College Notes: Pandas to Host 2024 Basketball National Championship

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The University of Alberta has been awarded the 2024 Usports Women’s Basketball Championship.

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By inviting the nation’s top college teams to the Saville Community Recreation Center in March 2024, Pandas Basketball will be hosting a national tournament that hasn’t been held in Edmonton since 2001 for the third time in the school’s history.

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Teams are then automatically given a host spot to take center stage in the 2,500-seat competition gym at the tournament.

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“We are thrilled to have been awarded the 2024 Usports Championship. It will be a special experience for our players to have the opportunity to compete on their home court at a national event,” said Scott of Pandas. Head Coach Edwards said, “For our basketball community, we hope that seeing some of the best players in the country compete in Edmonton will inspire them to be like them.” .

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“We can’t wait to welcome the best team in the country to Saville Center in 2024.”

The Pandas basketball program hosted back-to-back national championships in 2000 and 2001, following a victory in Thunder Bay, Ontario in 1999 under the banner of the Canadian Inter-University Athletic Union at the time. I was.

The 2024 tournament will feature a total of 12 matches and will use a single-elimination bracket format for the championship. The tournament begins with him four quarterfinal games, with the losers of those games competing in the consolation bracket.

“It’s so exciting to be able to play at an event like this at home in front of family, friends and alumni,” said Pandas third-year forward Claire Signatovic. “It also introduces basketball to Edmonton.” And it would be a great way to celebrate the legacy of Edmonton alumni.”

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Having hosted the 2017 Men’s Volleyball National Championship, the 2019 Women’s Volleyball National Championship and last spring’s Men’s Basketball Final Eight, the Savile Center will be hosting the U Sports Championship for the fourth time.

But given that the Saville Center has been home to the senior women’s national basketball team since 2013, the U of A’s success in securing the championship is a testament to Edmonton’s status as the epicenter of women’s basketball in the country. Just raise your rank.

Under Edwards, the Pandas have held a career record of 239-77 in the last 17 seasons in the Canadian West Conference, made six national appearances, and won a national silver medal in 2007 and a bronze medal in 2009. increase.

The 2023 Women’s Basketball National Championship will take place March 9-12 in Cape Breton, NSW, and the U of A will also host the 2022 U Sports Wrestling Championship on February 25-26. is.

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The Pandas (5-1) are scheduled to play the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (4-2) this Friday and Saturday.

team ukraine

Golden Bears Hockey will be one of four Western Canada teams to host the Ukraine National Team on the Hockey Can’t Stop Tour starting later this month.

The fundraising game will be held on Tuesday, January 3 at the Claire Drake Arena (7pm, Canada West TV). The circuit will start him on December 30th at the University of Saskatchewan, where he will be the third stop before moving on to the university. I will be entering the University of Calgary on January 2nd and the University of Manitoba on January 9th.

As well as serving as a preparation for the 2023 FISU (International University Sports Federation) Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York in late January, the exhibition will serve as an outreach to Ukrainian communities affected by the ongoing war. We are also raising funds.

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The Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets all support a 50-50 raffle initiative that benefits the Canada/Ukraine Foundation, which provides assistance to humanitarian groups in Ukraine and Canada.

Most of the funds will be donated to Save Ukrainian Hockey Dream, a charity run by the Ukrainian Ice Hockey Federation. It aims to support national and international players, train youth and professional teams, and restore war-damaged Ukrainian arenas.

“I am thrilled with the opportunity to play with the Ukrainian national hockey team. The world of hockey is small and this game will help Bears Hockey, (U of A) Athletics, the University of Alberta and the Edmonton community support Ukrainian hockey in a difficult time. I can support them,” said Golden Bears head coach Ian Habers. “Competing internationally in a packed atmosphere at the Clare Drake Arena will be a new and exciting challenge for our student-athletes.

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“This will help prepare the Ukrainian national team for the FISU matches while also preparing them significantly for the second half of the season.”

cross town rival

It’s the weekend of the cross-town rivalry between MacEwan University Griffins and the U of A hockey teams. The Griffins men’s team (6-8-0) will host the Golden He Bears (11-4-1) at Downtown Arena on Friday (7pm), and the series will head to Clare Drake Arena on Saturday (7pm). switch to . The two teams split the first series of the season as MacEwan took his 4-3 overtime win at Claire Drake Arena before Alberta won his 5-2 road win.

The Pandas Hockey (10-5-1) will host the Griffins Women (3-10-1) on Friday (7pm) at Clare Drake Arena before a rematch on Saturday at Downtown Arena (7pm). increase. Goaltending tandem with each other. MacEwan’s Lindsey Johnson and Alberta’s Misty Rey won state championships last season with the Edmonton Pandas. Griffins defenseman Kari MacDonald was also part of that team.

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On skates: The defending national champion and top-ranked Golden Bears volleyball team (9-1) will compete at Fraser Valley University Cascade (2-8) on Friday (7:30 PM) and Saturday (5:30 PM). They have a 9-game winning streak. Afternoon) At the Saville Center … The Pandas Volleyball (5-5) are looking to end their four-game losing streak against the Cascades on Friday (6pm) and Saturday (6:30pm). It will be the first conference matchup between the two programs, as former Panda assistant coach Janelle Rozema is back in town since taking over the Cascades in 2019.

Email: gmoddejonge@postmedia.com

On Twitter: @GerryModdejonge