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UBCO volleyball need win to stay alive: Kelowna sports weekend preview

The West Kelowna Warriors are the only team playing at home this weekend
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Amaya Perry (right) and the UBCO Heat women’s volleyball team need to win on Friday night to keep their season alive. (UBCO Heat)

It’s another busy weekend for the Kelowna sports scene.

UBCO Heat

The UBCO Heat women’s volleyball team needs to win on Friday night to keep their season going.

In heartbreaking fashion, the Heat lost game one of their three-game opening round Canada West playoff series against the number one ranked Trinity Western University Spartans on Thursday night. The Spartans took game one 25-22, 35-33, and 25-21.

The Heat need a win on Friday night to keep their season alive and force a game three. In that case, game three will take place on Saturday night.

Game two to set to serve at 6 p.m. on Friday night at the Langley Events Centre. It can also be watched on Canada West TV.

Kelowna Rockets

Just like country music stars Gordon Lightfoot and Paul Brandt have said before, the Kelowna Rockets are Alberta bound as they start a three-game weekend road trip on Friday night.

Throughout the trip, the team will make stops in Edmonton on Friday, Red Deer on Saturday, and Calgary on Sunday before heading home.

Going into the weekend, the Rockets are winners of three straight games and are 6-4 in their last 10 as they push for the playoffs. They currently sit in the final playoff spot in the Western Conference and have a seven point cushion ahead of the ninth place Victoria Royals. The Rockets have also played four fewer games than Victoria.

Friday night’s opponent, Edmonton, is last in the entire WHL with just 19 points so far this season (8-43-3-0) and have lost six straight games. Red Deer is one of the best teams in the league, sitting second in the Eastern Conference with a record of 37-14-1-3. Calgary has struggled of late as their 1-8-0-1 inn their last 10 games and currently sit seventh in the East (24-25-5-2).

The Rockets three-game winning streak is in line with their star forward Andrew Cristall returning to the lineup. In three games since coming off injury, he has four goals and three assists.

Friday night’s game still also be special for Rockets forward Carson Golder, who got traded from Edmonton to Kelowna earlier this season. And since joining the Rockets, he’s become a different player. This season in 24 games with Edmonton this season, he had eight goals and seven assists. Since the trade, he’s almost a point-a-game player as he had 15 goals and 13 assists in 29 games for the Rockets.

Forward Gabriel Szturc has also been playing great hockey for the Rockets of late. Since being named the team’s captain on Jan. 19, Szturc has eight goals and 13 assists (21 points) in 14 games.

Friday night’s puck drop is at 6 p.m. Pacific time.

West Kelowna Warriors

The West Kelowna Warriors will be seeing deja-vu this weekend as they welcome the Trail Smoke Eaters and the Merritt Centennials to town for the second straight weekend.

It was easy for the Warriors last weekend as they beat the Trail 5-2 and Merritt 9-1 to punch their ticket to the postseason. Half of the playoffs spots have been secured in the Interior Conference as Penticton, Cranbrook, and Prince George have also clinched.

On Friday night, puck drop against Trail is at 7 p.m. at Royal LePage Place. The Warriors will have Saturday off before welcoming Merritt for another afternoon affair as Sunday’s puck drop is at 2:30 p.m.

Kelowna Cup

The Telus Kelowna Cup returns to Big White this Saturday.

READ MORE: ‘Everything we own is in that house’: West Kelowna fire burns for hours

READ MORE: UBCO Heat women’s basketball team ousted from Canada West playoffs


@cunninghamjordy
jordy.cunningham@kelownacapnews.com

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Jordy Cunningham

About the Author: Jordy Cunningham

Hailing from Ladner, B.C., I have been passionate about sports, especially baseball, since I was young. In 2018, I graduated from Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops with a Bachelor of Journalism degree
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