Rattlers finish strong

By None on January 19, 2019.

Medicine Hat News

Once their shooters got warmed up, there was no stopping the Medicine Hat College Rattlers women’s basketball team.

On Friday the Rattlers beat the visiting Red Deer College Queens 85-55, pulling away despite losing the first quarter.

Kiana Mintz had 21 points and four steals as Medicine Hat improved to 12-2. Mintz made four three-pointers on a night her team shot about as well outside the arc (33.3 per cent) as they did inside (34.8).

Katelyn Rozdeba had 14 points and 12 rebounds, and rookie guard Rhiannon Ware had one of her best nights as a Rattler with 12 points and four assists.

Lauren Cardinal’s 24 led Red Deer, but after her and Katie Ballhorn (15 points) nobody from the Queens had more than five points. Now 2-11, Red Deer is all but mathematically out of a chance at playoffs.

The Rattlers were down 19-18 after the first quarter but a 13-2 run including back-to-back threes from Mintz and Ware turned the tide. The combination of poor outside shooting by the Queens and intense ball pressure from the Rattlers made for a long rest of the night for the visitors.

The teams play again Saturday at 1 p.m.

Men’s basketball

Much like their female counterparts, the Rattlers men’s basketball team just needed to get going.

The men trailed by one after a quarter, but stormed to a 103-76 win over Red Deer’s Kings at the Snake Pit.

Jusci Thompson had 15 of his game-high 23 points in the fourth quarter for Medicine Hat, which improved to 9-5 and second place in the South Division.

Eric Bakker’s 13 points led Red Deer, now 5-8 and six points back of the fourth and final playoff spot.

Jaamel Slack added 19 points and seven rebounds for the Rattlers, while Kieron Burgess had 12 plus 16 boards.

The teams rematch at 3 p.m. Saturday.

Women’s volleyball

Needing wins over the team that will host the conference championships this spring, the Rattlers women’s volleyball team came up short.

At Ambrose University in Calgary, the Rattlers fell 3-0 (25-16, 25-15, 25-19) to the Lions.

Ambrose, which has a guaranteed spot at the conference tournament, improved to 10-7, fourth in the South Division. Medicine Hat is now 9-8 and needs to finish in the top three to make playoffs.

The teams rematch Saturday, 6 p.m. at the Snake Pit.

Men’s volleyball

At Calgary, the Rattlers men’s volleyball team beat the Lions 3-2 in an incredibly long match which featured a 23-minute delay in the final set due to Hat coach Mark Porter challenging a rule and putting the game under protest, even though his side wound up victorious.

Alfred Dalevik eventually put away the fifth set with a smart set to a corner, finishing 15-12.

Medicine Hat improved to 8-9 while Ambrose fell to 2-15 in league play. They rematch at 8 p.m. Saturday in Medicine Hat.