OTTAWA (CIS) – Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and national law firm Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (BLG) announced Wednesday the eight finalists for the 23rd annual BLG Awards. StFX women's rugby student-athlete Emma Taylor will represent AUS as the conference's female nominee while Cape Breton Capers men's soccer player Justin Maheu is the AUS's male nominee.
Official BLG Awards website, please click here.
For the complete CIS release, please click here.
The BLG Awards were established in 1993 to recognize the top female and male athletes from universities affiliated with CIS.
On Monday, May 4, the eight national nominees will be honoured at the Martha Cohen Theatre in Calgary. The female and male winners will receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship, while all finalists will return home with a commemorative gold ring and a watch from Timex, the official supplier of CIS.
This year’s event will mark the 20th presentation of the awards gala in Calgary. Over the years, the event has also held been held in Toronto (2009, 2013) and Vancouver (2011). The 2015 ceremony will air nationally later this May on Sportsnet.
Although the 2015 recipients will be determined by the Canadian Athletic Foundation, a not-for-profit board which has selected the winners for the past 22 years, the general public is encouraged to vote as part as an online-voting pilot project. Fans can vote through the following websites:
CIS: www.cis-sic.ca
BLG Awards: www.blg.com/blgawards
Sportsnet: www.sportsnet.ca/cis
“We are extremely excited to be hosting the 23rd BLG Awards in Calgary,” said Doug Mitchell, National Co-Chair of BLG. “We continue to be amazed by the talents and accomplishments of these outstanding athletes. Each year, as we follow the past winners and hear about their accomplishments or what they are involved in, we realize how important their university sports background has been to them. We congratulate the universities who have provided the great education and athletic programs for these students to succeed in their careers.”
“The BLG Awards represent the epitome of what it means to be a student-athlete, and this year’s nominees more than meet that standard,” said Thérèse Quigley, president of CIS. “Not only are these eight extraordinary athletes, each one is also a leader in the classroom and in the community.”
The 2015 nominees for the Jim Thompson Trophy presented to the female BLG Award recipient are rugby player Emma Taylor from St. Francis Xavier University, soccer player Jessica King from Trinity Western University, as well as basketball standouts Mariam Sylla from McGill University and Korissa Williams from the University of Windsor.
Taylor, a fifth-year lock from Scotsburn, N.S., was named MVP of the CIS championship after she helped the X-Women capture the Monilex Trophy for the third time in her five campaigns with the team. During the regular season, the business administration student led Atlantic University Sport (AUS) conference with 10 tries in six games en route to league MVP and first-team all-Canadian honours.
Sylla, a third-year centre from Conakry, Guinea, guided the Réseau du sport étudiant du Québec (RSEQ) champion Martlets to the best result in program history at the CIS championship, a silver medal. In league action, the pharmacology junior averaged a double-double with 12.4 points and 10.8 rebounds per game and was rewarded with the conference MVP trophy and a spot on the first all-Canadian team.
Williams, a fifth-year guard from Windsor, Ont., was voted MVP of the CIS championship after she helped the Lancers tie the all-time record with their fifth straight Bronze Baby Trophy triumph and, along with teammate Jocelyn LaRocque, became the first players in history to win five CIS rings in women’s basketball. Prior to the Final 8 tournament, the business student had been named the CIS defensive player of the year and a first-team all-Canadian.
King, a fifth-year midfielder from Liverpool, England, guided the Spartans to the Canada West title and a silver medal at the CIS championship. In regular season action, the psychology student scored 12 goals in 11 contests, including a CIS-leading seven game-winners, on her way to national player of the year honours.
On the men’s side, the finalists for the Doug Mitchell Trophy are soccer player Justin Maheu from Cape Breton University, hockey player Cédric McNicoll from McGill University, cross country and track runner Ross Proudfoot from the University of Guelph and football player Andrew Buckley from the University of Calgary.
Maheu, a second-year striker from Ottawa, became the first male athlete from CBU – in any sport - to be named CIS player of the year after he scored 15 goals in only 11 league games, for a CIS-best average of 1.36 goals per outing. In the playoffs, the arts student helped the Capers reach the AUS championship final, where they suffered a heart-breaking 2-1 loss to UNB.
McNicoll, a second-year centre from Boucherville, Que., who was in his fifth year of CIS eligibility after playing three seasons at the professional level, helped the Redmen top the Ontario University Athletics East division standings and to a fourth-place finish in the conference playoffs. In league play, the management student tallied 34 points in 25 games en route to OUA East MVP and second-team all-Canadian status.
