News

Dorion and Bettez named McGill athletes of the year at awards gala

Published: 4 April 2012


(LEFT TO RIGHT:  Marc-André Benoit, Leanne Roach, Ryan McKiernan, Marc-André Dorion, Mélodie Daoust, Ann-Sophie Bettez and Gideon Balloch. Photo by Gary Rush)


MONTREAL - Hockey players Marc-Andre Dorion of St. Hubert, Que., and Ann-Sophie Bettez of Sept-Iles, Que., were named male and female athletes of the year, respectively, at the 35th annual McGill intercollegiate sports awards gala held at the Love Competition Hall, inside the Currie Gym, Wednesday evening.

 

Dorion, a physical education senior, and Bettez, a public relations senior, received the Stuart Forbes and Gladys Bean trophies, respectively, sponsored by Adidas Canada, as the student-athletes who brought the most credit to the University by reason of their athletic achievements. Both were also announced as their respective Team MVPs.

 

Among the six other major awards announced, swimmer Leanne Roach of Riverview, N.B., and Gideon Balloch, club president of the rugby team, who was born in Ottawa but raised in Beijing, captured the Muriel V. Roscoe  and Richard Pound trophies, respectfully, awarded to a graduating athletes for proficiency and leadership.

 

Ryan McKiernan, a defenceman on the men's hockey team who hails from White Plains, N.Y., was awarded the Uldis Auders memorial trophy as the top sophomore in any sport, who best combines academics with athletics.

 

Swimmer Marc-André Benoit of Montreal and hockey forward Mélodie Daoust from Valleyfield, Que., were announced as the freshmen of the year.

 

McGill's national champion men's hockey team received the Martlet Foundation trophy as the varsity team of the year.

 

Tribute was also paid to 77 league all-stars, nine CIS all-Canadians, six conference championships and a pair of national titles (men's hockey and synchro swimming) won during the 2011-12 intercollegiate season and presented commemorative plaques to the MVPs of 28 varsity teams (see list below).

 

It was an award-filled campaign for Dorion, a 5-foot-11, 185-pound rearguard, who became the 17th hockey player to win the Forbes since its inception in 1948. The trophy is named after the distinguished McGill Sports Hall of Fame athlete who was decorated in both world wars and served 17 years as director of athletics.

 

The 24-year-old physical education senior became the first blueliner in school history to lead the team in scoring with an 8-43-51 record in 45 games overall and only 10 penalty minutes in a phenomenal season that culminated with a national championship. Voted OUA East MVP and CIS defenceman of the year, he earned first-team all-Canadian status for the third consecutive year. In the regular season, Dorion topped all CIS blueliners with 39 points, including seven goals, in 28 games. His 32 assists fell one shy of the nation's lead and he was assessed only four penalty minutes during the regular season, a remarkable accomplishment for a rearguard.

 

Bettez becomes the sixth consecutive hockey player and the seventh overall, to receive the Bean trophy since its inception in 1992. The  fifth-year forward became the second member of the Martlets to claim the Brodrick Trophy as CIS player of the year in women's hockey.

 

Bettez, who was voted the nation's top freshman in 2007-08, also became the second player in CIS women's hockey history to win both the rookie-of-the-year and MVP awards over her career. An alternate captain with the Martlets, she finished second in the RSEQ conference in both points (37) and assists (24), while tying for the league lead with four-game winning goals in 20 contests. A 5-foot-4 forward and 24-year-old marketing major, she has had a storied career since earning CIS rookie of the year honours in 2007-08. The two-time conference MVP has been named a first-team all-star in Quebec in each of her five campaigns and was also a five-time all-Canadian. She will graduate this spring as McGill's all-time leader in goals (148), assists (175) and points (323) in 196 regular season games. A former national under-22 team member, she also helped Canada capture gold at the 2011 Winter Universiade in Turkey.

 

Roach, a 22-year-old breaststroker, is the ninth swimmer to capture the Roscoe trophy since it was introduced in 1949.

 

A psychology senior who earned Academic All-Canadian honours, she captained the team in her junior campaign and merited all-star honours this season. She qualified for the CIS championships in each of her four years and has a length list of volunteer activities, including "Step up for the Cure", the Varsity Sports Council, the Cedars breast Cancer Clinic and the McGill varsity holiday food drive for the Sun Youth Centre. Most recently. she received the McGill Alumni Association's Gretta Chambers Award for student leadership.

 

Balloch, who turns 23 on April 25, is the third rugby player to capture the Pound trophy since it was introduced in 1992.

