University of Toronto Varsity Blues Women's Volleyball named OUA Team of the Year

COLLINGWOOD, Ont. - On Wednesday night, Ontario University Athletics (OUA) recognized the accomplishments of several exceptional members of the conference, spanning from administration and coaches to athletes and teams.

TEAM OF THE YEAR – UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO VARSITY BLUES WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

The 2015-16 season was one to remember for the Varsity Blues women’s volleyball team and one that will go down in the storied history of the University of Toronto. 

After completing the regular season with an unblemished 19-0 record, the Blues defeated Ottawa, McMaster and Ryerson on their way to winning their second consecutive and tenth OUA title in program history.

In just her first season in OUA, Alina Dormann made quite the entrance, winning both OUA East Division Rookie and Player of the Year, as well as garnering the CIS Rookie of the Year honours and a second-team All-Canadian selection following a fantastic freshman campaign.   

Dormann, along with teammates Madelyn Mandryk, Denise Wooding and Bojana Radan were named OUA first-team all-stars, while Tessa Davis was selected to represent Toronto on the second team.  The Blues were led once again behind the bench by Kristine Drakich who was named OUA East Coach of the Year for the third straight season.

As the lone OUA representative at the CIS national championship, Toronto knocked off McGill in the quarter-finals and UBC Okanagan to advance to the CIS final for the first time in program history.

Despite facing the defending CIS national champions, the Blues made quick work of the Trinity Western Spartans, defeating them in straight sets to win their first national banner in team history.  Toronto also became the first OUA team to claim the CIS women’s volleyball national championship banner since 1976.

With the win, the Blues became the third University of Toronto team in recent history to complete a perfect season, joining the 2000-01 women’s hockey team and the 1985-86 women’s basketball team.

JOHN McMANUS AWARD – DENNIS FAIRALL - WINDSOR LANCERS

The John McManus Award is given to a retired OUA coach that exemplifies the highest ideals and qualities of sportsmanship and service while engaged in coaching in university sport.

Over the course of the past 29 years, legendary Windsor Lancers track and field and cross country coach Dennis Fairall has established himself as one of the most decorated coaches in Canadian university history.

Under the guidance of Fairall, the Lancers track and field and cross country teams have won 47 OUA championships (40 track and field, 7 cross country) and 25 CIS championships (20 track and field, 5 cross country).

The Tillsonburg, Ont. native has been honoured an astonishing 65 times throughout his career as either OUA or CIS coach of the year in track and field and/or cross country.

Between 1990 and 2015, Fairall led his Lancer teams to 23 out of 25 provincial championships in men's track and field, and 17 out of 25 provincial championships in women's track and field.

In addition to coaching the Lancers, Fairall also served as head coach of the 1985 and 1989 Canadian Maccabi Games entries in Isreal and the 1989 World University Games team in Duisburg, West Germany.

In 2005, Fairall was Head Coach of Team Canada at the Pan American Junior Athletics Championships in Windsor where he guided the team to their highest medal count in the history of the event.

Prior to the 2015-16 OUA Track and Field Championship, the St. Denis Centre Fieldhouse at the University of Windsor was re-named the Dennis Fairall Fieldhouse to honour the legendary coach.

Currently, Fairall is coaching former Lancer standout and Canadian middle distance specialist Melissa Bishop as she prepares for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.

OUA MEDIA AWARD OF DISTINCTION – TERRY MARCOTTE

For years, Terry Marcotte has delivered top coverage of CIS sports in the nation’s capital, shining the spotlight on both of Ottawa’s two university sports teams, the Carleton Ravens and Ottawa Gee-Gees. 

Since 1987, Marcotte has been the Sports Director at CTV Ottawa, engaging his audience with award-winning reporting and captivating features.  Marcotte is one of Ottawa’s most recognizable and well-respected sports journalists and continuously covers major rivalry events such as the Capital Hoops Classic and the Panda Game, which has helped to attract record crowds and strong publicity. 

Marcotte has been on the sidelines and in the press box for some of Ottawa’s biggest moments, including several Ravens’ men’s basketball championships and covering Gee-Gees’ QB Brad Sinopoli during his Hec Creighton-winning season in 2010. 

