StFX's Landry earns second CIS MVP nod

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. (CIS) - For the second consecutive season, St. Francis Xavier University third-year fullback Ghislaine Landry is the Canadian Interuniversity Sport women's rugby player of the year.

A native of Toronto, Landry became the second player to be named CIS MVP on two occasions following Alberta's Heather Denkhaus, who was first honoured in 1999 and was a co-recipient of the award in 2000.

Landry was also receiving a major national award for the third straight year. She was CIS' top rookie in 2006.

The other CIS award winners announced on Thursday night during the All-Canadian Banquet were Lethbridge's Brandi Van Eeuwen of Duncan, B.C., who was named the nation's top freshman, Toronto's Megan Boyles of Peterborough, Ont., who received the second annual Student-Athlete Community Service Award, and Guelph's Colette McAuley, who was named coach of the year.

The CIS championship, hosted by the University of Lethbridge, gets under way Friday with six round-robin match-ups. The national final is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Mountain on Sunday.

Landry and StFX had a record-breaking Atlantic University Sport campaign in 2008. The human kinetics student established a conference record with 22 tries in six regular season contests, shattering her own mark of 19 set as a freshman in 2006, and finished with 112 points, the second highest total in AUS history after the 135 points scored this season by teammate Courtnay Malcolm. The X-Women co-captain also broke her own single-game conference marks on October 8 when she tallied seven tries and 35 points against Saint Mary's.

The X-Women enjoyed one of the most dominating seasons since women's rugby became an AUS and CIS sport in 1998, outscoring their opponents 468-0 in seven conference and playoff outings, including a 52-0 win over Saint Mary's in the league final, en route to their 11th AUS crown in 11 years. StFX is the only team to qualify for every CIS championship since the inaugural tournament.

In only her third season, Landry is already one of the most decorated players in CIS history. In addition to her two CIS MVP titles, the 22-year-old is a three-time all-Canadian and three-time AUS player of the year, was named CIS rookie of the year and a CIS championship all-star in 2006 when the X-Women captured their lone Monilex Trophy as national champions, and is the AUS career leader for tries (54) and points (272). She has scored at least one try in all 18 regular season games she has played with StFX.

"Ghislaine has picked up where she left off last season and continues to provide great leadership as a co-captain on the team," said StFX head coach Mike Cavanagh. "She is an invaluable contributor to the team on both offence and defence and has unbelievable natural ability and talent in the sport of rugby."

Van Eeuwen is the third Lethbridge player to claim CIS rookie-of-the-year honours since the award was first presented in 1999. Canadian national team member and current Pronghorn Ashley Patzer earned the distinction in 2005, while Evelyn McGunigal was honoured back in 2001.

The biology student had an immediate impact at the prop position in her first Canada West campaign as she led the 'Horns to a 4-1 overall record and a third straight conference championship.

Van Eeuwen joined Lethbridge with a wealth of experience at the provincial and national team level. A member of the Canadian U19 and U20 squads, she played the last two seasons with the B.C. senior team. She learned rugby while playing for Cowichan Secondary School in Duncan under the watchful eyes of former national team coach Brad Skene.

"It is a great joy for rugby enthusiasts to watch Brandi, as she plays the game with the spirit it was intended to be. She has a very bright future in CIS play and am sure that she has a good chance of appearing in a Rugby Canada jersey shortly," said Lethbridge head coach Neil Langevin.

Boyles was in her fifth and final year of CIS eligibility in 2008. The Varsity Blues captain the past three seasons, she was named an OUA all-star each of her last three campaigns. She started her varsity career at Wilfrid Laurier in 2003 before wearing the Blues colours from 2005-2008.

Off the field, the global health specialist student has been awarded the U of T's Helen Gurney award two years running for outstanding achievement in academics, athletics and leadership.

Boyles discovered her true calling when travelling to Nairobi, Kenya, in 2005. For the better part of a year, she taught at a home for street children. Upon her return to Canada, she enrolled at U of T and since then has become actively involved with several organizations that focus on youth development and assistance programs including Pathways to Education in Regent Park, UNITERRA initiatives, Students United for AIDS Orphans in Africa, and the Bloor West Out of the Cold Program.

