Huskies add first-ever Cricket, Cheer teams for 2019-20 season

Keyano College will add two new athletic programs for the 2019-20 season; for the first time in its history the College will field cricket teams and a cheer team under the Huskies banner.

“It’s always exciting to enhance the athletic programs we offer,” said Director of Athletics Jonathan Lambert. “We believe these programs are a great fit for the Huskies and will be an important draw for student-athletes.”

With the additions, the College has hired two new coaches: Irfan Bangash will head the Keyano Huskies Men’s and Women’s Cricket teams while Kierra Pelz will lead the Keyano Huskies Cheer team.

Both coaches began recruiting potential team members soon after confirming their employment with the Athletic Director and rushed to get the word out in order to field teams in August. The new Huskies Cricket Coach took to social media and reached out for his phone within hours of his hiring.

“I’ve been contacting associations across Canada and around the world,” said Coach Bangash. “I am expecting we will have some high-calibre players interested.”

Cricket is the second most popular sport in the world and Bangash, who grew up playing cricket in
Pakistan, says fielding a team in Fort McMurray will provide important opportunities to recruit international student-athletes to Keyano. As the founder of the Fort McMurray Cricket Association, which now boasts seven full teams, he also expects to receive interest locally.

There are few other college-level cricket programs in Alberta, but the Huskies team is expected to play against SAIT’s Cricket team during the year, as well as club leagues in Alberta, including Fort McMurray’s.

The new Keyano Huskies Cheer Team will also be arranging competition for the 2019-20 season. Cheer Coach Pelz is a co-founder of the Fort McMurray Premier Cheer Academy and expects the Huskies team to compete with other provincial collegiate teams as well as potentially against other city academies. When available, the Cheer Team will also perform during Huskies home games throughout the season.

She says male and female students with cheer, dance, gymnastics, and other athletic experience, would be welcome to try out for the team.

Pelz, who is a Level 6 International Cheer Union Certified Coach, expressed her gratitude to the College for the opportunity to build a Cheer team at the collegiate level in Fort McMurray. 

“I have loved cheer since I was very young and I’m extremely excited to give others the opportunity to take part in this sport at this level,” she said.

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Captions:

Irfan Bangash is the head coach of the Keyano Huskies Cricket teams.

Kierra Pelz will lead the first-ever Keyano Huskies Cheer team as head coach.