News

Island Prospect Signs with Av's

Alysha Hutt (Nanaimo B.C) has committed to play for the Avalanche for the 2013/14 season. Hutt is a 5’7 Libero who is attending Cedar Secondary School. Hutt has received numerous awards in her High School career including athletic scholar award, Coach’s award and MVP. Hutt was a part of the 2010 BC Summer Games team that captured the bronze medal and a member of the senior girls team that captured silver at A Provincials in 2010. Alysha has been a member of the U14 to U18 Nanaimo Volleyball Club program and was invited to attend the 2011 Baden Cup training camp.

Alysha is very excited to join the Avalanche program and is working hard to take her game to the next level.  Hutt believes that College of the Rockies will provide her with the best opportunity to train and play at a higher level as well as achieve her academic goals. Hutt will be enrolling in the Kinesiology program and looks forward to coming to the Kootenay’s and being a part of the Avalanche Volleyball program. Coach Bendkowska is excited to welcome Alysha to the Avalanche program and feels that she will bring depth to the team and will provide a competitive edge on the court.
 

East Kootenay Prospect Signs with Av's

Corissa Mildenberger (Elkford B.C) has committed to play for the Avalanche for the 2013/14 season. Mildenberger is a 5’9 left side hitter who was recruited by numerous teams throughout B.C and Alberta. Mildenberger, captain of her team, attends Elkford Secondary School and was named MVP this past season. Over the past 3 years Corissa has played with the High Altitude Volleyball team, a team that has advanced to Provincials and Nationals each year.

Mildenberger is very excited to join the Avalanche program and is looking forward to playing close to home. Corissa brings character to the team and is a very versatile player being able to play the left side as well as middle. Mildenberger indicated that the smaller school size was a big factor in her decision to sign with the Av’s and believes that this environment will allow her to balance her studies along with playing volleyball. Coach Bendkowska is very happy Corissa has decided to join the Av’s and looks forward to working with her. “Corissa has a lot of potential” commented Bendkowska.

West Kootenay Talent signs with the Av's

Jayden Roch (Nelson B.C) has committed to play for the Avalanche for the 2013/14 season. Roch is a 5’10 Left side/ Middle hitter and attends LV Rogers in Nelson. Roch, captain of her team, was named MVP this past season and led them to AAA Provincials.  Roch has been a part of the Kootenay Volleyball Club team for the past 6 years going to Provincials and Nationals each year.  Roch has also been part of the Baden Cup series.

Roch is very excited to join the Avalanche program and will bring a very competitive drive and a great desire to win on the court. Roch is a very dedicated student and will be going into the Engineering program come September. Roch indicated that  the smaller school size was a big factor in her decision to sign with the Av’s as she will get a lot of one on one time with her instructors.  Coach Bendkowska is very happy Jayden has decided to join the Av’s and looks forward to working with her. “Jayden has a lot of potential and a great work ethic” commented Benkowska.

Av's Sign Two New Recruits for 2013/14

Atayia Durrant (Grande Prairie, AB) a 5'11 outside/middle hitter has committed to play for the Avalanche for the 2013/14 season.  Atayia comes from a family well versed in the game of volleyball as her uncle,  Rod Durrant coaches the Men’s Volleyball team at the University of Calgary.

Durrant led her team to a third place finish in AAA zones this past season and currently plays club volleyball with the U18 Central Peace Wolves.  Atayia will bring character to the team and is a very versatile player being able to play left and right side as well as middle.  Durrant will graduate from Peace Wapiti Academy this May and is exciting to be join the Avalanche in September.  Atayia will be entering into the Kinesiology program at College of the Rockies. 

Madison Hudy (Calgary, Alberta) has signed on to play at COTR for the 2013/14 season. Hudy visited the College last week and decided to call the College home for the next 4 years in to the Bachelor of Education program.

Hudy a 5'11" outside hitter/middle attends Bishop Carroll High School in Calgary and has been a part of the Bishop Carroll program since she was in grade ten.  Madison has had a lot of success playing with the Cardinals finishing in the top of their division over the past couple years, including an undefeated season. Hudy also plays club for the U18 Canuck Stuff Volleyball Club and has enjoyed a 1st and 2nd place finish in Division 2 Provincial Championships as well at a 5th place finish at National Championships.

Hudy is very excited to join the Avalanche program and will bring a very competitive drive and a great desire to win to the court.  Coach Bendkowska is "very happy Madison has decided to join the Av’s and looks forward to working with her over the next four years."

Andrea Taylor Named CCAA Featured Athlete of the Week

Andrea had an amazing weekend leading her team in offensive points.

