RUSTE NAMED CIS LIBERO OF THE YEAR
February 26, 2009
FREDERICTON, N.B. - For the second straight season, fourth-year Montreal power hitter Laetitia Tchoualack of Paris, France, is the Canadian Interuniversity Sport women's volleyball player of the year.
Tchoualack became the seventh player to claim back-to-back Mary Lyons awards and is the eighth double recipient since the trophy was first presented in 1981-82. The last player to be named CIS MVP in consecutive campaigns was Calgary's Joanna Niemczewska, who was honoured in 2003-04 and 2004-05.
Other CIS major award winners announced Wednesday night in Fredericton were Alberta's Kelci French of Okotoks, Alta., who received the Mark Tennant award as rookie of the year, Western Ontario's Andrea Ruste of Edmonton, named the top libero in the nation, Montreal's Olivier Trudel, who earned coach-of-the-year honours, and UBC's Katie Tyzuk of Vancouver, who received the Thérèse Quigley award recognizing excellence in volleyball, academics and community involvement.
Championship website: www.cisport.ca/e/championships/w_volleyball/2009
The 2009 CIS women's volleyball championship, hosted by the University of New Brunswick, gets under way Thursday with the quarterfinal round and concludes Saturday at 7 p.m. Atlantic Time (6 p.m. Eastern) with the gold-medal final.
Tchoualack is one of the most decorated female volleyball players in CIS history. The Masters in management student has been named Quebec conference MVP three years running, and her selection on the 2008-09 first all-Canadian team marks her fourth nod as a CIS all-star in as many seasons at Montreal, including three consecutive nominations to the first squad. Last April, a few weeks after leading the Carabins to the best result in program history at the CIS championship, a silver-medal finish, the 5-foot-11 hitter received the prestigious BLG award as CIS female athlete of the year.
This season, Tchoualack was first in Quebec in both points (5.14) and kills (4.23) per set, totals that were good for third and fourth place in the nation, respectively. The former France national team member also led the QSSF with 0.46 service aces per set and chipped in defensively with 2.62 digs per game, the seventh best average in the conference.
Thanks in large part to her stellar play, the Carabins are enjoying the best campaign in team history going into the CIS tournament. Montreal topped all 13 national polls in 2008-09, kept a 32-1 overall record against CIS opponents, finished first in the Quebec standings with a 20-1 mark in conference play, and captured a second straight QSSF title with a two-match sweep of No. 8 Laval in the Quebec final.
"Laetitia is an elite player because she wants the ball at the key moments of the game," says Trudel, who has coached Tchoualack since her Carabins debut. "She's able to step up and score points when we need it the most. She also has an amazing personality, which makes her very accessible to her teammates both veterans and rookies. Everybody on the team enjoys her company."
French is only the second Panda to claim the Tennant award. Former Alberta great Jenny Cartmell was named CIS rookie of the year in 1995-96 before capturing back-to-back Mary Lyons awards later on in her career.
French, a native studies student, was recruited out of Foothills Composite High School in Okotoks as a natural setter but, knowing fifth-year senior Daryll Roper would be her starter at the position, long-time Alberta coach Laurie Eisler converted the 19-year-old freshman to the right side, where she found instant success in the most competitive conference in the country.
The 2008 junior national team member finished seventh in Canada West with 3.51 points per set and ninth with a 2.86 kill-per-set average, and ranked second in the conference with 0.43 services aces per game. She helped the Pandas take first place in the Canada West overall standings for the first time in five years with a 16-4 record.
"Kelci has met every challenge that she has faced this year with incredible poise and confidence," says Eisler, a three-time CIS coach of the year. "She is a very well-rounded player and contributes to our team in every phase of the game. Her passion for the game is unprecedented and she is going to be a very exciting player to watch in the years to come as she continues to develop her game."
Ruste became the first player from the OUA conference to be named CIS libero of the year since the inception of the award in 2005-06.
The fourth-year Mustang team captain has been a defensive machine her entire university career. A three-time OUA West all-star and OUA West libero of the year, Ruste led the nation in digs per set for the second time this season with a 5.24 average. She also ranked first in the country in 2006-07 (5.74), and finished third last season (5.11).
An academic all-Canadian in social sciences, Ruste guided Western Ontario to a 15-4 conference mark and a bronze-medal finish at this year's OUA championship.
