Grade 12 setter Lily Hansen is seen here celebrating a point with teammates during provincials. (Supplied)

By Josh Hall | @Vancan19

victory on home court

Lindsay Thurber Raiders win double gold at 5A Volleyball Provincial Championships

Dec 1, 2025 | 4:42 PM

The Lindsay Thurber Raiders are double 5A provincial volleyball champs.

Both the senior boys and senior girls squads won their respective School Sport Alberta tournaments over the weekend, and on home court to boot.

On the boys side, Thurber beat Ross Sheppard (Edmonton) 25-16, 25-18; then Sir Winston Churchill (Calgary) 25-18, 25,19; and to round out pool play, they toppled Paul Kane (St. Albert) 25-14, 29-27.

With a bye to the second round of the playoffs, the knockout round then saw them beat Our Lady of the Rockies (Calgary); then William Aberhart (Calgary) 25-21, 25-20, 23-25, 25-22; and finally Ross Sheppard (Edmonton) 25-18, 25-22, 25-16 in a pool play rematch.

Grade 12 middle Trent Deschenes, #15 for Thurber, is seen here celebrating a point with teammates. (Supplied)

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“Winning was super exciting. It was an awesome year, and to get the chance to compete for a provincial title in our own gym was exciting too,” says Head Coach Travis Czainski, noting the team has eight graduating players. “We knew we had the team to go out there and win it, and once we did, it felt quite rewarding for the coaching staff and the kids. It was a perfect ending to an amazing season.”

Czainski and his squad won four tournaments this season, on top of provincials. The title is the program’s third in school history, and their second in a row.

On the girls side, Thurber beat Western Canada (Calgary) 20-25, 25-16, 15-8; then they took down Salisbury (Sherwood Park) 25-27, 28-26, 15-8; and finally they downed Harry Ainlay (Edmonton) 25-12, 25-22 in pool competition.

Thurber, again with an opening round playoff bye, beat Charles Spencer (Grande Prairie) 25-10, 25-17, 15-8; Western Canada (Calgary) again, 25-20, 20-25, 27-25, 21-25, 15-8; and then Salisbury (Sherwood Park) again for the title, 25-17, 25-13, 25-23.

“It definitely requires lots of effort, determination and perseverance. There were several times we were down against super-strong teams, but they found an extra gear and launched some comebacks,” says Head Coach Kirsten DeZutter, also Thurber’s vice principal.

(Supplied)

“Our semifinal was a five-set battle back and forth. Our players showed great pride, and were amazing ambassadors for Thurber. I couldn’t be prouder of them.”

The girls squad has five graduating members. This was their ninth provincial volleyball gold medal in school history, and first since 2022.

This was also the first year School Sport Alberta had a 5A classification for volleyball. 5A is for schools with 1,400+ students in grades 10-12.