EDMONTON -
Brian Cheng, head coach of the UVic Vikes women's basketball team, has been named Canada West Coach of the Year, and
Kayla Dykstra and
Debbie Yeboah were named All-stars as the conference handed out its post-season hardware Wednesday morning.
Having just completed his ninth season as head coach of the Vikes, Cheng has guided the team to their winningest regular season since 1999-00. The Vikes finished the Canada West regular season with a record of 14-4 (.777) and placed second in the Pacific division. The Vikes finished the season ranked no. 5 in the CIS and made their eighth straight post-season appearance. Cheng's squad entered the playoffs with a nine-game winning streak, which included a victory over to the no. 1 Simon Fraser Clan in the season finale.
"Brian is a tremendously hard working coach and it is satisfying to see him recognized with this award," said UVic Vikes Director of Athletics & Recreation Clint Hamilton. “Regardless of opponent, Brian works hard to prepare our Vikes team to be in the best position to succeed, and I believe this is recognized by his peers in being awarded this distinction.”
Dykstra was named Canada West First Team All-Star for the second consecutive year. As an encore to her CIS MVP performance, the fourth-year post from Calgary ranked sixth in the league in scoring (15.3) and second in rebounding (9.3). She led the Vikes in scoring 10 times and shot a team-best 58 percent from the field.
Yeboah earned Second Team honours, and it was the first All-star nod for the sophomore guard from Winnipeg. Yeboah finished the season ranked eighth in league scoring (14.8) and was the conference's best free-throw shooter, making 85 percent of her attempts. She was Canada West Athlete of the Week on February 16th.
Other Canada West award winners included Simon Fraser's Robyn Buna receiving conference MVP, with teammates Kristina Collins being named Rookie of the Year and Katie Miyazaki named Defensive Player of the Year. Winnipeg's Jessica Stromberg won the Tracy MacLeod award and Manitoba's Michele Hynes won the Sylvia Sweeney Award.
Full Canada West press release available at:
www.canadawest.org
AWARDS:
MVP: Robyn Buna, Simon Fraser
Rookie of the Year: Kristina Collins, Simon Fraser
Defensive Player of the Year: Katie Miyazaki, Simon Fraser
Tracy MacLeod Award nominee: Jessica Stromberg, Winnipeg
Sylvia Sweeney Award nominee: Michele Hynes, Manitoba
Coach of the Year: Brian Cheng, Victoria
ALL-STARS:
First Team
Robyn Buna, Simon Fraser
Lindsay DeGroot, Saskatchewan
Kayla Dykstra, Victoria
Brittany Read, Regina
Lia St. Pierre, UBC
Second Team
Laurelle Weigl, Simon Fraser
Marissa Haylett, Alberta
Caitlin Gooch, Winnipeg
Debbie Yeboah, Victoria
Joanna Zalesiak, Regina