Proudfoot, a fifth-year runner from Sudbury, Ont., began his final university season last fall with a gold-medal performance at the CIS cross country championships, where he helped the Gryphon men claim the team banner for the fifth time. In the winter, the human kinetics master’s student was named male MVP of the CIS indoor track and field championships after he dominated his two events, the 1500 and 3000-metre races.
Buckley, a fourth-year quarterback from Calgary who amassed 18 touchdown passes and 10 rushing majors in eight league games, became the first player in history to receive both the Hec Crighton Trophy as CIS player of the year and the Russ Jackson Award, honouring success on the football field, in the classroom and in the community. The kinesiology student helped the Dinos reach the Canada West final, where they were upset by Manitoba.
2015 Female BLG Award Nominees (Jim Thompson Trophy):
AUS: Emma Taylor, rugby, StFX (Scotsburn, N.S.)
RSEQ: Mariam Sylla, basketball, McGill (Conakry, Guinea)
OUA: Korissa Williams, basketball, Windsor (Windsor, Ont.)
CWUAA: Jessica King, soccer, Trinity Western (Liverpool, England)
2015 Male BLG Award Nominees (Doug Mitchell Trophy):
AUS: Justin Maheu, soccer, Cape Breton (Ottawa, Ont.)
RSEQ: Cédric McNicoll, hockey, McGill (Boucherville, Que.)
OUA: Ross Proudfoot, cross country / track & field, Guelph (Sudbury, Ont.)
CWUAA: Andrew Buckley, football, Calgary (Calgary, Alta.)
Past BLG Award Winners:
2013-14: Justine Colley – Saint Mary’s (basketball) / Philip Scrubb – Carleton (basketball)
2012-13: Shanice Marcelle - UBC (volleyball) / Kyle Quinlan - McMaster (football)
2011-12: Ann-Sophie Bettez - McGill (hockey) / Marc-André Dorion - McGill (hockey)
2010-11: Jessica Clemençon - Windsor (basketball) / Tyson Hinz - Carleton (basketball)
2009-10: Liz Cordonier - UBC (volleyball) / Erik Glavic - Calgary (football)
2008-09: Annamay Pierse - UBC (swimming) / Joel Schmuland - Alberta (volleyball)
2007-08: Laetitia Tchoualack - Montreal (volleyball) / Rob Hennigar - UNB (hockey)
2006-07: Jessica Zelinka - Calgary (track & field) / Josh Howatson - Trinity Western (volleyball)
2005-06: Marylène Laplante - Laval (volleyball) / Osvaldo Jeanty - Carleton (basketball)
2004-05: Adrienne Power - Dalhousie (track & field) / Jesse Lumsden - McMaster (football)
2003-04: Joanna Niemczewska - Calgary (volleyball) / Adam Ens - Saskatchewan (volleyball)
2002-03: Kim St-Pierre - McGill (hockey) / Ryan McKenzie - Windsor (cross country & T&F)
2001-02: Elizabeth Warden - Toronto (swimming) / Brian Johns - UBC (swimming)
2000-01: Leighann Doan - Calgary (basketball) / Kojo Aidoo - McMaster (football)
1999-00: Jenny Cartmell - Alberta (volleyball) / Michael Potts - Western (soccer)
1998-99: Corinne Swirsky - Concordia (hockey) / Alexandre Marchand - Sherbrooke (T&F)
1997-98: Foy Williams - Toronto (track & field) / Titus Channer - McMaster (basketball)
1996-97: Terri-Lee Johannesson - Manitoba (basketball) / Curtis Myden - Calgary (swimming)
1995-96: Justine Ellison - Toronto (basketball) / Don Blair - Calgary (football)
1994-95: Linda Thyer - McGill (track & field) / Bill Kubas - Wilfrid Laurier (football)
1993-94: Sandra Carroll - Winnipeg (basketball) / Tim Tindale - Western (football)
1992-93: Diane Scott - Winnipeg (volleyball) / Andy Cameron - Calgary (volleyball)
2014-2015 AUS FEMALE BLG AWARD NOMINEE (Jim Thompson Trophy)
Atlantic University Sport (AUS)
Emma Taylor
St. Francis Xavier University
Sport: Rugby
Year of eligibility: 5
Academic program: Business Administration
Hometown: Scotsburn, N.S.
