Jason Hills
For MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – Talk about a tough gauntlet of games for the MacEwan Griffins.
Last week, they faced the perennial national championship contender Alberta and this week they will travel to Langley, B.C. for matches against the defending national champion Trinity Western Spartans. All they've done is win four of the last seven U SPORTS championships.
But the Griffins certainly aren't throwing in the towel. They know the odds are clearly stacked against them, but they want to learn as much as they can from the experience of playing another high-caliber opponent.
"This weekend calls for us to learn as much as we can," said setter Alexander Lyndon. "Obviously, they're in quite a different situation than we are. They'll be pushing to lock up that playoff spot, but we need to gain as much experience as we can against a team like that.
"This will be a chance for some of our younger guys to learn how to compete against another top-quality team in this league."
The Griffins (0-20) will face the Spartans (12-8) on Friday (8 p.m. MT) and Saturday (7 p.m. MT) at the Langley Events Centre (both Canada West TV).
It's been a year of learning for the Griffins with a lot of tough lessons along the way. Certainly, the team didn't expect the season to unfold like it has, but you can't control injuries and sickness, something that they've had to deal with all year.
As one of the team's captains, Lyndon has led the way for MacEwan on and off the court, and has seen some strong growth from some rookies and players who have taken a big step forward in their development this year.
"It's been fun to see some young guys step in and develop their shots at this level. Usually, a lot of them are coming from high school or their club teams, and they are their team's top players, but they've had to learn to adjust," said Lyndon.
"When you get to this level, and you're playing against fourth and fifth-year starters in this league, you're playing against men. It's much more physical, and a guy like Daylan Andison and some of the younger guys have really developed his game this year."
Lyndon said the team is disappointed with how things have shaken down this year, and they're still working on developing their identity as a team, but they are seeing positive growth.
Last weekend against Alberta, in a three-set loss on Friday, they pushed the Golden Bears in the second set to a 37-35 defeat.
"We're always the underdog and people don't expect us to do well, especially against a team like that," said Lyndon.
"I think a lot of people were surprised we were able to push the Bears like we did, and it shows that being in that underdog position isn't always the worst thing."
The Griffins don't want to look too far ahead on the season schedule, but they certainly can't help but know they want to be at their best in the final weekend of the season when they face the UBCO Heat, who sit just above them in the Canada West standings with a 1-19 record.
"It's hard not to look ahead to that weekend and get our hopes up to end the season and our careers (as seniors) on a high note," admitted Lyndon.
"But we can't take this weekend or last weekend for granted. We need to take everything we can from these last few games against some real strong opponents and use it, so we can finish out our season strong."
