Kodiaks futsal kicking it again

By Lethbridge Herald on February 26, 2022.

The Lethbridge College Kodiaks futsal teams are kicking it again.
After losing last season to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Kodaks return to Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference play today with the first of two group-stage match days in the hunt for a berth in the 2022 ACAC Futsal Championships.
The Kodiaks have been placed in the south pool along with the Ambrose University Lions and Medicine Hat College Rattlers with the teams playing each opponent once today and then again on March 12.
Both match days will be hosted at Ambrose in Calgary and only the top finisher in the pool will advance to the ACAC championship tournament.
The Kodiaks women’s team will play the Rattlers today at 2 p.m. and Ambrose at 5 p.m. as the teams finally hit the floor after two years.
“Every season we go into now, we’re expecting to win,” said Kodiaks head coach Sean Carey in a release. “We know we have some tough games against Medicine Hat and Ambrose and we’ll need to be at our best to beat them. We’re fully focused on bringing home a banner every time we step on the field or court. Our goal is to make championships and then make some noise from there.
“It’s just exciting to be back on the court again. It’s been since October since we’ve had a competitive game, and even longer since we’ve competed in futsal. We’re really excited to get going.”
On the women’s side, Meaghan Welby comes in with a leadership role and a strong shot.
“She’s going to be one of our main scoring threats,” said Carey. “She comes onto the ball really well and has an absolute rocket of a shot.”
Second-year Ashley Sazalski returns after a strong outdoor season,
The men’s team will take on the Rattlers at 3:15 p.m. and the Lions at 6:15 p.m.
Carey also has high hopes for his men’s team.
“I think our team has a really good shot at success to not only make championships, but make some noise once we get there. With the weapons we have, I think this team is going to score a lot of goals. The key will be keeping the ball out of our net and staying strong defensively. If we do that, we should be set up for success.”
Jaden Veluw comes into his final season of ACAC competition and will be counted on to lead the Kodiaks in all aspects of the game.
“He’s at a different level in my mind,” said Carey. “He’s going to be in the top three futsal players in the ACAC. The guy rotates positions so well, has a heck of a shot, he’s great defensively Ð he’s just the full package. The way we play, he generates tons of opportunities to score and he never gets tired.”
Daniel Okpala, a third-year student, will bring superb ball handling and play making ability to the roster.
The Kodiaks basketball and volleyball teams have the weekend off and are now preparing for the ACAC postseason next week.
Both Kodiaks men’s and women’s volleyball teams will play an opening round game, while Kodiaks men’s and women’s basketball have earned a first-round bye and will host a quarterfinal matchup.
The Kodiaks women’s volleyball team finished 8-8 and took fourth place in the ACAC South, while the men’s team was 9-7 and also placed fourth in the South.
The Kodiaks women’s basketball team was 11-5 to grab second place in the ACAC South. The Kodiaks men finished at 13-3, but will wait to see the result of the SAIT Trojans game against the St. Mary’s University Lightning today. The Trojans are 13-2 and have won eight in a row.
Opponents, game dates and final seeding are still to be determined as regular season play concludes across the conference this weekend.