Local Sports
RDC Kings Volleyball Team Off To The National Final!
In the second semi-final match of the CCAA Men’s National Volleyball Championship on day 2 in London, Ontario on Friday, the #2 ranked Red Deer Kings offense took over as they defeated the #5 ranked VIU Mariners in four sets (25-19, 25-11, 27-29, 25-19).
In the first set, both teams’ offenses looked very crisp. All-Canadian Braydon Brouwer started off fast for the Mariners with two of the first three points in the set but the Kings held the early two point lead. The Kings slowly increased the lead and were up five, 15-10, after a huge one handed block by Regan Fathers. The Mariners continued to fight and kills by Bouwer and Ryan Evans had VIU back within two but the Kings balanced attack proved to be too much as Red Deer pulled away and took the first set 25-19.
The Kings jumped out to an impressive 7-1 lead in the second set, with four kills by Regan Fathers. To compliment Fathers on the outside, Red Deer started to feed the ball into the middle attackers. The Kings extended their lead to double digits, 17-7, controlling the play at the net. VIU made a small push but Red Deer won the set 25-11 and took a commanding two set lead.
In the third, the Mariners came out with more energy and slowly gained a four point lead, 10-6. The Kings battled back and took the lead on a stuff block by Adam Turlejski. The Kings continued to feed the ball to Fathers and led by as many as four but the Mariners were not going to just give up. Kills by Evans and Devon Jennings kept VIU in the game as they would come all the way back after being down 24-20 to tie the game at 24. After both teams went back and forth at the net, VIU would make the full comeback and take the set 29-27, forcing a fourth set.
Red Deer was focussed to start the fourth set and pulled ahead 6-3. The Kings were unstoppable at the net but missed serves were keeping the game close. The Mariners started to make some errors of their own as the Kings began to pull away with the set. Leading 18-12, Ty Moorman hit a massive kill to put the Kings up seven. Red Deer closed out the set 25-19 and won the match 3-1.
Red Deer’s setter Luke Brisbane was named the Player of the Game for the Kings while middle Ryan Evans was the Player of the Game for the Mariners.
In a clash of the top seeded teams and a rematch of last year’s final, the Kings will now meet the #1 ranked Titans de Limoilou in the National Championship Final on Saturday, March 11 at 8pm.
Red Deer’s Player of the Game:
Luke Brisbane – 51 assists, 11 digs, 2 kills
VIU’s Player of the Game:
Ryan Evans – 12 points (11 kills, 1 ace), 2 digs
From Red Deer Minor Baseball Board of Directors
Following many discussions within the Red Deer community, the baseball community, our association members, as well as our board of directors we have made the decision to move forward with rebranding our teams, currently known as the Braves. For our association the Braves name symbolized warrior strength, bravery and resilience, all qualities we were proud to align with; and although the initial moniker of our teams was never intended to carry a derogatory or disrespectful connotation, for some, it has. The topic of our rebrand has been polarizing and arguments both for and against have been passionately presented. We have made the decision to move forward in the direction we feel is best for our association.
In alignment with the membership majority vote, the Red Deer Minor Baseball Board of Directors is excited to announce that we will now be known as the Red Deer Rangers.
The Red Deer Rangers will retain our current navy and crimson colors and will not adopt the colors or logo of the MLB, NHL, or any other Rangers franchise. We are looking forward to forging our own identity and embracing our own look.
As you can appreciate this is a complex initiative that will take time. We will remain the Braves for the 2024 season and aim to have our rebrand complete for the 2025 season.
All participants that submitted the Rangers name during our rebranding poll, will be entered into a draw to receive the first Red Deer Rangers jersey.
We hope you will join us in celebrating this positive endeavor as we create a new inclusive legacy for our association that all can be proud of.
RDMBA Board of Directors
From Red Deer Minor Hockey
The Red Deer Minor Hockey Board of Directors is pleased & honored to announce, after an extensive search, that Lane Moore has accepted the position of General Manager of Red Deer Minor Hockey. Lane will start his new role early in the new year & is very excited about leading our organization into the future as we aim to provide a positive learning and maturing experience for all of our young athletes & coaches in a minor hockey setting.
Lane comes into the role of General Manager with an extensive resume, in both hockey and administration. Lane has led the Bentley school as principal for the last 17 years & was an educator prior to that. On the hockey side, Lane’s passion for coaching & engaging with young athletes, dates back to 2002. His most recent involvement as a coach with Red Deer Minor Hockey saw Lane lead the U17AAA North Star Chiefs for 2 seasons (21-22, 22-23). Prior to his work with Red Deer Minor Hockey Lane served as President of Rimbey Minor Hockey for several seasons.
One of Lane’s biggest strengths is his ability to create highly effective teams by building a common mission & vision & then executing on those through visionary leadership. These attributes shone through during this General Manager search and we are thrilled for Lane to lead this organization now & into the future as we aim to be one of the premier Minor Hockey Associations in the province.
Lane, his wife Kathleen & their three children Easton, Cooper & Lexi call Red Deer home. His son Cooper is the captain of Red Deer U18AAA Optimist Chiefs & his older son Easton is pursuing his hockey career and post-secondary studies in Massachusetts. Please join us in congratulating Lane Moore as the new General Manager of the Red Deer Minor Hockey Commission, welcome Lane!
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