Cape Breton's Karolyne Blain named AUS MVP for second consecutive year
(HALIFAX, N.S.) - Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2014 women's soccer all-stars and major award winners as selected by the conference's 10 head coaches following regular season play.
Fourth-year Cape Breton Capers striker Karolyne Blain was named the AUS most valuable player for the second consecutive year at Thursday night's awards banquet, hosted in Halifax by Dalhousie University.
Other AUS major award winners announced were Memorial's Emily Bailey of Mount Pearl, Nfld., who was named the rookie of the year; Acadia's Caoimhe McParland of Halifax, N.S., who received the student-athlete community service award; and UNB Varsity Reds head coach Jonathan Crossland, who was selected as the coach of the year for the first time in his career.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Karolyne Blain, Cape Breton
Karolyne Blain, a fourth-year striker with the Cape Breton Capers, is the 2014 AUS women's soccer most valuable player.
The 5-foot-0 native of Copper Cliff, Ont. scored a league-leading 16 goals this season giving her an unofficial AUS single-season record, eclipsing the previous mark of 15 held by UPEI's Tessa Roach.
Blain led the Atlantic conference in several other statistical categories this season, including shots (53), shots on goal (39) and successful penalty kicks (3/3). She also finished tied for first in game-winning goals with four.
Thursday evening's banquet also marked the third time in Blain's Capers career that she has been named to the AUS first-team all-star squad. She was named a first team all-star in both 2011 and 2013 after having been forced to sit out the bulk of her sophomore season in 2012 with an injury.
Last season, Blain was named a CIS first team all-Canadian. In her freshman year with the Capers in 2011, she collected both AUS rookie of the year honours and a spot on the CIS second team all-Canadian squad.
She currently has 43 career regular season goals.
"Karolyne has been a pleasure to coach." said Capers head coach Ness Timmons. "Her contribution to the CBU program is obvious on the score board, but her character as a person will have a more lasting effect on her teammates. She is a terrific team leader and teammate."
Blain is the fourth Cape Breton player since 1991 to be named the conference's most valuable player and the only member of a Capers squad to ever earn the honour twice.
Former Capers stars Kristina Weatherbie (2007), Natalie Cullen (2003) and Sarah Drake (2002) are also previous Cape Breton recipients of the award.
Only two Atlantic conference athletes have taken home the Chantal Navert Memorial Award as CIS player of the year. UPEI's Amy Connolly won it in 2005 and Cape Breton's Sarah Drake was the 2002 recipient.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Emily Bailey, Memorial
Emily Bailey of the Memorial Sea-Hawks has been chosen by the coaches as the 2014 Atlantic University Sport rookie of the year.
A commerce student from Mount Pearl, Nfld., Bailey posted the second most goals in the AUS conference this season with 10. Only AUS MVP Karolyne Blain scored more.
Bailey and Blain also finished the season tied for the most game-winning goals with four apiece.
Starting in all 13 regular season games in her freshman year with the Sea-Hawks, Bailey posted 37 shots this season and 24 shots on goal. She was also named to the AUS first team all-star squad Thursday night.
"Emily has had an outstanding year in her first as a Sea-Hawk," said Memorial head coach Walt Mavin. "This hard-working, talented forward has had an impact on her team's success right from the first game of the season, leading her team in team scoring. Emily is a pleasure to coach and we're proud to have her wearing a Sea-Hawks uniform."
Bailey becomes just the third freshman from a Memorial squad to take home AUS rookie of the year honours. Former Sea-Hawks standouts Laura Breen (2004) and Fiona Curtis (1996) are the other Memorial players to have earned top rookie honours.
Bailey will now represent the Atlantic conference as the AUS nominee for CIS rookie of the year.
The only AUS players to be named the CIS women's soccer rookie of the year are Cape Breton's Michelle Desjardins in 2000 and Dalhousie's Mary-Beth Bowie in 1997.
STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Caoimhe McParland, Acadia
Fourth-year cornerback Caoimhe McParland of the Acadia Axewomen is the 2014 student-athlete community service award recipient.
This is the fourth consecutive year a member of the Acadia squad has earned the honour. McParland's teammate Alana Fairfax has taken home the honour the past two seasons. And former Acadia standout Cathleen Bleakney earned the honour in 2011.
Boasting a current GPA of 3.97 and an overall GPA of 3.96, McParland is an exemplary student-athlete, balancing athletics, academics and extensive community involvement.
She has been heavily involved with the Acadia chapter of the Global Medical Brigades (GMB) since it was founded in 2011. This year, McParland served as treasurer and also recently took on the role of vice president of medical.
GMB is a student-led global health and sustainable development organization. The Acadia chapter organizes yearly missions in Honduras.
McParland's responsibilities include contacting pharmacies for medications, working with Health Partners International and other suppliers to acquire medication, sorting and keeping track of medical supplies and working with pharmacists in both Honduras and Canada to organize transportation and required medications for the trip.
This past year, McParland secured a $500 grant from Doctors Nova Scotia to help offset the costs of providing a mental health first aid course to Acadia's resident assistants and other staff in front-line positions.
She has been an active member of the Acadia S.M.I.L.E. program (Sensory Motor Instructional Learning Experience) since 2012, working with children with autism to develop motor, cognitive and social learning skills.
For the last year, McParland has been volunteering at the Wolfville nursing home twice a week as a meal assistant. She is also a volunteer with Kinderskills Acadia, a group that works with children between the ages of 0 and 4 to promote and develop gross and fine movement skills.
