CW Announces Players of the Week

Nov. 28, 2023 – The fall semester is beginning to wind down, but the action has only continued to heat up across the conference. This past weekend was highlighted by swimmers Alexanne Lepage and Stephen Calkins thrilling the hometown fans at the CW Swimming Championships in Calgary, as well as the UBC Thunderbirds football team competing on the national stage in the 2023 Vanier Cup. With many great performances to celebrate, here are your Canada West Players of the Week.

Women's Swimming - Alexanne Lepage (Calgary)

Lepage capped off a dynamic Canada West debut at the 2023 CW Swimming Championships by winning four individual gold medals in a 24-hour time span in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events, as well as the 200 and 400 individual medley races.

En route to her championships titles, the first-year set new lifetime bests in the 100 breaststroke (1:06.12), 200 breaststroke (2:25.49) and 200 Individual medley (2:12.74). At the conclusion of the weekend, the Junior World Champion was honoured not only as Canada West Rookie of the Year, but also Canada West Swimmer of the Year. ​
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​"I am really happy with my performances this weekend," Lepage said. "Coming from a very small club, there was never really an exciting team atmosphere and it has been so amazing to train and compete with this team. I love racing for the Dinos."

Men's Swimming - Stephen Calkins (Calgary)

Calkins led the way as the Dinos repeated as Canada West champions in men’s swimming at the 2023 CW Swimming Championships last weekend. The Pan American Games multi-medallist put on a blistering performance for the hometown crowd, eventually being named Canada West Swimmer of the Year.

Calkins managed to defend his Canada West crown in the 50 butterfly and 100 freestyle events, and added a third individual gold in the 50 freestyle. The Calgary product even managed to break his own conference championship record of 23.85 in the 50 butterfly twice in the same evening, hitting the wall in 23.63 in preliminaries on day one, and less than two hours later clocking 23.56 for gold. ​ ​

Football Offensive Player of the Week – RB Dane Kapler (UBC)

Kapler was a dependable target for UBC quarterback Garrett Rooker during the 2023 Vanier Cup against Montreal. The third-year running back from Ventura, Calif. had five receptions for 64 yards, including a 22-yard reception, and also picked up nine yards on the ground.

Football Defensive Player of the Week – LB Jaxon Ciarolo-Brown (UBC)

Ciraolo-Brown was once again a force to be reckoned with during a highly defensive battle in the 2023 Vanier Cup against Montreal. He earns a second consecutive CW defensive player of the week nod after picking up seven solo tackles, two assisted tackles and a sack against the Carabins.

Football Special Teams Player of the Week - K Kieran Flannery-Fleck (UBC)

With points at a premium in the 2023 Vanier Cup, Flannery-Fleck made sure to capitalize on his opportunities. The Thunderbirds kicker made good on all three of his field goal attempts, including a long of 41-yards, scoring all nine of the T-Birds points during the game.

Women's Basketball - Gage Grassick (Saskatchewan)

Grassick, a third-year guard from Prince Alberta, Sask. has been key to another impressive start for the undefeated Huskies. She was instrumental in two big weekend wins over the Calgary Dinos.

She had 13 points with five rebounds, five assists and five steals in Friday’s 70-56 win, then poured in a game-high 23 points, along with six rebounds, four assists and three steals in a tight 72-65 victory in the rematch on Saturday.

Men's Basketball - Khari Ojeda-Harvey (Brandon)

Ojeda-Harvey continued his high scoring ways as he earns the CW MBB player of the week nod for a second consecutive week, leading a 7-1 Bobcats team that is starting to turn heads across the conference.

He had a game-high 23 points in Friday’s 85-74 win over Trinity Western, also adding five rebounds, six assists and three steals. In the rematch on Saturday, he paced the Bobcats offence with 31 points in an 84-77 win. He added six rebounds, five assists and another three steals in that match. ​

Women's Hockey - G Gabriella Durante (Calgary)

Durante had an impressive weekend for the Dinos as they faced defending CW champion UBC, turning aside 72 total shots to help her team come away with an important road split.

The fourth-year goaltender from Calgary was simply incredible on Friday night, stopping 48 shots while helping the Dinos to a 3-2 win, helping them become the first team to defeat UBC in regulation this year.

Men's Hockey - F Jakin Smallwood (Alberta)

Smallwood, a second-year forward from Leduc, Alta. notched an impressive five-point game on Saturday against Manitoba, helping the Golden Bears come away with a road split against the Bisons.

He scored two goals and added three assists in the 6-1 victory, bringing his season totals to four goals and 10 assists in 16 games.

Women's Volleyball - M Kaylee Plouffe (Trinity Western)

Plouffe put up incredible numbers during a pair of 3-1 wins over a scrappy Saskatchewan Huskies side over the weekend. The middle struck for 32 kills over the two games, adding four aces while hitting for an impressive .491 hitting percentage. She also added eight blocks and is a key reason the Spartans remain undefeated at 10-0 as the season nears the winter semester break.

Men's Volleyball - OH Henry Rempel (Trinity Western)

Rempel displayed power and consistency while leading the Spartans to a weekend split with fifth ranked Saskatchewan. The fourth-year outside hitter from Swift Current, Sask. tallied 17 kills with a service ace and eight digs in a 3-1 setback on Friday. He then took it up another notch on Saturday, grabbing 20 kills with no errors while adding three digs in a 3-0 victory. Rempel hit for an incredible .690 percentage in Saturday’s match.