GEORGIAN GRIZZLIES 47TH ANNUAL AWARDS WINNERS

The Georgian College Athletic Department celebrated one of their most successful year's in history with remarkable achievements from its student-athletes at the 47^th Annual Varsity Awards Banquet on Thursday, Apr. 5 at the Georgian Athletic Centre in Barrie. The event brought together nearly 200 student-athletes who represented Georgian in the 13 men's and women's varsity sports competed in annually in the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association.

Georgian athletes and teams not only enjoyed success provincially but were also among the top collegiate athletes across Canada.

Women's golfer Addison Wallwin capped off an incredible year by winning the Greer Trophy as Georgian's female athlete of the year. The Barrie native won the individual gold medal at the PING CCAA National Golf Championships and a silver medal at the OCAA Championships. She also led her team to gold medals at both the provincial and national events. She was named a CCAA All-Canadian, CCAA Academic All-Canadian and to the OCAA All-Ontario Team.

Her hard work and determination was also demonstrated by winning the Female Academic & Athletic Excellence Award for her accomplishments on the course and in the classroom. A student in the Business Administration - Accounting program, Wallwin achieved a 91.6% average.

Men's rugby player Edwin Sarfo earned the Cloutier Cup as Georgian's male athlete of the year by leading his team to their first OCAA Championship in 20 years. Sarfo was crucial to the team's success that saw them go undefeated through the regular season and playoffs. The Business Marketing student was the regular season west division scoring champion by recording five tries and 12 coverts for 49 points. The Bradford native continued that success in the playoffs where he had a try and three converts in the semi-finals and a try and two converts in the championship game. In the gold medal final he was named player of the match.

A school record 44 student athletes received an OCAA All-Academic Award for achieving an average of at least 80% or higher while also representing Georgian in their respective sport. Men's volleyball player Darien Haynes (Barrie) won the Male Academic & Athletic Excellence Award for his achievements on the court and for his 85% average in the Bachelor of Human Services (Police Studies) program.

Other major award winners presented included men's rugby player Jake Boulding (Barrie) and women's basketball player Leah Bracken (St. Catharines) who were named the male and female rookies of the year.  Men's rugby student manager Tyler MacLean was presented the McKillican Trophy for Outstanding Contribution to the Georgian Athletic Department and men's volleyball veteran Trevor Recalla (Haileybury) was presented the Howard/Belcourt Award for Outstanding Sportsmanship, Dedication, Commitment, Attitude and Leadership.

Team MVP Awards

Badminton (F) – Tammy Do

Badminton (M) – Ethan Zhou & Eric Kern

Women's Basketball – Hannah Pearsall       

Men's Basketball – Tyler Vanessen

Cross Country Running (F) – Serafima Stilman

Cross Country Running (M) – Adam Armstrong

Golf (M) – Matt Lemay

Golf (F) – Addison Wallwin

Women's Indoor Soccer – Charmaine Bosma

Men's Indoor Soccer – Chris Quental

Men's Rugby – Edwin Sarfo              

Women's Volleyball – Katharyn Avery

Men's Volleyball – Adam Bielby

Photo L to R: Top row: Jake Boulding, Trevor Recalla, Tyler MacLean, Bottom Row: Edwin Sarfo, Addison Wallwin