Andrea Taylor Named PACWEST Athlete of the Week

Andrea Taylor was named the PACWEST Athlete of the Week. Taylor had an outstanding weekend, finishing the four matches with 80 kills (5.3 kills per match), 37 digs, 3 aces and 1 block.
Read the full story

Abby Glaicar Signs on the Dotted Line

In the summer Abby Glaicar signed a letter of commitment with the College of the Rockies. On October 17th Glaicar signed a letter of intent to officially don the Avalanche colours for the 2013-14 season.

Glaicar, a 5’9” setter, is the captain of the Oilfields High School Women’s Volleyball Team in Black Diamond, AB, had a good season last year where she led her team to a 3^rd place finish at Provincials. Glaicar also the captain and setter for the 403 Selects based out of Calgary led her team to a 5^th place finish at Provincials and a third place finish at Nationals in Toronto this past spring. Abby has numerous accolades including winning MVP the last three years for her High school team.

Abby is well into her grade 12 year and her team is off to a great start with a tournament win. Glaicar is very excited to join the Avalanche and the opportunity to play with the team next season, she "feels that I can really fit in with the team, the program and the direction Agata Bendkowska is taking”. Abby felt "welcomed by new and past players and felt like I was a part of the team already”.

Abby likes Bendkowska's coaching style and feels that she can improve and strive under her direction. Glaicar also mentioned that the "smaller school size was a big factor in her decision to sign with the Av’s as she will get a lot of one on one time with her instructors and feels that is the best learning environment for her”.

Glaicar will be down throughout the season to practice with the team to make the transition to the College game easier. Bendkowska mentioned that Abby is a "great find and she is ready to go to the next level already and will be a welcomed addition to the Avalanche roster and program next season."

Lady Av's Preview

The Lady Av’s will travel to North Vancouver and New Westminster this week to take on the Douglas Royals and the Capilano Blues to start off the 2012/13 season. Capilano and Douglas will be the Av’s first sight of B.C teams as the ladies have played all of their pre-season games against Alberta teams. 

The Ladies are eager to start off the season after having a very successful pre-season. The Lady Av’s finished off the pre-season with a record of four wins and five losses. The ladies were in Red Deer for the Wild Rose classic and finished 7^th place in the tournament, the following weekend the Av’s hosted three teams from Alberta and finished off the weekend with a record of three wins and one loss.

The Lady Av’s will take on the Douglas Royals Thursday and Friday evening, the Av’s look for revenge against the Royals as they were in a see-saw battle last season for the final playoff spot with the Royals sneaking ahead of the Av’s in the finals games of the season. The Royals are under the new direction of Kyra Iannone who brings a new direction to the program.

The Av’s face off against the Capilano Blues on Saturday and Sunday and are under the new direction of Cal Wohlford, the blues have a young roster this year with a few familiar faces returning to the court this year for the Blues. The Royals and Blues squared off this past weekend splitting the weekend series both teams winning in five sets in their home gyms. The Av’s will have to come out strong and hope a strong preseason can flow over into the regular season.

Avalanche fans can catch all the games live on SportsCanada.tv from the Capilano gym on Saturday and Sunday. Games on Thursday and Friday will be broadcasted on Ustream.tv. Find the direct links to the channels below.

Thursday & Friday games- 6:00 pm PST 7 pm Kootenay time)
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/royals-athletics

Saturday game 1:00 pm PST (2:00 pm Kootenay time) & Sunday game 11 am PST (12 pm Kootenay time)
http://sportscanada.tv/index.php/capilano-blues

You can follow us on Facebook and Twitter (@AvsVolleyball); watch for in game updates on how the Av’s are doing.

GO AVS GO!!!

RUMBLE IN THE ROCKIES RESULTS

The Lady Avs hosted three Alberta teams over the weekend in a pre-season exhibition tournament. Lethbridge College, Augustana, and Kings University College made the trek to Cranbrook to take on the Avalanche.  The ladies had a very successful weekend finishing of the weekend with a record of 3 wins and 1 loss.

The women took on Augustana Thursday night and had a very strong game winning in straight sets over the Augustana Vikings  25-19, 25-15, 25-18. The following morning the women took on the Lethbridge College Kodiaks and won in 4 sets (13-25, 25-14,25-17, 26-24) that afternoon the women took on Kings University College Eagles from Edmonton who came second at the Wild Rose Classic last weekend, losing to Red Deer College in the finals. The women started out slowly but bounced back in a see-saw battled with Kings. The women came out on top winning in a the match in 5 sets over the Eagles. (15-25,25-19,18-25,25-20,17-15).  The women were down 9-3 at one point in the fifth set but the girls did not give up and fought back to take the fifth and deciding set.  

