Georgian College celebrates varsity athletes
April 6, 2018
Georgian College Athletic Department recognized the tremendous achievements of their student-athletes at the 48th Annual Varsity Awards Banquet on April 5 at the Barrie Campus Georgian Athletic Centre.
Nearly 200 student-athletes, coaches and staff were on hand representing the 13 men’s and women’s varsity sports teams than compete across the province in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA), and nationally in the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA).
Women’s golfers Emilie Tyndall and Addison Wallwin were recognized as the top female athletes of the year as co-winners of the Greer Trophy. As a duo, Tyndall and Wallwin won their second straight national team medal, winning the bronze at the CCAA Championships. They also finished second at the OCAA Championships and won three of the four invitational tournaments they played in, finishing second in the other.
Tyndall, a Kirkland Quebec native was named a CCAA All-Canadian and was the individual gold medallist at the OCAA Championships. Wallwin, a Barrie native, won the individual bronze medal at the CCAA National Championships and was the individual winner of two invitational tournaments.
Both Tyndall and Wallwin were named to the OCAA All-Ontario Team and as CCAA Academic All-Canadians. They are each now two-time Georgian College female athletes of the year as Tyndall previously earned the honour in 2015-16 and Wallwin last season in 2016-17.
Men’s volleyball player Liam Gray earned the Cloutier Cup as Georgian’s male athlete of the year after leading his team to a second straight OCAA East Division Championship with a 17-1 record. The Barrie native was named a CCAA All-Canadian for the second year in a row. He is the only Georgian men’s volleyball player to have ever earned All-Canadian honours and is one of only nine OCAA athletes to ever win the award in consecutive seasons.
Gray led the OCAA averaging 10.05 assists-per-set and was the only player to post double-digits in the category while being named an OCAA East Division First Team All-Star. He was instrumental in helping the Grizzlies match their highest place in team in history at the OCAA Men’s Volleyball Championship in fourth place, where he was named a tournament all-star.
A total of 45 student athletes received an OCAA All-Academic Award for achieving an average of at least 80 per cent or higher while also representing Georgian in their respective sport. A Georgian record, nine student-athletes were named as CCAA Academic All-Canadians for being on the school’s dean’s list while also being named an all-star in their respective sport.
Addison Wallwin was also the winner of the Female Academic and Athletic Excellence Award given to the student-athlete deemed to have the greatest success in both the classroom and in their sport. Wallwin achieved an incredible 94.6 per cent average in the Business Administration Accounting program. It’s her second straight year to win the award.
Volleyball player Ryan DeBruyn won the Male Academic and Athletic Excellence Award after being named an OCAA East Division First Team All-Star while also achieving a remarkable 97.8 per cent average in the Electrical Engineering Technology program.
Other major award winners included men’s rugby player Ryan Connolly (Barrie) and women’s volleyball player Sophia Clement (Toronto) who were named the male and female rookies of the year. Athletic marketing team member Sean McEvoy (Toronto) was presented the McKillican Trophy for Outstanding Contribution to the Georgian Athletic Department and men’s badminton veteran Ethan Zhao (China) was presented the Howard/Belcourt Award for Outstanding Sportsmanship, Dedication, Commitment, Attitude and Leadership.