On Tap this week is the 23rd annual Lions Western Canadian Challenge in high school volleyball and Alberta Travelers Club Championships in curling

WCC volleyball

The 23rd annual Lions Western Canadian Challenge starts Thursday at Morinville Community High School and the SkyDome. The Morinville Wolves and St. Albert Skyhawks are co-hosting the 24-team volleyball tournament. The 12-team women’s division swings into action at 12:15 p.m. with the Wolves against Whitecourt in pool A at Morinville and the Skyhawks against the R.F. Staples Thunderbirds of Westlock in pool B at the SkyDome. The 12-team men’s division begins at 1:15 p.m. with the Wolves versus Whitecourt in pool A at Morinville and the Skyhawks versus Westlock in pool B at the SkyDome. The Paul Kane Blues and Sturgeon Spirits are also competing in the men’s division and the first pool B matches are Friday for the Blues against the Barrhead Gryphons at 10 a.m. and Sturgeon against the Skyhawks at 11:15 a.m. Friday’s match between the Blues and Skyhawks is 1:30 p.m. The playoffs start Saturday at 12:45 p.m. and the championship and consolation finals are 5:30 p.m. at the SkyDome for the men and Morinville for the women. The defending WCC champions are the Wolves for the men and St. Joseph’s Ceniahs of Grande Prairie for the women. This is the third consecutive year the WCC consists of 24 teams after previous 48-team tournaments. Visit www.mchs.gsacrd.ab.ca for the tournament website.

Travelers curling

The St. Albert rink skipped by Lauren Jenkyns sweeps into action Friday at the Alberta Travelers Club Championships at the Avonair. The opening women’s draw is 3:30 p.m. in the eight-team double-knockout format. Saturday’s draw times are 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 and 6:30 p.m. (A and B qualifiers) and Sunday the semifinal (A loser versus B winner) is 9 a.m. and the final (A winner versus semifinal winner) is 1 p.m. The Alberta champion advances to nationals next month in Kingston, Ont. Visit www.northernalbertacurling.com for the schedule and results. Jenkyns, third Kathy Piper, second Laurie Conrad and lead Cindy Bobowik qualified for provincials after going 4-0 at northerns in March. Michelle Hartwell of the Shamrock, Laurie Knoll of Jasper Place, Leanne Sather of Red Deer, Nanette Dupont of Lethbridge, Vanessa McConnell of Calgary, Treena Pasichnuk of Manning and Elaine Laurin of Peace River also qualified for provincials. All eight teams won their respective club championships in 2016.