CW Announces Players of the Week

Oct. 1, 2024 - The fall season is in full swing across Canada West as playoff races are heating up.

In football, the postseason race got even more interesting with Saskatchewan coming back to defeat Alberta on Friday night, leaving both teams at 2-3. Manitoba (5-0) downed Regina (2-3) to keep their undefeated streak alive, while UBC (3-2) snuck by Calgary (1-4) in a key road win.

The cross country and golf calendar is also in full gear with conference championships fast approaching, while soccer, rugby and field hockey regular seasons continue to roll on.

Here are your Canada West Players of the Week.

Football Offensive Player of the Week - Isaiah Knight (UBC Thunderbirds)

Sept. 28 vs CGY: 235 YDS Rush, Long of 76 YDS, 33 YDS Rec, 1 TD, avg. 9.8 YDS/carry

A week after setting a new career high in rushing yards, Isaiah Knight exploded for 235 yards rushing and another 33 receiving for 268 all-purpose yards and a touchdown in UBC's 32-30 win over the Calgary Dinos.

Carrying the rock 24 times with an average of 9.8 yards per carry, Knight also set a new career high with a 76 yard carry. Surpassing 185 yards rushing and 200 all-purpose yards in each of the last two weeks, Knight leads the entire country with 668 rushing yards on the season. His five touchdowns leads the Thunderbirds in major scoring.

View CW Football: Standings | Schedule | Leaders

Football Defensive Player of the Week - Jaxon Ciraolo-Brown (UBC Thunderbirds)

Sept. 28 vs CGY: 5 Solo TKL, 7 Total TKL, 1 Sack, 1 TFL in a 32-30 UBC win over CGY

Returning to action after missing a week due to injury, Ciraolo-Brown was right back to dominant form, leading the Thunderbirds in tackles while coming up with a number of big defensive plays including his first sack of the season, helping UBC earn a gritty 32-30 win over the Dinos in Calgary.

Despite missing week four, the fifth-year from Hamilton has amassed 25.5 total tackles, second on the T-Birds, and his 6.4 tackles per game is tied for third in the Canada West. ​

View CW Football: Standings | Schedule | Leaders

Football Special Teams Player of the Week - Lukas Scott (Saskatchewan Huskies)

Sept. 27 vs ALB: 2/2 FG, 47 YD game-winner, 3/3 PATs, 7 Kickoffs with a 61.1 YD avg., 8 punts for a 41.1 YD avg

Lukas Scott and Huskies special teams played a crucial role in the Dogs' win over the No. 9-ranked Alberta Golden Bears this past weekend. The rookie was perfect in the kicking game, connecting on a trio of PAT attempts and two field goals, including the eventual game-winner from 47-yards out with 54 seconds remaining. Scott also played a key role in helping the Huskies fight the field position battle, averaging 41.1 yards per punt and 61.1 yards per kick off.

View CW Football: Standings | Schedule | Leaders

Women's Rugby 15s - Adia Pye (UBC Thunderbirds)

Sept. 26 vs CGY: 4 tries

The reigning Canada West Player of the Week followed up with another stellar effort scoring four tries in a UBC romp over the Dinos. Scoring three times in the opening half, the 2023 Canada West Rookie of the Year added another in the 69th minute for good measure, helping the T-Birds to a third straight win.

The second year from Victoria is far and away the Canada West leader in both tries (11) and points scored (55). The 3-1 Thunderbirds host the undefeated Victoria Vikes this Saturday to close out the regular season.

View Women's Rugby 15s: Standings | Schedule

Women's Field Hockey - Sydney Le (UBC Thunderbirds)

Sept. 28 vs CGY: 4G, GWG

Sept. 29 vs CGY: 1G

Sydney Le provided all of UBC's offence in a 4-0 rout of the visiting Calgary Dinos Saturday in Vancouver. The rookie sensation added a fifth goal of the weekend by opening scoring in the second minute of Sunday's rematch, a 5-3 UBC win.

Le leads the Canada West with eight goals through six games this season. The 4-0-2 T-Birds are now off from conference action until Oct. 19 when they host the Victoria Vikes.

View Women's Field Hockey: Standings | Schedule

Women's Soccer - Hannah Harper (MacEwan Griffins)

Sept. 28 vs REG: 3G, 1A, GWG, 5 shots, 3 SOG in 5-0 win

Sept 29 vs SSK: 2 shots, 1 SOG in 2-0 win

The electric second-year attacking midfielder produced a hat trick and four-point game in MacEwan's blowout win over Regina on Saturday to move into the Canada West scoring lead. Her four-point effort matched a MacEwan program record - marking the sixth time a Griffins player has had four points in a Canada West game.

