Daley Oddy named AUS women's hockey MVP
The first place X-Women hockey team did outstanding with AUS accolades as Daley Oddy was named the conference MVP, Emerson Elliott received AUS rookie of the year honours, and Ben Berthiaume was named AUS coach of the year. Oddy was also named an AUS first team all-star forward, alongside teammates Sarah Bujold at forward and Lindsey Donovan on defense. Goaltender Carley Molar was named an AUS second team all-star, while forward Elliott and defense Amy Graham were named to the AUS all-rookie team.
The first place X-Women hockey team did outstanding with AUS accolades as Daley Oddy was named the conference MVP, Emerson Elliott received AUS rookie of the year honours, and Ben Berthiaume was named AUS coach of the year. Oddy was also named an AUS first team all-star forward, alongside teammates Sarah Bujold at forward and Lindsey Donovan on defense. Goaltender Carley Molar was named an AUS second team all-star, while forward Elliott and defense Amy Graham were named to the AUS all-rookie team.
The complete release from Atlantic University Sport follows below.
2017-18 AUS women's hockey awards and all-stars announced
StFX X-Women forward Daley Oddy named MVP
(HALIFAX, N.S.) - Atlantic University Sport is pleased to announce the 2017-18 AUS women's hockey all-stars and major award winners as selected by the conference's seven head coaches.
Fifth-year StFX forward Daley Oddy was named the Atlantic University Sport most valuable player.
Other AUS major award winners announced today were StFX's Emerson Elliott from Aurora, Ont., who was named rookie of the year; Saint Mary's Nicole Blanche of Dunville, N.L. who was named the league's top defensive player for the second consecutive season; Saint Mary's Breanna Lanceleve of Middle Sackville, N.S., who was selected as the most sportsmanlike player; Saint Mary's Beatrice Harrietha from Guelph, Ont., who earned the student-athlete community service award for the second consecutive year; and StFX's head coach Ben Berthiaume who was named the AUS coach of the year.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER: Daley Oddy, StFX X-Women
The Atlantic University Sport women's hockey most valuable player is fifth-year forward Daley Oddy of the StFX X-Women.
A human kinetics student from Cranbrook, B.C., Oddy led the conference and the country in both points (31) and goals scored this season (16).
Oddy also led the X-Women to a first-place finish in the regular season, with a 20-2-2 record.
Her plus-minus rating of +24 was the highest in both the conference and country, and she led the conference in game-winning goals, with six.
Oddy is the fourth player from the StFX X-Women to win the conference MVP award. Her teammate Sarah Bujold earned the honour in the 2016-17 season. Former StFX standout Brayden Ferguson won the honour following the 2007-08 season and recent X-Women alumna Alexa Normore earned the award four consecutive times from 2011-12 to 2014-15.
Oddy now becomes the AUS nominee for the Brodrick Trophy as U SPORTS player of the year. Atlantic conference players Bujold and Ferguson earned the national honour in 2016-17 and 2007-08, respectively.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Emerson Elliott, StFX
Emerson Elliott, a first-year forward from Aurora, Ont., is the AUS women's hockey rookie of the year.
Elliott, also named to the AUS all-rookie team today, played in all 24 regular season games this year for the X-Women.
The five-foot-nine arts student posted 26 points for the X-Women this season, with 11 goals and 15 assists.
Elliott and the X-Women squad finished first in the AUS regular season standings with a 20-2-2 record.
Elliott is the fourth player from the StFX X-Women to be named the conference's top rookie. Former X-Women Rebecca Davies (2003-04), Abygail Laking (2009-10), and Alexa Normore (2010-11) have previously earned the honour.
She now looks to become the fourth AUS player to be selected as the U SPORTS (formerly CIS) rookie of the year.
StFX's Normore (2010-11), and former Saint Mary's players Lindsay Taylor (2002-03) and Courtney Schriver (2004-05), are the only AUS players to have won the national award.
