Marauders Gregory, Mustangs Peressini earn OUA Athlete of the Week honours
Burlington, Ont. – Kaelyn Gregory and Luke Peressini have been named Ontario University Athletics (OUA) Athletes of the Week for the period ending February 17, 2020.
Female Athlete of the Week – Kaelyn Gregory, McMaster Marauders, Curling
It had been 25 years since the McMaster Marauders women’s rink took home a provincial title, but thanks in large part to the confident curling of Kaelyn Gregory, that streak was snapped this weekend.
Curling out of the third position for the Marauders, Gregory was among the event’s elite and was a leading figure in a group that showed very few weaknesses throughout their undefeated championship run. The Amaranth, Ont. native helped guide the Hamilton rink unscathed through the round robin play, before overcoming the powerhouse Laurier Golden Hawks in the semis (4-2) and defeating the reigning champion Queen’s Gaels in the finals (7-5).
Gregory helped Mac score in bunches over the five-day finale, including a championship-best seven ends with at least three points and 19 total ends resulting in multiple points for the maroon machine. The senior curler was also a key figure in their banner season best 7.1 points per match and 2.3 points-against per contest, all of which helped her secure all-star honours for the first time in her OUA career.
Male Athlete of the Week – Luke Peressini, Western Mustangs, Hockey
With their backs against the wall in their opening round series against the Toronto Varsity Blues, Luke Peressini stepped up in a big way for the Western Mustangs. Backstopping them to a spot in Round 2.
When the puck drops on the playoffs, it truly is a whole new season, which the Mustangs proved once again when taking on the West Division’s top seed. After dropping Game 1 to the Blues in Toronto, Western bounced back in a big way to not only force a deciding game, but to claim the series win in upset fashion. Given the task at hand, going up against the second-highest scoring team in the regular season, the fourth-year goaltender needed to be nearly unbeatable to claim back-to-back wins in elimination games, but lucky for the London squad, he was.
Peressini earned the victory in Game 2 by turning away 42 of 43 shots faced. He mirrored the feat in the Game 3, once again allowing just one puck to get by him en route to the 32-save victory on the road. Despite picking up the Game 1 loss, the Nobleton, Ont. native finished the first round with a second-ranked .943 save percentage and fourth-best 2.04 goals-against average, all while make 99 saves in three games for his No. 8 Western team.