Harper didn't register a point in Sunday's 2-0 win over Saskatchewan, but played the full 90 and was instrumental in plays all over the field that kept the Huskies off the scoresheet.

For the season, she leads the conference in scoring with six goals and five assists in eight games.

View WSOC: Standings | Schedule | Leaders

Men's Soccer - Charles Tchouya Nana (Trinity Western Spartans)

Sept. 28 vs UNBC: 1G, 2A, 2 shots in 4-3 win

Sept. 29 vs UNBC: 3G, 4 shots in 6-0 win

Tchouya Nana helped lead the Spartans back to .500 (4-4-1) with to back-to-back wins over the UNBC Timberwolves this past weekend in Prince George.
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​On Saturday afternoon the biology student had two shots on goal with one goal and two assists to help lead the Spartans to a 4-3 victory over the Timberwolves. On Sunday afternoon, the fourth-year had four shots on goal and a natural hat trick, with a career best three goals, to start the match and lead the Spartans to a 6-0 victory over UNBC.
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View MSOC: Standings | Schedule | Leaders

Women's Golf - Julia Alexander-Carew (UBCO Heat)

True North Classic Round 1: 3-over par 75

True North Classic Round 2: 4-under par 68 (low round of any golfer in the field) par 75

True North Classic Round 3: even par 72

Alexander-Carew won her second tournament in three days as she captured individual gold at the True North Classic for her third career University level title. The NCAA Division II event, featuring a field of 65 athletes from 11 institutions, saw Alexander-Carew use an impressive round of four under par 68 during round 2, which was the second round the field played on Day 1 of the tournament, to vault into a tie for first place. The round was her second bogey-free round of the year through five rounds of play.

She would hold that lead with a steady round of even par on the final day, that featured three birdies, one bogey and one double bogey, to claim gold and head to the Canada West Championship as one of the tournament favourites.

View GOLF: Schedule

Men's Golf - Eli Greene (UFV Cascades)

10th place finish (+6) at the SFU True North Classic (75, 76, 71) ​
​T4th (-3) at the SMU Bishop Invitational (71, 71, 71)

Eli Greene started off the season strong with a pair of top-10 finishes at the SFU True North Classic, and SMU Bishop Invitational. The Cascades' veteran golfer is rounding into form with the Canada West Championship quickly approaching.

He shot rounds of 75, 76, and 71, to finish in 10th at the True North Classic to help the Cascades take second place, before three consecutive rounds of 71 placed him in a tie for fourth at the Bishop invitational just days later.

View GOLF: Schedule

Women's Cross Country - Kaitlyn Harrison (Saskatchewan Huskies)

Dakota Classic: 1st Place Finish - 30:52.4

Kaitlyn Harrison opened up the cross country season with a dominant performance at the second annual Dakota Classic.

Harrison claimed 1st-place in the women's 8km race with a time of 30:52.4, over 40 seconds faster teammate Jenica Swartz who finished second. The win also helped the Huskies to a victory in the team standings, with Harrison leading a pack of eight Huskies who finished top 10.

View XC: Schedule

Men's Cross Country - ​ Jonathan Podbielski (Regina Cougars)

Dakota Classic: 1st Place Finish - 26:19.1

Jonathan Podbielski opened up his 2024 cross country season with a win at the Dakota Classic held at Whitecap Dakota First Nation. Podbielski held off Saskatchewan’s Alexander Webster for the win, finishing the 8K course in 26:19 to lead the field of 44 finishers which featured runners from Regina, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba.

Podbielski and the rest of the Cougars have another tune-up meet coming up before championship season begins, as they’ll compete in the Stewart Cup on Oct. 12 in Calgary. The Canada West meet will be on Oct. 26 in Camrose, Alta. with the U SPORTS Championships set for Nov. 9 in Kelowna, B.C.

View XC: Schedule

About Players of the Week:

The Canada West Players of the Week is a weekly celebration of athletic achievements across the conference. Each week, deserving student-athletes are nominated by SIDs from each member institution. Canada West office staff review nominations and select the recipients.

About Canada West:

As the leading university athletic conference in the country, Canada West is home to student-athletes that excel in the classroom and their communities. The conference is comprised of 17 member institutions spanning from Victoria to Winnipeg, with over 3,200 student-athletes competing across 14 sports. Canada West’s mission is to train leaders and build champions by providing leadership in the delivery, regulation, and promotion of university level high performance sports programs throughout western Canada.