MOST SPORTSMANLIKE PLAYER: Breanna Lanceleve, Saint Mary's Huskies
This season's Atlantic University Sport most sportsmanlike player is Breanna Lanceleve of the Saint Mary's Huskies.
This award recognizes an individual who maintains the standards of fair play and treats those around her with respect at all times.
Lanceleve, a fifth-year Bachelor of Commerce student from Middle Sackville, N.S., appeared in all 24 regular season games this year for the Huskies.
The five-foot-eight forward finished the season with 28 points, including 10 goals and 18 assists, to put her second in the conference in points. Through the entirety of the regular season, she took just four penalty minutes.
Lanceleve becomes just the second Saint Mary's player to be recognized with this award and the first since former Huskies standout Zoe Launcelott earned the honour in three consecutive seasons, from 2006-09.
TOP DEFENSIVE PLAYER: Nicole Blanche, Saint Mary's Huskies
Saint Mary's Huskies forward Nicole Blanche has been awarded the Atlantic University Sport Top Defensive Player award for the second consecutive season.
This award, established in 2016-17, is given annually to a skater who consistently excels in defensive aspects of the game and displays strong play in all areas of the ice individually and as part of their team's defensive tactics.
A fifth-year commerce student from Dunville, N.L., Blanche and the Huskies squad finished second in the AUS regular season standings with a 20-3-1 record. Saint Mary's league-leading defence boasted the lowest goals against average in the conference at just 1.07 per game.
She finished the season with 21 points, including 10 goals and 11 assists, and a plus-minus of +13.
Blanche was selected as the winner of this award based upon criteria such as face-offs, blocked shots, fore-checking, rush-zone defending, penalty killing, and shutting down the opposition's top players.
COACH OF THE YEAR: Ben Berthiaume, StFX X-Women
StFX's head coach Ben Berthiaume has been selected by his peers as the 2017-18 AUS coach of the year.
This is his second time earning the honour. He first earned AUS coach of the year nods following the 2014-15 season.
This season, StFX finished first in the regular season standings with a 20-2-2 record and earned a bye through to the Subway AUS Women's Hockey Playoffs semi-final round.
Berthiaume is the third StFX coach to earn AUS coach of the year honours. Frank Isherwood won the award in back-to-back seasons from 1999-2001, and David Synishin earned the honour four times, in 2003-04. 2004-05 2007-08, and 2012-13.
Berthiaume permanently took over as head coach of the X-Women hockey program in July, 2017. He is currently in his 14th year with the X-Women, having previously stepped in as interim head coach for the 2014-15 campaign where he led the X-Women to a first place finish, AUS championship and fourth place showing at the CIS (now U SPORTS) championship.
He now looks to become the first-ever StFX women's hockey coach to earn national coach of the year honours.
Saint Mary's head coach Chris Larade previously earned the national honour in back-to-back seasons in 2015-16 and 2016-17. Other Atlantic Conference coaches to earn the honour are Moncton's Rheal Bordage (2006-07), Dalhousie's Lesley Jordan (2005-06), and Saint Mary's Lisa MacDonald (2002-03).
STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Beatrice Harrietha, Saint Mary's
Beatrice Harrietha of the Saint Mary's Huskies has been selected as the AUS student-athlete community service award recipient for the second consecutive season.
This award honours the individual who best combines academics, athletics and community involvement.
Harrietha, a fourth-year science student from Guelph, Ont., played in 23 games for the Huskies this season and finished with a goal and five assists.
In the classroom, she is a perennial U SPORTS academic all-Canadian. She is also extensively involved in the community, volunteering her time with an array of initiatives.
Among the causes Harrietha lends her time to are the Ronald McDonald House, the Out of the Cold homeless shelter, and SAMHI (the Student-Athlete Mental Health Initiative).
She also volunteers for the Move for Inclusion student-athlete run initiative which meets weekly to host an 'open gym' style play session for children of all abilities.
