Basketball is back, Cadence Laplante finds another podium, and Lightning Badminton makes a little history. Just another quiet weekend in Lightning country.
Some weekends give you a good basketball game. Others give you a memorable race. And every once in a while, you get a weekend that reminds you just how much is happening across Lightning Athletics.
October 16–18 was one of those weekends.
The basketball teams tipped off their 2026–27 ACAC seasons, the cross country runners headed to Edmonton for their final Grand Prix race, and the newest addition to the Lightning family, badminton, continued writing its opening chapter.
Three sports. Three different stages of the season. And plenty to talk about.
Cross Country: Cadence Collects Another Podium
At this point, Cadence Laplante and podium finishes are becoming a pretty familiar combination.
The Lightning standout delivered another impressive performance Saturday at the ACAC Grand Prix 4, hosted by Concordia University of Edmonton, finishing third in the women’s six-kilometre race with a time of 24:06.75.
Laplante crossed the finish line just 25 seconds behind race winner Brynn Hebert of NAIT, who clocked 23:41.35. Concordia’s Jillian Wood claimed second in 23:48.06.
For Laplante, it was another reminder of the consistency that has made her one of the Lightning’s most accomplished distance runners. With nine medals across cross country and indoor track over the previous three years, she has built quite the collection. And apparently, she’s still interested in adding to it.
But Laplante wasn’t the only Lightning runner making noise in Edmonton.
First-year runner Naiomi Stavast delivered a strong performance of her own, finishing 17th overall in 28:30.19. Veronika Urda completed the Lightning women’s results in 47th place with a time of 36:30.72.
With only three runners competing, St. Mary’s did not qualify for the women’s team standings, but the individual performances provided plenty of encouragement heading into championship season.
On the men’s side, the Lightning finished sixth overall in the eight-kilometre team competition, collecting 87 points.
And if you’re looking for an example of teammates pushing each other, look no further than Nate Kelba and Caleb Graham.
Kelba led the Lightning in 16th place with a time of 31:15.06. Graham crossed the line just one position and 15.93 seconds later, finishing 17th in 31:30.99.
Nathaniel Tuck wasn’t far behind, placing 21st overall in 32:07.49, while first-year runner Martin Onayemi rounded out the Lightning scoring in 39th place with a time of 34:14.17.
The men’s race was particularly competitive in the middle of the standings. Medicine Hat and St. Mary’s both finished with 87 points, with the Rattlers taking fifth and the Lightning sixth in the official results.
For head coach Samantha Read and her runners, the final Grand Prix offered one more opportunity to measure their progress before the biggest race of the conference season.
And with Laplante once again among the leaders, the Lightning have every reason to be excited about what’s ahead.
Badminton: A First Win and a Whole Lot of Badminton
Every athletics program has its firsts.
First practice. First competition. First time somebody pulls on the uniform and realizes they’re representing something bigger than themselves.
And then there’s the first victory.
For Lightning Badminton, Mandy Ng has now delivered one of those milestones.
Ng recorded the first individual match victory in the program’s history during the weekend’s ACAC competition, giving St. Mary’s a moment worth celebrating as its newest varsity sport continues to establish itself.
And she certainly wasn’t finished competing.
Ng played seven matches comprising 15 games over nearly five hours of competition, eventually finishing seventh in women’s singles.
Five hours of badminton. Fifteen games. Seven matches.
If anybody deserves a comfortable chair and a very large dinner, it’s Mandy Ng.
She also teamed up with Lyndsay Enriquez in women’s doubles, where the Lightning pair delivered one of the weekend’s strongest results, finishing fourth overall.
That put St. Mary’s just outside the podium in a competition that offered an encouraging early glimpse of the program’s potential.
On the men’s side, Lucas Oswald finished 16th in singles after playing six matches and 12 games. Oswald also joined Enriquez in mixed doubles, where the pair finished 11th.
Enriquez competed in five matches and 10 games across her events.
For a program still finding its feet in ACAC competition, the results offer plenty of positives. A historic first win, a fourth-place doubles finish, and valuable competitive experience for all three athletes.
Head coach Andrew Muir and his squad are building something from the ground up, and weekends like this are exactly how that process begins.
There will be more matches, more lessons, and more milestones.
But nobody gets to claim that first win again. That one belongs to Mandy.
Basketball: A New Chapter Begins
Meanwhile, on the hardwood, Lightning Basketball officially returned to ACAC action with the women’s and men’s teams opening their seasons against the Ambrose University Lions.
And this season comes with some particularly interesting storylines.
For the Lightning women, head coach Abdell Farag begins his third season leading a program that has established itself as one of the conference’s most formidable defensive teams.
Last season, St. Mary’s held opponents to just 56.8 points per game and 30.5 percent shooting, while forcing nearly 30 turnovers per contest.
Those numbers tell you something about the Lightning identity: opponents rarely get a comfortable evening.
But the 2026–27 squad also enters a new era following the departures of ACAC South Player of the Year Kendal Russell and First Team All-Conference guard Ivet Hidalgo.
Replacing that kind of production isn’t something you accomplish with a single player.
Instead, the Lightning will look to a combination of returning veterans and exciting newcomers to write the next chapter.
Salome Nuako remains a major presence in the frontcourt, while experienced addition Amber-Lyn May and a talented group of first-year players bring new possibilities to the lineup.
The question isn’t whether this team can play defence. Its returning foundation suggests that part of the identity is well established.
The more interesting question is how quickly the new pieces can come together offensively.
For the Lightning men, head coach Nathan Ruff faces a similarly intriguing challenge.
The departure of Pelumi Ajayi, Lucas Barlow, and CJ Peters leaves a substantial amount of scoring to replace. In fact, St. Mary’s returns just 29.6 percent of last season’s offensive production.
That means opportunity. Lots of it.
Returning standout Ayudo Ayudo will be an important piece, while newcomers Dillyn Morin, Jaidon Martin, and Woodli Cime give the Lightning fresh options as the coaching staff builds its rotation.
Morin, a former Mr. Basketball Saskatchewan who arrives from the University of Saskatchewan, is one of the newcomers worth watching as the season unfolds.
The opening weekend marked the beginning of that process for both teams.
There will be adjustments, emerging leaders, and undoubtedly a few surprises along the way.
That’s what makes opening weekend so much fun. Every season starts with questions, and the next several months are spent discovering the answers.
Next Up: Bring the Storm Home
After a weekend that stretched from the basketball court to the badminton court to the cross country trails, the Lightning now turn their attention to another milestone.
Home-opening weekend.
On Saturday, October 24, the Lightning women’s and men’s basketball teams welcome The King’s University Eagles to Glenmore Christian Academy for their first home games of the 2026–27 ACAC season.
The women tip off at 6 p.m., followed by the men at 8 p.m.
It’s the first chance for Lightning fans to see both squads in regular-season action on their home floor, and an opportunity to welcome a new collection of athletes into the atmosphere that makes Lightning Basketball special.
One weekend down. A whole season of stories still to come.
Welcome to the Storm.