SILVER ANNIVERSARY FOR DURHAM'S ADIDAS CUP

OSHAWA, Ont. – The 25th anniversary of the Durham College women's volleyball Adidas Cup will be a big hit with a field of 16 teams from across Canada participating in the tournament.

The tournament will serve off the new year of CCAA women's volleyball with play set to start on Friday, January 4 at the Campus Recreation & Wellness Centre (CRWC) at noon. Play will continue through Saturday, January 5 with the championship final scheduled for 6 p.m.

"We are very excited to expand the field to 16 teams this year," said Durham College athletic director Ken Babcock. "What a great way to start the new year and celebrate 25 years of one of the top collegiate volleyball tournaments in Canada."

Friday's action will consist of round robin play (two pro sets). On Saturday, the teams will be divided into two traditional style brackets with the quarterfinals beginning at 9 a.m. The championship finals on Saturday are best three of five matches.

Led by fifth year head coach Shane Christopher, the Durham Lords are featured in Pool D. They will be joined by the Grande Prairie Wolves (Alberta), Mohawk Mountaineers (Hamilton) and Canadore Panthers (North Bay). The Lords have won eight straight matches and are 9-1 in conference play, good enough for top spot in the OCAA East region.

Over the past 13 years, the Lords made their only championship final appearance in 2003-04, where they went on to defeat the Cambrian Golden Shield 2-1 to win the cup.

The four-time defending Adidas Cup champion Humber Hawks are the early favourites to win pool A. The Hawks are 9-0 in OCAA conference action this season and are the second ranked team in Canada.

The Adidas Cup has become a highly regarded tournament in the volleyball community and is one of the biggest and most anticipated invitationals on the CCAA sports calendar.

Fans can get all of the tournament results on twitter by following @durhamlords123.

PARTICIPATING TEAMS

Pool A
Humber (Etobicoke, Ont.)
Georgian (Barrie, Ont.)
Niagara (Welland, Ont.)
Fleming (Peterborough, Ont.)

Pool B
Bois de Bologne (Montreal, Que.)
Cambrian (Sudbury, Ont.)
Loyalist (Belleville, Ont.)
St. Clair (Windsor, Ont.)

Pool C
Lionel Groulx (Ste-Thérèse, Que.)
Algonquin (Ottawa, Ont.)
Redeemer (Ancaster, Ont.)
Sheridan (Oakville, Ont.)

Pool D
Durham (Oshawa, Ont.)
Grande Prairie (Grande Prairie, Alta.)
Mohawk (Hamilton, Ont.)
Canadore (North Bay, Ont.)

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
http://www.durhamlords.com/tournaments/wvb-cup2013.htm

PAST RESULTS
2011-12 – Humber defeated Cambrian 3-1
2010-11 – Humber defeated Mohawk 3-0
2009-10 – Humber defeated Nipissing 3-0
2008-09 – Humber defeated Lionel-Groulx 2-1
2007-08 - Mohawk defeated Fanshawe 2-0
2006-07 - Nipissing defeated Humber 2-0
2005-06 - Humber defeated Mohawk 2-1
2004-05 - No winner declared - Snowed out (play suspended)
2003-04 - Durham defeated Cambrian 2-1
2002-03 - Humber defeated Cambrian 2-0
2001-02 - Ryerson defeated Humber 2-0
2000-01 - Humber defeated Algonquin 2-0

Source: Durham College