Source: Atlantic University Sport
(WOLFVILLE, N.S.) - Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2015-16 AUS women's volleyball all-stars and major award winners as selected by the conference's six head coaches following regular season play.
Fourth-year Memorial Sea-Hawks outside hitter and Bishop's Fall's, N.L. native Jill Snow was named the Atlantic University Sport most valuable player, Thursday night.
Other AUS major award winners announced during the awards banquet held in Wolfville, N.S. were Memorial's Kierstin Fey of Selkirk, Man., who earned the Kristen Ryan Memorial Award as the AUS rookie of the year; Acadia's Sarah Ross of Toronto, who received the Erin Bursey Memorial Award for student-athlete community service; and Sea-Hawks head coach John Slauenwhite, who was named AUS coach of the year.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Jill Snow, Memorial
Jill Snow, an outside hitter with the Memorial Sea-Hawks, wrapped up her fourth season with a hitting percentage of .241, the highest in the AUS. She also led the Atlantic conference in points per set with 4.1 and kills per set with 3.37.
An education student from Bishop's Falls, N.L., Snow also contributed 3.23 digs per set this season for the Sea-Hawks, along with 0.52 service aces per set.
Appearing 17 matches and 62 total sets this season, Snow's regular season stats included 254.5 season points, 209 kills, 200 digs and 23 total blocks.
Memorial posted a 10-7 record this season, finishing second in the AUS standings and earning a first-round bye in this year's Subway AUS Women's Volleyball Championship being hosted by Acadia.
In addition to being selected as the AUS MVP, Snow earned a place on the AUS first team all-star squad for the second consecutive year. Her career accomplishments also include having been named to the 2012-13 AUS all-rookie team in her freshman year with Memorial.
Snow becomes just the second player from a Memorial Sea-Hawks team to be named the conference's most valuable player. She joins former Sea-Hawks standout Susan Mosher who earned the honour in 1999-00.
She now looks to become the first AUS player to be named CIS player of the year since 1981-82, when Dalhousie's Karen Maessen won the award.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Kierstin Fey, Memorial (Kristen Ryan Memorial Award)
Memorial's Kierstin Fey of Selkirk, Man. has been selected at the 2015-16 recipient of the Kristen Ryan Memorial Award as AUS rookie of the year.
Playing in all 17 matches for the Sea-Hawks this season, Fey's .230 hitting percentage was the second highest in the conference. Only Memorial teammate and AUS MVP Jill Snow posted a higher hitting percentage.
Fey finished fourth overall in the AUS in total points (216.5) and points per set (3.5), as well as in total kills (176) and kills per set (2.84).
She becomes just the second player from a Memorial Sea-Hawks team to earn AUS rookie of the year honours and the first since the 2005-06 season when former Sea-Hawks standout Sasha Wilkins took home the award.
This award was recently renamed in honour of former Cape Breton Capers player Kristen Ryan. A native of Port Hastings, N.S. and a five-year members of the CBU women's volleyball team, Ryan was a two-time Atlantic conference all-star and was named the AUS libero of the year in 2009-10. She passed away in 2012 following a motor vehicle accident.
Fey now becomes the AUS nominee for the Mark Tennant Award as CIS rookie of the year. No Atlantic conference player has ever won the award.
STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Sarah Ross, Acadia (Erin Bursey Memorial Award)
Acadia Axewomen third-year outside hitter Sarah Ross is the 2015-16 recipient of the Erin Bursey Memorial Award, given to the women's volleyball student-athlete who best exhibits outstanding achievements in three areas: volleyball, academics and community involvement.
Ross, an environmental and sustainability studies student from Toronto, Ont., was an integral part of the Axewomen squad this season. She finished third in the conference in total kills (201) and kills per set (3.09), as well as total points 235.0 and points per set 3.6).
In the classroom, Ross is a two-time academic all-Canadian, on pace to repeat again this season.
She is heavily involved in her community, volunteering her time as a coach as well as with several charities and causes.
Ross volunteered as a coach for the Axe Academy last fall, completing sessions with athletes ages 8 to 14. She is also a support coach with the 14U girls Axe Volleyball Program.
She is the senior leader and co-president of the Acadia Players' Association, a committee of student-athletes who work together on an array of community service initiatives.
Ross also serves as an event coordinator for Relay for Life, fundraising in advance, volunteering at the event and acting as a team leader.
She becomes just the second Acadia volleyball player to earn the student-athlete community service award. Former Axewomen standout Lori-Beth MacEwan won the award in back-to-back seasons in 2002-03 and 2003-04.
This award was renamed in honour of former Memorial Sea-Hawks student-athlete Erin Bursey. Bursey, a two-time CIS academic all-Canadian and a captain with the Sea-Hawks women's volleyball team, passed away in 2012 following a pedestrian-vehicle accident in St. John's, N.L.