"In 20 years of coaching at every level, I have never seen an athlete do as many spectacular things as Andrea. Every day she makes 2-3 digs that make everyone in the gym watch in awe," says Western head coach Dean Lowrie. "She plays with a passion and feel that is very contagious to her teammates. She is our team captain and leader and has showed her leadership by positive encouragement, a committed work ethic, and maturity beyond her years."
Trudel is the first Montreal coach to be honoured at the CIS level and the first bench boss from the Quebec conference to receive the coach-of-the-year award since Sherbrooke's Normand Bouchard in 2000-01.
In his fifth season at the helm, he led the Carabins to the best conference record in team history (20-1), a second straight QSSF title, a 32-1 overall mark against CIS opponents, and first place in all 13 national coaches polls. Montreal also successfully defended its titles at the Carabins Invitational, McGill Invitational and Barbados International Invitational tournaments.
Trudel, who has a Ph.D. in physical science specialized in sport psychology, was named head coach of the Carabins prior to the 2003-04 schedule following four seasons as an assistant with the team. He moved back to an assistant role in 2004-05, before taking the reins again the following year. Under his guidance, Montreal has qualified for the CIS championship five times in five seasons, captured its first QSSF banner in 14 years in 2007-08, and had its best-ever finish at the CIS tournament last winter, claiming silver.
"Over the last few of years, Olivier has been rewarded for all his hard work. He went from an assistant position, while finishing his Ph.D., to a very successful head coach," says Montreal Athletics Director, Manon Simard. "Since he took over, the team just keeps on getting better and, for the last two seasons, has had the best moments in the program's history. His recruiting talent and amazing leadership make him an outstanding ambassador for the University of Montreal."
Tyzuk is the fourth Thunderbird to receive the Thérèse Quigley award for excellence in volleyball, academics and community involvement since it was first presented in 1993-94, and the first UBC recipient since Emily Cordonier in 2004-05.
The fourth-year T-Bird took over the role of setter this season after the departure of 2007-08 Canada West MVP Carla Bradstock and helped direct a UBC offence that ranked fourth in the conference in kills with an average of 12.73 per game. She ranked sixth in Canada West in assists (9.55 per contest) and was one of only three T-Birds to play in all 73 regular-season sets this season. Prior to attending UBC, Tyzuk spent two years with the junior national team where she competed in various NORCECA events. In the summer of 2006, she teamed with current T-Bird Liz Cordonier to win the Canadian U20 beach national championship.
Tyzuk, whose parents are both Rhodes Scholars and attended Oxford, is a former recipient of UBC's President's Entrance Award and Chancellor's Entrance Scholarship. A biopsychology student, she was an academic all-Canadian and a member of the Dean's List each of her first three years at UBC, and received the 2008 UBC CK Choi Premier Undergraduate Scholarship.
Tyzuk has been involved with the Big Brothers / Big Sisters program for the past two years, has been an Emergency Room volunteer at the Vancouver General Hospital for a year and has worked as a volunteer coach for the Thunder Volleyball Club. Through UBC Athletics, she has been part of the "I'm Going to UBC" program, was a UBC Varsity Reader and was the volleyball team representative on the UBC Thunderbird Athletic Council.
"Katie has done a wonderful job becoming the team's starting setter this season and really grew into the role as the season progressed," says UBC head coach Doug Reimer. "She is an extremely smart player that brings a calm confidence to the floor and continues to do great things off the court outside of the game of volleyball."
The All-Canadian teams were also announced on Wednesday.
Joining Tchoualack on the first CIS squad are Carabin teammate, middle Nadine Alphonse of Montreal, Alberta teammates and St. Albert, Alta., natives, power hitter Jocelyn Blair and setter Daryll Roper, Calgary right side Holly Harper of Lumsden, Sask., McMaster setter Jennifer Holt of Hamilton, and Trinity Western middle Dayna Jansen Van Doorn of Langley, B.C.
Blair, a fifth-year senior, is selected to the first squad for the second straight year and was a second-team all-Canadian in 2006-07.
This year's second CIS team is comprised of Toronto left side Heather Bansley of Waterdown, Ont., UBC middle Marisa Field of Kelowna, B.C., Moncton middle Kristine Levesque of Grand-Sault, N.B., Manitoba left side Sarah Morrissette of Winnipeg, Laval middle Julie Rodrigue of St- Georges, Que., Saint Mary's left side Kerri Smit of Shubenacadie, N.S., and McGill power Jennifer Thomson of Rosemère, Que.
