Rugby player Sydney Theriault and point guard Damian Buckley were named the Concordia University Athletes of the Year at a gala awards night attended by 400 people last Saturday.
It’s been an incredible five-year journey for Theriault, a flyhalf with the women’s rugby team. By the 2005 season she was a Quebec conference all-star and she reached all-Canadian status in 2006. She also took over the leadership of the women’s rugby team in 2006 as team captain.
In 2007, she was playing the game at a whole different level. Her commitment to conditioning and her vision of the field had her dominating the Quebec conference. Despite missing two games due to injuries, she was named the conference MVP.She missed the last two games of the season, but could not be kept out of the playoffs. Upon her return she led the Stingers to their first Quebec championship in 10 years. It was off to the nationals where Concordia finished fifth in the nation and Sydney was named to the 2007 all-Canadian team.
Buckley, a third-year guard, is the heart and soul of the Stingers men’s basketball team– offensively, defensively and on and off the court. Despite missing most of the preseason with a serious knee injury he has been Mr. Everything for the Stingers. He’s performed his own duties at an exceptionally high level and carried a big extra load because of the injuries suffered by his teammates. Despite being the main focus of every team’s defence, he was able to put up superb numbers. He averaged 20.9 points a game which was tops on the Stingers, second in the QSSF. He also had 93 assists and 35 steals in 16 games.
Buckley was the Concordia Athlete of the Week seven times this year. He was a Quebec conference first team all-star and a second team all-Canadian.A complete list of award winners is below:
Ron Lapointe Award for academics, athletics and community service – Trevor Blanchard, men’s hockey
Denise Beaudet Award for academics, athletics and community service – Amanda Kuiper, women’s soccer
Male Rookie of the Year – Liam Mahoney, football
Laurie Brodrick Award/Female Rookie of the Year – Alynn Doiron, hockey
Fittest Female Athlete – Meggy Hatin-Léveilée, hockey
Fittest Male Athlete – Cory Greenwood, football
Marvin Cooper Award - presented to a student-athlete who has successfully overcome adversity through hard work, commitment and dedication. Darnell Danglade, football
President's Academic Awards (combination of athletics and academics)- Tyler Marghetis, wrestling; Fanny Berthiaume, women’s soccer
Director’s Shields for contribution to varsity athletics program – Spirit Team and Jared Book, the Concordian
Awards of Distinction for career contribution to Stingers– Angela Di Stasi, women’s hockey, and Tyler Marghetis, wrestling
Men's MVPs
- MVP baseball: R.J. Leibovitch
- MVP basketball: Damian Buckley
- MVP cross-country: Simon-Malik Giroux
- MVP football: Sammy Okpro
- MVP hockey: Trevor Blanchard
- MVP rugby: Eric Van Thiel
- MVP soccer: Sandro Addesa
- MVP skiing: Skyler Farrell
- MVP wrestling: Tyler Marghetis
Women's MVPs
- MVP basketball: Krystle Douglas
- MVP cross-country: Sarah Burger
- MVP hockey: Angela Di Statsi
- MVP rugby: Sydney Theriault
- MVP soccer: Erica Geertsen, Fanny Berthiaume
- MVP skiing: Brianne Ormerod
- MVP wrestling: Ella Rebalski
Male Rookies
- Baseball: R.J. Leibovitch, Marco Masciotra
- Basketball: Decee Krah
- Cross-Country: Sofiane Guend
- Football: Liam Mahoney
- Hockey: Eric Begin
- Rugby: Sasha Palatnikov
- Skiing: Skyler Farrell
- Soccer: Mauricio Soto
- Wrestling: Alex Dyas, Gurveer Talhan
Female Rookies
- Basketball: Kristin Portwine
- Cross-Country: Rebecca Trembath
- Hockey: Alynn Doiron
- Rugby: Claire Hortop
- Skiing: Brianne Ormerod
- Soccer: Emily Hubbard
- Wrestling: Nikita Chicoine
