BURNABY, B.C. – After a week of celebration online, the winners of the annual Simon Fraser University Athletic Awards have been unveiled.
PRESIDENT'S TEAM OF THE YEAR: Women's Track and Field
SFU women's track and field earns the President's Athletic Team of the Year award after a season where it recorded four All-America performances and captured seven major Great Northwest Athletic Conference awards.
Alison Andrews-Paul set the NCAA Division II record in the 800 meters and placed second at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championship meet. During the 2023 indoor season, Marie-Éloïse Leclair set the GNAC indoor records in the 60, 200 and 400 meters and made history as the highest-finishing GNAC sprinter at the NCAA Indoor Championships. Andrews-Paul, Leclair and
Emma Cannan earned major conference awards.
Men's cross country and women's wrestling were finalists for the award. The Red Leafs placed 19th at the NCAA Div. II Men's Cross Country Championships and fourth at the West Regional. Women's wrestling was sixth at the National Collegiate Women's Wrestling Championships, led by All-Americans
Emily Cue,
Marquesis Haintz,
Victoria Seal and
Katja Osteen.
LORNE DAVIES ATHLETES OF THE YEAR – INDIVIDUAL SPORT: Marie-Éloïse Leclair and Charlie Dannatt
With their outstanding performances, Leclair and
Charlie Dannatt merit their status as winners of the Lorne Davies Athlete of the Year – Individual Sport.
Leclair cemented her place as the greatest sprinter in GNAC history by setting the conference record in the following events: outdoor 200 meters, and indoor 60, 200 and 400 meters. She had three All-America finishes: outdoor 4x400-m relay (eighth), indoor 60 meters (seventh) and 200 meters (fifth).
GNAC co-Player of the Year
Shirin Anjarwalla (women's golf) and 170-pound All-American
Emily Cue (women's wrestling) were the other finalists.
Dannatt won the 2022 GNAC outdoor title in the 1,500 meters and was the conference's Outdoor Track Men's Newcomer of the Year. He was third in the 1,500 at the 2022 NCAA Div. II Outdoor Track and Field Championships. In cross country, he had an All-America 15th-place result, and won the West Region Championship, becoming the first SFU men's runner to do so.
In 2023, Dannatt became the third GNAC athlete to ever break the four-minute barrier in the indoor mile, running 3:58.54 to move into second place on the GNAC all-time list. Dannatt is also third on the conference's 3,000-m list.
The other finalists were NCAA championships qualifier
Taniela Feliciano-Takafua, who amassed a 32-8 record, and GNAC Freshman of the Year, All-Conference and All-West Region golfer
Bailey Bjornson.
LORNE DAVIES ATHLETES OF THE YEAR – TEAM SPORT: Alex Ogg and Mark Talisuna
Softball player
Alex Ogg is the Lorne Davies Athlete of the Year in a Women's Team Sport, while the men's winner is
Mark Talisuna of soccer.
Ogg completed her collegiate career in the spring of 2022 by capturing the GNAC Player of the Year award, just the second SFU athlete to do so. Ogg was also a unanimous All-Conference First Team, and a double All-West Region Second Team selection. She led the league in hitting with a .420 average.
Earning consideration were
Isabella Muzzolini (soccer) and
Jessica Wisotzki (basketball). Muzzolini was the GNAC Newcomer of the Year and an All-Conference Second Team player, while Wisotzki was 10th in NCAA Div. II in points per game (21.0) to garner a unanimous selection to the 2023 All-GNAC First Team.
The spark of the SFU men's soccer midfield, Talisuna was chosen GNAC Player of the Year, All-West Region First Team and NCAA All-American. He started all 17 matches and played 1,519 minutes for SFU.
Football player
Ethan Beselt, an All-Lone Star Conference Honorable Mention, and men's basketball player
David Penney, an All-GNAC Honorable Mention, were also finalists.
BILL DeVRIES SENIOR ALL-AROUND ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Ryan Stolys
The Bill DeVries Senior All-Around Athlete of the Year award goes to men's golfer
Ryan Stolys. His 2021-22 season stroke average of 74.08 is the 11th-best in school history, and helped the Red Leafs place second at the GNAC Championships and 19th at the West/South Central Regional tournament.
Stolys is a four-time GNAC All-Academic Team member, and holds a 4.00 GPA in Computer Engineering.
He served on SFU's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee for four years, including two as president. During that time, the SAAC was twice named a finalist for the NCAA Award of Excellence as a result of its community service initiatives. Stolys participated in Literacy Week and other community outreach programs. The SAAC Excellence in Leadership Award was named in his honour last year.
Emily Cue (women's wrestling) and
Jordan Schmidt (men's cross country and track and field) were the other finalists.
NADINE CARON TOP SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Randon Hall
Swimmer
Randon Hall is the Nadine Caron Top Scholar-Athlete with a 4.31 cumulative GPA as a Mathematical Physics student, heading a truly impressive list of Nadine Caron Top 10 Scholar-Athletes.