Named CIS rookie of the year in 2005-06, Thompson is a four-time all-Canadian in as many varsity seasons. She was a member of the first team the past two campaigns and made the second constellation in her freshman season.
McGill technique Emily Kyte of Ottawa, Laval setter Sarah Létourneau-Lévesque of Port-Cartier, Que., UBC left side Shanice Marcelle of Victoria, StFX left side Katherine Ryan of Halifax, Winnipeg right side / left side Ariel Smith of Yarmouth, N.S., and York left side Thinesa Sriskandarajah of Scarborough, Ont., join French on the CIS all-rookie team.
2008-09 CIS WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL AWARDS & ALL-CANADIANS
Mary Lyons Award (player of the year): Laetitia Tchoualack, Montreal Carabins
Mark Tennant Award (rookie of the year): Kelci French, Alberta Pandas
Libero of the year: Andrea Ruste, Western Ontario Mustangs
Coach of the year: Olivier Trudel, Montreal Carabins
Thérèse Quigley Award (outstanding student-athlete): Katie Tyzuk, UBC Thunderbirds
First Team
Second Team
All-Rookie Team
Source: CIS Communications
Tchoualack became the seventh player to claim back-to-back Mary Lyons awards and is the eighth double recipient since the trophy was first presented in 1981-82. The last player to be named CIS MVP in consecutive campaigns was Calgary's Joanna Niemczewska, who was honoured in 2003-04 and 2004-05.
Other CIS major award winners announced Wednesday night in Fredericton were Alberta's Kelci French of Okotoks, Alta., who received the Mark Tennant award as rookie of the year, Western Ontario's Andrea Ruste of Edmonton, named the top libero in the nation, Montreal's Olivier Trudel, who earned coach-of-the-year honours, and UBC's Katie Tyzuk of Vancouver, who received the Thérèse Quigley award recognizing excellence in volleyball, academics and community involvement.
Championship website: www.cisport.ca/e/championships/w_volleyball/2009
The 2009 CIS women's volleyball championship, hosted by the University of New Brunswick, gets under way Thursday with the quarterfinal round and concludes Saturday at 7 p.m. Atlantic Time (6 p.m. Eastern) with the gold-medal final.
Tchoualack is one of the most decorated female volleyball players in CIS history. The Masters in management student has been named Quebec conference MVP three years running, and her selection on the 2008-09 first all-Canadian team marks her fourth nod as a CIS all-star in as many seasons at Montreal, including three consecutive nominations to the first squad. Last April, a few weeks after leading the Carabins to the best result in program history at the CIS championship, a silver-medal finish, the 5-foot-11 hitter received the prestigious BLG award as CIS female athlete of the year.
This season, Tchoualack was first in Quebec in both points (5.14) and kills (4.23) per set, totals that were good for third and fourth place in the nation, respectively. The former France national team member also led the QSSF with 0.46 service aces per set and chipped in defensively with 2.62 digs per game, the seventh best average in the conference.
Thanks in large part to her stellar play, the Carabins are enjoying the best campaign in team history going into the CIS tournament. Montreal topped all 13 national polls in 2008-09, kept a 32-1 overall record against CIS opponents, finished first in the Quebec standings with a 20-1 mark in conference play, and captured a second straight QSSF title with a two-match sweep of No. 8 Laval in the Quebec final.
"Laetitia is an elite player because she wants the ball at the key moments of the game," says Trudel, who has coached Tchoualack since her Carabins debut. "She's able to step up and score points when we need it the most. She also has an amazing personality, which makes her very accessible to her teammates both veterans and rookies. Everybody on the team enjoys her company."
French is only the second Panda to claim the Tennant award. Former Alberta great Jenny Cartmell was named CIS rookie of the year in 1995-96 before capturing back-to-back Mary Lyons awards later on in her career.
French, a native studies student, was recruited out of Foothills Composite High School in Okotoks as a natural setter but, knowing fifth-year senior Daryll Roper would be her starter at the position, long-time Alberta coach Laurie Eisler converted the 19-year-old freshman to the right side, where she found instant success in the most competitive conference in the country.
The 2008 junior national team member finished seventh in Canada West with 3.51 points per set and ninth with a 2.86 kill-per-set average, and ranked second in the conference with 0.43 services aces per game. She helped the Pandas take first place in the Canada West overall standings for the first time in five years with a 16-4 record.
