Howard, Licis, McDonald, Young named OUA athletes of the week

Graphic on predominantly blue background featuring action photo of Mike Howard, Zig Licis, Nikki McDonald, and Kelyn Young along with the OUA Athletes of the Week logo and large white 'Athletes of the Week' text on the side
March 3, 2025

Burlington, Ont. – Mike Howard, Zig Licis, Nikki McDonald, and Kelyn Young have been named OUA athletes of the week for the period ending March 2, 2025. 

Mike Howard, Toronto Varsity Blues, Fencing

Howard, a third-year foil specialist, helped the Varsity Blues claim their ninth consecutive OUA men's fencing championship this past weekend, earning two medals during the provincial showcase. Howard opened the weekend defending his title as individual men's foil champion, defeating opponents from Queen's, Brock, Ottawa, RMC, Waterloo, and McMaster during round-robin matches. He then delivered a 15-5 win over McMaster in the round of 16, before picking up a 15-13 victory over Ottawa in the quarterfinals.

Howard finished his run to individual gold with a 15-8 win over another opponent from McMaster, before winning the trophy with a 15-11 gold medal match win versus another Ottawa counterpart. On day two Howard then joined his teammates for the foil team relay, knocking off RMC and TMU during the round-robin.

From there a win over McMaster put him back in the gold medal match, where the Blues came up just shy of another first place finish, picking up silver in a close defeat versus Ottawa.

Zig Licis, Queen’s Gaels, Volleyball

Licis played a pivotal role in the OUA semifinal showdown against the Western Mustangs, helping the team secure a hard-fought 3-2 victory in front of their home crowd.

The fifth-year from Louisville, CO delivered a standout performance, setting multiple season-highs on both sides of the court.

He recorded a season- and game-high 23 kills, along with a season-best six aces. He continued to impress and tallied 32.5 points and six blocks in the Gaels five set victory. Two of his aces came late in the fifth set to close out the Mustangs.

Licis’ performance was a key factor in solidifying Queen’s spot in the OUA Championship next week where they will face the Windsor Lancers for the Forsyth Cup.

Nikki McDonald, Waterloo Warriors, Hockey

McDonald had impressive performance for the Waterloo Warriors this past week, helping her team secure a berth in the OUA semifinals with their quarterfinal sweep of the Laurier Golden Hawks.

The fourth-year masters student initiated Waterloo’s comeback in game 1 of the series with the Golden Hawks with a short-handed goal, after the Warriors found themselves down two points early the third period. They completed the comeback and took game 1 in overtime by a score of 3-2.

In game two, McDonald netted a hattrick for the Warriors and to top it off, her game-winning goal was both unassisted and short-handed, showcasing her skill and determination on the ice. She once again helped the Warriors secure the 4-2 victory over their cross-town rivals.

Kelyn Young, Guelph Gryphons, Wrestling

Young captured the gold medal at the 2025 Wrestling Canada Lutte U SPORTS Invitational Championships in the women's 50kg weight class. Young won all four matches in pool play before she pinned Brock's Samantha Romero in the first round to claim national gold.

Throughout Young's dominant season, she only allowed an impressive two points to be scored against her.

She was also named a national major award winner, after taking home the R.W. Pugh Fair Play Award for the student-athlete who best exemplified sportsmanship and competitive talent throughout the national championship tournament.