place posting a time of 35:43. Most of the men saw personal bests this weekend as well showing great improvement. Next competition is Saturday, Oct. 14 at Grand Prix #5 hosted by UAA.

Run for the Cure

Some of the athletes finished the weekend off by participating in the CIBC Run for the Cure where St. Mary’s entered a team. A total of 20 athletes participate in the day in what was a great event for the St. Mary’s community to be part of. We are proud to say that the St. Mary’s team raised the most amount of money in the post-secondary institutions category this year, winning the Post-Secondary Challenge.

Great Job LIGHTNING!