Harrietha is also a community youth development volunteer, lending her time to local hockey teams, as she is a strong advocate for the growth of women's hockey.
She is a mentor for the Here for Peers program and meets with first-year student-athletes to offer support and advice on the challenges of balancing university academics and varsity athletics.
Harrietha is also the president of the athletic council and is responsible for leading a team of 22 student-athletes which carries out fundraising events and other community initiatives.
She is the third player from the Huskies to receive this award since its inception in 2002-03, joining Joyce Spruyt (2006-07) and Kori Cheverie (2007-08 and 2008-09).
Harrietha will now represent the conference as the AUS nominee for the U SPORTS Marion Hilliard Award. The last AUS student-athlete to take home the national honour was St. Thomas' Kayla Blackmore following the 2012-13 season.
FIRST AND SECOND TEAM ALL-STARS AND ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
This year's Atlantic University Sport first and second team all-stars, along with the all-rookie team members are as follows:
First Team All-Stars:
Goaltender: Rebecca Clark, Saint Mary's (3rd year – Keswick, Ont.)
Defence: Lindsey Donovan, StFX (2nd year - Miramichi, N.B.)
Defence: Alexandra Woods, St. Thomas (2nd year - Courtice, Ont.)
Forward: Daley Oddy, StFX (5th year – Cranbrook, B.C.)
Forward: Breanna Lanceleve, Saint Mary's (5th year – Middle Sackville, N.S.)
Forward: Sarah Bujold, StFX (4th year – Riverview, N.B.)
Second Team All-Stars:
Goaltender: Carley Molnar, StFX (2nd year, London, Ont.)
Defence: Hannah Askin, Saint Mary's (4th year – Waterloo, Ont.)
Defence: Emma Martin, UPEI (5th year – Winsloe, P.E.I.)
Forward: Lisa MacLean, Dalhousie (5th year – Inverness, N.S.)
Forward: Katryne Villeneuve, Université de Moncton (4th year – Casselman, Ont.)
Forward: Mary Worndl, Saint Mary's (4th year – Kitchener, Ont.)
All-Rookie Team:
Goaltender: Ashley Forler, Saint Mary's (Kitchener, Ont.)
Defence: Amy Graham, StFX (Nepean, Ont.)
Defence: Kaitlin Howarth, Saint Mary's (Thunder Bay, Ont.)
Forward: Emerson Elliott, StFX (Aurora, Ont.)
Forward: Olivia Reid, St. Thomas (Aurora, Ont.)
Forward: Laura Horwood, Saint Mary's (Grandfalls-Windsor, N.L.)
The 2017 Subway AUS Women's Hockey Playoffs semi-final series are set to begin this Wednesday night. The two best-of-three playoff series will see the StFX X-Women face off against the Moncton Aigles Bleues, while the Saint Mary's Huskies take on the St. Thomas Tommies. The schedule is as follows:
Semifinal Series #1 (Best 2-of-3): StFX (1) vs Moncton (5)
Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 – Moncton at StFX, 7 p.m.
Game 2: Saturday, Feb. 24 – StFX at Moncton, 7 p.m.
Game 3: Monday, Feb. 26 – Moncton at StFX, 7 p.m.*
(*if necessary)
Semifinal Series #2 (Best 2-of-3): Saint Mary's (2) vs. St. Thomas (3)
Game 1: Wednesday, Feb. 21 – St. Thomas at Saint Mary's, 7 p.m.
Game 2: Saturday, Feb. 24 – Saint Mary's at St. Thomas, 7 p.m.
Game 3: Monday, Feb. 26 – St. Thomas at Saint Mary's, 7 p.m.*
(*if necessary)
The winners of each series will advance to the Subway AUS Women's Hockey Championship best-of-three final series.
All matches of the AUS championship semifinals will be webcast at www.AUStv.ca.
The 2018 U SPORTS Women's Hockey Championship is being hosted by Western University at the Thompson Arena in London, Ont., March 15-18.
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