St. Catharines' own Janee Harrison and Balgonie, Saskatchewan native Carter Thurman won the top athletic awards at Niagara College's 54th Annual Athletic Awards Banquet held Tuesday, March 26th at the Daniel J. Patterson Campus.
The banquet is held to recognize top student athletes for their performance on the court and field of play, and more importantly in the classroom. The night was also an opportunity to highlight the teams' success and recognize individual accomplishments from the 2023/2024 season.
Harrison, a guard/forward on the Knights Women's Basketball team and Thurman, a setter on the Knights Men's Volleyball team were honoured as the Niagara College Knights Female and Male Athletes of the Year. Harrison was named OCAA 2nd Team All-Star, Player of the Game in their semi-final match and named to the OCAA Women's Basketball Tournament All-Star Team. Thurman led the team in every match and surpassed 1,000 career assists mid-way through the season.
Matthew Takacs (Woodstock, Ontario), and Sam Cormier (St. Catharines, Ontario), were honoured as the Niagara College Knights Male and Female Rookie Athletes of the Year across all sports. Takacs is a 6'3" outside hitter on the Knights Men's Volleyball team, and Cormier is a 6'2" middle blocker on the Women's Volleyball team.
Aidan Mcvey (Hamilton, Ontario), a first-year student-athlete and member of the Niagara College's Golf team, was selected as this year's Niagara College Knights Male Tournament Sport Player of the Year.
Jamira Rousseau (Welland, Ontario), a key piece of the Knights' Women's Basketball team and Reggie Williams (Toronto, Ontario), a guard on the Knights Men's Basketball team were named Female and Male Leadership Award recipients across all sports.
Ethan Alino-Dela Cruz (Mississauga, Ontario), a point guard on the Knights Men's Basketball team was recognized, for the second time in two years, for academic excellence as the top Male Scholastic Award. While Tori Hultink (Pelham, Ontario) a midfielder on the Knights Women's Soccer team is the recipient of the top Female Scholastic Award in recognition of the top Academic GPA across all sports for a Niagara College student-athlete.
"Major Award-Winning Athletes Bios Included at bottom of Media Release."
A total of 98 individual awards were presented at this year's banquet.
Chris Rao, Head Coach of the bronze medalist Women's Basketball team was the recipient of the Ralph Nero Memorial Award – for Coaching Excellence & Outstanding Contributions to Student Recruitment and Retention.
Danny Cvetanovic, Niagara College Student Administrative Council Operations Manager, was the recipient of the Luciano Berardocco Memorial Award. This award recognizes his outstanding contribution to intercollegiate athletics in the 2023 – 2024 season.
Ali Weir, Nimisha Sumathi, Marilia Welter, Shazia Khan and Sarah Singleton, all members of our Student Engagement Team were the recipients of the Ray Sarkis Award. This award is given to individuals who exude passion, commitment and are community minded.
The recipients of the CCAA Academic All-Canadian Awards are:
Janee Harrison Women's Basketball
Taryn Mitchell Women's Basketball
The recipients of the OCAA All-Academic Awards are:
Men's Basketball Ethan Alino-Dela Cruz, Riley Bleich, Nikola Hrnjez, Khayden Moore & Reggie Williams
Women's Basketball Lex Bell, Emma Fraser, Parneet Gill, Janee Harrison, Griffin Lack-Shane, Taryn Mitchell, Ella Peters and Katelyn Roth
Men's Golf Tristano Mancuso and Aidan Mcvey
Men's Soccer Christian Buccella, Sean Darracott, Michael DiMaurizio, Kyle Hannon, Victor Kariuki, Ferdinand Lokole, Nathaniel Smyth and Noah Vogel
Women's Soccer Olivia Collevecchio, Mia Dipasquale, Aneisha Gobbels, Tori Hultink, Taylor Hynes, Hannah Kelly, Juliana Mack-Greco, Ashley Phillips, Jayda Rodrigue, Natalie Sistero and Hannah Vander Meulen
Men's Volleyball Tyler Carmichael, Micah Nieuwets, Jordan Schroeder, Matthew Takacs, Wyatt Thompson, Andrew Vandenburg, Tristan Vermolen and Britton Burrows
Women's Volleyball Jadyn Bertrand, Kyrah Cameron, Emmah Gmoser, Abbey Gooder and Montanna Taylor
The Niagara College 4th Year Recognition Award. Recognizing athletes who have given four years of dedication to their respective sport:
Men's Basketball Reggie Williams
Women's Basketball Jamira Rousseau and Molly Taylor
Men's Volleyball Carter Thurman and Andrew Vandenburg
Women's Volleyball Team Montanna Taylor
Men's Soccer Joel Marinas
Team-by-Team Leadership Award
This award is in recognition of outstanding commitment, dedication, and leadership on and off the court/field/ice of play:
Men's Basketball Reggie Williams
Women's Basketball Jamira Rousseau
Golf Tristano Mancuso
Men's Soccer Altin Ibrahimi
Women's Soccer Natalie Sistero
Men's Volleyball Mitch Churipuy
Women Volleyball Emmah Gmoser
Team-by-Team Scholastic Award
This Award is in recognition of the top Academic GPA for a Niagara College Student Athlete.
