PHOTO COURTESY WHITE LIGHTNING MEDIA
The Medicine Hat College Rattlers women's cross country team earned a second place at the 2025 ACAC Championships in Grande Prairie over the weekend.
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The Medicine Hat College Rattlers’ cross-country team raced to the program’s best finish this weekend.
The Rattlers travelled to Grande Prairie to race at the 2025 ACAC championships where the women’s team finished second and the men’s team finished fourth.
Fourth-year runner Maddie Scrimger and rookie Pheonix Asprey led the way for the MHC ladies, with Scrimger finishing fourth over the technical 6 km course and Asprey coming seventh, 70 seconds behind her teammate. Both athletes achieved All-Conference honours for their finishes.
Other Rattler competitors in the women’s race included Renya Woodruff (17th), Ellie Barlow (28th), Addison Weir (37th), Presley Brennan (38th), Aki Iwata (40th), Ciana Catonio (45th), Riley Knapp (47th), Hannah Ulm (48th), Ava Dyck (51st) and Elise Stark (54th).
On the men’s side, Logan Pancoast was the first Rattler male, finishing seventh over the 8 km course. Like Scrimger and Asprey, he was named to the All Conference team.
Four other Rattlers also contested the men’s 8 km. Askia Tahirou placed 16th, Spencer Wilson was 28th, Keegan Kolody finished 31st and Griffin Goodfellow crossed the finish line in 52nd place.
In addition to earning all Conference status, Asprey and Pancoast were also named as the ACAC XC Rookies of the Year for their respective genders.
MHC’s women’s team and Pancoast will be heading to P.E.I. on Nov. 8 to take part in the CCAA National meet.
Men’s Soccer finishes second at ACAC finals
The men’s soccer team was one goal short of ACAC gold.
The Rattlers lost 1-0 in the ACAC finals on Sunday, falling to the NAIT Ooks at the provincial college championships held in Raymond. Stefan Vrska made two saves in the finals loss.
They opened the ACAC championships with a 4-3 win Friday over the King’s University Eagles. MHC overcame a 2-0 deficit and a 3-2 deficit en route to the win. Joao Cintra, Tata Mugisha, Aleksa Bijelic and Davi Amorim all scored in the win.
In the semifinals, they beat the Keyano College Huskies 3-0 Saturday to punch their ticket to the finals.
Bijelic scored twice and De’Shaunt Gelinas-Cato found the back of the net.
Three Rattlers were named tournament all-stars, Bijelic, Cato and Matheus Tavares. The men’s soccer team finishes their season with an 11-2 record, the top finish for the program.
Basketball
MHC’s women’s basketball team preserved their perfect start with a pair of weekend wins.
They beat the Ambrose Lions in back-to-back games, winning 91-75 at home before an 88-59 win on the road Saturday.
Alexis Watkiss led the offence Friday with 22 points, adding six rebounds. Jordyn Knight had 18 points and eight rebounds and Jasmine Gardiner had 14 points with eight assists.
In the win Saturday, Gardiner had a double-double with 20 points and 13 assists. Knight had 21 points with seven rebounds and Watkiss added 17 points and eight boards.
The Rattlers’ men’s team split their weekend, losing 97-96 Friday to Ambrose before beating the Lions 104-85 on Saturday.
Jordan Biggar had 25 points and nine rebounds on Friday, Kieran Isnor had 20 points and 11 rebounds. Wol Wol added a second double-double to the Rattlers totals with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
Biggar led the offence in the Rattlers’ first win of the season, dropping 34 points with 14 rebounds on Friday. Isnor had 18 points and eight assists.
The women’s (4-0) and men’s (1-3) basketball teams are on the road this weekend, facing the University of Alberta-Augustana Vikings on Friday and the NAIT Ooks on Saturday.
Volleyball
MHC’s women’s volleyball team split their opening weekend against Ambrose, falling in four sets Friday before winning in five sets Saturday at the Snake Pit.
In the loss Friday (20-25, 16-25, 25-16, 16-25), Fayth Spencer and Tannah McKay each had 10 kills for the Rattlers. Saturday’s five-set win saw the Rattlers overcome a 2-0 deficit (7-25, 18-25, 25-23, 25-16, 15-10). McKay had 14 kills for MHC.
The Rattlers’ men’s team dropped both of their matches over the weekend, falling in three sets Friday (18-25, 24-25, 17-25) and losing in five sets Saturday (21-25, 16-25, 25-21, 26-24, 10-16).
Both Conor Aasman and Landon Reiniger had six kills in the loss Friday. William Reininger had 15 kills on Saturday, Alexander Baird added 11 of his own.
MHC’s women’s (2-1) and men’s (0-2) volleyball teams are at the Snake Pit this weekend, hosting the University of Alberta-Augustana Vikings on Friday and the NAIT Ooks on Saturday.
The Rattler’s women’s team started the year with a 1-0 record due to a forfeited match by the Lakeland College Rustlers on Nov. 22 due to a hazing investigation. Lakeland’s women’s team was suspended eight matches and their men’s team suspended for four games. The school was also fined $500 for each forfeited match, totalling $6,000 for the 12 missed matches.
