 NEWS PHOTO EMMA BENNETT - Medicine Hat College Rattlers middle Julia Kryzan takes part in Thursday's team practice. |
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Julia Kryzan's initial fears of fitting in were unfounded.
As one of four rookies on the Medicine Hat College Rattlers women's volleyball team, the Calgary product wondered where she would stack up in comparison to the eight veterans.
"I was definitely nervous at first," said Kryzan. "I wasn't sure how people would react to me. They have been absolutely fantastic ever since the first week.
"They are so welcoming, and they are so fun to be around. They always help you out, when you are struggling, and they are always there for you. It is fantastic."
At the start of the season, Kryzan usually entered games as a serving specialist. She has served up the third most aces in the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference at 30.
Since the Christmas break, Kryzan has been a regular in the middle, and she has been hammering down seven to eight kills a match.
At the start of the year, Kryzan wasn't certain she would have chance to make this much of an impact with the Rattlers. The team sits second overall in the ACAC with a 14-2 record and is ranked seventh in the Canadian Colleges Athletic Association rankings.
The Rattlers will try to improve on their record as they host the 6-12 Briercrest College Clippers tonight at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Snake Pit.
Kryzan said her improvement has been helped by the encouragement of Rattlers head coach Benj Heinrichs.
"It really helps that Benj believes in me, and the other people believe in me to be such a strong player, and they push me to do well," said Kryzan.
Heinrichs said Kryzan's improvement has been great since the start of the season, and the bench boss said that is due to the fact his young player has responded well to the feedback she has been given.
"Her desire to get better is up there so far with anybody I have coached," said Heinrichs. "She really wants to be better.
"Her learning curve has been tremendous. I think she is going to surprise some teams in the next few weekends as to what she is doing."
Men try to halt losing skid
The Rattlers men's volleyball team is trying to halt a seven game losing streak and hold on to a playoff berth.
They face a tall order in that regard in the Clippers, who lead the overall ACAC standings with a 14-4 mark and are rated sixth in the CCAA rankings. The two teams meet tonight at 8 p.m. at the Snake Pit and Saturday at 3 p.m.
The Rattlers sit 10th overall in the ACAC with a 6-10 record and two points ahead of the 5-11 King's University College Eagles for the final playoff berth in the conference.
King's plays 3-13 Lakeland this weekend.
See Basketball, Page A12
Ladies look to hold
The Rattlers basketball teams will try to hold their positions in the standings as they travel to Caronport, Sask., to face the Briercrest College Clippers tonight and Saturday.
On the men's side, the Rattlers sit third in the South Division of the ACAC with a 7-7 mark, while the Clippers are last in the division with a 3-11 record.
On the women's side, the Rattlers are fourth in the South Division at 7-7, while Clippers sit last with a 1-13 mark.
