VANCOUVER - Four UBC Thunderbirds hockey players were honoured on Monday afternoon, as goalie Matt Hewitt (New Westminster, B.C.), defender Kelly Murray (Medicine Hat, Alta.), and forwards Rebecca Unrau (Humboldt, Sask.) and Mathea Fischer (Oslo, Norway), were named to editions of the 2015-16 Canada West Hockey All-Star and All-Rookie teams.
 
From the T-Birds men's squad, Hewitt was named to the 2015-16 Canada West Men's Hockey Second All-Star Team.
 
In 14 appearances this past season, Hewitt earned a record of 6-6-2, coupling that with a 2.53 goals-against-average and a 0.920 save percentage, which placed third and second in the Canada West rankings, respectively.
 
Hewitt's head coach with the Thunderbirds, Adam Shell, credits his netminder's relentless drive as the reason behind his success this past season.
 
"Matt came into this season disappointed with how last year turned out for him," explains Shell. "He's worked like a dog since day one to make sure that this year would be better. I attribute this honour all to Matt and his work ethic."
 
Unrau and Murray both earned places on the 2015-16 Canada West Women's Hockey Second All-Star Team.
 
Unrau, the fifth-year standout, finished as UBC's leading scorer in 2015-16, ending the campaign with 12 goals and 12 assists for 24 points, enough to place her seventh in the Canada West scoring race. The All-Star nod, her first, is a terrific individual end to Unrau's career, one which saw her post over 100 points as a Thunderbird.
 
UBC head coach Graham Thomas noted that one of Unrau greatest strengths is less intangible than speed or a great shot, both of which she has.
 
"She can score big goals, she's a big-time player when you absolutely need her to be. She combines toughness, smarts, and skill, and she wants to be at the center of it when the game is on the line."
 
Murray, in her second season as a 'Bird after transferring from Cornell, was a two-way force - in addition to her steady presence in her own end, Murray finished third in Canada West for scoring among defenders, notching a goal and 15 assists for 16 points from the backend.  
 
"Such a steadying presence for us on the backend. [Murray] really started coming into her own this year after adjusting for a season after the transfer. She's so smart from the blueline, and rarely puts a foot wrong. She works hard, and deserves the recognition from the league."
 
Fischer, the Norwegian import, was terrific in her first season in Blue and Gold – good enough that she was named to the 2015-16 Canada West Women's Hockey All-Rookie Team. Fischer ended her inaugural UBC campaign with five goals and 10 assists – her 15 points had her in third among rookies in conference scoring.
 
"Mathea, she continued to get better and better as the year went on," said Thomas. "I think her work ethic is what stands out the most – with her experience with the Norwegian national team, she already has that drive and discipline to succeed. She has tremendous offensive upside as well, nearly impossible to knock off the puck."