Sports | DrumhellerMail - Page #281
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Last updateFri, 10 Jan 2025 12pm

Bantam Titans capture Tier 4 league title

    The Bantam Titans are the Tier 4 league champs and this puts them one step closer to provincials.
    The Bantam Titans battled the elements and the Spring Bank Phoenix last Saturday at home. They fought to the end and came home with a 28-14 win and home field advantage as they continue in the next round of playoffs.
    “Just getting there (to the provincials) is an accomplishment,” said head coach Paul Redmond.
    The Titans had a slow start and soon found they were trailing by two points at the half. Springbank kept the pressure up and scored early in the third quarter to go up 14-6.
    “We battled back,” said Redmond. “We seem to be a second half team this year.”
     Redmond said this was a success on both sides of the ball. Aden Enns was able to find the end zone twice as did quarterback Mitch Ostergard. The defense held Springbank scoreless through most of the last two quarters of the game.
    A healthy crowd of fans came out to cheer on the Bantam team despite the chilly weather and snow-covered fields Saturday afternoon.
    The Titans have a few bumps and bruises, but managed to come away from Saturday’s win, relatively unscathed. They will have a week to heal even more before they host the provincial Tier 4 semifinal. They will be playing the top team from the Southern Alberta League. Redmond says there is a good chance that Medicine Hat could make it back to the playoffs.
    “Hopefully we can get everyone healed up and hopefully the weather clears a bit,” said Redmond.
    He adds they are confident they can do well.
    “I think we can compete well with this team, we just have to play a really good game,” said Redmond. “Limit our mistakes and if we can get a couple breaks here and there we can beat them.”


Joa Markotic named to ACAC all conference soccer team

    A Drumheller soccer player has been recognized as an ACAC (Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference), All Conference player.
    Joa Markotic, son of Yvonne Markotic and Martin McSween, has been a Lethbridge College Kodiak for the last three years. Last Friday he was recognized for his achievement on the field of college sports in Alberta.
    Joa played his minor soccer in Drumheller and was part of the Drumheller team that went all the way to provincial gold. He is in his third year at Lethbridge College studying Natural Resource Compliance.
    The Kodiaks did not make the finals this season. Despite this, Joa was named one of three defenders to the All Conference (south) Team. His teammate Cole Runge was named as a forward.
    The awards were presented at the ACAC Men’s Soccer Awards Banquet at Red Deer College, which also played host to the league championships.
    The ACAC men’s soccer coaches select the all conference teams. 

Dynos return home after close semi-final defeat

    The Drumheller Valley Secondary Dynos senior girls volleyball team was in Calgary once again this past weekend at a tournament at West Island College.
    The Dynos were ousted in the semi-finals by a mere five points.
    “We made it to the semi-finals. It went to the third game, but we lost 15-10,” said head coach Dawn Sullivan.
    The tournament was held over Friday and Saturday, and saw each of the five teams play 13 matches in total. The Dynos were up against teams from West Island College, Banff, Invermere, and Whitecourt.
    Overall, the team played well, but still have room to improve according to Sullivan.
    “We had five games in the tournament where we lost by five or fewer points,” said Sullivan. “They were quite entertaining games at times, where there was some pretty good action. At times they had a very good attack and we made quite a few blocks. The blocking and attack is coming along, but we just have to work on consistency. They lose their focus for a bit and then have to dig themselves out.”
    The volleyball season is at the half way point and the team will be working on being at their best for zones on November 16 and 17.
    “We’re about half way through the season. We’re still working on consistency, so hopefully we’ll peak and be playing our best around Zones. Every time we go on the court we’re seeing improvement,” said Sullivan.
    The road to zones continues tonight when the Dynos hit the road to take on Trochu. Afterwards, the Dynos will head to Olds for another tournament on October 26 and 27.


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