Emma Taylor is the latest superstar from the women’s rugby powerhouse at StFX University to be nominated for a BLG Award, following in the footsteps of Tyson Beukeboom (2012) and Ghislaine Landry (2009).
In her fifth season with the X-Women, Taylor led the reigning 17-time AUS champions to their fourth CIS title. In doing so she became the only athlete in school history to win three national crowns (2014, 2012, 2010), to go with a silver medal (2011).
The 6-foot-1 lock from Scotsburn, N.S. was named MVP of the 2014 CIS championship after leading all players with seven tries in three games. With a flair for the dramatic, Taylor scored the game-winning try in the final minute of play in the CIS semi-final to advance the X-Women to the championship game, where they handled McMaster 43-34. The previous week, in the AUS conference final, she had scored two tries, including the game-tying score, to lead X to a come-from-behind overtime victory over archrival Acadia.
The 22-year-old business administration major led the Atlantic conference during the 2014 regular season with 10 tries in six games and was second in points scored (60), en route to receiving league MVP accolades. Taylor, who would also be named the AUS playoff MVP and a first-team All-Canadian, experienced the rare occurrence of being voted CIS athlete of the week on back-to-back occasions last fall.
She wraps her stellar StFX rugby career as a two-time All-Canadian and CIS tournament all-star, three-time AUS all-star, five-time AUS champion and three-time CIS champion.
A multi-sport athlete growing up in a small town 45 minutes down the road from StFX, Taylor was raised in an athletic family of three. In her final university season, she decided to play varsity basketball at the conclusion of the rugby campaign and averaged seven minutes per game on the court.
With a number of Canadian rugby national team training camps under her belt, she awaits the next phase of her playing career, aspiring to play alongside several former StFX teammates currently involved with the national program, including 2014 International Rugby Board player of the year Magali Harvey.
“There’s a reason why you win three national championships, and it’s a commitment to excellence,” says StFX head coach Mike Cavanagh. “Everything Emma did on and off the field exemplified that commitment, and the will to win and achieve excellence. Her leadership and work ethic inspires her teammates to perform to their utmost abilities. There is no quit in Emma, her work - with or without the ball – has made her a dominant force on the field.”
2014-2015 AUS MALE BLG AWARD NOMINEE (Doug Mitchell Trophy)
Atlantic University Sport (AUS)
Justin Maheu
Cape Breton University
Sport: Soccer
Year of eligibility: 2
Academic Program: Arts (Community Studies)
Hometown: Ottawa, Ont.
It’s been an incredible sophomore season for Cape Breton University soccer striker Justin Maheu.
Coming off a quiet rookie campaign that saw him find the back of the net twice in nine contests, Maheu exploded into the national spotlight during the fall of 2014, scoring 15 times in just 11 league games to help lead the Capers to an 8-4-1 record and a second-place finish in the Atlantic conference standings. His average of 1.36 goals per outing in league play was the best in the country.
The native of Ottawa was a difference maker for the Capers en route to being named AUS most valuable player and a first-team conference all-star. The awards would continue for Maheu at the national level as he became the first male athlete in CBU history – in any sport - to be voted CIS player of the year.
Maheu, whose older brother Samuel was an all-rookie, all-conference and offensive MVP during his years with St. Bonaventure in the NCAA Atlantic 10 Conference, left his family home at the age of 15 to join the only professional youth academy in Canada, Toronto FC. He went on to represent the country at the CONCACAF U-17 World Cup qualifications in Mexico and, while he received several full scholarship offers from NCAA Division 1 universities, he opted to sign a two-year contract with Fortuna Dusseldorf II in Germany. During that time, he was called up again at the international level, this time to compete at the CONCACAF U-20 World Cup qualifications in Guatemala.
With a parallel desire to continue his education and play competitive soccer, Maheu decided to return to Canada in 2013 and joined the Capers. Currently enrolled in the Bachelor of Arts Community Studies program, he was recognized as the Capers MVP and CBU male athlete of the year during the school’s 2015 awards gala. The 23-year-old has also found his focus in the classroom since arriving on the Sydney campus, earning CIS Academic All-Canadian status as a freshman and being on his way to merit the honour again this year.
“Justin is a pleasure to work with on the training ground,” says Cape Breton head coach Dean Morley. “He is a competitive athlete and the drive, passion and determination that he has demonstrated during game time can be found Monday to Friday during practice. The work he has put in during the off-season and his desire to continually want to improve make him a great man to work with.”
Source: CIS Communications