Kodiaks dole out annual athletic awards
Volleyball served up the sweep as the Lethbridge College Kodiaks named its Tim Tollestrup Leadership/Athlete of the Year winners at the Kodiaks annual KODI Awards Thursday night at the college.
Kodiaks veteran Kristine Ward won female honours for the 2017-18 season, while Dax Whitehead took home this year’s men’s award.
Named after long-time Lethbridge College athletic director Tim Tollestrup, the awards honour the studentathletes who best combined the three pillars of Kodiaks athletics: academic accountability, athletic excellence and the studentathlete experience.
Ward, a fourth year veteran, was an all-around leader for a resurgent women’s volleyball team.
She was named both a Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association academic allCanadian and an Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference all-conference team member.
Ward, a left side hitter, finished fourth in the conference in kills with 278 and also placed among the conference leaders in attacks, hitting percentage and service aces.
Whitehead — also a fourthyear veteran — had a recordbreaking season for the Kodiaks, becoming the team’s all-time leader in kills.
He registered his 796th career kill in late-December to surpass the record previously held by Jeffrey Marthaller and was named an ACAC allconference team selection for the second consecutive season.
A left side hitter, Whitehead was in the top ten in the ACAC in kills, hitting percentage, attacks, digs and points.
Whitehead wasn’t the only member of the Kodiaks men’s volleyball team to earn some hardware Thursday night.
Head coach Greg Gibos was named Kodiaks Coach of the Year, while the team was named top Kodiaks team.
The men’s volleyball squad finished fourth in the ACAC and qualified for the conference semifinals for the first time in program history.
Thursday was also the inaugural presentation of the Emmalee Cherweniuk Memorial Award.
Cherweniuk was killed in a car crash in March 2017 following her rookie season with the Kodiaks.
Sponsored by the Kodiaks Association, the $500 award goes to the women’s volleyball student-athlete who loves the game, commits to her teammates and has a personality that everyone wants to be around.
Named as the first recipient of the award was first-year Kodiak Megan Szott.
The other KODI award winners are: Best championships performance – Women’s futsal silver medal at ACAC championships Best upset - Men’s basketball beating undefeated and nationally top-ranked SAIT on the Trojans’ home court Best comeback – Men’s volleyball rallying from down 0-2 to beat King’s University in the ACAC quarterfinals KODIs special awards Alvin Tietz/Knud Petersen Award for soccer – Braydon Jetten and Sydney Hope Alvin Tietz/Knud Petersen Award for futsal – Jimmy Bukuru and Christine Moser Gerry and Brian Stewart Memorial Award for cross-country – Sophia Nowicki and Daniel Robdrup Fire Safety Award for cross-country and indoor track – Kayla Enders and John Krause Emmalee Cherweniuk Memorial Award for women’s volleyball – Megan Szott Alvin Tietz/Knud Petersen Award for volleyball – Harper Elwood and Dax Whitehead 1981 Alberta Summer Games Athletic Award for volleyball – Dax Whitehead John Jasiukiewicz Award for men’s basketball – Keanu Funa John Jasiukiewicz Award for women’s basketball – Amy Arbon KODIs pillar awards Men’s soccer Pillar award: Joel Arrieus Outstanding player: Braydon Jetten Newcomer: Ben Knight Women’s soccer Pillar award: Kayla Keech Outstanding player: Brittany Klein Newcomer: Payden Olsen Men’s futsal Pillar award: Seth Slomp Outstanding player: Jimmy Bukuru Newcomer: James Britton Women’s futsal Pillar award: Jill Brown Outstanding player: Maddie Folk Newcomer: Christine Moser Cross-country Pillar: Sophia Nowicki Outstanding player: Spencer Jackson Newcomer: Sophia Nowicki Indoor track Pillar: Dayton Jans Outstanding player: Sophia Nowicki Newcomer: Daniel Robdrup Men’s volleyball Pillar: Matt Primrose Outstanding player: Carter Hansen Newcomer: Michael Svab Women’s volleyball Pillar: Taya Mikado Outstanding player: Laura Serafini Newcomer: Jamie Brown Men’s basketball Pillar: Pierce Van Gaalen Outstanding player: Keanu Funa Newcomer: Michael Clemons Women’s basketball Pillar: Jaclyn Heggie Outstanding player: Courtney Kwasney Newcomer: Madi Gladstones