BRANDON – The Bobcats cannot wait to get the ball rolling following the release of the 2017-18 Canada West volleyball schedule on Wednesday. Longtime local coach Kevin Neufeld will make his debut as interim bench boss with Lee Carter away on sabbatical when the season starts in late October. On the men's side, BU coach Grant Wilson will try to keep his program pushing forward following a playoff appearance last season. Quick facts: The Bobcats will play 11 home dates and 13 on the road New conference playoff format Afternoon games for school groups on February 9 Home games to be broadcast on WCGtv Canada West has partnered with Yare Media to revamp Canada West TV Brandon begins their schedule with a road trip on October 20 to meet provincial rival the Manitoba Bisons. The Bobcats first home matches will come on October 27 when they welcome the Saskatchewan Huskies. First serve for the women's match is 6 p.m., followed by the men's game at 7:45 p.m. at the Healthy Living Centre. "It is exciting to see the schedule because being able to play at that elite level is the highlight for everyone," said Neufeld. "Our players and coaching staff are looking forward to the long grinding season and it is really important that we get some wins early on." The Trinity Western Spartans, Winnipeg Wesmen, UBC Okanagan Heat, MacEwan Griffins and Mount Royal Cougars will also travel to Brandon to battle the Bobcats. The men's matches on November 10-11 against Trinity Western will see BU go up against the defending U SPORTS national champions. Meanwhile, Brandon will be in matinee action on February 9 against the Cougars, giving school groups the chance to catch the Bobcats in action. "The season is always a grind from start to finish and we are excited for what the 2017-18 schedule has in store for us," said Wilson. "The matinees against Mount Royal are certainly a highlight and we hope to see a lot of schools attend to cheer us on. Those matches could be simply electrifying if everything falls into place." BU Athletics will proudly team up with Westman Communications Group once again to broadcast all homes on WCGtv Channel 12. You can also keep tabs on the Bobcats through www.canadawest.tv with live stats and video. The conference has partnered with Yare Media to develop a revamped Canada West TV for all fans to enjoy on their computer, tablet or smartphone device. Meanwhile, the number of Canada West playoff berths has increased from seven to eight teams. There is also a new post-season format. The Final Four tournament has been replaced with a single conference championship match, ensuring a host team will vie for the title. Bobcat season tickets and flex packs will go on sale in September. IMPORTANT DATES: October 20 – Season opener on the road at Manitoba October 27 – Home-opener against Saskatchewan December 1 – Final home game of first half of season against Winnipeg February 10 - Final regular season home game against Mount Royal February 22-25  – Canada West Quarter-Finals (Location TBD) March 1-4 – Canada West Semifinals (Location TBD) March 9 or 10 – Canada West Final (Location TBD) March 15-18 – U SPORTS Men's National Championship (at MacMaster) March 15-18 – U SPORTS Women's National Championship (at Laval)

Three members of the Brandon Wheat Kings were among the invitees to Hockey Canada's National Jr Development Camp scheduled for this summer. Kale Clague, Nolan Patrick and Tanner Kaspick were listed, along with 39 other top prospects, looking to earn an invitation to December’s National Junior Team selection camp. Others of interest invited invited include Winnipeg's Cody Glass (Portland Winter Hawks), Oakbank's Brett Howden (Moose Jaw Warriors) and defensemen David Quenville, a brother of former Wheat Kings John and Peter. Elsewhere in Hockey Canada news, Brandon's Calen Addison has been named to the Under-18 selection camp roster. Addison spent last season patrolling the blue line for the Lethbridge Hurricanes of the WHL. Also named to the development camp roster was Foxwarren's Dawson Barteaux (Red Deer), Winnipeg's Jett Woo (Moose Jaw) & Riley Stotts (Swift Current). One hundred and eleven different players have been invited to the under-17 development camp in Calgary. Among the invitees is AAA Midget Wheat King goalie Trent Miner. Joining Miner at camp include Wheat King prospects Braden Schneider, Kyle Bettens, Jonny Hooker, and Ben McCartney. For full details, click here.

Resurfacing to the Athletic Field at the Brandon Community Sportsplex is on schedule for completion in the coming weeks. Previous to this week, the dry weather had been good for drying out the track and most of the civil work is done. According to a City of Brandon spokesperson, the rubber surface crew will start installing the top surface in the very near future and it’s expected that work will be completed by the middle of July. At this point, the project is on budget. As the City of Brandon is hosting the 2017 Legion National Youth Track & Field Championships, this will be the first event held at the newly renovated athletic field. The championships take place August 10-13. While the renovation delays from last summer had schools and other groups looking for alternative track and field options, when the new rubberized track is complete it will serve Brandon and the Westman region for years to come. It will continue to be the perfect venue for hosting local, regional, provincial and national events as the newly renovated facility will meet International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) standards. The Athletic Field was last renovated in 1996 in preparation for hosting the 1997 Canada Summer Games. With the normal life cycle for such rubberized track facilities being 10 years, the Sportsplex Track & Field venue was well past its original life expectancy and was in desperate need of replacement.

Nick Myhre of Rolette, N.D., has become the first American to win the the Grey Owl golf tournament. The 21-year-old shot a 2-day 140 total (68-72) to capture the championship flight. Breezy Bend's, Justin McDonald finished second firing a 2-day total of 143, to finish 3 strokes back. Rounding out the top 5 in the Championship flight were Nolan Tutkaluk (145), Jay Thiesen (145) and Rob Hall (146). The Greyer Owls 60-plus senior flight was won by Clear Lake's Keith Fawcett. Having just completed it's 57th edition, the Grey Owl is one of longest-running golf tournaments of its kind in North America. The three day event sees 320 golfers tee it up at the Riding Mountain National Park’s Clear Lake golf course in June of each year. For full tournament results click here.

Former Wheat King defensemen, Daniel Tetrault has been named the new head coach of the Rapid City Rush of the ECHL. Tetrault played in 247 regular season WHL games over 5 seasons (1995-2000) with the club. He also appeared in 4 games with the Wheaties at the Memorial Cup in 95-96. Last season he was an assistant coach with the Rush. Mike Kelly, who briefly spent time as a head coach for the Wheat Kings, was named an assistant coach with the Vegas Golden Knights. Kelly was the Wheat Kings head coach back in the 03-04 season, but was relieved of his coaching duties after starting the season with a 22-32-12 record. Kelly will assist head coach Gerard Gallant, and the two have worked together behind the bench as members of the Florida Panthers staff for several seasons (2014-17).