Five Niagara Knights student-athletes were named 2015-16 Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Academic All-Canadian award recipients on April 6th. Lorelle Weavers (Golf), Josiah Dixon (Golf), Steve Stone (Volleyball), Jeff Scott (Volleyball), and Megan Droog (Curling).
The Academic All-Canadian award is presented to student-athletes that achieve honour standing at their respective institutions and are selected to their respective CCAA conference all-star teams. The award is the CCAA's most prestigious student-athlete honour, epitomizing the commitment to academic success and athletic achievement.
"We are extremely proud of Lorelle, Josiah, Jeff, Steve, and Megan." said Niagara College Director of Athletics & Recreation Matthew Davies, "These five individuals epitomize the definition of a student-athlete, reflected in their achievements in the classroom and on the field of play. They are a direct reflection of the high performance culture of intercollegiate athletics at Niagara College."
Since the award was introduced in 2001, 38 Niagara College student-athletes have received the prestigious award. The five recipients this season are the third highest total for a single institution in the OCAA, and fifth highest total across the CCAA.
The achievement adds to an extraordinary year for golfer Lorelle Weavers (Burlington). Weavers, the 2015 OCAA women's golf champion, was named both an All-Canadian and Academic All-Canadian for the second consecutive season. Teammate Josiah Dixon becomes the golf team's first Knights male to receive the national recognition. Dixon was a key contributor to the men's golf team's OCAA gold medal men's golf team, and won an individual bronze medal at the 2015 OCAA Golf Championship.
Men's volleyball player Jeff Scott (Georgetown) joins Weavers and Shayne Petrusma (men's volleyball) as the only Niagara student-athletes to receive All-Canadian and Academic All-Canadian honours in the same year. Paced by Scott, the men's volleyball program continues to demonstrate their aptitude for academic and athletic success.
Steve Stone (St. Catharines) joins teammate Jeff Scott as an Academic All-Canadian recipient. This is the second straight season in which Stone has received the award and the fourth straight season a member of the Niagara College men's volleyball program has earned the honour.
Curler Megan Droog (Harriston) rounds out the Knights Academic All-Canadians. The second-year skip was named an OCAA second-team all-star, as she led her team for a fourth place finish in Ontario and 7th finish at the CCAA championship.
Weavers and Stone become the fifth and sixth Niagara College student-athlete to become two-time Academic All-Canadian. He joins Bailey Cochrane (volleyball), Brittany Johnston (soccer), Heidi Bench (volleyball), and Eliran Kikos (basketball) as the other two-time recipients.
Niagara College will honour each of the award recipients at the 2015-16 intercollegiate athletic awards banquet on Friday, April 8th at the Riverstone Event Centre in Welland.