This past season, Marcotte and his CTV Ottawa crew produced several human interest pieces on both schools including inspirational stories on Ottawa’s Krista van Slingerland while she developed the Student Athlete Mental Health Initiative, Paul Neves, the manager of the Ottawa men’s basketball team, a Gee-Gee football player’s recovery from a fractured vertebrae, as well as a piece on former Ravens soccer player Andrew Latty and his Athletes in Crisis campaign. 

In addition to reporting on the Ravens and Gee-Gees, Marcotte also covers local community and charity events, amateur athletics, as the NHL’s Ottawa Senators and CFL’s Ottawa REDBLACKS.

J.P. LOOSEMORE AWARD – MARILOU IUSI

The J.P. Loosemore award is given to an individual who exemplifies the best in university sport in terms of ethics, integrity and honesty. The recipient is to be evaluated on his/her administrative contribution to university sports.

Marilou Iusi was one of the longest standing employees Brock University and the longest serving employee of the Athletics and Recreation Department.

Iusi, who began her career at Brock in 1976, worked under former Athletic Directors Arnie Lowenberger, Bob Davis and Dr. Loren Adams and now joins the trio as a recipient of the prestigious J.P. Loosemore Award.

Known mostly for her sense of humor and perspective, Iusi was never too busy to stop what she was doing and help out a student-athlete or coach.  Her strong work ethic kept everyone around her on task, while her infectious laugh brightened peoples day. 

“Numerous students and coaches relied on Marilou as she quarterbacked much of the day-to-day administration of the department,” said assistant athletic director Chris Critelli.

Iusi passed away earlier this year in Niagara Falls after battling an illness.  She was 63 years old.

FEMALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR – KYLIE MASSE - TORONTO VARSITY BLUES

University of Toronto Varsity Blues swimming standout Kylie Masse brings home OUA Female Athlete of the Year honours after a record shattering sophomore season.

Masse was named both the OUA and CIS female swimmer of the year after she helped the Blues capture their third consecutive OUA title and first national championship banner since 1996-97.

At the OUA championship this past February, Masse won all six OUA finals in record time, including two Canadian short-course records in the 50m and 100m backstroke.

The LaSalle, Ont. native somehow managed to top that performance at the CIS national championship where she had seven podium finishes in as many events, including four gold medals, three long-course meet records and a new Canadian standard of 27.84 seconds in the 50-metre backstroke.

Last month, Masse qualified for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro when she broke her own Canadian record in the 100-metre backstroke with a time of 59.06.

Masse is no stranger to representing Canada as she was a member of the 2013 Canada Games team and competed at the 2014 Pan Am Sports Festival.  At the 2015 Summer Universaide in Gwangju, Masse won gold in the 100m backstroke and will hope for a similar result this August.

Masse becomes the first Varsity Blues student-athlete and swimmer to win the award since Liz Warden was honoured following the 2001-02 season.

MALE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR – STEPHEN MAAR - MCMASTER MARAUDERS

In his fourth and final season, McMaster Marauders outside hitter Stephen Maar was a force to be reckoned with and caps off an outstanding career as OUA Male Athlete of the Year.

Despite an injury plagued winter term, the fourth-year history and political science major led the conference in several statistical categories this season, including: kills per set (4.29), hitting percentage (.395) and points per set (5.0).

The Aurora, Ont. native was named an OUA first-team all-star for the first time in his career and became the third consecutive Marauder to be named OUA men’s volleyball MVP.

Led by Maar, the Marauders finished the regular season with an 18-2 record and were ranked the No. 1 team in the country for 13 weeks. 

In a January exhibition series against the No. 1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes, Maar was the leading scorer with 19.5 and 18.5 points, respectively, in a pair of McMaster victories.

Maar and the Marauders established new team records in points (223.5) and attacks (349) on their way to claiming their fourth consecutive Forsyth Memorial Trophy as OUA champions.

Despite falling in the gold medal match at the CIS championship earlier this year, the 6-foot-7 outside hitter was named to the tournament all-star team and a first-team all-Canadian after finishing second in the country in hitting percentage (.395).

