QUEBEC CITY (CIS) – Third-year outside hitter
Shanice Marcelle from the reigning three-time national champion University of British Columbia Thunderbirds was named the CIS player of the year in women's volleyball, Wednesday night.
The Victoria native follows in the footsteps of former teammate
Liz Cordonier, who last season became the first T-Bird in history to claim the Mary Lyons Award.
Championship website
Other CIS major award winners announced during the All-Canadian Banquet held at Desjardins Hall on the campus of Laval University were Montreal outside Marie-Sophie Nadeau of St-Aimé, Que., who received the Mark Tennant Award as rookie of the year; Brandon's Donata Huebert, a native of Minden, Germany, who was named the top libero in the nation; Trinity Western's Ryan Hofer, who earned coach-of-the-year honours; and UBC's
Jen Hinze of Vancouver, who received the Thérèse Quigley Award recognizing excellence in volleyball, academics and community involvement.
The 2011 CIS championship kicks off on Friday in Quebec City and culminates Sunday at 4:30 p.m. with the gold-medal final. All 11 match-ups from the tournament will be webcast live.
MARY LYONS AWARD (player of the year): Shanice Marcelle, UBC
Marcelle has been a force for the Thunderbirds in each of her three seasons with the team and this year stepped up to become the squad's primary attacking threat. The 6-foot human kinetics major helped lead the three-time defending CIS champions to a 15-3 record and first place in the conference standings, to a third straight Canada West title, and to the No. 1 seed going into this weekend's national championship, all of this despite the graduation of two fifth-year standouts – including former CIS MVP Cordonier - and the absence of senior national team members
Kyla Richey and
Jen Hinze during the first half of the season.
Marcelle put together an impressive all-around campaign finishing second in Canada West and sixth in the country in kills (3.50 per set), while placing sixth in the conference in service aces (0.45 per set) and eighth in hitting percentage (.253). She also led the T-Birds in digs (2.74 per set) and was fifth on the team in blocks (0.53 per set).
The Victoria native, who was a CIS all-rookie selection in 2008-09, was a key contributor to UBC's championship runs in 2010 and 2009 as she was named a CIS tournament all-star on both occasions, and was the MVP of last year's gold-medal final. She is also one of Canada's top beach players, having competed in two world championships. She finished ninth at the 2007 U19 world beach championships in Poland with current T-Bird teammate,
Danielle Richards.
“Shanice is a gifted athlete and perhaps the most skilled player to wear a Thunderbird uniform during my fifteen years at UBC,” said five-time CIS coach of the year
Doug Reimer. “She excels in all aspects of the game, making it very tough to say what her best skill might be. From attacking and blocking to serving, passing and defence she routinely makes difficult plays look easy and has shown the ability to elevate her game when the team needs it most.”
Saint Mary's left side Kerri Smit of Shubenacadie, N.S., Laval right side Mélanie Savoie of St-Sylvestre, Que., and Guelph middle Kylen Van Osch of Exeter, Ont., were the other nominees for the Lyons Award.
THÉRÈSE QUIGLEY AWARD (outstanding student-athlete / community involvement): Jen Hinze, UBC
Hinze is the fifth UBC recipient of the Thérèse Quigley Award since its inception in 1994. Former teammate
Katie Tyzuk was the most recent Thunderbird winner two years ago.
Hinze is one of the most decorated Thunderbirds in women's volleyball history. A first-team all-Canadian and CIS championship all-star in 2009-10, the 6-foot-2 middle has been a major factor in UBC's current three-year run as national champion. This season, the two-time Canada West all-star averaged 2.14 kills and 1.41 blocks per set, having rejoined the T-Birds in January after suiting up for the Canadian national team at the 2010 world championships in Japan during the fall.
The Vancouver native has also been a star off the court achieving academic all-Canadian status every year at UBC. Last fall, she was recognized as a member of the prestigious CIS Top 8 Academic All-Canadian list for 2009-10 after she maintained an average of 88.8 per cent in cellular biology and genetics in addition to volunteering at the International Collaboration on Repair Discoveries (ICORD), a spinal cord injury research centre at Vancouver General Hospital. She has also volunteered with UBC's Varsity Readers program, the Downtown Eastside Neighbourhood House, and is a mainstay on the coaching staff of numerous volleyball camps and clinics.
“Jen is incredibly humble and supportive to everyone, and combined with her work ethic, on and off the court, this makes her not just a good teammate but a valued role model,” noted Reimer. “Young players might see her athleticism but they don't see all the work and focus that she puts in to be a great student and athlete.”
St. Francis Xavier left side Katherine Ryan, an arts student from Halifax, Laval setter Stéfanie Latreille Banville, a nursing student from Sainte-Thérèse, Que., and Wilfrid Laurier middle Megan Gilmore, a kinesiology and physical education student from Cambridge, Ont., were the other finalists for the Thérèse Quigley Award.
ALL-CANADIAN TEAMS
The all-Canadian teams were also announced on Wednesday.
Joining Marcelle on the first CIS squad were conference most valuable players Smith (AUS), Savoie (RSEQ) and Van Osch (OUA), as well as Trinity Western outside hitter Kara Jansen Van Doorn of Langley, B.C., Montreal setter Alexandra Lojen of Montreal, and Manitoba right side Ashley Voth of Winnipeg.
Lojen and Voth both return from last year's top unit. Voth, who was named CIS rookie of the year back in 2006-07, was also a first-team member in 2007-08. Savoie had been selected to the second squad twice, a year ago and in 2007-08, while Smith was a second-teamer two seasons ago.
In addition to Nadeau, the second CIS dream team for 2010-11 is comprised of UNB right side Jill Blanchard of Saint John, Ottawa setter Tess Edwards of Ottawa, Alberta setter Jaki Ellis of Mississauga, Ont., Brandon left side Teagan Hunter of Brandon, Man., McGill middle Kelsey Irwin of Vancouver, and Laval left side Marie-Christine Mondor of Mascouche, Que., all first-time all-Canadians.
Joining Nadeau on the CIS all-rookie unit were Roberts, Wilkerson and Perrin, as well as Manitoba left side Rachel Cockrell of Winnipeg, Ottawa left side Myriam English of Ottawa and Brandon middle Meaghan Robertson of Brandon.
2010-2011 CIS WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL AWARDS & ALL-CANADIANS
Mary Lyons Award (player of the year): Shanice Marcelle, UBC
Mark Tennant Award (rookie of the year): Marie-Sophie Nadeau, Montreal
Libero of the year: Donata Huebert, Brandon
Coach of the year, presented by Coaches of Canada: Ryan Hofer, Trinity Western
Thérèse Quigley Award (student-athlete / community involvement): Jen Hinze, UBC
