Unprecedented playoff appearances, national success, and more
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Every NAIT Ooks season ends with stories of success: wins, medals and student awards. But few years finish with so many history-making events as this.
In fact, after 20 years with the Ooks in various roles, and the last seven as athletics and recreation director, Jordan Richey sees the 2025-26 campaign as exceptional. “I consider this to be one of [our] most successful years since I’ve been at NAIT,” he says.
Richey broadens his definition of wins to include what happens outside of gametime, the moments and efforts in between games that bring everything, and everyone, together. Those moments cause him and the athletics and recreation staff to pause to take in their progress, success and the sheer feeling of it all.
“You think, ‘This is why we do sports,’” says Richey.
From the 2025-26 season, across the 10 sports NAIT does, here’s a highlight reel of the reasons.
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Playoffs in every sport
Before jumping to playoff results, let’s revisit the start of the season – the first ever in which NAIT competed in all 10 Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) sports, thanks to the recent addition of indoor track sports.
What’s more, Richey adds proudly, “we were in the playoffs in every sport.” More than half-a-dozen of those appearances were at Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) national tournaments.
And the winners were …
🏸Badminton: ACAC and CCAA – men’s doubles, gold
🏀Basketball: ACAC – women, silver
🥌Curling: ACAC – men, gold; CCAA – men, silver
⚽Futsal: ACAC – women, silver; men, silver
⛳Golf: ACAC – men, silver; women, bronze
⚽Soccer: ACAC – women, silver; men, gold; CCAA – men, bronze
🏐Volleyball: ACAC – women, bronze
👟X-country running: ACAC – men, bronze
Host to the nation
Following the historic national win by NAIT’s men’s volleyball team in 2023-24, Richey and staff were inspired to bid on hosting the CCAA Men’s Volleyball National Championship event themselves – and succeeded.
From March 10 to 14, some 1,500 fans and hundreds more among student-athletes, coaches and team staff from across the country met on campus for the tournament. It was the first time NAIT hosted it.
In return, the men earned a wildcard spot. That the team didn’t make the final (won decisively by the Red Deer Kings) didn’t diminish fans’ excitement. “We had people standing in every corner,” says Richey of the gold-medal game. “Every square inch of our gymnasium was full.”
Home (court) renovations
That volleyball crowd was the biggest yet to enjoy the fact that nearly every inch of that gym was completely renovated this season for the first time since it was built in the 1960s. Floors and walls saw a makeover that traded variations on beige for bold takes on Ooks’ blue.
Richey considers the quality of the new look to be in keeping with the calibre of the student-athletes that bring the space to life. “Everybody walks in there and says, ‘Oh my goodness.’ It’s like a completely new facility.”
Puck pioneers
The women’s hockey team weren’t as successful as they hoped in playoffs, which were dominated (once again) by Red Deer Polytechnic and Lakeland College (2025-26 ACAC champs, in the end). But they made their mark in another important way, notes Richey.
In January, the team made its first appearance in a grassroots, national exhibition tournament that players and coaches hope to see become a sanctioned annual event. “They're being pioneers,” says Richey. “This team is going to be remembered for … representing NAIT.”
Kudos for coaches
Richey is happy that all of this year’s coaches will return next season. “There’s continuity,” he says, “and that’s important.” That these coaches were recognized as being at the top of their game in Alberta, and in two cases Canada, is a bonus:
🏸Alan Chow (Finance ’04) – ACAC, badminton
🥌Karynn Flory-Simmons (Personal Fitness Trainer ’14) – ACAC and CCAA, curling
⚽Dhee Govender – ACAC, women’s soccer (north division)
⛳Tyler Leicht – ACAC, golf
🏀Kiera Lyons (Radio and Television – TV ’17), ACAC and CCAA, women’s basketball
⚽Jeff Paulus – ACAC, men’s soccer (north division)
Culture is king
As far as Richey is concerned, a process set in motion in 2023-24 is working. Recreation, facilities and athletics had recently merged into a single department, offering the opportunity to infuse campus life with Ooks energy. Especially this year, says Richey, “the results are showing.”
For proof, he has the success of the volleyball tournament, support of executive leadership in initiatives such as the gym renovation, rising interest from media outside of the polytechnic, and a growing number of Ooks team members who opt to stay at NAIT for four-year programs or related two-year diplomas to keep playing.
“These students are really enjoying themselves,” says Richey.
As for next year ...
For all the successes of 2025-26, next year could be one of rebuilding. Many team veterans are finishing their programs and moving on. “We're going to have a lot of new student athletes next year with all of our teams,” says Richey. “We're hoping the few veterans we have can continue the momentum.”
But 2026-27 will bring more growth and progress, with more of it likely to make Ooks history. Despite the recent national event, Richey’s department is barely pausing for breath. From Nov. 11 to 14, NAIT will host the CCAA men’s soccer championship, bringing seven other teams to Edmonton from across Canada.
“Hosting two national championships in a calendar year is unprecedented,” Richey says. It’s daunting, he admits, but adds to the energy of a season in which the Ooks performed in unprecedented ways.
“Our team is ready to go again,” he says.