The Briercrest College Clippers men’s basketball team had found themselves in a tough stretch since returning from the holiday break heading into Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference action this past weekend.
Four straight losses had seen the Clippers crew fall a game below .500, with their two-game set against the last-place Ambrose College Lions a chance to get back on track.
And that’s exactly how things played out.
Briercrest battled to an 87-81 win on Friday at Margaret P. Reimber gym in Caronport before going to double overtime for a 94-85 win on Saturday.
Francis Dogani led the Clippers in the opener, scoring 18 points, while Oroma Bongomin scored 17 and Asher Elstad added 11. Moose Jaw product Kaedyn Banilevic had one of best of the season with nine points, while fellow Central grad Riley Seaborn put up six.
The rematch saw Ambrose tie the game with 28 seconds remaining in regulation, followed by Bongomin tying things with 32 seconds to play in the first overtime before the Clippers were able to put things away.
Bongomin had 26 points and eight rebounds to go along with 25 points from Dogani. Corbin Gengenback added 15, Banilevic 10 and Seaborn seven.
The Clippers are now 8-7 and sit in fifth place in the South Division. Next action is a two game set at home against Red Deer on Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (2 p.m.).
The Clippers men’s hockey team continued their history-making campaign, taking 5-1 and 4-2 wins over the University of Alberta Augustana.
Cole Stevenson, Jacob Arsenault, Jeridyn Loewen, Daxton Budd and Justin Keck all scored for Briercrest Friday as they led 1-0 after the first and 3-0 through two. Colton Aikens had a pair of assists and Dominik Tmej stopped 34 shots in net to earn the win.
The Clippers needed a comeback on Saturday, with Austin Aresenault, Stevenson and Brandon Kelly scoring third period goals to overcome a 2-1 deficit. Kelly also had Briercrest’s goal in the first period. Alex Worthington got the win with 21 saves.
The Clippers are now 14-4 on the campaign and have opened a seven-point lead atop the ACAC standings. They’re back on the ice Wednesday for a special exhibition game against Korea University, with puck drop at 6 p.m. at Barkman Arena.
The defending ACAC champion Clippers men’s volleyball team had a relatively pedestrian weekend, rolling to a pair of 3-0 victories at Ambrose College in Calgary.
Karym Coleman led the way with 17 kills Friday as Briercrest won 25-22, 25-23-25-19. Jackson Anderson recorded nine kills and Tanner Bean led the defence with five digs.
The rematch wasn’t a whole lot different, with a 25-21, 25-21, 25-22 Clippers win. Coleman racked up 13 more kills, Brady Wachtel had nine digs.
Briercest is now 12-3 to sit in second place in the ACAC South, with a first-place showdown against 13-2 Red Deer in Red Deer coming up this weekend.
The Clippers women’s basketball team endured a heartbreaking 67-66 loss to Ambrose on Friday but rebounded in style with a 79-55 win in the rematch.
The Lions won the opener thanks to a shot by Andrijana Bokan with one second on the clock to tie the game 66-66, and she’s put down a free throw for the winning point.
Asia Wells led Briercrest with 20 points, Melissa Ellis had 11 to go along with 10 each from Brooklyn Martens and Madison Beattie.
The Cippers outscored Ambrose 28-12 in the third quarter on Saturday and rolled from there. Dori Sunderland put up 16, Wells 14 and Martens 13.
Briercrest is now 8-7 and tied for fourth in the ACAC South. They’re back in action against Red Deer at home Friday (5 p.m.) and Saturday (12 p.m.)
Briercrest didn’t have much luck in women’s volleyball, falling 25-23, 25-21, 25-23 to Ambrose on Friday and 25-14, 25-21, 21-25, 25-19 on Saturday.
Kacey De Jong topped the offence in the opener with 11 kills, while Faith Buhler had eight kills and six digs, leading in the latter category. Peacock grad Summer Okerstrom had one assist.
The second game saw 17 kills from Julia Beer, with Alyssa Pavka topping the defence with nine digs.Okerstrom had an assist, a service ace and three blocks.
The Clippers are on the road in Red Deer this coming weekend.
