A busy weekend has passed with both Men's and Women's Basketball and Volleyball teams having saw action. On Saturday afternoon the Royals Basketball teams traveled to Sheridan College for their first meeting of the season. On Saturday night, the Royals Volleyball teams played host to the St. Clair Saints. For the Volleyball teams, these were the final games before the Christmas Break.

Both Women's and Men's Volleyball teams will enter the Break on a strong note after sweeping the Saints. Powered by another strong match from veteran Erika Straatsma (Brampton, ON), the Lady Royals (4-5 OCAA) knocked off St. Clair (3-6 OCAA) 3-1. The evening started well for the Royals with a 25-18 win in the first set but from there it proved to be an all out battle between the two teams with all 3 of the next sets going to extra points. Redeemer took a 2-0 lead after a very tight 27-25 win in the 2nd set before St. Clair stole one back in the 3rd with a 26-24 win. However, in the end, the Saints could not control the sister tandem of Erika and Curtiss Straatsma (Brampton, ON) as their game high 18 and 17 points respectively pushed the Lady Royals to another tight 26-24 win and the victory. Rebekah Wright (Burlington, ON) had a strong game defensively for the Royals with a total of 14 digs. Veteran Ashley Muller (Oakville, ON)had 8 total offensive points in what was her last game as a Royal as she will be transferring next semester. Deanna Harris had 10 points for the visiting Saints.

The Redeemer Royals Men's Volleyball team (5-4 OCAA) had less trouble with the Saints (0-9 OCAA) on their way to a 3-0 sweep. Game scores were 25-21, 25-15, and 25-10. Cameron Groenendijk (Chemainus, BC) led the way for the Royals offensively with 9 kills and 5 stuff blocks. 1st year Calvin Fast (St. Catherines, ON) had his strongest game as a Royal with 9 points. Josh Lynch had 7 points for St. Clair. Next up for the men's team is a Christmas Break trip to San Diego where they will take part in a tournament featuring a number of Canada's top teams. More details to come!
 
The Women's Basketball team (0-8 OCAA) had a tough loss against the 13th ranked team in the country on Saturday. Sheridan College (7-2 OCAA) built a 42-22 lead by halftime and thought it important to keep their starters in for the full game in a 102-43 win. Lindsay Balch (Osgoode, ON) put in her top point effort with 11 points for Redeemer. 3 Royals, Kelly Kellendonk (Tara, ON), Victoria Pickering (Campbellville, ON), and Chantel Eade (Ridgetown, ON) all added 8 points as well. The women's team will be excited to get veteran Morrisa Lychak (Nepean, ON) back after the Christmas Break which will certainly set the tone for a completely different second semester for the Lady Royals.

The Men's Basketball team (3-5 OCAA) kept up their strong play against the 12th ranked team in Canada on Saturday afternoon. They escaped a very difficult away game against the Sheridan Bruins (6-3 OCAA) with a close 88-72 loss. It was once again the big three of the Royals in Dhimitri Luarasi (Rochester, NY ) (19 points), Benn Ibrahim (Windsor, ON) (19 points), and Paul Hart (Ancaster, ON)(16 points) leading the way for Redeemer. Denmark McDonald had a game-high 21 points for the Bruins.

NEXT UP: Basketball vs. Mohawk TUESDAY! The final home games of the semester see the Royals biggest rival come through the doors in an all out battle going into the Christmas break. Game time is 6pm and 8pm. Come on out an support your Royals in the final games before the break!