Maar becomes the first Marauders student-athlete to win the award since Kyle Quinlan won the honours in back-to-back seasons in 2011-12 and 2012-13.

OUA FEMALE COACH OF THE YEAR - KRISTINE DRAKICH - TORONTO VARSITY BLUES

After a perfect regular season record and an undefeated run that culminated with the program’s first CIS championship, University of Toronto women’s volleyball head coach Kristine Drakich has been named OUA Female Coach of the Year.

Under the guidance of Drakich, the Varsity Blues were unstoppable this season, dropping just three sets during the regular season on their way to a 19-0 record and first place finish in the OUA East division.  After a pair of 3-1 victories early in the season over RMC and Queen’s, the Blues rattled off 15 consecutive straight sets victories.

After a quarterfinal victory over the visiting University of Ottawa Gee-Gees, Drakich and the Blues hosted the OUA Women’s Volleyball Final Four.  A 3-1 semifinal victory over the McMaster Marauders set the stage for a showdown with their crosstown rivals from Ryerson.  However, the Rams were no match for the high-powered Blues attack as Toronto cruised to a 3-0 win for their tenth OUA championship title in program history. 

For the third straight season and the tenth time in her career, Drakich was named East Division Coach of the Year.

Drakich, who played for her hometown Varsity Blues from 1983-86 and 1988-89 has been the head coach of the team since 1989-90 and has led the program to nine of their ten OUA championship banners over the course of her 27 seasons with Toronto.

During her playing days, the Toronto, Ont. native was a captain and all-Canadian with the Varsity Blues and was inducted into the University of Toronto’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.

This is the first OUA Female Coach of the Year award for Drakich and she is the first women’s volleyball coach to win the award since former Windsor Lancers head coach Marilyn Douglas won the award in 2005-06.

OUA MALE COACH OF THE YEAR – MARTY CALDER - BROCK BADGERS

Under the guidance of Head Coach Marty Calder, the Brock Badgers Men’s and Women’s Wrestling teams were unstoppable, sweeping both the OUA and CIS championship titles. 

At the OUA championship in February, Calder coached the Badgers women to eight weight class qualifications, while the men qualified in all but one category.  Both teams left the OUA championship with six medals and the OUA championship banners. 

Calder and the Badgers followed up that dominant performance with an equally strong showing at home at the CIS national championships with six women and eight men being made all-Canadian selections. 

For his efforts this season, Calder swept both the OUA and CIS Coach of the Year on both the men’s and women’s sides. 

Since the 1999-00 season, Calder has been named OUA Men’s and Women’s Wrestling Coach of the Year an astonishing 14 times, including winning both awards in each of the past two seasons.  In addition, Calder is also a sixteen-time CIS Men’s and Women’s Wrestling Coach of the Year award winner, having taken home each honour eight times. 

During his Brock wrestling days, Calder was a five-time OUA champion and a four-time first-team all-Canadian.  He was named Brock Male Athlete of the Year three-times and was inducted into the Brock Athletics Hall of Fame 2003. 

Under the guidance of Calder, a two-time Olympian himself in 1992 and 1996, Michelle Fazzari and Jillian Gallays have qualified for the Canadian Olympic Team for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. 

This is the first OUA Male Coach of the Year award for Calder and first by either a men’s or women’s wrestling coach. 

Also awarded were the second annual OUA CHAMP Awards (Celebrating and Honouring Achievments in Marketing and Promotions) to the following winners:

• Photo of the Year: Ryerson Rams – Wilson Cup celebration
• Best New Marketing Initiative: Brock Badgers – #WeAreReady
• Best Webcast Production: Guelph Gryphons
• Best Social Media Account: Guelph Gryphons – Instagram
• Best Video Feature: Laurier Golden Hawks – Inside the Nest
• Best Mascot: Brock Badgers – Boomer
• Best Market-Driven Championship: Guelph Gryphons – McCaw Cup
• Best High Performance Championship: Toronto Varsity Blues – Women’s Volleyball
• Best Competitive Championship: Toronto Varsity Blues – Figure Skating