Langley Christian Lightning teams have won four of a possible five regional championship banners in soccer and volleyball.
It happened in a matter of days during the second week of November.
On Tuesday, Nov. 8 the senior boys Langley Christian School (LCS) soccer team, coached by high school humanities teacher Tom Allen and local pastor and community soccer coach Mark Jones, defeated Eastern Valley perennial soccer favourites Langley Fundamental 4-0 in the seniors boy AA championship game at Noel Booth Park.
Jones called the win “thoroughly deserved and an occasion for our many seniors to be especially proud to win a trophy at the end of their high school career.”
Lightning was undefeated in 2022 heading into this year’s provincial championships.
On Wednesday, Nov. 9, the grade 8 boys and girls teams volleyball teams completed their season. The boys capped an impressive season by running the table and capturing the Eastern Valley Banner. The grade 8 girls finished fourth in the valley.
On Thursday night, Nov 10, within minutes of each other, both the LCS junior girls and the junior boys volleyball teams captured the third and fourth Eastern Valley championship.
The girl’s team beat an inspired Credo Kodiaks team that wasn’t expected to knock off R.E. Mountain or Abbotsford Christian. Credo took the first set from LCS before the Lightning stormed back and won in dramatic fashion. Both teams claimed the exclusive berths in the junior girls provincial tournament on November 24-26 in Surrey.
On the same night, the junior boys capped their undefeated league season by running the table, and winning all their matches.
Grade 10 setter Tayven Magnowski went down with a bad ankle injury in the semifinal, but back-up setters Drew VanHuizen and Nate McCartie tag-teamed to lead the Lightning to a straight set victory in the gold medal match against Unity Christian.
Magnowski said he was “sad when I found out I was hurt and couldn’t play. But then I just wanted to get out of the hospital as fast as I could to go back and cheer on my teammates and help them win however I could.”
Adam Woelders, LCS head of schools, noted the kids “hear all season that as a program we collectively believe much is expected from them because they’re blessed with such a great privilege of being on a team and going to tournaments and all the community connection that comes with that. We challenge these kids to be the best people they can be, live into the sense of purpose they have, and use what they learn through sport to build community and impact their community positively. Winning a trophy doesn’t matter – it is just an outcome of great behaviours and mindset modelled by inspiring adults and formed into habits in the kids.”
Athletic directors Jon Mayan and Jon Keuhl were credited with creating a program that emphasizes “whole student athlete development – character, spiritual, wellness, mental training and performance.”
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