Volleyball Queens have great bounce back performance

Brent Forster - RDC

The Red Deer College Queens Volleyball team weren't happy with their performance Saturday in Calgary but as the venue shifted to the RDC Main Gym on Sunday the Queens played at the high calibre they are used to and defeated the Ambrose University Lions in straight sets (25-19, 25-21 and 25-13).

The RDC Queens had many contributors in the three set victory. Miranda Dawe stacked up 13 kills and 4 digs. McKenna Barthel totaled 7 kills, 2 digs and 1 stuff block. Naomi Jardine accumulated 6 kills, 3 service aces, 6 digs and 1 assist. Megan Schmidt, a Bachelor of Business Adminstration student, and Hanna Delemont, a Bachelor of Education student, had 5 kills each. Setter Chanelle Kayser recorded 29 assists, 1 kill, 7 digs, 1 service ace and 1 stuff block. 

Queens Volleyball Head Coach Chris Wandler appreciated the team's ability to rebound with a strong effort from all of the student-athletes. "We had a big turn around and we played more like the Queens Volleyball we are accustomed to," said Wandler. "We controlled the pace of the game. There wasn't just one big performance by a player in the match but it was a solid collective effort."

As a team, the Queens put more service pressure on the Lions and they finished with 10 service aces. 

Madeline Williscroft led the Lions with 7 kills. 

With Chanelle Kayser's 29 assists, the Bachelor of Science Nursing student from Calgary reached a significant milestone. "With Chanelle's performance tonight, she reached 2,000 assists in the ACAC," said Wandler.

The Queens will use their strong play as a springboard for their final two matches next weekend and for the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) Women's Volleyball Championship February 22 to 24 in Camrose. "We needed the win tonight after the bye week in order to get back on track for the ACAC conference championship in a couple of weeks," said Wandler. 

While the positioning of teams could change, the eight women's volleyball teams have been determined for playoff competition. From the south, the Briercrest College Clippers (21-1), RDC Queens (16-6), Ambrose University Lions (14-8) and Lethbridge College Kodiaks (12-10) have qualified for the playoffs. The University of Alberta Augustana Vikings (7-15) are hosting the championship so they have a spot locked up. The Lakeland College Rustlers (21-1), the King's University Eagles (17-5) and NAIT Ooks (15-7) have qualified for the postseason from the north.

The second place RDC Queens (16-6) will host the sixth place Medicine Hat College Rattlers (7-15) next weekend in a pair of matches to cap off the regular season. Friday, February 16, the Queens will face the Rattlers at 6:00 p.m. at RDC. The two teams will compete on Saturday at 1:00 p.m.