Men's Basketball Ethan Alino-Dela-Cruz
Women's Basketball Janee Harrison
Men's Golf Aidan Mcvey
Men's Soccer Nathaniel Smyth
Women's Soccer Tori Hultink
Men's Volleyball Wyatt Thompson and Britton Burrows
Women's Volleyball Kyrah Cameron and Emmah Gmoser
Team-by-Team Rookie Athlete of the Year
Men's Basketball Riley Bleich
Women's Basketball Destiny Osadebamwen
Golf Ethan Siebert
Men's Soccer Kyle Hannon
Women's Soccer Ashley Phillips
Men's Volleyball Matthew Takacs
Women's Volleyball Sam Cormier
Team-by-Team Most Valuable Player
Men's Basketball Khayden Stewart
Women's Basketball Janee Harrison
Golf Aidan Mcvey
Men's Soccer Victor Kariuki
Women's Soccer Mia Dipasquale
Men's Volleyball Carter Thurman
Women's Volleyball Montanna Taylor
Male and Female Athletes of the Year
Female Athlete of the Year
Janee Harrison (St. Catharines, Ontario) had a phenomenal season with the Knights Women's Basketball team. She led the team to a bronze medal at the OCAA Championships and earned a Western Conference Second Team All-Star, Player of the Game Award in the semi-final match, Tournament All-Star Team, OCAA All-Academic Award and CCAA Academic All Canadian Award. Janee had 9 games where she scored in double digits throughout the regular season and led the team in scoring at the OCAA Championships putting up 13 points and 9 rebounds in the semi-final against the Lambton Lions and an outstanding 14 points and 20 rebounds in the bronze medal game against the St. Clair Saints. Janee made a huge impact on the team by being extremely efficient and leading them in points per game. She was a dominant force that impacted the game on both ends of the court.
Male Athlete of the Year
Carter Thurman (Balgonie, Saskatchewan) impacted more than just the game this past season as he displayed his incredible drive and commitment to the team. Leading the team into each match, he was the glue that held everyone together and provided a calmness for the rest of his teammates. Carter was top 5 in digs per set in the OCAA with a 2.33 and finished in the top 10 for digs with 126. He posted 30+ digs in a third of his matches and was key in orchestrating the offence throughout the season as he finished with 378 assists, on route to surpassing a career 1000 assist milestone. Carter is an incredible young man who exudes a positive attitude and has embraced Niagara College Athletics during his time here.
Male and Female Rookie Athlete of the Year – Across All Sports
Female Rookie Athlete of the Year
Sam Cormier (St. Catharines, Ontario) was a presence on the court since the first time she stepped onto it. She consistently impressed her coaches, teammates, and opposition with her outstanding performance as a first-year player. Sam finished 2nd in the OCAA in blocks per set with a 0.79 and scored in double digits in nearly half of the games she played in the regular season. She scored 13 points and had 2 service aces in her first playoff game against the Centennial Colts before contributing another 13 points and 6 blocks in the quarter-final game against the Loyalist Lancers. Sam's play throughout the year earned her a spot on the OCAA West Division All-Rookie Team.
Male Rookie Athlete of the Year
Matthew Takacs (Woodstock, Ontario) did not play in game 1 of the season but provided an abundance of energy when he got his chance. Moving into the starting role as the season went on, Matthew saw his opportunity and did not let it go. Finishing the season with a 0.235 hitting percentage, his attacking and serving were serious strengths that proved difficult for his opponents to combat. He regularly made great plays and was continuing to improve himself in every way possible. In his first playoff game against the Algonquin Wolves, he posted 19 points, 15 kills, 4 digs, 3 blocks and a service ace. A cornerstone for the future of the men's volleyball program, Matthew earned himself a spot on the OCAA West Division All-Rookie Team.
Male and Female Top Leadership Award – Across All Sports
Female Top Leadership Award
Jamira Rousseau (Welland, Ontario) is a prime example of what every coach looks for in a player. Her leadership skills are second to none as she leads the Knights in so many aspects, both on and off the court. Being both understanding and demanding, not only of herself but of the entire team, Jamira maintains high standards for everyone. She also played a pivotal role in keeping the team focused during the OCAA Championships on their way to a bronze medal finish.
Male Top Leadership Award
Reggie Williams (Toronto, Ontario) is a quiet leader that has a big voice wherever he goes. An individual that shows exemplary leadership skills, both on and off the court, consistently leads by example whether it be his work ethic, his positive attitude or his tremendous contribution to the team and Niagara College as a whole. Reggie plays a crucial role as he leads his team into each game and sets the standard for everyone following him. Willing to do whatever it takes to help the team succeed, he constantly pushes his teammates to get better and holds everyone accountable for their actions.
Male and Female Top Scholastic Award – Across All Sports
Female Top Scholastic Award
Tori Hultink (Pelham, ON), a midfielder for the Knights' soccer team showed extreme dedication to her studies this year, while also performing on the pitch. Finishing with a 96% GPA, Tori was the recipient of the Female Top Scholastic Award.
Male Top Scholastic Award
Ethan Alino-Dela Cruz (Mississauga, ON), a guard for the Knights' basketball team showed extreme dedication to his studies this year, while also performing on the court. Finishing with a 91% GPA, Ethan was the recipient of the Male Top Scholastic Award.
Male Tournament Sport Player of the Year
Male Tournament Sport Player of the Year
Aidan Mcvey (Hamilton, Ontario) is one of those players that continued to shine through all season long with his dedication to not only his team, but also to his craft. He committed to the Knights team in the early summer and displayed an eagerness to continuously get better. As the team moves forward, Aidan will be a centerpiece as they look to get back to OCAA glory. He wore the Niagara College logo with pride and continues to be a phenomenal representative for the golf program and Niagara College as a whole.
