PERRIN NAMED TO CANADA WEST MENS VOLLEYBALL ALLSTAR TEAM
For immediate release: February 19, 2009
Kamloops, BC—For the third year in a row, a member of the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack men’s volleyball team has been mentioned among the Canada West elite. 2nd year outside hitter Gord Perrin (Creston, BC) was named to the Canada West 2nd Allstar team.
Perrin was named Canada West Rookie of the year and to the CIS All Rookie team last season. In 2007, Robin Schoebel (now a third year, outside hitter, Monaco) was in a similar position.
“I was expecting Gord to be on the first team,” said WolfPack head coach Pat Hennelly. “I thought with his statistics (ending up 4 th overall in the CW), I thought his number’s were strong enough to propel him to the top. I guess when you have so many teams who finish with the same record it becomes a coach’s personal opinion of who should be on there. For a second year guy, the consistency he put up and what he meant to us in all our wins at the start of the year when we were missing the likes of Martin Korsbak and Robin Schoebel, that should have been enough for him to be there. With the ankle spain he had late in the season, he is still trying to regain form.”
Perrin was 4 th in Canada West in points in the regular season (303). He averaged 4.66 per game. He was 5 th in the league in kills (65 games, 262 kills averaging 4.03 per game). He was 4 th in service aces (21 averaging 0.32 per game). Perrin also had 8 solo blocks and 24 block assists.
“As a second year guy: I would put Gord Perrin against anyone in the country,” adds Hennelly. “From Canada West rookie of the year last season, to an All star at the 2008 CIS Nationals, to starring for Team Junior Canada at the NORECA tournament. He has done it all. This year, he has raised his game. He is passing better. He is hitting better and making better decisions. He has a very high kill percentage, when you look at the guys in the top 10 he is there among the veteran players. You don’t see a second year guy in that range. Gord brings something from the service line, he is a presence blocking and a great passer: for a left side player he is a ‘complete package’.
Here are the Major Award winners and the Allstar teams for Canada West in 2008-09:
Alberta fifth-year player Joel Schmuland has been selected as conference MVP. The 22-year-old right side was among the Canada West leaders in several categories this season as the Golden Bears racked up a perfect 18-0 conference season record, good for first place and the right to host this weekend’s Final Four.
Schmuland ranked third in points (4.79/set), third in aces (0.38/set), sixth in kills (3.93/set), 10th in hitting percentage (.355). The Physical Education student was also a member of Alberta’s 2008 CIS championship roster, where he was named to the All-Tournament team. He was a Canada West All-Star in 2008 and a CIS All-Canadian in 2007.
Manitoba Bisons young star Chris Voth is the Rookie of the Year. Voth, just 18 years old, was one of four freshmen who started for the Bisons men’s volleyball team in 2008-09.
Despite the team missing the playoffs with a 4-14 record, in his first Canada West season, Voth was ranked ninth in conference kills with 3.00 per game (68g/204k) and 10th in conference points at 3.35 per game. In addition to his conference rankings, the left side hitter led the team by playing in each game during the season, first with 94 digs, tied for second with ten service aces and sixth with 23 total blocks. The 6’5”, 180-pound Winnipeg native registered the most points by a Bison player this season with 20.5 (vs. TRU on Oct. 31/08) and had three of the four best point matches in 2008-09 for Manitoba plus tied for the most kills by a Bison players this season with 18 (vs. TRU on Oct. 31/08).
For a second straight year, Libero of the Year goes to UBC’s Blair Bann. In just his third year of eligibility, he has proven to be one of the nation’s best from the time he stepped on the court.
Bann, who won CIS Libero of the Year in 2008, began collecting hardware when he was named to the CIS All-Freshman team in 2007. This season, Bann, a Human Kinetics major, was far and away the leader in digs, grabbing 207 over 91 sets for a 2.92 average, well ahead of all rivals and a big improvement over his Canada West best 2.3 average digs per set from 2007-08.
Moving forward as the Canada West nod for the Dale Iwanoczko Award as outstanding student-athlete is Alan Ahow of the Winnipeg Wesmen. Ahow, in his fifth and final year, is a two-time CIS medal-winning athlete, as the Wesmen took gold in 2007 and silver at CIS Nationals in 2008, and again in 2009 they have qualified for both the conference Final Four and Nationals.
Ahow is a dedicated student-athlete who has a 4.01 GPA in the combined Arts and Education degree program. This program involves completing the two degrees simultaneously in a very demanding program. Ahow has been named an Academic All-Canadian every year (four years) and will complete his Bachelor of Arts degree this year and complete his Bachelor of Education degree in 2009-10.
In the community Ahow has been a volunteer coach of the Grade 7 girl’s volleyball and basketball teams at Arthur Day Middle School (Winnipeg, Mb). A volunteer coach of the Mennonite Brethren Collegiate Institute 17u boy’s volleyball team. Ahow assisted with the implementation of the junior golf program at Harbour View Golf Club.
Four-time CIS Coach of the Year, Alberta’s Terry Danyluk, has won his fifth nod as Canada West top boss after guiding his Golden Bears to a perfect 18-0 regular season record and the nation’s No. 1 ranking, with the right to host this weekend’s Final Four a week ahead of hosting Nationals in Edmonton.
In 16 years as head coach, Danyluk has taken Alberta to three CIS gold medals, four silvers and two bronze, along with seven conference titles and a stellar 233-54 conference coaching mark. Also recognized as a great athlete for Alberta back in the early 1980s, Danyluk has a combined 20 years of experience at Alberta.
Following is a breakdown of all individual award winners and All-Stars:
Awards
MVP: Joel Schmuland, Alberta
Rookie of the Year: Chris Voth, Manitoba
Libero of the Year: Blair Bann, UBC
Dale Iwanoczko Award nominee: Alan Ahow, Winnipeg
Coach of the Year: Terry Danyluk, Alberta
All-Stars
First Team Second Team
Joel Schmuland, Alberta Mike DeRocco, Alberta
Paul Sanderson, Brandon Gord Perrin, Thompson Rivers
Steven Gotch, UBC Ciaran McGovern, Calgary
Omar Langford, Calgary Tim Gourlay, Alberta
Chaim Schalk, Trinity Western Joel Small, Brandon
Andrew Town, Winnipeg Blair Bann, UBC
Major award winners will automatically become finalists for national awards, to be handed out by Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) at the University of Alberta in Edmonton next week.
This weekend’s Final Four takes place at the University of Alberta, with the host Golden Bears taking on the Winnipeg Wesmen in one Friday semifinal, while Brandon tangles with the Thompson Rivers WolfPack in the other semi. The bronze and gold medal matches go Saturday night in the U of A Main Gym. All four schools are guaranteed a spot at Nationals, Feb. 27-March 1.
(with assistance from Canada West Sports Information)