We’ve been keeping an eye on these athletes for a year, and now we recognize them for their achievements.
1)Tessa Dmitrakopoulos
Position: Women’s soccer forward
Program:
General Arts, 1st year
Charged With… Sniping too many goals
Achievements: 2006 OUA First Team East All Star
2006 OUA East Rookie of the Year
Why we chose her: Dmitrakopoulos scored the fifth most goals in the country this year. She also won top rookie honours and led the Rams women’s soccer team to its first playoff berth. Did we mention that she’s a rookie? Watch for this phenom to develop into one of Canada’s best young women’s soccer players.
2) Ryan Vandenburg
Position: Men’s volleyball right-side hitter
Program: Urban and Regional Planning, 5th year
Charged With… Committing too many kills.
Achievements:
Three-time Ryerson Athlete of the Year
Two-time CIS All-Canadian
Two-time OUA Most Valuable Player
Why we chose him: The seemingly obvious choice for number one, Snake by far has put Ryerson athletics on the map. However, he’s knocked down to number two because of a slow start this season and the potential he has to completely dominate men’s volleyball in Canada.
3) Kevin Li
Program: Public Administration and Governance, 1st year
Charged With… Smashing too many bird-ies
Achievements: OUA Badminton Rookie of the Year, 2006 OUA All Star, 2006
Finished with an 8-2 overall record
Why we chose him: Competing in one of Ryerson’s lesser known sports, Kevin Li is making a name for himself. The badminton star who ended his season with an 8-2 record picked up Ryerson’s second OUA Rookie of the Year award in the last two years after Anders Olesen won the award in 2005.
4) Oleh Kovalchuk
Position: Men’s volleyball left-side hitter
Program: Public Administration and Governance, 2nd year
Charged With… Possession of a deadly serve.
Achievements: 2005-2006 OUA Rookie of the Year, 2005-2006 Ryerson Rookie of the Year, 2005-2006 CIS all-rookie team selection
Why we chose him: Kovalchuk is consistently getting better from year to year, his passing game improving dramatically this year to complement his serving, which is already considered tops in Canada.
5) Boris Bakovic
Position: Men’s basketball forward
Program: Business Management, 1st year
Charged With… Shooting the lights out.
Achievements: Leads the team in scoring and rebounding, averaging over 15 points a game and about 10 rebounds a game.
Why we chose him: Boris convinced us he’s the real deal when he picked up a double-double in his first game as a Ram with 16 rebounds. Although the young Ryerson squad has only won a single game this year, with Bakovic at the forefront of the new recruiting class they will surely be in good hands for several years to come.
6) Jen Williams
Position: Women’s volleyball power
Program: Hospitality and Tourism Management, 2nd year
Charged With… Assault with a spike.
Achievements: 2005-2006 Ryerson Rookie Athlete of the Year, Leads the team with 109 kills and 126 points.
Why we chose her: When it comes to the Rams’ offense, it’s most likely going to go through Williams. She is the team’s offensive backbone, and is essentially carrying the team to its 3-7 record. In just her second year at Ryerson, Williams will be the player that coach Bob Cholette will build his team around for years to come.
7) Kevin Krasnowski
Position: Men’s hockey forward
Program: Radio and Television Arts, 2nd year
Charged With… Administering the big hits.
Achievements: Team assistant captain Team’s most valuable player and rookie of the year last year.
Why we chose him: Although he may not be the team’s leading scorer, Krasnoswki plays with an incredible amount of heart and is the team’s true leader, doing whatever it takes to win.
8) Matt Fugard
Position: Men’s volleyball middle
Program: Early Childhood Education, 3rd year
Charged With… Breaking hearts — on and off the court.
Achievements: 2005-2006 Rams Most Valuable Player of the Year, 2005-2006 First team OUA All Star.
Why we chose him: One of the more vocal leaders on the team, Fugard always makes his presence felt whether it be on the court or off. Coach Mirek Porosa says that Fugard “always works 200%” and is consistently improving on his blocking skills to help the Rams up the middle.
9) Alex Dabkowski
Program: Architecture, 1st year
Charged With… Assault with an axle-pick.
Achievements: 2006 silver in women’s gold freeskate event at Queen’s Invitational figure skating competition, Gold freeskate dance skills
Why we chose her: Dabkowski has her teammates singing her praises after her performance at the Queen’s Invitational tournament landed her the silver in the women’s gold freeskate. With the Rams hosting the OUA championship this season, Dabkowski will be Ryerson’s hope to medal in the event and represent the university.
10) Suzanne Briggs
Position: Women’s soccer defense
Program Geographic Analysis, 2nd year
Charged With… Robbing her opponents of goals
Achievements: Team captain
Why we chose her: A young veteran in one of Ryerson’s youngest programs, Briggs is the team’s most consistent player. Doing everything from tutoring teammates off the field to keeping the Rams’ defense tough, Briggs is the team’s model athlete. Coach Peyvand Mossavat said if there was an award for most improved player last year, this silent leader would be sure to have won it.
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