The 10th annual Battle of the Southwest was waged Wednesday night at OM Irwin School in Swift Current, where the Millar College of the Bible Edge earned local bragging rights after sweeping both of the evening's volleyball matches against the Great Plains College SunDogs.

The Edge women started the night with a straight-sets win in front of a large crowd at the gym split between SunDogs fans and those who made the trip from Pambrun for the event.

"We have a good group of girls, they like to play together and they like to have fun while they're doing it, so it's fun to coach them," said Edge women's team coach Missy McComish. "We actually have a great fanbase and we appreciate that a lot. Even when we go away to other communities, we get a lot of students' families coming to watch and friends, so it's encouraging to see that."

"We definitely have a few things to work on as far as communication and being more comfortable playing next to each other," SunDogs coach Briana Wilms said. "It's a short season and we don't have a lot of games, so it's ideal to get as much playing and practice as we can."

The Millar Edge men won the Southwest Cup after the SunDogs took them to three sets in their match

On the men's side, the Edge beat the SunDogs in a thrilling three-set match. After Millar took the opening set, the SunDogs rebounded with a 27-25 win in a back-and-forth second frame to force the deciding set, which went to the Edge by a 15-9 score.

"I'm really encouraged to see the SunDogs and how they're improving this year, [SunDogs coach Tyler Byers] is doing a good job with them," said Edge coach Kevin Peters. "It was closer than I wanted but it was good for the fans... we have great fans and love them to death, and they come out and cheer us on, but I was really encouraged with all the Swift Current people coming out today, and there's a lot of fans... that's just good to see for their program and the anniversary there."

"The fans were great from both sides, everything was fun, and even though we lost, we had fun and it was exciting," said Byers, who also played volleyball for the SunDogs before coming on to coach this season. "It's fun watching these guys get excited and it's fun watching them pour themselves out on the court... we have a short bench, but we're loud, happy and proud, and it's great to watch."

The SunDogs men's and women's volleyball teams return to action next weekend with a tournament in Moose Jaw, while the Edge will travel to Three Hills, AB for a tournament starting November 6th.