Thunder Athletics Weekly Recap - Week 21

While the schedule for Thunder Athletics was light this weekend, the games that were played had heavy implications. Thunder Hockey began their quest for the ACAC Hockey Championship title with a first round bout against the NAIT Ooks, while Thunder Men’s Basketball travelled to Medicine Hat for a must-win game against the Rattlers.

Hockey

Concordia Thunder Hockey saw their season come to an end this weekend, as the team bowed out of the ACAC Hockey Championships in the first round, losing to the NAIT Ooks two games to zero. 

The Thunder showed resilience in game one at NAIT, as the team came from 2-0 down to tie the game in the third period, before ultimately losing in overtime 3-2. CUE’s goals came courtesy of Dylan Handel, including one on the powerplay, while Zach Cunningham, Liam Fitzgerald, and Grayson Reid all picked up assists on the night. Goaltender Ashton Billesberger made 35 saves on 38 shots, earning himself a .921 save percentage.

In Game Two, Concordia showed heart to once again battle back from a deficit, but NAIT’s three goal lead would prove to be too much for the Thunder as they would fall to the Ooks 5-3, losing both the game and the series. Ethyn Hopp found the net twice for the Thunder, while Noah Wilson picked up CUE’s third goal of the game. Carson Kurylo, Isaac Leik, Brant King, Dylan Handel, Lukas Konashuk, and Andrew Kennedy all had assists for the Thunder, while Ashton Billesberger made 21 saves on the night.

While the season ended earlier than the team would have hoped, the Thunder had many standout performers, including Dylan Handel, who ended the year tied for first in points in the ACAC with 38, and led the league in assists with 27. Isaac Leik finished second in goals in the ACAC, finding the back of the net 16 times this season. Goaltenders Ashton Billesberger and Griffin Bowerman also had excellent years, with Billesberger finishing third in league save percentage with a .904, and Bowerman finishing third in the league in saves with 426 on the year.

Basketball

After an earlier meeting between CUE and MHC had the final score protested due to a scoring dispute, Men’s Basketball took the long trip down south to re-play the Rattlers. With the final playoff spot in the ACAC North Division still up for grabs, Concordia needed to find a way to win.

In a game befitting the dramatics of the situation, it took double-overtime to decide a winner, with the Thunder ultimately coming out on top 96-92. Shak Jama led the team in scoring, putting up 22 points on the night, while Keellaa Gatwech put up a double-double with 14 rebounds and 18 points, while also adding five steals and three blocks. This game also marked the return of fifth-year forward Noah Julien, who made his first start for the Thunder since November 29th after being held out of the lineup due to injury.  

Concordia will now travel down to Lloydminster for the ACAC Men’s Basketball Championships from March 5th - 7th, hosted by Lakeland College, where they will play a SAIT Trojans team who finished the regular season atop the ACAC South Division with a perfect 21-0 record.