Reading The Play - with Jeremy Lee

Brianna Dueck: Focusing on what‘s important, community service, plus an in-depth chat on acting in ‘The Miracle Season‘

As one of the top volleyball players to come out of Manitoba in her final year of high school, Brianna Dueck eventually found her way to the University of Calgary for five years full of growth with the Dinos Women's Volleyball team, capturing a Canada West title in 2018 along the way. Peel back the layers in this episode to find out all the talented things Bri has accomplished! (Ep. 27).

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Podcast Music

Brie King:

Barely Even Tried

Cheers

Rebecca Leslie: Becoming the Ultimate Teammate, Learning to 'Respect It' plus #RealTalk with Do It For Daron

From using her parents' Christmas lights as target practice to work on her shot accuracy, Canadian National Team forward Rebecca Leslie eventually translated her outdoor rink creativity into a successful career at Boston University, including a captaincy, while repping the maple leaf internationally. Becca shares on her days at BU, adjusting to Calgary, playing in China and much more! (Ep. 26).

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Podcast Music:

Formed Among the Stars

The Wellington Folk (feat. Transit22)

 

Good Things

S.K. Wellington

Ian Tevis: Navigating the politics of basketball, getting a taste of that pro life plus winning ACAC Gold with a 4-guard lineup!

Ever since playing on his Fisher Price hoop in Kent, Washington, all Ian Tevis wanted to do was win. Whether it was putting up gaudy stat numbers or accepting a lesser role to put the team first, Ian had done it all. However, the "Big One", the Championship Game, had always eluded him. Even winning Player of the Year in 2016-2017 as a member of the Red Deer College Kings wasn't enough to get it done. Eventually, Ian gets his moment with Gold as he lives out the funnest season of his collegiate career with the SAIT Trojans in 2019 (Ep. 24).

Justin Kripps: From one track to another, exploring the mental performance side of bobsleigh plus being golden in Pyeongchang

3x Canadian Olympic Bobsledder and 2018 Gold Medalist Justin Kripps had a major desire to represent the Red and White on the International stage. Watching Donovan Bailey capture gold for Canada at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta inspired an entire generation of Canadian kids and future athletes, including Justin. Despite some success in high school and college with track & field, Justin realized that making the summer Olympics for running events would be quite difficult, nearly unattainable. However, following the introduction to the sport of bobsleigh, Justin unlocked some hidden talents within the world of professional tobogganing. Now firmly entrenched as one of the top pilots in the world, #TeamKripps is ready to leap into another stratosphere (Ep. 24).

Jadon Cohee: Division 1 experiences, winning over everything plus training with Steve Nash

Despite basketball not being his strongest sport growing up, Jadon Cohee was never seen without one at an early age. He also recognized that he could OUTWORK everyone to get to where he wanted. Recently named as one of the top 25 high school basketball players to ever compete in the BC provincial tournament, Cohee put the Pacific North West on notice after starring at Walnut Grove Secondary in Langley, British Columbia. After bouncing around in Div 1 of the NCAA for a few years, Cohee made the incredibly hard decision to give up other Div 1 offers to return home and be the centre piece of an up and coming UBC Thunderbirds squad. Cohee certainly solidified his stock in his fifth and final season - leading his team to a Canada West Championship and a Bronze medal performance at U Sports Nationals, while earning a First Team Canada West All-Star and Second Team All-Canadian. (Ep. 23)

TJ Sanders: Finding ways to innovate, holding yourself to a higher standard plus finding gratitude through the great come'back'

From a young age, TJ Sanders had a dream of wanting to play basketball for the Duke Blue Devils in the NCAA. However, once he was exposed to the sport of volleyball his athletic journey decided to head in a different direction. But instead of playing out five years at the collegiate level, he understood that to be amongst the best he had to play with the elite. Don't miss out on how he eventually becomes one of the top setters in the world and guided our National team to a 5th place finish at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio! (Ep. 22)

Jackson Howe: Mullets, Finding your 'Anchor' plus biggest takeaways playing on the National stage as well as with the National 'B' team

Growing up, Jackson Howe thought he would be a soccer star...until he stopped playing co-ed. Realizing his dream of being the next Ronaldo was evaporating quickly and coupled with a generous growth spurt, Jackson turned his attention to basketball and volleyball. After deciding to focus more on volleyball, Jackson put Western Canada on notice and eventually committed to the powerhouse Trinity Western University Spartans volleyball program. A rising star, Jackson has already experienced the National Championship stage and has trained with the National 'B' team for Team Canada - doing all this while entering only his third year with the Spartans. Who says the sky's the limit when there's footprints on the moon? (Ep. 21)

Melissa Lotholz: Competing against the World and your team, controlling what you can control plus a wild lead-up to the 2018 Olympics

Canadian Olympic Bobsledder Melissa Lotholz provides an in-depth look at her transition from the running track to the bobsled track. The Barrhead, Alberta native found success from the get-go and soon realized that she had a legitimate shot at representing her country at the 2018 Olympics. But like any good sports story, Melissa had to overcome some majority adversity just 50 days leading up to the Winter Games. Dealing with a nagging hip injury and coupled with the uncertainty of which of the three sleds she would be pushing for, Melissa reflects on some of the key moments, which ultimately led her to compete for the red and white. (Ep. 20)

Zoe Hickel: Healthy sister competition, rediscovering a love for the game, plus growing hockey in China

Alaskan native Zoe Hickel had a dream of representing the Red, White and Blue on the International stage for hockey. Even though she won the 2015 World Championship for the US, she would discover later in her hockey career that the greatest impact she made as a global ambassador for the sport, came in the form of helping to strengthen the Chinese National hockey program. We are going International with this one! (Ep. 19)

Mambi Diawara: Craving the highest competition, hitting the game-winning shot plus expanding the dream

Montreal native Mambi Diawara grew up playing sports with the intention to just stay out of trouble. His gradual progression in basketball led him to playing in Port Arthur, Texas initially, before finding his groove and exploding onto the Canadian basketball scene in Calgary for the Dinos. Mambi's constant search of playing the best competition led him to the Canada West, where he was responsible for scoring the clinching bucket in the National Championship game against Ryerson in 2018, helped his team to a perfect 20-0 regular season and picked up Canada West Player of the Year award in 2019. Sky's the limit for the Great Mambino as he turns his attention towards playing professionally. (Ep. 18)