Saturday evening the women took on Kings University College again but fell in straight sets to the Eagles 25-16,25-19,25-19. Overall it was a good weekend for the Lady Avs, Nikki Valgardson, Kelsey Thompson, Andrea Taylor and Jenna Swetlikoff had a very strong weekend with numerous blocks, kills and digs a key points in matches.

The Future Looks Bright!

Abby Glaicar (High River, Alberta) has signed a letter of commitment to join the Women’s Avalanche team for the 2013-14 season. Glaicar, a 5’9” setter,  is the captain of the Oilfields High School Women’s Team in Black Diamond, Alberta. Glaciar had a good season at Oilfields where she led her team to a 3^rd place finish at Provincials. Glaicar also the captain and setter for the 403 Selects based out of Calgary led her team to a 5^th place finish at Provincials, and a third place finish at Nationals this past spring in Toronto, Ontario. Glaicar has numerous accolades including winning MVP the last three years for High school team.  Glaicar is excited to join the Avalanche after attending the College of the Rockies Women’s I.D camp this past spring, Abby is working hard to make sure she is ready for the 2013-14 season and plans to attend training camp this fall as well as some homes games and practices throughout the season.

Av's Add Another Piece to the Puzzle...

Madi Gibbs (Abbotsford B.C) has signed on to play at COTR for the 2012/13 season. After a visit to the College earlier this week the 5'10" right side/middle has decided to call the College home next year. Gibbs who played at Yale Secondary School was captain of her team and led her team to an undefeated regular season. Gibbs also played for the Synergy Volleyball Club where again she was captain and led her team to a 7th place finish at Provincials. Gibbs will bring a very competitive drive to the court and has a great desire to win.

Avalanche Welcomes New Recruits

Av's Welcome Kelowna Talent
Nikki Valgardson (Kelowna, BC) has signed on to play at COTR for the 2012-13 season.  Valgardson took a year off to help coach and has decided to continue her playing career at COTR.  Nikki was the Assistant Coach of Kelowna Secondary school who won AAAA Provincials in 2011-12.  Before taking the coaching reins at KSS, Valgardson had plenty of success on the court, including a 3rd place finish at the AAAA Provincial Championships in her Gr. 11 year and capturing numerous MVP and All-Stars at tournaments in her Gr 12 year.  Nikki had a successful club career participating with the Kelowna Volleyball Club.  As a member of the KVC Nikki added a U14 Provincial Championship, a U16 Division Championship and a 3rd place finish in U18 Provincials to her list of successes.  Valgardson will be studying Office Administration at COTR and is looking forward to the season with the Avalanche.
 

Welch Signs with the Avalanche
Stephanie Welch (Prince George, BC) has signed on to play at College of the Rockies for the 2012-13 season.  Welch played volleyball at Duchess Park Secondary where she helped her school to their 8th consecutive Zone Championships; Stephanie was named MVP of the Championships.  Stephanie sill be studying sciences at COTR with the hope of becoming a dental hygienist.
 

A Little Bit of the North
Taylor Sieben (Grande Prairie, AB) a 5'8 outside hitter, has committed to play for the Avalanche for the 2012/13 season. Sieben will graduate from St Joseph Catholic High School this May where she was captain of the Senior girls team and helped lead them to a 1st place finish at their Zone Championships and a 4th place finish at Provincials. Taylor brings character to the team and is a very versatile player being able to play left and right side as well as middle. Sieben is finishing up her club season with the U18 Wolves and is excited to join the Avalanche program in September. Taylor will be entering into the Kinesiology program at College of the Rockies

Double Trouble
Teams will be seeing double on the court next season as twin sisters have committed to play for the Avalanche. Julie and Jen Pillon (Kamloops, BC) are very excited to join the Avalanche Women's Volleyball team for the 2012/13 season. The Pillon's took a year off of volleyball while studying at TRU but kept their fingers in the game coaching a junior girls volleyball team. Jen and Julie played at Sa-Hali Secondary in Kamloops and in their final season helped their team win the Zone Championships and an 11th place finish at Provincials.

Av's Add Some Experience
Kelsey Thompson (Vernon, BC) has committed to play for the Avalanche in the upcoming season. Kelsey comes to COTR as a second year student athlete having played her first year at Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton, AB. Thompson will bring some experience to the team after playing for the Griffins who finished 3rd overall in league standings and 7th at ACAC Provincials. Kelsey was named athlete of the year for 5 years at Fulton Secondary School and was also a member of the 2008 BC Summer Games volleyball team. Kelsey is looking forward to pursuing a teaching degree while at COTR