Acadia’s Paloma Anderson was named recipient of the Nan Copp Award as national player of the year. The 5th-year sociology major averaged 18.9 ppg and 6.8 rpg for the Axemen. The 5-1 guard and Phoenix, Arizona, native led the nation in assists, averaging 5.5 per game. Her 52 steals this season were the most in the Atlantic conference, while her average of 2.6 steals per game was the second best in AUS, both ranking ninth in U SPORTS. First in team scoring and second in conference scoring, Anderson led the Axewomen to a 18-2 regular season record, a first-place finish in the AUS standings and the AUS postseason title. In four seasons with Acadia, she amassed 1,446 points to a set a new school record for career points scored. She also set new school records for career free throws made with 292 and for points in a single game, scoring 41 in a 2016 game versus StFX. Anderson finishes her career as a two-time AUS MVP, having first earned the conference’s top honour in 2015-16. She is also a three-time AUS first team all-star, having been named to the AUS first team all-star squad for the third consecutive year, as well as a two-time U SPORTS First Team All-Canadian. Axewomen coach Len Harvey said “she is a big part of what makes us successful, and seems to force defenses into rotation with every drive. Her scoring statistics have always been fantastic, but her efficiency in her advanced statistics have been fantastic this season. She’s raised her assist numbers, while greatly reducing her turnovers, which are two of the more notable areas she has improved. She has also become a more disciplined defender, and really makes life difficult for the opposition to run their offence. I’ve gotten to watch Paloma grow as a teammate through the years, and her positive energy is contagious. She has had an amazing season this year.” The other nominees were Canada West’s Antoinette Miller of Winnipeg; the OUA’s Leashja Grant of Lakehead; and the RSEQ’s Alexandra Kiss-Rusk of McGill.
Carleton forward Elizabeth Leblanc was named recipient of the national defensive player of the year award. Leblanc averaged 26.7 minutes per game – her third consecutive season leading the Ravens in playing time – while accumulating 110 rebounds, 26 blocks (14th in U SPORTS) and 23 steals, and was generally matched-up with the opposing team’s top scoring threat. The London, Ont., native helped the Ravens become the nation-leading scoring defence, limiting the competition to an average of 45.9 ppg during the regular season, which was 9.9 better than the next best defensive team in the country. She committed only 16 personal fouls during the season. The Hamilton Transway (JUEL) product is the only player in the country to register at least 100 rebounds, 20 blocked shots and 20 steals while committing fewer than 40 personal fouls in 2017-18. She was selected a 2nd-team OUA all-star. Ravens coach Taffe Charles said “Elizabeth had an exceptional season to help us rank as the top defensive unit in the country. Elizabeth routinely shut down the opposing team’s best offensive player each and every game. Her ability to defend all five positions on the floor at various times during this season is truly special.” The other nominees were Canada West’s Antoinette Miller of Winnipeg; the RSEQ’s Jessica Lubin of UQAM; and the AUS’ Carolina Del Santo of UPEI.
Regina guard Carolina Gonçalves was named recipient of the Kathy Shields Award as national rookie of the year. Gonçalves played a key role off the bench for Regina in her first season with the Cougars, but was still third on the team with an average of 12.1 ppg and fifth on the Cougars with 40 assists while averaging just under 22 minutes played per contest. The Oeiras, Portugal, native also averaged 2.3 rpg. Gonçalves played on Portugal’s senior national team for two qualification games for the FIBA Women’s EuroBasket 2019 tournament. Cougars coach Dave Taylor said “Carolina had an immediate impact on our team by giving us another quality scorer. Given her international experience, she’s been able to fit right in and contribute on a nationally-ranked team. To play the significant role she has for us is a testament to her skill level and Carolina has an extremely bright future in this sport.” The other nominees were the OUA’s Marin Scotten of Ryerson; the RSEQ’s Coralie Dumont of Concordia; and the AUS’ Reese Baxendale of UPEI.
Carleton’s Taffe Charles was named recipient of the Peter Ennis Award as national coach of the year. In his 11th year as head coach at Carleton, Charles guided the program to a 23-0 record in conference play – the first undefeated regular season in school history – and a 3-0 finish In the OUA playoffs, as the Ravens captured their second consecutive Critelli Cup championship. They then rolled to a Usports national title. Carleton won by an average of 26.5 points per game, leading the OUA conference and ranking seventh nationally in scoring (72.4ppg) while limiting opponents with a stifling defence that allowed only 45.9 point per game. The Ravens rose to the country’s No.1 ranking for only the second time in program history and maintained their top-flight status for the final four national polls of the 2017-18 season. Ravens athletic director Jennifer Brenning said “Carleton is thrilled that Taffe has been recognized nationally as the U SPORTS women’s basketball Coach of the Year. This honour is a result of a culmination of hard work, dedication and commitment to building our women’s program over his 11-year career. The award recognizes the accomplishments of our student-athletes and Taffe as head coach.” The other nominees were Canada West’s Cheryl Jean-Paul of Trinity Western; the RSEQ’s Craig Norman of Bishop’s; and the AUS’ Len Harvey of Acadia.
