Douglas College is hoping to pull off a few surprises at the PacWest provincial basketball championships this weekend.
The Royals women’s and men’s hoop teams placed third and fourth, respectively, following the regular season and played first-round quarter-final matchups at Columbia Bible College in Abbotsford on Thursday (after NOWdeadlines).
The Douglas women finished league play with a record of 13-8, six points behind runner-up Vancouver Island University and well shy of unbeaten regular-season champion Quest University.
Douglas took on No. 6 Kwantlen Polytechnic in the women’s quarter-final.
The two teams met in last weekend’s final game of the regular season with Kwantlen getting the upper hand, 52-48.
Nanaya Miki and Rachel Beachamp scored 10 points apiece in the loss.
The men were all lone in fourth spot with a 12-9 mark following the regular season.
The fourth-seeded Royals faced No. 5 Camosun in the men’s quarter-final.
On Wednesday, Beauchamp was named the PacWest women’s basketball rookie of the year. She was also named to the all-rookie team.
Miki earned a spot on the conference first all-star team, while Chloe Kennedy was a second team choice.
Adelia Paul finished the season second overall in assists with 86 helpers in 20 league games.
Malcolm Mensah and Grant Campbell were both named to the men’s second all-star team.
No. 1 team down
Canada’s No. 1-ranked Douglas College men’s volleyball team went down to defeat at the hands of tournament host Camosun at the PacWest provincials last weekend.
The Royals lost in four sets to the No. 7-ranked Victoria college in the gold-medal final last Saturday.
Tournament all-star and Douglas player of the game, George Thompson, had 14 kills, four blocks and a service ace in the four-set loss.
Thompson was also the Royals’ go-to guy in the semifinals, garnering his first of two player-of-the-game honours, with 16 kills and four aces in a 25-14, 20-25, 25-17, 25-23 win over Columbia Bible College.
Camosun knocked off Vancouver Island University in four sets in the other semi.
In women’s volleyball, Douglas lost to eventual champion Vancouver Island in straight sets.