McParland is a member of the Acadia Mental Health Society, she volunteers weekly at Hants Community Hospital, is an active member of Acadia's WITS anti-bullying program and has volunteered with the Nova Scotia Hearing and Speech centre.
On behalf of the Stephen Lewis Foundation's 'Dare Campaign', McParland is currently organizing her third polar bear dip fundraising event. The Dare Campaign raises money in order to provide essential health, educational and emotional support to people in Africa living with HIV and AIDS.
"The most remarkable thing about Caoimhe is that you may know she is a very good player, and it doesn't take long to understand how strong she is academically, but her impact on the community largely goes unnoticed because she just contributes as part of her daily life," said Axewomen head coach Amit Batra.
"Giving is her habit and her impact on the community is enormous. The fact that she is being recognized amongst so many great candidates exemplifies and speaks to what so many student-athletes do."
McParland is now the AUS nominee for the CIS student-athlete community service award. Two former Acadia standouts have won the national honour. Alana Fairfax earned it in 2012 and Cathleen Bleakney in 2011.
COACH OF THE YEAR: Jonathan Crossland, UNB
UNB Varsity Reds head coach Jonathan Crossland has been chosen by his peers as the 2014 AUS coach of the year.
This marks the first time coach Crossland has been selected as the conference's top coach since he took over the team's leadership in 2012. Prior to becoming head coach, he also served as an assistant coach with the team from 2005 to 2012.
This year, he guided the CIS No. 8-ranked Varsity Reds to a 10-1-2 regular season record and first place in the AUS standings.
This season marked an impressive turnaround for the squad who just last season, finished in seventh place with a 4-7-2 record.
This postseason will mark just the second time UNB has made the playoffs since 2006. They secured not only a spot in this year's championship, but a first-round bye to Saturday's semifinals.
"Jon has quickly turned around our Varsity Reds soccer program with his knowledge, passion, loyalty and his ability to recruit quality student-athletes," said UNB athletic director John Richard. "He continues to grow as a CIS coach and our team has benefited from that."
Crossland now becomes the AUS nominee for CIS coach of the year.
The most recent coach from the Atlantic conference to be awarded the national honour was Cape Breton's Ness Timmons in 2012.
FIRST AND SECOND TEAM ALL-STARS
The AUS first and second team all-stars were also announced Thursday. They are as follows:
First Team AUS All-Stars
Striker – Karolyne Blain, Cape Breton (4th year – Copper Cliff, Ont.)
Striker – Jessie Noseworthy, Memorial (2nd year – St. John's, Nfld.)
Striker – Samantha Lagacy, UNB (5th year – Moncton, N.B.)
Striker – Emily Bailey, Memorial (1st year – Mount Pearl, Nfld.)
Midfielder – Michelle Yates, Dalhousie (5th year – Fall River, N.S.)
Midfielder – Victoria Parkinson, Dalhousie (3rd year – Halifax, N.S.)
Midfielder – Kayla Painter, UNB (4th year – Fredericton, N.B.)
Defender – Emily Nickerson, Acadia (2nd year – Coldbrook, N.S.)
Defender – Kristy McGregor-Bales, Dalhousie (4th year – Ottawa, Ont.)
Defender – Alana Fairfax, Acadia (5th year – Somerset, N.S.)
Keeper – Ashley McKenna, UPEI (5th year – Stratford, P.E.I.)
Second Team AUS All-Stars
Striker – Maria Scichilone, UPEI (4th year – Rothesay, N.B.)
Striker – Jane Pope, Memorial (2nd year – St. John's, Nfld.)
Striker – Amanda Volcko, Mount Allison (3rd year – Halifax, N.S.)
Midfielder – Emilie Pelletier, UPEI (4th year – Fredericton, N.B.)
Midfielder – Emily van Diepen, Mount Allison (4th year – Morell, P.E.I.)
Midfielder – Laura Gray, Acadia (5th year – Brookside, N.S.)
Midfielder – Margaux Fraser, StFX (1st year – Mississauga, Ont.)
Defender – Robyn Novorolsky, Cape Breton (2nd year – Richmond Hill, Ont.)
Defender – Haley Gates, UNB (3rd year – Bridgewater, N.S.)
Defender – Tamara Brown, CBU (2nd year – Whitby, Ont.)
Keeper – Erin Visser, StFX (1st year – Whitby, Ont.)
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The 2014 Subway Atlantic University Sport women's soccer championship will be hosted by Dalhousie University at Wickwire Field in Halifax, N.S., Oct. 31 to Nov. 2, 2014.
The championship schedule is as follows:
Friday, Oct. 31
Quarter-final #1: UPEI (6th) vs. Cape Breton (3rd), 11 a.m.
Quarter-final #2: Dalhousie (5th) vs. Acadia (4th) 2 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 1
Semifinal #1: Lowest Remaining Seed vs. UNB (1st ), 11 a.m.
Semifinal #2: Highest Remaining Seed vs. Memorial (2nd), 2 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 2
Championship Game: Semifinal #1 Winner vs. Semifinal #2 Winner, 2 p.m.
*Note: All games of the championship will be available via webcast, live at www.AUStv.ca.
Final AUS women's soccer standings:
www.atlanticuniversitysport.com/sports/wsoc/2014-15/standings
The Atlantic University Sport conference receives one berth at the 2014 CIS women's soccer championship, hosted by Laval University, November 6-9, 2014.
The AUS champion will be the lone team to qualify for this year's national championship.
For more information on the 2014 CIS women's soccer championship, please visit the official website at: english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wsoc/index.