"Kelci has met every challenge that she has faced this year with incredible poise and confidence," says Eisler, a three-time CIS coach of the year. "She is a very well-rounded player and contributes to our team in every phase of the game. Her passion for the game is unprecedented and she is going to be a very exciting player to watch in the years to come as she continues to develop her game."
Ruste became the first player from the OUA conference to be named CIS libero of the year since the inception of the award in 2005-06.
The fourth-year Mustang team captain has been a defensive machine her entire university career. A three-time OUA West all-star and OUA West libero of the year, Ruste led the nation in digs per set for the second time this season with a 5.24 average. She also ranked first in the country in 2006-07 (5.74), and finished third last season (5.11).
An academic all-Canadian in social sciences, Ruste guided Western Ontario to a 15-4 conference mark and a bronze-medal finish at this year's OUA championship.
"In 20 years of coaching at every level, I have never seen an athlete do as many spectacular things as Andrea. Every day she makes 2-3 digs that make everyone in the gym watch in awe," says Western head coach Dean Lowrie. "She plays with a passion and feel that is very contagious to her teammates. She is our team captain and leader and has showed her leadership by positive encouragement, a committed work ethic, and maturity beyond her years."
Trudel is the first Montreal coach to be honoured at the CIS level and the first bench boss from the Quebec conference to receive the coach-of-the-year award since Sherbrooke's Normand Bouchard in 2000-01.
In his fifth season at the helm, he led the Carabins to the best conference record in team history (20-1), a second straight QSSF title, a 32-1 overall mark against CIS opponents, and first place in all 13 national coaches polls. Montreal also successfully defended its titles at the Carabins Invitational, McGill Invitational and Barbados International Invitational tournaments.
Trudel, who has a Ph.D. in physical science specialized in sport psychology, was named head coach of the Carabins prior to the 2003-04 schedule following four seasons as an assistant with the team. He moved back to an assistant role in 2004-05, before taking the reins again the following year. Under his guidance, Montreal has qualified for the CIS championship five times in five seasons, captured its first QSSF banner in 14 years in 2007-08, and had its best-ever finish at the CIS tournament last winter, claiming silver.
"Over the last few of years, Olivier has been rewarded for all his hard work. He went from an assistant position, while finishing his Ph.D., to a very successful head coach," says Montreal Athletics Director, Manon Simard. "Since he took over, the team just keeps on getting better and, for the last two seasons, has had the best moments in the program's history. His recruiting talent and amazing leadership make him an outstanding ambassador for the University of Montreal."
Tyzuk is the fourth Thunderbird to receive the Thérèse Quigley award for excellence in volleyball, academics and community involvement since it was first presented in 1993-94, and the first UBC recipient since Emily Cordonier in 2004-05.
The fourth-year T-Bird took over the role of setter this season after the departure of 2007-08 Canada West MVP Carla Bradstock and helped direct a UBC offence that ranked fourth in the conference in kills with an average of 12.73 per game. She ranked sixth in Canada West in assists (9.55 per contest) and was one of only three T-Birds to play in all 73 regular-season sets this season. Prior to attending UBC, Tyzuk spent two years with the junior national team where she competed in various NORCECA events. In the summer of 2006, she teamed with current T-Bird Liz Cordonier to win the Canadian U20 beach national championship.
Tyzuk, whose parents are both Rhodes Scholars and attended Oxford, is a former recipient of UBC's President's Entrance Award and Chancellor's Entrance Scholarship. A biopsychology student, she was an academic all-Canadian and a member of the Dean's List each of her first three years at UBC, and received the 2008 UBC CK Choi Premier Undergraduate Scholarship.
Tyzuk has been involved with the Big Brothers / Big Sisters program for the past two years, has been an Emergency Room volunteer at the Vancouver General Hospital for a year and has worked as a volunteer coach for the Thunder Volleyball Club. Through UBC Athletics, she has been part of the "I'm Going to UBC" program, was a UBC Varsity Reader and was the volleyball team representative on the UBC Thunderbird Athletic Council.
"Katie has done a wonderful job becoming the team's starting setter this season and really grew into the role as the season progressed," says UBC head coach Doug Reimer. "She is an extremely smart player that brings a calm confidence to the floor and continues to do great things off the court outside of the game of volleyball."
The All-Canadian teams were also announced on Wednesday.