NADINE CARON TOP 10 SCHOLAR-ATHLETES
2 - 4.24 CGPA in Biomedical Physiology,
Emily Chilton, Track & Field/XC
T3 - 4.18 CGPA in Economics & Business,
Mitchell Gibbs, Track & Field
T3 - 4.18 CGPA in Molecular Biology & Biochemistry,
Owen Gudmundson, Wrestling
5 - 4.04 CGPA in Molecular Biology & Biochemistry,
Matt Hobson, Soccer
T6 - 4.00 CGPA in Kinesiology,
Maddy Paugh, Track & Field
T6 - 4.00 CGPA in Computer Engineering,
Ryan Stolys, Golf
T8 - 3.97 CGPA in Biological Sciences,
Brooke Dexter, Volleyball
T8 - 3.97 CGPA in Business & Psychology,
Jordan Schmidt, Track & Field/XC
10 - 3.94 CGPA in Business & Economics,
Mackenzie Almeida, Women's soccer
TERRY FOX INSPIRATIONAL ATHLETES OF THE YEAR: Randy McDonald and Emily Cue
Wrestlers
Emily Cue and
Randy McDonald are the winners of the Terry Fox Inspirational Athlete of the Year, both spotlighted for their leadership, dedication, and team work.
Cue was third at the NCWWC, earning All-America recognition for the third time in her career. Off the mat, she volunteered as a mental health representative facilitating discussions with athletes and teams on important mental health topics. Cue took initiative to provide athletic, academic, and emotional support to teammates. She organized team cardio sessions, held freshmen welcome dinners, coordinated team meetings and led team-bonding activities.
McDonald served as the men's wrestling team captain this season, leading by example with a consistent work ethic and attitude. A Master's student in Economics, he was a Learning Coach and was a reliable resource for school support. McDonald cares deeply for his teammates and holds teammates accountable for their effort and dedication on the mats. He was the 141-pound starter and finished with a 7-5 dual meet record.
All nominees – including outstanding finalists
Mason Glover (football),
Kohl Peters (volleyball),
David Penney (men's basketball) and
Valerie Silva (women's soccer) – were chosen by their respective teams.
RYAN STOLYS SAAC EXCELLENCE IN LEADERSHIP AWARD: Emily Chilton
Emily Chilton – a cross country and track and field athlete who has previously won the Bill DeVries and Nadine Caron Top Scholar-Athlete honours – adds to her resume with the
Ryan Stolys SAAC Excellence in Leadership Award. She has been a Learning Coach and a member of the SFU SAAC for four years. The NCAA has recognized the SFU SAAC twice as a finalist for its Award of Excellence. Chilton has worked on campaigns to build mental health awareness that focused on student-athlete resilience and burnout. She has also worked to develop an ongoing partnership between SFU Athletics and Special Olympics British Columbia (SOBC).
Chilton worked alongside fellow members and SAAC award finalists
Kate Cameron (women's cross country and track and field),
Eva Person (volleyball) and
Jordan Thorsen (men's soccer).
FRESHMEN OF THE YEAR: Victoria Seal and Jarrett Chong
Women's wrestler
Victoria Seal and men's javelin thrower
Jarrett Chong are SFU's Freshmen of the Year.
Seal won third place in the 116-pound weight class at the NCWWC Championships to become an All-American. She was a Super Region champion and ended the season with a 28-4 record, including a 4-1 mark at the national meet.
GNAC Volleyball Freshman of the Year
Eva Person, and Canadian Olympic Swimming Trials qualifier
Abby Williams – who is in SFU's all-time top five in two individual events – were also finalists.
Chong was seventh for the Red Leafs in the javelin at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championships, becoming the first SFU men's thrower to earn NCAA All-America status in the event. He made the All-West Region First Team and is the 12th-ranked javelin thrower on the GNAC's all-time list.
Men's golfer Bjornson, the GNAC Freshman of the Year with a 72.33 scoring average that ranks top 10 all-time at SFU, and basketball player
Immanuel Oludele, the third-leading scorer (10.3 points per game) on the Red Leafs, were also finalists.
RICK JONES AWARD FOR COURAGE: Aidan Goodfellow
The Rick Jones Award for Courage is a special honour presented to a student-athlete who displayed tremendous courage in the face of adversity. The 2023 winner is
Aidan Goodfellow.
After suffering career-threatening shoulder and Achilles' Heel injuries, Goodfellow returned to action with SFU men's golf after two years of uncertainty. In his first tournament back, he won the Saint Martin's Bishop Invitational. Goodfellow helped SFU win the GNAC and make the NCAA tournament. Individually, he was named First Team All-Conference and All-West Region.
V.W. KIP DOUGHERTY AWARD: Stephen Ho
Women's basketball trainer Stephen Ho is the winner of the V.W. Kip Dougherty Award for outstanding contribution to a varsity team as a trainer, equipment manager, or team manager.
For the latest information on SFU Athletics, visit
athletics.sfu.ca. You can also find us on social media at @SFU_Athletics.
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