Taylor named CIS rugby All-Canadian

CIS women's rugby
McGill's Miller named player of the year

QUEBEC CITY (CIS) – Brianna Miller, a fourth-year back from McGill University, was named CIS player of the year in women's rugby, Wednesday night.

Miller, a native of Pointe-Claire, Que., became the first player from the RSEQ conference to merit the national MVP award since the sport made its CIS debut back in 1998.

Other winners announced during the All-Canadian Gala held at Universel Hotel in Quebec City were Calgary prop DaLeaka Menin, who was named rookie of the year; Dino teammate Tarin Arndt, who received the Student-Athlete Community Service Award; and Acadia's Matthew Durant, who earned the Jim Atkinson Award as coach of the year.

The 2013 CIS championship kicks off Thursday at TELUS-Université Laval Stadium and concludes on Sunday with the gold-medal final scheduled for 2 p.m. All nine games from the six-team tournament will be webcast live on CIS-SIC.tv.

Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wrugby/index    

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Brianna Miller, McGill

Miller, a 5-foot-6 physical education senior, won her third straight RSEQ scoring title this season thanks to 100 points on a league-leading 34 conversions, four penalty goals and four tries in just seven games. Accounting for 32.3 per cent of McGill's offence in conference play (310 points), she converted 34 of 46 tries for a success rate of 73.9 per cent and became the team's all-time leading scorer with 370 points in 26 career regular season contests, an average of 14.2 points per outing.

Thanks in large part to the spectacular play of their team captain, the Martlets maintained their best record (6-1) since 2005, good for second place in the RSEQ standings. McGill went on to upset previously undefeated Concordia in the Quebec final to advance to the CIS championship for the first time in eight years.

Named a CIS all-Canadian for the second straight season, Miller is a two-time RSEQ most valuable player, three-time league all-star and former rookie of the year. Last July, the 21-year-old helped Canada win bronze at the inaugural Summer Universiade rugby sevens tournament in Russia.

"Brianna's individual skills are brilliant," said McGill head coach Matthew Stephens, who served as technical director and assistant coach of the Canadian national senior women's team from 2003 to 2006. "She kicks, with both feet, for points at an international level. She passes both left and right-handed, is a strong tackler and an amazingly elusive runner. A natural leader, she has worked very hard on her vision and how to run a game, improving all those around her. She has become a complete player at a high-level. Her finesse and vision have played a large role in our success."

Acadia fly half Emilie Chiasson, Guelph fullback Caitlin McNally and Alberta back row Miranda Monty were the other nominees for CIS MVP honours.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: DaLeaka Menin, Calgary

Originally from Vulcan, Alta., Menin followed in her sister Jade's footsteps when she decided to become a Dino. She is the first U of C player to be named CIS rookie of the year in women's rugby.

In her university debut, the 5-foot-8 arts student was a key cog in the front row for a Dinos team that was ranked in the national top 10 all season and took home the Canada West silver medal. After beginning the campaign as an impact player coming off the bench, she earned a starting role by the end of the season, making the most of her opportunity at the conference tournament where she led the team in tries and set up the score that sealed the Dinos' semi-final victory over Lethbridge. Her two tries in the Canada West tourney is virtually unheard of for the prop position.

Menin began her rugby career in grade seven at County Central and continued on to play with Team Alberta Under-18 for three years, coming home with the championship in her third and final season. In her last year of high school, she was scouted to try out for the U20 Canadian team and was selected for the travelling squad that competed at and won the Nations Cup held in England.

"DaLeaka is one of those special athletes that don't come around very often. For lack of a better term she is a freak," said Dinos head coach Simon Chi. "We are excited to be working with and developing such a talented athlete. She has already represented her country at the U20 level and with some more hard work and polish she certainly has the potential to compete at the highest level.  Her addition this year provides impact player to an already imposing front row and she will no doubt be a feature player in this program for years to come."

Acadia winger Laura Klingenberg, Concordia centre Alexandra Tessier and Western fullback Breanne Nicholas were also in the running for the top freshman award.

STUDENT-ATHLETE COMMUNITY SERVICE AWARD: Tarin Arndt, Calgary

Nominated out of Canada West for the second straight season, Arndt became the first Dino to claim the CIS Student-Athlete Community Service Award.

A second-year arts student, the 5-foot-9 prop from Calgary is very community-oriented and volunteers extensively around the globe. In 2010, she founded T4A Apparel - Tie Dye For Africa, a not-for profit fundraising initiative aimed to raise money for The Napenda Rescue Foundation, KCC Slum &  Living Positive Mlolongo through hand-made tie dye t-shirts.

