As is the case in every sport out there, finding your game at just the right time can lead to all sorts of interesting things in the playoffs.
The Briercrest College Clippers men’s hockey team appear to be taking that to heart.
The Clippers rolled to a 5-1 victory in Game 1 of their best-of-three first-round Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference series in Red Deer on Friday night, meaning that a win Saturday will see the Caronport-based crew advance to the league semifinal.
Things were exceptionally close through the first two periods of the contest, as Briercrest’s Trey Doell scored the lone goal of the first period and Jacob Kendall replied for Red Deer in the second.
Everything turned the Clippers’ way in the final frame, though.
Cole Stevenson gave Briercrest the lead 5:11 into the period and 2:16 later, Colton Aitkens made it 4-2 Clippers. There things remained until the contest’s waning moments, when Curtis Weibe added an insurance marker with 2:34 to play and Zachary Anderson closed out scoring with 48 seconds left on the clock.
Weibe, Doell and Jacob Arsenault also had two assists each.
Dominik Tmej made 30 saves to earn the win in goal, Arik Weersink had 22 saves for the Kings.
The Clippers, who were 3-12-1 in the regular season, will look to finish off the upset against 9-4-2 Red Deer at 6 p.m. Moose Jaw time. Game three, if necessary, takes place at 2 p.m. on Sunday.
After their late-season surge to reach the playoffs, the Briercrest Clippers men’s basketball team were hoping to keep things rolling in their first-round playoff match-up on Friday night in Red Deer.
As it turns out, that’s exactly what happened -- but in the end, the Clippers fell just short, dropping an 88-82 double-overtime decision to the Kings.
Briercrest looked to have things in complete control at halftime, having built a 40-29 lead, but Red Deer put on a 26-11 run in the third quarter to take the lead.
The Clippers stayed in touch, though, and a Brolin Simes three-pointer with 2:01 remaining in regulation would tie things 67-67 and eventually send the game to overtime.
There, Red Deer led throughout, but Riley Seaborn would drain a three with 1:23 left in the first extra frame to once again tie things 77-77.
That would be the end of the good news for the Clippers as the Kings outscored Briercrest 11-5 in the second overtime to take their six-point win.
Jerome Adjei led Briercrest with 18 points, Jude Shepherd-Hills scored 17 to go along with 12 from Simes and 11 from Seaborn. Shepherd-Hills and Zach Marten each had 12 rebounds.
Tyronn King had 26 points and 15 rebounds to lead Red Deer in both categories.
The Clippers men’s and women’s volleyball teams now know who they’ll be playing in their Final Four qualifying contests on Sunday afternoon.
Briercrest will be taking on Ambrose College in the women’s playoff after Ambrose took a 3-0 (26-24, 25-18, 25-21) win over Old’s College on Friday night.
The men’s division will see the Clippers do battle with Old’s College after the Broncos defeated Medicine Hat 3-0 (25-15, 25-10, 25-21).
Volleyball fans can cheer on the two Briercrest teams on Sunday at Margaret P. Reimer gymnasium in Caronport, with the women’s game taking place at 2 p.m. and men on the court immediately after at 4 p.m.
The top teams from the weekend’s action advance to the ACAC volleyball Final Four in Edmonton next weekend.
