VERHOEFF NAMED CW NOMINEE FOR TOP STUDENT-ATHLETE AWARD

MEN’S VOLLEYBALL
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2011
CANADA WEST AWARDS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

VERHOEFF NAMED CW NOMINEE FOR TOP STUDENT-ATHLETE AWARD

LANGLEY, British Columbia – Trinity Western outside/middle hitter Rudy Verhoeff was named the Canada West nominee for the Dale Iwanoczko Award as top student-athlete Thursday. The fourth-year Religious Studies student has been one of the top offensive threats in the Canada West all year as he finished the regular season fourth in CW in kills per set (3.91), fourth in points (4.69/set) and 10th in blocks (1.04/set).

However, it his leadership and work off of the court that sets him apart. In addition to his work on the court, Verhoeff has been a volunteer coach for the past four years with the Fraser Valley Volleyball Club, is a Big Brother, leads the Spartans team in small group study and is a member of TWU’s Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT), which plans events, co-ordinates leadership opportunities among the teams and assists with leadership development programs.

“Rudy exemplifies everything you want your athletes to strive to be. He is a fantastic leader on our team. He is a great teammate, friend, student, athlete and man of God,” said TWU coach Ben Josephson. “His example is a great one for all of our athletes and students alike at TWU. He is a role model for our school, team and for me personally.”

Verhoeff was also named a Canada West First Team All-Star while Spartans setter Ben Ball was named a Canada West Second Team All-Star. Ball finished second in CW and third in the CIS with 10.91 assists per set.

While Verhoeff was honoured with CW’s top student-athlete nomination, it was Calgary Dinos middle Graham Vigrass who was named the 2010-11 Canada West MVP.

Vigrass had an outstanding season, leading the Dinos to a 16-2 record and their second straight appearance at the national tournament. He finished the season second in the conference in hitting percentage (.397), third in kills (3.94/set) and fourth in total blocks (80.0). The 21-year-old fourth-year Science student moved back to the middle this season after transitioning to the right side last year and was heavily featured in the Calgary offence, recording kills from every position on the floor.

“Graham’s play this season has been outstanding,” said fifth-year Dinos coach Rod Durrant. “He has developed into an all-round player in the front row and the back of the court. He leads by example and is a huge part of our team’s success this season.”

In his first year at Manitoba, Rookie of the Year Chris Komishon played setter and the Bisons did not miss a beat with a new ‘quarterback’ at the position. He was sixth in the conference with 8.52 assists per set, and fifth in Canada West in total assists, with 571. He added 28 kills. 106 digs, 40 overall blocks and 11 service aces while starting in all 18 regular season matches.

Bisons head coach Garth Pischke commented, “He played quite well with lots of pressure. Being a setter is a tough position, especially when you are a rookie, and Chris dealt with the expectations and delivered a great season.”

Now a four-time Canada West Libero of the Year award winner, UBC’s Blair Bann capped off a stellar five year T-Bird career in style this season, setting a conference record for digs, with 283 over only 18 matches. His 3.72 digs per set in 2010-11 rank second all-time in CW history, just behind his 3.76 average from last season. Bann, a Human Kinetics major from Edmonton, owns the conference career record with 1018 digs, 280 more than his nearest rival, and a 2.66 digs per set average. He also has the incredible streak of playing in every set during his five years at UBC, is a three-time Canada West All-Star and was a CIS All-Rookie team selection back in 2006-07. He has won two CIS Libero of the Year awards during his career, will be a finalist for a possible third, and is a member of the Senior National Team program.

“Blair has been our most consistent performer all year. He brought his best each and every day, which made others around him better, and he is a positive role model for our sport which makes him an extremely special kind of player, teammate, and person,” said UBC head coach Richard Schick

In his fifth year at the helm of the Dinos men’s volleyball program, Calgary head coach Rod Durrant has been voted 2010-11 Coach of the Year by his peers.

After taking over a team that finished 4-14 in his first season, Durrant has quickly rebuilt the Dinos into a national powerhouse. His team’s record has improved every year, culminating in the 2010 CIS championship title – the school’s first since 1993 and fourth overall. This season the Dinos wrapped up their third straight second-place finish with a 16-2 record and went undefeated into the final weekend of the season. The defending champs lost just 16 sets in 18 matches and have qualified for CIS Nationals once again.

“I congratulate Rod on this outstanding accomplishment,” said Dr. Wayne Giles, Dean of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary. “He has quickly re-established Dinos men’s volleyball as one of the top programs in Canada, and our team consistently performs at a high level under his direction.”

Members of the 2010-11 All-Star team include Vigrass, Bann, Verhoeff, 2010 CIS Player of the Year Paul Sanderson (Brandon), 2010 CIS Rookie of the Year Kevin Tillie (Thompson Rivers) and Manitoba’s Chris Voth, 2009 CIS Rookie of the Year.

The following is a breakdown of all individual award winners and All-Stars:

AWARDS

MVP: Graham Vigrass, Calgary

Rookie of the Year: Chris Komishon, Manitoba

Libero of the Year: Blair Bann, UBC

Dale Iwanoczko Student-Athlete Award nominee: Rudy Verhoeff, Trinity Western

Coach of the Year: Rod Durrant, Calgary

ALL-STARS
First Team                                         Second Team
Graham Vigrass, Calgary                    Blair Bann, UBC
Paul Sanderson, Brandon                   Chris Voth, Manitoba
Tanner Nault, Alberta                         Jay Olmstead, Alberta
Rudy Verhoeff, Trinity Western        Ben Ball, Trinity Western
Kevin Tillie, Thompson Rivers           Spencer Leiske, Alberta
Jay Blankenau, Calgary                      Jonathan Sloane, Brandon

Major award winners are now considered for national awards, to be handed out by Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) at the 2011 national championship, hosted March 4-6 in Langley, B.C. by Trinity Western University.

The Canada West Final Four event takes place this Friday and Saturday at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, where the Golden Bears play Brandon in the semifinals, followed by Trinity Western vs. Calgary. The conference final commences at 8:00 p.m. MT on Saturday, though all four participating schools have already qualified for CIS Nationals.

-CW-

Last Updated: 2011-02-24
Author: Mark Janzen