"Between her rugby training, her strenuous academic program, and her volunteer work it is amazing that Megan can find any time for herself. She is what you would call a true team player. She is a natural leader with a big heart - a very special and giving young woman, who is most deserving of the CIS Community Service Award. Her amazing attitude and achievements are a reflection of a true community leader," said Toronto head coach Shannon Smith.

McAuley is the first Guelph sideline boss to be named CIS coach of the year in women's rugby.

The Gryphons rugby alumna took over the Guelph program in 2007 after 10 seasons as the assistant coach, and quickly led her troops to the bronze medal at the CIS championship.

This fall, in her second campaign at the helm, the Gryphs were the cream of the crop in Ontario, outscoring their opponents 335-15 in eight overall games on their way to a perfect 8-0 record, including a 14-0 shutout of perennial powerhouse Western Ontario in the OUA final.

A long-serving member of the Ontario provincial team and the national team, McAuley has represented Canada 21 times with the national side including at the World Cup in 2002.

The all-Canadian team was also announced on Thursday.

Joining Landry on the CIS Top 15 are Western Ontario sisters Kelly and Laura Russell of Bolton, Ont., Guelph fullback Brittany Benn of Napanee, Ont., Queen's fullback Jocelyn Poirier of Ottawa, Trent's Kristine Boyles of Peterborough, Ont., Guelph flanker Michelle Joslin of Waterloo, Ont., McMaster fly-half Paige Churchill of Brantford, Ont., StFX 8-man Tanya Boiteau of Calgary, Lethbridge hooker Ashley MacDonald of Corran Ban, P.E.I., Alberta fly-half Annika Eriksson of Saskatoon, UBC centre Radha Jain of Mississauga, Ont., Alberta 8-man Chelsea Stone of St. Albert, Alta., Laval fly-half Charlotte Vallières-Villeneuve of Quebec City, and Concordia centre Jackie Tittley of Kirkland, Que.

Boyles, Boiteau, Eriksson, Stone and Vallières-Villeneuve were all honoured for the second straight season, while Kelly Russell returns to the CIS dream team after a one-year absence.

Championship web site: www.universitysport.ca/e/championships/w_rugby/2008



2008 CIS WOMEN'S RUGBY AWARDS & ALL-CANADIANS

Player of the year: Ghislaine Landry, St. Francis Xavier University
Rookie of the year: Brandi Van Eeuwen, University of Lethbridge
Student-Athlete Community Service Award: Megan Boyles, University of Toronto
Coach of the year: Colette McAuley, University of Guelph

All-Canadian Team
Position - Athlete - University - Year - Hometown - Faculty

Fullback Brittany Benn Guelph 1 Napanee, Ont. Criminology
Fullback Jocelyn Poirier Queen's 3 Ottawa, Ont. Kinesiology & Health Studies
8/F/L Kelly Russell Western 4 Bolton, Ont. Social Sciences
- Kristine Boyles Trent 2 Peterborough, Ont. Biology
F/8/L Laura Russell Western 3 Bolton, Ont. Social Sciences
Flanker Michelle Joslin Guelph 4 Waterloo, Ont. Human Kinetics
Fly-half Paige Churchill McMaster 1 Brantford, Ont. Medicine
Fullback/Wing Ghislaine Landry StFX 3 Toronto, Ont. Human Kinetics
8-man Tanya Boiteau StFX 5 Calgary, Alta. Education
Hooker Ashley MacDonald Lethbridge 4 Corran Ban, P.E.I. Science
Fly-half Annika Eriksson Alberta 4 Saskatoon, Sask. Education
Centre Radha Jain UBC 2 Mississauga, Ont. Science
8-man Chelsea Stone Alberta 5 St. Albert, Alta. Physical Education & Recreation
Fly-half Charlotte Vallières-Villeneuve Laval 2 Quebec City, Que. Physiotherapy
Centre Jackie Tittley Concordia 1 Kirkland, Que. Human Relations