Joining Anderson as 1st-team All-Canadians were Alexandra Kiss-Rusk (McGill); Antoinette Miller (Winnipeg); Leashja Grant (Lakehead); and Alison Keough (Cape Breton). …………………………………………………… Kiss-Rusk, a 5th-year social work major from Beaconsfield, Que., was the RSEQ player of the year. She ranked third among league leaders in points (14.3), first in rebounds (11.8) and fourth in blocks (1.2) per game. The 6-4 centre accounted for 22.9 per cent of McGill’s points scored and 31.1 per cent of their rebounds. Kiss-Rusk, who spent the summer playing with the Canadian national development team, averaged 32.1 minutes of court time per game, led the Quebec Conference in “double doubles” with 11 in 16 contests and ranked third in field-goal shooting at .453 (105-232). She shot .529 from the free-throw line (18/34) and contributed 22 assists along with 19 blocks and 14 steals. …………………………………………………… Miller, a 5th-year kinesiology & applied health/education major, from Phoenix, Arizona, became the first player in Canada West history to win both the Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards in back-to-back seasons. She led the league in scoring (25.9 ppg), assists (96), and steals (77), and finished sixth in rebounding (9.1 RPG). She scored 20 or more points 16 times this season, including two 40-point games (43 vs. Alberta Nov. 4 and 40 vs. Manitoba Jan. 19). Wesmen coach Tanya McKay said after Miller was named the league’s MVP that “Ant, for us, guided the ship. She pushed us in practice and pushed our team to get better so that we could compete with the top teams in our conference. The record we had (14-6) was due in part to not only what she did statistically, but what she did behind the scenes to elevate the play of her teammates and push our program to compete and challenge. Game in and game out, she was very consistent at both ends of the floor and I think every coach in Canada West would agree that she was the conference’s best player. She could step on the floor, change a game and carry our team.” Miller was also a first-team Canada West all-star. …………………………………………………… Grant, a 4th-year psychology major from Nassau, Bahamas, led the OUA in both scoring (22.3 ppg) and rebounding (14.1 rpg), while helping the Thunderwolves improve from an 8 to a 16-win season. She registered a double-double in all but one Lakehead’s 24 regular season games and was chosen the league’s MVP and a first-team all-star. She was the nation’s top rebounder and second-leading scorer. After two years of toiling for the NJCAA’s Trinity Valley Cardinals in Athens, Texas, Grant was a starter for Texas Tech in 2015-16. …………………………………………………… Keough, a 5th-year nursing major from Marion Bridge, N.S., was a first-team AUS all-star. She averaged 19.2 ppg, 12.0 rpg and 2.5 apg, while shooting .476 from the floor and .703 from the line.
The All-Canadian 2nd-team featured Sabine Dukate (Saskatchewan); Lindsay Shotbolt (York); Jessica Lubin (UQAM); Kyanna Giles (Regina); and Sofia Paska (Ryerson). …………………………………………………… Dukate, a 3rd-year arts & sciences major from Ventspiils, Latvia, was a first-team Canada West all-star. She averaged 13.1 ppg, 3.3 rpg and 3.6 apg, while shooting .462 from the floor, .407 from the arc and .741 from the line. …………………………………………………… Shotbolt, a 5th-year education major from Markham, Ont., was Ontario’s nominee for Tracy MacLeod Award, which is given annually to a female student-athlete in recognition of determination, perseverance, and unwavering spirit. Shotbolt spend her first four seasons with the Carleton Ravens before graduating, has had anxiety for years and was diagnosed with depression; she tore her ACL just a couple years back and pushed through a hard rehab process to try and play in her fourth year; and she eventually decided to quit the sport. She subsequently enrolled at York for teacher’s college in September 2017 having gotten through her depression and was one of just four players in the OUA who averaged a double-double; was among the top ten in the conference in points, rebounds, blocks, steals, and free throw percentage; and posted several career highs in key statistical categories. She was selected to the OUA first all-star team, her fourth OUA all-star selection. …………………………………………………… Lubin, a 5th-year cultural animation major from Montreal, Que., was the RSEQ defensive player of the year and a first-team RSEQ all-star. She was the league’s top scorer (18 points per game) and top shot-blocker (1.4 bpg). She also placed second in the RSEQ with 9.6 rpg and fifth with 3.2 apg. …………………………………………………… Giles, a 2nd-year education major from Winnipeg, Man., was a first-team Canada West all-star. She averaged 17.3 ppg, 8.2 rpg and 2.5 apg, while shooting .454 from the floor, .377 from the arc and .788 from the line. …………………………………………………… Paska, a 4th-year early childhood studies major from Etobicoke, Ont., was named an OUA First-Team All-Star for the third consecutive season. She ranked 2nd in the OUA in scoring (20.3 ppg), 5th in rebounds (9.3) and 9th in field goal percentage (46.1%),
Joining Gonçalves on the all-rookie team were Marin Scotten (Ryerson); Coralie Dumont (Concordia); Reese Baxendale (UPEI); and Brigitte Lefebvre-Okankwu (Ottawa). …………………………………………………… Scotten, an arts & contemporary studies major from Ottawa, Ont., was the OUA rookie of the year. She started all 23 games for Ryerson and finished second on the team in scoring (12.3 ppg), which included a career-high 26-point performance in a January tilt with Nipissing. The guard also chipped in with nearly five boards, over two assists, and one steal per contest; all while shooting 46% from the field (10th in OUA). …………………………………………………… Dumont, a marketing major from Boucherville, Que., was the RSEQ rookie of the year. She averaged 31.3 mpg in 16 games and was the leading rebounder on the Stingers with an average of 6.9 a game. That also ranked her sixth in the conference. With an average of 11.1 ppg, she ranked third in scoring for Concordia. Dumont comes to the Stingers from the Champlain, St. Lambert Cavaliers where she was an RSEQ second team all-star in 2017. …………………………………………………… Baxendale, a science major from Sussex, N.B., was the AUS’ rookie of the year. She started all 20 games and led all AUS rookies in scoring (10.2 ppg). She added 3.0 rpg and 1.9 apg. She led the Panthers in steals, averaging 1.8 per game and her 36 total steals were the third most the in Atlantic conference. …………………………………………………… Lefebvre-Okankwu, a biomedical science major from Gatineau, Que., started in 20 of the 21 games she played and maintained averages of 12.3 ppg and 6.8 rpg, totals that put her first in both categories for the Gee-Gees.