Rattlers vets Suchy & Stigter making history in senior seasons

On November 9, Suchy dove her way into the ACAC record books by becoming the conference’s all-time digs leader, registering the 1,245th dig of her career at home against the Lethbridge College Kodiaks.

“Had my team around me and they were I think more excited than I was,” said Suchy. “Having the home team here and my family was here, so that was good.”

Suchy’s record-breaking performance came just one week after Stigter set the new all-time kills mark for the Rattlers program with her 1,007th career kill versus SAIT.

Sitting sixth all-time in conference digs, Stigter said her sights are now set on chasing Samantha Zacharias’ ACAC mark of 1,385 before the end of the season.

“It’s nice knowing that all my hard work has paid off in some sort of way,” said Stigter. So, now all I can do is try and go for the ACAC record.”

Rattlers head coach Kim Stonehouse saw the pair enter the program as promising rookies and was thrilled to see her libero and outside hitter both make history this month.

“They’re both very hard-working individuals, team players, and they’d run through a wall for this team,” said Stonehouse. “To see them achieve something like that, have that milestone, is just very, very cool.”

Stigter and Suchy’s combination of attack and defence has served the Rattlers well over the last half decade, with Suchy often setting the table with a dig for a Stigter spike just moments later.

“You can’t have one without the other,” said Suchy. “We work well beside each other and are not afraid to tell each other what we need to do, so that’s been a big part.”

That defensive stability from Suchy has also allowed Stigter to take more risks with her attacking game over the years, making her one of the most lethal options from the outside in the ACAC.

“I go up there with aggression every single time, but I’m not afraid to hit it because I know she’s back there,” said Stigter.

MHC’s women’s volleyball program once again boasting a young roster with Brooke Christie being the only Rattler other than Stigter and Suchy to have more than three years experience under her belt.

Both of MHC’s record breakers have taken on leadership roles over the past few seasons, something that Stonehouse said the pair have jumped at.

“Amber and Shaya are those type of people that just calm everybody down,” she said. “That’s a great attribute, you can’t teach that necessarily.”

This season has taken on a different tone for the duo however, as both Suchy and Stigter can both see graduation and the end of their ACAC careers on the horizon.

“It’s kind of crazy to think about,” said Suchy. “I don’t know, I’m not sure if I’m ready to be done. But, we’ll get the most out of it we can.”

The pair will have a shot at a storybook ending to their Rattlers careers however, as Medicine Hat College will be playing host to the ACAC provincial championship tournament in February.

Knowing they’ll have a shot at an Alberta championship and a potential spot at nationals in a matter on months, Stigter said there’s no reason to not put their best effort on the court.

“I go into every game playing like it’s going to be my last because I know that it’s going to be eventually,” she said. “Got to lay it all on the court and see what happens.”

The 4-6 Rattlers women’s squad and their men’s team counterparts will play their final two games of 2019 this weekend on the road against Olds College, taking to the court on Friday and Saturday.

by Scott Roblin

Rattlers vets Suchy & Stigter making history in senior seasons

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