Joining Tchoualack on the first CIS squad are Carabin teammate, middle Nadine Alphonse of Montreal, Alberta teammates and St. Albert, Alta., natives, power hitter Jocelyn Blair and setter Daryll Roper, Calgary right side Holly Harper of Lumsden, Sask., McMaster setter Jennifer Holt of Hamilton, and Trinity Western middle Dayna Jansen Van Doorn of Langley, B.C.
Blair, a fifth-year senior, is selected to the first squad for the second straight year and was a second-team all-Canadian in 2006-07.
This year's second CIS team is comprised of Toronto left side Heather Bansley of Waterdown, Ont., UBC middle Marisa Field of Kelowna, B.C., Moncton middle Kristine Levesque of Grand-Sault, N.B., Manitoba left side Sarah Morrissette of Winnipeg, Laval middle Julie Rodrigue of St- Georges, Que., Saint Mary's left side Kerri Smit of Shubenacadie, N.S., and McGill power Jennifer Thomson of Rosemère, Que.
Named CIS rookie of the year in 2005-06, Thompson is a four-time all-Canadian in as many varsity seasons. She was a member of the first team the past two campaigns and made the second constellation in her freshman season.
McGill technique Emily Kyte of Ottawa, Laval setter Sarah Létourneau-Lévesque of Port-Cartier, Que., UBC left side Shanice Marcelle of Victoria, StFX left side Katherine Ryan of Halifax, Winnipeg right side / left side Ariel Smith of Yarmouth, N.S., and York left side Thinesa Sriskandarajah of Scarborough, Ont., join French on the CIS all-rookie team.
2008-09 CIS WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL AWARDS & ALL-CANADIANS
Mary Lyons Award (player of the year): Laetitia Tchoualack, Montreal Carabins
Mark Tennant Award (rookie of the year): Kelci French, Alberta Pandas
Libero of the year: Andrea Ruste, Western Ontario Mustangs
Coach of the year: Olivier Trudel, Montreal Carabins
Thérèse Quigley Award (outstanding student-athlete): Katie Tyzuk, UBC Thunderbirds
First Team
| Position | Athlete | University | Year | Hometown | Faculty |
| Power | Laetitia Tchoualack | Montreal | 4 | Paris, France | Masters in Management |
| Middle | Nadine Alphonse | Montreal | 4 | Montreal, Que. | Physical Education & Health |
| Power | Jocelyn Blair | Alberta | 5 | St. Albert, Alta. | Education |
| Right Side | Holly Harper | Calgary | 5 | Lumsden, Sask. | Social Sciences |
| Setter | Jennifer Holt | McMaster | 4 | Hamilton, Ont. | Kinesiology |
| Middle | Dayna Jansen Van Doorn | Trinity Western | 5 | Langley, B.C. | Education |
| Setter | Daryll Roper | Alberta | 5 | St. Albert, Alta. | Graduate Studies & Research |
Second Team
| Left Side | Heather Bansley | Toronto | 4 | Waterdown, Ont. | Arts & Sciences |
| Middle | Marisa Field | UBC | 5 | Kelowna, B.C. | Science |
| Middle | Kristine Levesque | Moncton | 5 | Grand-Sault, N.B. | Medicine |
| Left Side | Sarah Morrissette | Manitoba | 3 | Winnipeg, Man. | University 1 |
| Middle | Julie Rodrigue | Laval | 4 | St-Georges, Que. | Industrial Relations |
| Left Side | Kerri Smit | Saint Mary's | 2 | Shubenacadie, N.S. | Arts |
| Power | Jennifer Thomson | McGill | 4 | Rosemère, Que. | Physical & Health Education |
All-Rookie Team
| Setter / RS | Kelci French | Alberta | 1 | Okotoks, Alta. | Native Studies |
| Technique | Emily Kyte | McGill | 1 | Ottawa, Ont. | Arts |
| Setter | Sarah Létourneau-Lévesque | Laval | 1 | Port-Cartier, Que. | Physiotherapy |
| Left Side | Shanice Marcelle | UBC | 1 | Victoria, B.C. | Human Kinetics |
| Left Side | Katherine Ryan | StFX | 1 | Halifax, N.S. | Arts |
| RS / LS | Ariel Smith | Winnipeg | 1 | Yarmouth, N.S. | Kinesiology |
| Left Side | Thinesa Sriskandarajah | York | 1 | Scarborough, Ont. | Kinesiology & Health Science |
Source: CIS Communications