From Red Deer College Athletics:

It was another impressive year in RDC Athletics and the student-athletes, coaches, trainers, and supporters were recognized at the 2019 RDC Athletics Awards Night, held on Tuesday evening at the RDC Arts Centre.

During 2018-19, RDC Athletics picked up another 26 medals. Red Deer College teams won 10 Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) and three Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) medals. RDC student-athletes added 11 ACAC individual medals and were recognized with 23 ACAC awards. At the CCAA level, two individual medals and eight awards were earned. Kari Elliott (Cross Country Running), Scott Bergdahl (Golf), Brad Hamilton (Curling) and Chris Wandler (Queens Volleyball) were honoured as ACAC Coach of the Year.

The motivated student-athletes spent countless hours in surrounding communities making a positive impact. They volunteered their time to coach, raise funds for charities, read with children, encourage students to stay physically active and mentor youth.

Ken King, Queens Basketball Head Coach, Clayton Pottinger, Kings Basketball Head Coach and Chris Wandler, Queens Volleyball Head Coach, are moving on to other opportunities next season, and all three dedicated coaches received recognition and a gift for their hard work and commitment.

Many student-athletes were recognized on a provincial and national level. RDC student-athletes were named the ACAC Athlete of the Week on nine occasions and CCAA Athlete of the Week four times.

Jill Stewart was chosen as the 2019 Red Deer Bottling RDC Female Athlete of the Year after an exceptional season with the RDC Queens Cross Country Running and Indoor Track teams. Stewart led the Queens to a silver medal at the ACAC Cross Country Running Championships, and she earned individual bronze along with an All-Conference selection. Then, the third-year student-athlete guided the RDC Queens to national bronze at the CCAA Cross Country National Championships. Stewart finished tenth, solidifying a position on the All-Canadian team.

Kari Elliott, RDC Cross Country Running and Indoor Track Head Coach, has been impressed with Stewart’s progression beyond competition.

“Jill has grown tremendously over three years in our program - not just in athleticism. The last two years she has served as a representative on the Student-Athlete Advisory Council,” says Elliott. “This year, she really stepped into a leadership role as our strongest female athlete. Her top three finishes at all of our grand prix races and top 10 finish at nationals were absolutely essential to our team's success this season.”

The Occupational and Physical Therapist Assistant Diploma student was also a strong competitor with the RDC Queens Indoor Track team. Stewart helped guide the team to silver at the ACAC championships and was a member of the gold medal winning women’s 4 x 400 metre relay team. In the women’s 3,000 m final, she wrapped up bronze.

“Jill carried her success into indoor track as well, finishing on the podium twice,” says Elliott. “She elevates the entire team by modelling discipline, determination, hard work and setting big goals. Jill is a joy to coach and an inspiration to watch compete.”

Regan Fathers was selected as the Red Deer Bottling RDC Male Athlete of the Year after a tremendous season as a member of the Kings Volleyball team. He led his team (18-6) to second place in the competitive south division and dominated in several statistical categories. The six-foot-six right side hitter led the league with 435 total kills and 5.37 kills per set. He was selected the ACAC Men’s Volleyball Player of the Year and to the South All-Conference team.

“Regan’s lengthy list of individual achievements are very well deserved based on his level of play and ability to take over matches this season,” says Aaron Schulha, Kings Head Coach. “I am very happy for Regan to receive the RDC Male Athlete of Year Award for a second time, and it really puts an exclamation point on the dominant season that he had.”

Fathers, a fifth-year from East Fremantle, Western Australia, helped the RDC Kings earn national silver at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre in front of an electric crowd, and he was named a CCAA Tournament First Team All-Star. Prior to the national championship, Fathers was recognized as the CCAA Men’s Volleyball Player of the Year and an All-Canadian.

“It has been an honour to coach Regan over the years and to help him develop into a very impressive volleyball player,” says Schulha. “I have no doubt that he will continue to push himself to improve at the next level while playing professionally in Europe, and I very much look forward to hearing updates on his future volleyball accomplishments.”

RDC student-athletes also excelled in the classroom. At Awards Night, 102 student-athletes, who maintained a GPA of 3.0 or higher, received an RDC Academic Excellence Award. Five student-athletes were recognized as CCAA Academic All-Canadians. Regan Fathers (Kings Volleyball), Matt Hope (Kings Cross Country Running and Indoor Track), Shaye Leidenius (Queens Golf), Teryn Wright (Queens Soccer) and Adam Turlejski (Kings Volleyball) achieved honours (3.5 GPA or higher) at Red Deer College and were selected to a 2018–19 ACAC All-Conference team.

Additional 2019 RDC Athletics Awards Winners

Al Ferchuk Athletic Leadership Award – Matt Hope (Kings Cross Country Running and Indoor Track)

Nexus Energy Technologies Student-Athlete Leadership Awards – Shae Best (Queens Basketball) and Spencer Klassen (Kings Basketball)

Come Back Awards - Ashley Sutherland (Queens Hockey) and Adam Turlejski (Kings Volleyball)

Corporate Loyalty Award – ZS Holdings

Donor Spotlight Award - Phyllis Ward

Team Awards

Kings Basketball

Coach’s Award – Eric Bakker

Most Improved Player – Barzin Eskandarkhah

Most Valuable Player – Spencer Klassen

Rookie of the Year – Payton Baltzer

Queens Basketball

Coach’s Award – Lauren Cardinal

Most Improved Player – Samantha Wade

Most Valuable Player – Sandra Garcia-Bernal

Rookie of the Year – Heena Sidhu

Cross Country Running and Indoor Track

Coach’s Award – Daniel Szucs

Most Improved Player – Devin Saunders

Most Valuable Player – Jill Stewart

Rookie of the Year – Shayla Sklaruk

Curling

Coach’s Award – Brett Day

Most Improved Player – Jayden Mitchell

Most Valuable Player – Thomas Crawford

Rookie of the Year – Erica Watts

Golf

Coach's Award - Gaige Weseen

Most Improved Player – Bradie Ouellette-Pillman

Most Valuable Player - Shaye Leidenius

Rookie of the Year - Chloe Sies

Kings Hockey

Coach's Award - Anthony Neurauter

Most Improved Player - Chase Thudium

Most Valuable Player - Tanner Butler

Rookie of the Year - Ryley Smith

Queens Hockey

Coach's Award - Shelby Ballan

Most Improved Player - Sydnee DeCorby

Most Valuable Player - Catherine Longchamps

Rookie of the Year - Mary Hirsch

Kings Soccer

Coach's Award - Kyle Bett

Most Improved Player - Will Arcinegas Salazar

Most Valuable Player - Theoren Gill

Rookie of the Year - Colin Purnell

Queens Soccer

Coach's Award - Emily Richard

Most Improved Player - Hayley Nassichuk-Dean

Most Valuable Player - Teryn Wright

Rookie of the Year - Mikayla Fujimoto

Kings Volleyball

Coach's Award - Paul Mennie

Most Improved Player - Mark DeWit

Most Valuable Player - Regan Fathers

Rookie of the Year - JJ Graham

Queens Volleyball

Coach's Award - Britt Davis

Most Improved Player - Natalie Bloemen

Most Valuable Player - Kaylee Domoney

Rookie of the Year - Emma Holmes

Major Volunteer Contributor Award - Brittany Carlson (with Kings Hockey)

ACAC Minor Officials Awards - Emma Mantie and Kelcie Garnick

Please, stay connected to rdcathletics.ca and RDC Athletics social media platforms throughout the summer months, as information such as the 2019-20 team schedules will be shared.