NORTH BAY, Ont. - Redeemer University College's Curtiss Straatsma (Brampton) was named the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) women's volleyball player of the year in a ceremony held in North Bay, Ont., on Thursday morning as part of the 2016 OCAA Women's Volleyball Championship.
The fifth-year left side became the OCAA's all-time leading points and kills leader, ending her outstanding career with 1,350 and 993, respectively. Straatsma was fourth among OCAA players in 2015-16 averaging 3.8 points per set, totaling 248 points on 172 kills, 53 service aces and 23 blocks. She is also a Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) all-Canadian, as well as an OCAA west division first-team all-star.
Sarah MacLaren (Renfrew) of Trent University is also a CCAA all-Canadian in her final OCAA season. The fifth-year player was fifth in OCAA scoring averaging 3.8 points per set, contributing 235 points on 161 kills, 53 blocks and 21 service aces. MacLaren is also an OCAA east division first-team all-star.
Loyalist College's Sara Piana Yafu (Ottawa) is the OCAA overall rookie of the year. The outside hitter set new OCAA single season records with 402 points and 325 kills. The east region scoring champion led all players with a 5.2 points per set average. Also named the OCAA east rookie of the year winner, Piana Yafu headlines the OCAA all-rookie team and is also an OCAA east region first-team all-star.
Carley Nugteren (Woodstock) of Fanshawe College is the west division rookie of the year. The right side hitter led her team in three offensive categories, including 3.3 points per set, 168 points and 130 kills. Nugteren is a west division second team all-star and member of the OCAA all-rookie team.
Tony Clarke of Durham College is the east division coach of the year and is the OCAA nominee for CCAA coach of the year. Coming off an OCAA silver medal following a fifth-place standing last season, the Lords soared to the east regional title in 2015-16 with a near perfect 19-1 record. Durham enters the OCAA championship on a 15-match win streak.
Fanshawe's Sean Pellow is the west division coach of the year. After missing the playoffs with a 5-13 record last season, the Falcons had quite the turnaround going 12-6 in 2015-16, a seven-win difference.
Humber College's Thalia Hanniman (Pembroke) was honoured as the OCAA west division scoring champion. The fifth-year outside hitter averaged 4.6 points per set on an undefeated Humber team that won the west regional championship. She is a west division first-team all-star.
Along with Straatsma and Hanniman, other west division first-team all-stars include Charlene DeVries (London) of Redeemer; Stacey Gregorini (Sudbury) and Joelle Parnham (Orillia) of Sheridan College; Alley Newman (Kitchener) of Humber; and Rachel Rivers (Cambridge) of Niagara College.
In addition to MacLaren and Piana Yafu, east division first-team all-stars include Jessica Broad (Courtice) and Kristen Curtis (Frankford) of Durham; Caitlin Hebert (North Bay) of Canadore College; Trent's Cassie Perau (Peterborough); and Kadeisha Powell-Graham (Scarborough) of Centennial College.
Those named OCAA west second-team all-stars include Alessandra Assaf (Hamilton) of Mohawk College; Sara Charlton (Owen Sound) of Cambrian College; Shalena Horst (Dutton) of St. Clair College; Renee McCormick (Waterloo) and Nugteren of Fanshawe; Sheridan's Dimitra Stathakos (Brampton) and Humber's Brittany Vanderlaan (Smithville).
Brittany Coughlin (North Bay) of Georgian College; Trent's Camile Garzon (Richmond Hill); Kayla Kosturik (North Bay) and Mackenzie Mills (North Bay) of Canadore; Paulynne Reyes (Edmonton, Alta.) of Seneca College; and Breanne Scheerhoorn (Belleville) and Julianna Tebrake (Ottawa) of Algonquin College make up the east division second-team all-stars.
Members of the OCAA all-rookie team include Assaf, Garzon, Niagara's Jordan Koslowski (Hamilton), Nugteren, Piana Yafu and Scheerhoorn.
2015-16 OCAA WOMEN'S VOLLEYBALL MAJOR AWARDS
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division Champions
Durham Lords
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division Champions
Humber Hawks
OCAA Women's Volleyball Player of the Year
Curtiss Straatsma, Redeemer
OCAA Women's Volleyball Rookie of the Year
Sara Piana Yafu, Loyalist
CCAA Women's Volleyball All-Canadians
Sarah MacLaren, Trent
Curtiss Straatsma, Redeemer
CCAA Women's Volleyball Coach of the Year Nominee
Tony Clarke, Durham
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division Scoring Champion
Sara Piana Yafu, Loyalist
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division Scoring Champion
Thalia Hanniman, Humber
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division Rookie of the Year
Sara Piana Yafu, Loyalist
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division Rookie of the Year
Carley Nugteren, Fanshawe
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division Coach of the Year
Tony Clarke, Durham
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division Coach of the Year
Sean Pellow, Fanshawe
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division First-Team All-Stars
Jessica Broad, Durham
Kristen Curtis, Durham
Caitlin Hebert, Canadore
Sarah MacLaren, Trent
Cassie Perau, Trent
Sara Piana Yafu, Loyalist
Kadeisha Powell-Graham, Centennial
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division First-Team All-Stars
Charlene DeVries, Redeemer
Stacey Gregorini, Sheridan
Thalia Hanniman, Humber
Alley Newman, Humber
Joelle Parnham, Sheridan
Rachel Rivers, Niagara
Curtiss Straatsma, Redeemer
OCAA Women's Volleyball East Division Second-Team All-Stars
Brittany Coughlin, Georgian
Camile Garzon, Trent
Kayla Kosturik, Canadore
Mackenzie Mills, Canadore
Paulynne Reyes, Seneca
Breanne Scheerhoorn, Algonquin
Julianna Tebrake, Algonquin
OCAA Women's Volleyball West Division Second-Team All-Stars
Alessandra Assaf, Mohawk
Sara Charlton, Cambrian
Shalena Horst, St. Clair
Renee McCormick, Fanshawe
Carley Nugteren, Fanshawe
Dimitra Stathakos, Sheridan
Brittany Vanderlaan, Humber
OCAA Women's Volleyball All-Rookie Team
Alessandra Assaf, Mohawk
Camile Garzon, Trent
Jordan Koslowski, Niagara
Carley Nugteren, Fanshawe
Sara Piana Yafu, Loyalist
Breanne Scheerhoorn, Algonquin
- OCAA -
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