TORONTO (CIS) – Canadian Interuniversity Sport proudly announced Wednesday the student-athletes selected as Top Eight Academic All-Canadians for the 2015-2016 season.
The elite group will be honoured in Ottawa on November 8, when His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presents the fourth annual Governor General’s Academic All-Canadian Commendation to the eight recipients during a ceremony at Rideau Hall, his official residence.
Every year, a growing number of CIS student-athletes are recognized as Academic All-Canadians, having maintained an average of 80 per cent or better over the academic year while competing for one - or more - of their university’s varsity teams.
Among these outstanding individuals, one female and one male student-athlete from each of the four CIS regional associations are selected annually to make up the Top Eight.
The 2015-16 recipients from Atlantic University Sport (AUS) are Elenor Henry (Toronto), a soccer player and biochemistry student from Mount Allison University, and Geoff Schemitsch (Thornhill, Ont.), a hockey player and kinesiology student from Acadia University.
Representing the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) are Laval University’s Gabrielle Lapointe (Montmagny, Que.), a soccer player and medical student, as well as McGill University’s François Jarry (Lachine, Que.), a cross country/track and field athlete and physical and health education major.
The winners from Ontario University Athletics (OUA) are Cindy Nelles (Belleville, Ont.), a rugby player and civil engineering student from McMaster University, and Colin Behenna (Waterloo, Ont.), a hockey player and math and business student from the University of Waterloo.
Last but not least, the Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA) recipients are swimmer Rebecca Terejko (Brantford, Ont.), a kinesiology student, as well as Chad Bush (Ottawa), a soccer player and history major, both from the University of British Columbia.
“The number of Academic All-Canadians speaks volume about the quality of our student-athletes, but also our coaches, support staff and our universities,” said Graham Brown, chief executive officer of CIS. “To be selected among 12,000 of their peers is an achievement these exceptional student-athletes should be extremely proud of. They represent the very best of what university sport is all about.”
Following is a profile of each member of the 2015-16 Top Eight, as well as a list of all-time winners.
ATLANTIC UNIVERSITY SPORT (AUS)
Name: Elenor Henry
Hometown: Toronto, Ont.
School: Mount Allison University
Faculty: Science
Program: Biochemistry
Sport: Soccer
Eligibility in 2015-16: 2nd year
Toronto native Elenor Henry has been a solid presence on the back end for Mount Allison since joining the program in 2012. Playing in 39 career games, the defender started 33 contests over the course of her career, including 13 last season, where she was named team captain.
Academically, Henry finished with a perfect 4.3 GPA in her final year and can be found on the Dean’s List from 2012 to 2016. A four-time Academic All-Canadian, she is also the recipient of the Goodridge Scholarship (2012-2016) and the R.A Jodrey Scholarship (2012). In the community, Henry was the executive with Mounties in Motion (2012-2016), as a well as helping athletes find volunteer opportunities in the community at the local hospital and middle school. The executive of Right To Play Mount Allison, Henry also coached with the North York Cosmos Soccer Association in 2014.
“In many ways Ellie was the consummate student athlete; Dedicated to her teammates, committed to the team vision and disciplined and determined for self-improvement,” said Mounties women’s soccer head coach Gene Ouellette. “But as a true student-athlete, Ellie was not at Mount Allison only for soccer. She was a straight-A student in the sciences, involved in various community and extracurricular volunteer endeavors, all of which helped her get accepted into medical school for the current year. Ellie embodies the definition of student-athlete- through her work ethic and determination in both academics and athletics.”
Name: Geoff Schemitsch
Hometown: Thornhill, Ont.
School: Acadia University
Faculty: Professional Studies
Program: Kinesiology
Sport: Hockey
Eligibility in 2015-16: 4th year
Raised in Thornhill, Ont., Geoff Schemitsch joined the Axemen for the 2013-2014 season, and made an immediate impact. Named to the All-Rookie team in his first season, the blueliner helped Acadia win the 2014 AUS title before posting a career-best three goals and 22 points – good for fifth in the conference – en route to Second-Team All-Star honours this past season.
Studying Kinesiology, Schemitsch is a three-time Academic All-Canadian (2014-2016) and was named to the Dean’s List from 2013-2016. He has also received numerous academic awards since arriving studying at Acadia, including the Sully Ashfield and Barbara Bill Ashfield Award, the Acadia Sports Therapy Clinic Award, and the Kirton Scholarship. The 24-year-old is also prominent in the community, volunteering at various fundraisers, group activities and team functions with minor hockey players affiliated with Acadia University’s minor hockey program.
“Geoff is arguably one of the most committed, intelligent and hardest working individuals I have coached,” said Acadia men’s hockey head coach Darren Burns. “(He) is now a captain on our team and is doing exactly what I envisioned he would accomplish on our campus, in the local community and on the ice. I marvel at his accountability and responsibility in leading others.”
For the complete list of CIS Top 8 Academic All-Canadians, please click here.
Source: CIS Communications