Timberwolves honour top athletes

The UNBC Timberwolves are hosting their annual year-end banquet Friday, April 17.

The banquet acknowledges all hard work put forth by the student throughout the year. This year two players have been nominated for each of the four department awards – female rookie of the year, male rookie of the year, female athlete of the year, and male athlete of the year.

The 2014-15 season was a historic one for the Timberwolves. The men’s soccer team notched their first six point weekend with a double win over the Trinity Western Spartans, while the men’s basketball team became the first team to make playoffs since entering Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and Canada West. The men’s basketball team was also the first team to have a player voted onto an all-star team and win a major Canada West award. To celebrate these successes the Athletic department will once again be honouring a male and female rookie of the year as well as a male and female athlete of the year.

Male Rookie of the Year nominees:

Francesco Bartolillo: Bartolillo is an incredibly talented central midfielder who is most recognized for his technique and ability to manipulate the ball; however what you may not see is his ferocious work rate and hunger to help build his team into a legitimate contender in Canada West.

Vaggelis Loukas: Loukas was a valuable presence coming off the bench for the men’s basketball team, providing energy in relief of the starting posts. Loukas was a defensive pest, his length and tenacity led to multiple steals and deflections which ignited the Timberwolves’ fast break attack.

Female Rookie of the Year nominees:

Vasiliki Louka: Louka has made an enormous contribution to the women’s basketball program as a rookie. As a first year player she averaged 11.4 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game (fifth in Canada West). She also sat third in Canada West for blocked shots and recorded six double-doubles over the season.

Madison Emmond: Emmond comes to the Timberwolves as a product of the local Prince George Youth Soccer Association. Emmond’s tenacity in the midfield shone during the women’s season as she constantly battled against older bigger players.

Male Athlete of the Year nominees:

Ty Venhola: Venhola has had a remarkable season for the Timberwolves men’s soccer team. As the starting keeper for three seasons he has been a very busy and is now considered to be one of the top goalkeepers in Canada West. Venhola has played a huge part in enabling the men’s soccer team to make significant strides in closing the gap between the top university soccer programs in the country and UNBC.

Franco Kouagnia: Kouagnia led the men’s basketball team to UNBC’s first ever playoff appearance thanks to a second place finish in the Explorer Division and a fifth seed overall in Canada West. Kouagnia averaged 16.4 points per game, 7.7 rebounds per game, and shot an impressive 51 per cent from the field. His impact was recognized by Canada West as a Canada West Second Star during the season and being voted a Canada West Second Team All-Star by the conference coaches.

Female Athlete of the Year nominees:

Sarah Robin: Robin was a true leader on and off the court. A two-time academic all-canadian she also led the women’s basketball team in scoring with 12.6 points per game. Captaining the team in her fifth year Robin always plays with heart and an amazing work ethic.

Sidney Roy: Roy has been a great addition to the Timberwolves women’s soccer program. Named Female Rookie of the Year in 2013 Roy has continued to be a driving force in the Timberwolves development. During the 2014 campaign she broke the previous school record for goals in a season when she netted her sixth goal in their final game of the season against Thompson Rivers University. Roy’s six goal season ranks sixth in Canada West and seventh in goals per game.

The Timberwolves will also be having a special presentation to honour the commitment of Timberwolves assistant coach Sonny Pawar who will be moving on next season. Coach Pawar was the head coach for the Timberwolves for six years before UNBC moved to Canada West and then worked as the assistant coach for the past three. The hours coach Pawar have invested into the Timberwolves men’s soccer program are countless and his dedication will be recognized at the banquet on Friday evening.

All award winners will be announced at the banquet on Friday, April 17.