Western Mustangs student-athletes honoured at 2013-14 Athletic Awards Gala

LONDON, Ont. – Men’s volleyball player Garrett May and women’s wrestler Brianne Barry were recognized for their outstanding careers on Wednesday night as the Western Mustangs held the 2013-14 Athletic Awards Gala at the London Convention Centre.
 
May finished his four years at Western by becoming the 75th winner of the Dr. Claude Brown Memorial Trophy while Barry wrapped up her five-year Mustangs career with the 58th F.W.P. Jones Trophy. Both awards are presented to an athlete judged to have made the greatest contribution to intercollegiate athletics within the university during their time at Western.
 
In his four seasons with the Mustangs May helped lead Western to four consecutive OUA Finals appearances and three trips to the CIS Men’s Volleyball Championship, including helping this year’s team win a national silver medal. A former junior world champion in beach volleyball, May became arguably the greatest player in Mustangs men’s volleyball history, winning numerous OUA and CIS awards during his time in purple and white. The Toronto native was a four-time OUA all-star, three-time CIS all-Canadian, OUA and CIS rookie of the year, and 2013 OUA player of the year.
 
Other nominees for the Dr. Claude Brown Memorial Trophy were football player Lirim Hajrullahu and badminton player Martin Giuffre.
 
For the past five seasons no one has dominated the OUA wrestling ranks like Brianne Barry as the London native won five straight OUA gold medals from 2010-14. Barry was also dominant at the CIS level, winning three silver medals and capturing a gold medal at the 2014 national championship. Along with her success at the university level, Barry is a member of Canada’s U24 national team and has represented the country in events all across the globe.
 
Also nominated for the F.W.P. Jones Trophy were basketball’s Jenny Vaughan and badminton’s Alex Bruce.
 
Along with the Brown and Jones trophies two Mustangs were selected as the Male and Female Athletes of the Year.
 
Receiving the second ever Male Athlete of the Year Award was football player Will Finch. Finch rewrote the OUA record book in 2013, setting new milestones for completion percentage (69.7%) and passing yards (3,047 yards) while helping the Mustangs win their 30th Yates Cup title.
 
Men’s hockey player Zach Harnden and men’s volleyball player Garrett May were also nominated for the Male Athlete of the Year Award.
 
Jenny Vaughan claimed the second Female Athlete of the Year Award after an outstanding final season in purple and white. The fifth-year senior was named the OUA West player of the year after setting a new OUA single-season scoring record with 506 points and becoming the first woman to eclipse the 500 point barrier in a single campaign.
 
Other nominees for Female Athlete of the Year were wrestler Brianne Barry and track and field athlete Caroline Ehrhardt.
 
Also presented on Tuesday night were the prestigious Purple Blanket awards, which are given to student-athletes, usually in their graduating year, that are judged to have made an outstanding contribution to Western athletics.
 
This year 15 Purple Blankets were handed out with four going to major award nominees Garrett May, Lirim Hajrullahu, Alex Bruce, and Zach Harnden. Other winners included women’s lacrosse’s Caitlin Mancuso, football’s Pawel Kruba, rowers Natasha Caminsky, Jennifer Martins and Derek Stedman, swimmers Robert Wise and Shannon Nell, wrestler Larissa D’Alleva, track and field’s Matthew Brisson, men’s volleyball’s Phil James, and men’s hockey player Josh Unice.

Team MVPs were honoured as well, with the full list of winners outlined below:
 
Men’s Badminton: Martin Giuffre
Women’s Badminton: Alex Bruce
Baseball: Owen Boon
Men’s Basketball: Greg Morrow
Women’s Basketball: Jenny Vaughan
Men’s Cross Country: Kevin Blackney
Women’s Cross Country: Amanda Truelove
Men’s Curling: Brett DeKoning
Women’s Curling: Caitlin Romain
Men’s Fencing: Andrew Kennel
Women’s Fencing: Vivian Poon
Field Hockey: Katelyn Roganowicz
Figure Skating: Carly Smith
Football: Will Finch
Men’s Golf: Harris Bundy
Women’s Golf: Jessie Mercer
Men’s Hockey: Zach Harnden
Women’s Hockey: Katelyn Gosling
Men’s Lacrosse: Eric Pitre
Women’s Lacrosse: Tawnie Johnson and Kristen Stafford (co-MVPs)
Ringette: Melissa Guiller and Amanda Storie
Men’s Rowing: Laura MacLachlan (Heavyweight)
Men’s Rowing: Derek Stedman (Lightweight)
Women’s Rowing: Sydney Boyes (Heavyweight)
Women’s Rowing: Sara Matovic and Jacyln Halko (Lightweight)
Men’s Rugby: Mike Penczak
Women’s Rugby: Lori Josephson
Men’s Soccer: Andrew Walton
Women’s Soccer: Tori Edgar
Softball: Tricia MacKay and Kara Stirling (co-MVPs)
Men’s Squash: James Van Savaren
Women’s Squash: Deanna Hamilton
Men’s Swimming: Robert Wise
Women’s Swimming: Paulina Bond
Table Tennis: Joyce Li
Men’s Tennis: Tomo Ono
Women’s Tennis: Michelle Stanescu
Men’s Track and Field: Taylor Stewart
Women’s Track and Field: Caroline Ehrhardt
Men’s Volleyball: Garrett May and Sean Mckay (co-MVPs)
Women’s Volleyball: Stephanie Kreuter
Water Polo: Daniel Abraham
Men’s Wrestling: Josh Proctor and Riley Otto (co-MVPs)
Women’s Wrestling: Brianne Barry