 

The six-foot, 185-pound winger is a fifth-year mechanical enineering senior who was on the Dean's Honour List and Principal's Student-athlete Honour Roll. He won the league's scoring title in each of his last two seasons. Balloch, who expects to graduate this spring, served three years as a member of the team's executive, including two terms as club president. He sat on the Student Athletics Council, the McGill Varsity Sports Council and the McGill Advisory Boad.

 

McKiernan is the third hockey player to win the Auders trophy since it was introduced in 1982, in memory of Uldis Auders, a former quarterback with the Redmen, who did in a tragic mountain-climbing accident in Nepal.

 

The 22-year-old was the second-highest scoring defenceman on the men’s hockey team this season with eight goals and 17 points in 33 games overall. In the classroom, he earned a 3.74 grade-point average while majoring in commerce to qualify for Academic All-Canadian honours and a berth on the Principal’s Student-Athlete Honour Roll.

 

The hockey Redmen, guided by second-year head coach Kelly Nobes, earned the Martlet Foundation trophy for the fifth consecutive year. They posted a stellar 22-4-2 record in the 19-team OUA league and went 32-12-1 overall, en route to capturing the OUA's Queen's Cup title and their first-ever CIS national championship. They outscored opponents 104-62 in league play and were ranked among the top four teams the entire season in the weekly Top 10. Their lineup featured three all-stars, one all-Canadian and two players who signed pro contracts with American Hockey League teams.

 

====================================================

McGILL's 2011-12 MOST VALUABLE PLAYER AWARDS

====================================================

 

Badminton: Laurianne St-Onge (Lévis, Que) and Henry Pan (Saskatoon, Sask)

 

Baseball: Adam Gordon (Dollard des Ormeaux, Que)

 

Basketball: Françoise Charest (Quebec City, Que) and Karim Sy-Morissette (Montreal, Que)

 

Cross-Country Running: Sar Jessica Porfilio (Longueuil, Que) and Michael Abramson (Westmount, Que)

 

Field Hockey: Camille St. Cyr (Richmond, B.C.)

 

Football: Ben Thompson (Fredericton, N.B.)

 

Golf: Dayvi Khanna (Montreal, Que) and Brian Neill (Ottawa, Ont)

 

Hockey: Ann-Sophie Bettez (Sept-Iles, Que) and Marc-André Dorion (St. Hubert, Que)

 

Lacrosse: J.J. Miller (Odenton, Maryland)

 

Rowing: Ronalee Gutland (Woodstock, Ont) and Rob Laniel (Gatineau, Que)

 

Rugby: Brianna Miller (Pointe Claire, Que) and Alexander Sunell (West Vancouver, B.C.)

 

Skiing (Alpine): Sophie Splawinski (Montreal, Que) and Philippe Garneau-Halliday (Montreal, Que)

 

Soccer: Meghan Bourque (Burlington, Ont) and Alexis Pradié  (Marseille, France)

 

Swimming: Valerie De Broux (Montreal, Que) and Steven Bielby (Pte. Claire Que)

 

Synchronized Swimming: Carrie Mouck (Toronto, Ont)

 

Track & Field: Charlène Puel (Lyon, France) and Scott Hancock (Frelighsburg, Que)

 

Volleyball: Kaiva Mateus (Montreal West, Que)

 

=============================================

McGILL's 2011-12 MAJOR ATHLETICS AWARDS

=============================================

 

D. STUART FORBES TROPHY (male athlete of the year): Marc-André Dorion, Hockey (M), St. Hubert, Que

 

GLADYS BEAN TROPHY (female athlete of the year): Ann-Sophie Bettez, Hockey (W), Sept-Iles, Que.

 

MURIEL ROSCOE AWARD (for proficiency & leadership to a graduating senior): Leanne Roach, Swimming (W), Riverview, N.B.

 

RICHARD POUND AWARD (for proficiency & leadership to a graduating senior): Gideon Balloch, Rugby (M), Beijing, China

 

ULDIS AUDERS TROPHY (top sophomore student-athlete): Ryan McKiernan, Hockey (M), White Plains, N.Y.

 

FEMALE FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Mélodie Daoust, Hockey (W), Valleyfield, Que

 

MALE FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Marc-André Benoit, Swimmig (M), Montreal, Que.

 

MARTLET FOUNDATION TROPHY (varsity team of the year): Hockey Redmen (M)

 

 

-30-

 

 

 

SOURCE:

Earl Zukerman

Communications Officer

Athletics & Recreation

McGill University

514-398-7012 (Tel.)m.athletics.mcgill.ca (mobile website)

www.mcgill.ca/athletics

earl.zukerman [at] mcgill.ca?subject=E-mail%20hyperlink%20for%20Earl%20Zukerman"> earl.zukerman [at] mcgill.ca

Back to top