OUA announces 2017 field hockey major award winners and All-Stars
BURLINGTON, Ont. – Ontario University Athletics (OUA) is pleased to announce the 2017 OUA Field Hockey major award winners and All-Stars.
Co-Most Valuable Player – Rebecca Plouffe, Guelph
Coming in as the Co-Most Valuable Player for the 2017 season is Rebecca Plouffe (Oakville, Ont.) from the Guelph Gryphons. The Gryphons’ captain proved to be a deserving recipient of the award thanks to her impressive and diverse play this year.
One of Plouffe’s biggest assets is her flexibility to play multiple positions – both midfield and defence – something she did strongly throughout the year to lead the Gryphons to an 8-1-3 season. Plouffe, an OUA All-Star for 2017, tallied three goals on the season, but has also been able to ignite the Gryphons’ attack in other ways from the midfield position, often picking up the third or fourth assist on most goals. Her impact also goes well beyond the score sheet; however, as she has a distinct ability to seemingly be everywhere on both the offensive and defensive penalty corners as well.
Plouffe is an effective leader as team captain of the Gryphons, setting the bar high with her on-field play and truly epitomizing the notion of leading by example, thanks to her intelligence within the game, her strong tackling ability, and her incredible vision – all of which have helped her to become the 2017 Player of the Year.
Co-Most Valuable Player & Rookie of the Year – Jaslan Stirling, York
Joining the fourth-year veteran as Co-MVP, meanwhile, is first-year player Jaslan Stirling (Mississauga, Ont.) from the York Lions.
In her first action on the university scene, Stirling quickly made a name for herself as an offensive threat. The Disaster & Emergency Management student led the OUA in goals with an impressive 19 on the campaign – five clear of any other player – which included five multi-goal efforts. To put an emphatic stamp on her rookie campaign, Stirling put forth a five-goal effort in their regular season finale.
Stirling, who has also been named an OUA All-Star, helped the Lions to a conference-best 11-1 record, was a key spark in the team’s ability to nearly double their goal total from the previous campaign (26 to 51), and was able to perform consistently in the clutch with an OUA-leading four game-winning goals on her resume – all of which has set the foundation for what should be a standout university career.
Given that all of these impressive accomplishments have taken place in her first year with the school, it’s no surprise that Stirling also receives the Rookie of the Year Award for 2017.
Joining Stirling as All-Stars, meanwhile, are teammates Sydney McFaul (Coquitlam, B.C.) and Rebecca Titus (Scarborough, Ont.).
Goalie of the Year – Marielle Fernback, Western
One of the most unforgiving positions in any sport is between the pipes, but when it comes to top goalkeepers in the conference this season, it was a Western Mustang that rose to the top.
Marielle Fernback (Guelph, Ont.) earns Goalie of the Year honours, taking home the award after a number of runner-up finishes. Fernback, who will also represent the Mustangs as an OUA All-Star, proved day in and day out to be the hardest working player on a Western squad that finished fifth in the regular season, and her goal of being the best goal in the league each time she steps on the field has paid off in her award-winning campaign.
Gail Wilson Outstanding Contributor – Erin Janna, McGill
Erin Janna (Ottawa, Ont.) goes above and beyond when it comes to contributing to both her McGill Martlets team and the extended community, which has helped her earn the Gail Wilson Outstanding Contributor Award for 2017; the third McGill player to do so, following the likes of Rachel Berta (2011) and Kylie Nabata (2014).
Janna has served as team manager at McGill for the past two seasons, where she is responsible for the budget, fundraising, practice schedule, itinerary, inventory of clothing, equipment and off-season training programs, while also serving as a liaison between the team and the department of athletics. Not only does she play a key role off the field, but on it as well, as Janna has improved in multiple aspects, according to co-coach Vimal Patel.
“Erin is a hard-worker who leads by example and helps those around her which makes for a great team player. Year after year she has improved as a player, both on and off the field. She’s organized, committed, respectful, and is an intelligent young woman that has a bright future ahead of her.”
Beyond Janna, meanwhile, the Martlets also received strong on-field contributions from Constanza Martinez-Ramirez (Santiago, Chile) and Breeshey Roskams-Hieter Vancouver, B.C.), both of whom have been named OUA All-Stars.
Coach of the Year – Rachelle Seguin, Queen’s
As a member of the fifth school to have a major award winner, meanwhile, Rachelle Seguin takes home Coach of the Year honours for her work with the Queen’s Gaels. Queen’s played their way to a fourth place regular season finish this year (4-6-2), an improvement on their results from the year prior (3-7-2), which has also seen growth against the province’s top-seeded teams.
Beyond the numbers, however, Seguin also constantly seeks opportunities to develop as a coach and find resources to bring in to support and improve the program, whether that is financial resources, human resources, etc. She is a passionate advocate for the development of field hockey at Queen’s and in the wider Kingston community.
In her fifth with the program – during the team’s 50th anniversary season – Seguin was able to find success with her talented roster, including the contributions from OUA All-Stars Ciara Morrison (Toronto, Ont.) and Jacinta Mallon (Sydney, AU).
Umpire of the Year – Denise Pelletier
Rounding out the major award winners is Denise Pelletier, who takes home the Umpire of the Year Award for the third time in the last four years.
The complete list of major award winners and All-Stars is as follows:
Co-Most Valuable Players – Rebecca Plouffe, Guelph & Jaslan Stirling, York
Rookie of the Year – Jaslan Stirling, York
Goalie of the Year – Marielle Fernback, Western
Gail Wilson Outstanding Contributor – Erin Janna, McGill
Coach of the Year – Rachelle Seguin, Queen’s
All-Stars
Rebecca Plouffe, Guelph
Jaslan Stirling, York
Ciara Morrison, Queen’s
Rachel Spouge, Toronto
Emily Ziraldo, Toronto
Jacinta Mallon, Queen’s
Constanza Martinez-Ramirez, McGill
Breeshey Roskams-Hieter, McGill
Marielle Fernback, Western
Sydney McFaul, York
Rebecca Titus, York