Ross now becomes the AUS nominee for the CIS Therese Quigley Award. A player from the Atlantic conference has earned the national honour the past two seasons. UNB's Paige Paulsen won the award last season, while former Memorial standout Adrienne Penney took home the honour in 2013-14.
Acadia's Lori-Beth MacEwen (2002-03 and 2003-04) and Mount Allison's Megan Toews (2001-02) are the other Atlantic conference recipients of the CIS award.
COACH OF THE YEAR: John Slauenwhite, Memorial
John Slauenwhite, in his second year at the helm of the Sea-Hawks program, has been selected by his peers as the AUS coach of the year.
Under Slauenwhite's leadership, the Sea-Hawks finished with a 10-7 regular season record and earned a first-round playoff bye thanks to their second-place finish in the AUS standings.
This marks the first time since the 2000-01 season that a Sea-Hawks team has earned the bye or finished in the top two of the AUS regular season standings.
This year's Sea-Hawks finished with a .175 hitting percentage, the second highest in the conference. They finished second in kills per set (10.81), assists per set (10.24), services aces per set (2.21) and points per set (14.8).
Prior to joining the Sea-Hawks program, Slauenwhite coached for more than a decade at the high school, club, varsity and provincial levels.
He represented Alberta as a head coach on three provincial teams including the 2010 21U Arctic Winter Games, the 2012 16U Western Canadian Elite and the 2013 18U National Team Challenge. He coached all three teams to a top three finish.
In 2010, Slauenwhite returned to his native Nova Scotia to coach the 15U provincial girls' team to a gold medal win at the Eastern Canadian Elite Championships.
He becomes the third Sea-Hawks coach to earn AUS coach of the year honours. Former Memorial coach Mellissa Oates earned the honour following the 2005-06 season. Current Sea-Hawks athletic director Dr. Karen Murphy earned the honour twice as a coach in 1999-00 and 1997-98.
Slauenwhite will now represent the AUS as the nominee for CIS coach of the year at the CIS awards banquet in Brandon, Man.
Moncton head coach Monette Boudreau-Carroll is the only AUS coach to ever be named the CIS coach of the year. She earned the honour following the 2007-08 season.
FIRST AND SECOND TEAM ALL-STARS AND ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
The Atlantic University Sport first and second team all-stars were also announced Thursday evening, along with this year's all-rookie team.
First Team All-Stars:
Setter: Abby Czenze, Dalhousie (4th year – Halifax, N.S.)
Middle: Jessica Josenhans, Dalhousie (5th year – Lunenburg, N.S.)
Middle: Erin Smith, Saint Mary's (3rd year – Moncton, N.B.)
Libero: Hillary Monette, Acadia (5th year – New Minas, N.S.)
Outside Hitter: Jill Snow, Memorial (4th year – Bishop's Falls, N.L.)
Outside Hitter: Anna Dunn-Suen, Dalhousie (3rd year – Halifax, N.S.)
Outside Hitter: Sarah Ross, Acadia (3rd year – Toronto, Ont.)
Second Team All-Stars:
Setter: Maiya Westwood, Memorial (1st year – East St. Paul, Man.)
Middle: Rachelle Lemoine, Moncton (4th year – Winnipeg, Man.)
Middle: Alyssa Turenne, Moncton (3rd year – La Broquerie, Man.)
Libero: Marisa Mota, Dalhousie (4th year – Kitchener, Ont.)
Outside Hitter: Kierstin Fey, Memorial (1st year – Selkirk, Man.)
Outside Hitter: Mieke DuMont, Dalhousie (2nd year – Kamloops, B.C.)
Outside Hitter: Christelle Bertin, Moncton (2nd year – Beresford, N.B.)
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM:
Kierstin Fey, Memorial (Selkirk, Man.)
Courtney Baker, Dalhousie (Bridgewater, N.S.)
Lauryn Renzella, Acadia (Stouffville, Ont.)
Maiya Westwood, Memorial (East St. Paul, Man.)
The 2016 Subway Atlantic University Sport Women's Volleyball Championship is being hosted by Acadia University Feb. 26-28, 2016 in Wolfville, N.S.
The championship schedule is as follows: (seeding in brackets)
Friday, Feb. 26
Quarterfinal #1: Saint Mary's (4th) vs. Moncton (5th), 4:30 p.m.
Quarterfinal #2: Acadia (3rd) vs. UNB (6th), 7 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 27
Semifinal #1: Dalhousie (1st) vs. winner of quarterfinal #1, 4:30 p.m.
Semifinal #2: Memorial (2nd) vs. winner of quarterfinal #2, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 28
Championship Game: Semifinal winners, 2 p.m.
All games of the AUS championship will be webcast at AUStv.ca and broadcast live on Bell Aliant's FibreOP TV1 on channels 1 and 401.
The AUS champion will advance to the 2016 CIS Women's Volleyball Championship being hosted by Brandon University in Brandon, Man. March 11-13.