The NAIT Ooks badminton team is hitting the road for the ACAC Championship at Olds College this weekend. NAIT has teams in four of the five events, men's and women's singles, men's doubles, and mixed doubles. NAIT is second in the ACAC badminton team event standings with a total of 261 points.

Alan Chow, the badminton team's head coach, has high hopes for his players this year. Although it's been a tough ride, Chow believes his team will make their mark this weekend.

"We've had a challenging year to start the season, but the team has shown us a lot of character and has performed a lot better as the season went on. It will be tough to win the championships, but we have our eye on it and the determination to go for it," said Chow.

"As for the Individual events, we should have a few athletes making it to nationals and hopeful making the podium as well."

The top players to look out for on the NAIT team are Smit Patel, Jay Patel, Brandon Gendre, Davis Wong, and Ivy Ung.

In men's singles, the top contenders are Smit, Jay, and Brandon. Brandon and Jay stayed consistent in both tournaments as Jay won third and Brandon won fourth. Smit is the heavy-hitter in this event as he placed second in the first tournament but rose to the occasion at home and won the event during the second tournament.

Men's doubles is another intense event for the Ooks. Jay Patel and Shivansh Shivansh won second, and Brandon Gendre placed third with his partner Nam Nguyen. There was a pair shuffle going into the second tournament, but it turned out to be for the best as Smit Patel, and Davis Wong took home the first-place finish. Brandon Gendre and Jay Patel came in third.

The NAIT Ooks aren't as strong on the female side of the competition, but Ivy Ung has been representing to the best of her ability. She came in fourth in the first tournament but didn't compete in the second. The women don't have a doubles team competing this season.

The mixed doubles are another event to watch out for as the Ooks have come in second place two tournaments in a row. Ivy Ung partnered with Smit Patel in the first tournament, but the pairs were switched for the second, and she competed with Davis Wong.

Jay Patel came out flying this season, earning the ACAC men's rookie of the year title.

The Championship tournament isn't the end for the Ooks as they are hosting Nationals this year from March 17 to 19.