The following year, Arndt created the Napenda Rescue Foundation to help provide children, women and people affected by HIV/AIDS infection in East Africa with health pre-requisites such as shelter, education, social security, social relations, food, income, empowerment, and stable ecosystem.

She has also been an intern and volunteer with Living Positive Kenya & Mlolongo intern and plays rugby with the Saints Rugby Club of Calgary, where she also acts as Fundraising Executive.

"Tarin is the consummate student-athlete that we strive to have involved in our program at the University of Calgary," said Simon Chi. "She is dedicated to her training and cares for her teammates. It is her drive and compassion which leads her to pursue humanitarian efforts outside of the typical student-athlete experience, and these characteristics will serve her well beyond her time at the U of C. We are fortunate to have Tarin as part of the Dinos varsity rugby program and she will be an integral part of the team for years to come."

StFX's Vanessa Duffley, Sherbrooke's Cynthia Jade Renaud and York's Aisan Fazeli were also nominated.

JIM ATKINSON AWARD (coach of the year): Matthew Durant, Acadia

Durant, an associate professor in the School of Nutrition and Dietetics at Acadia, is the first Axewomen sideline boss to win the Jim Atkinson Award. He was also the AUS nominee in his first season at the helm in 2010.

In his fourth campaign leading the team this fall, Durant guided his troops to first place in the Atlantic conference for the first time in program history thanks to a sparkling 7-1 record. In their season opener, the Axewomen stunned reigning CIS champion StFX 44-13, marking their first victory in 11 years over the 16-time AUS titlists, who had won their previous 60 league games.

Over his four seasons as head coach, Durant has posted a 19-9 conference mark and a 4-4 post-season record, reaching the AUS final every year. In 2012, the Axewomen made their first-ever trip to the CIS championship tournament, where they merited the R.W. Pugh fair play award.

Durant also has an extensive background in rugby as a player and administrator. He has captained the Annapolis Valley Bulldogs RFC to three McCurdy Cup (Nova Scotia Premier Division) championships in the past five years, as well as the Maritime Premier Division Caledonia Cup Championship in 2008. Named as the Premier Division MVP in 2005, he also captained the Nova Scotia Senior Keltics in the Rugby Canada Super League (2006, 2007).

Administratively, Durant was president of the Valley Bulldogs RFC for seven years prior to his appointment as president of Rugby Nova Scotia in 2007.

"The common denominator in Acadia women's rugby elevating to a national calibre program is Matt Durant," said director of athletics Kevin Dickie. "In all my years as a coach and athletic director, I've not met anyone with more love and passion for their sport. Matt has been relentless in his belief that we could pursue excellence in Acadia Rugby, and I could not be happier for him and his team."

Concordia's Graeme McGravie (RSEQ), Guelph's Colette McAuley (OUA) and UBC's Maria Gallo (Canada West) were named coach of the year in the other CIS conferences this season.

ALL-CANADIAN TEAM

The all-Canadian team was also announced on Wednesday.

Joining CIS MVP Brianna Miller on the 15-member all-star squad were Acadia teammates Emilie Chiasson (fly half) and Janna Slevinski (back row), the Alberta pair of Chelsea Guthrie (scrum half) and Miranda Monty (back row), the Queen's duo of Lauren McEwen (centre) and Claragh Pegg (prop), as well as Saint Mary's Jean Baker (centre), Calgary's Samantha Crandell (prop), Concordia's Hughanna Gaw (No. 8), Western's Lori Josephson (scrum half), Guelph's Caitlin McNally (fullback), McMaster's Cindy Nelles (No. 8), StFX's Emma Taylor (second row) and Ottawa's Natasha Watcham-Roy (centre).

Miller, Guthrie and McNally all return from last year's dream team, while Crandell and Gaw had received the honour in 2011.

Gaw (2009) and Nelles (2011) are former CIS rookies of the year.

2013 CIS WOMEN'S RUGBY AWARDS & ALL-CANADIANS

Player of the year: Brianna Miller, McGill
Rookie of the year: DaLeaka Menin, Calgary
Student-Athlete Community Service award: Tarin Arndt, Calgary
Jim Atkinson Award (coach of the year): Matthew Durant, Acadia

All-Canadian Team

Pos.     Athlete                        University       Year    Hometown                  Academics                  

Centre  Jean Baker                   Saint Mary's    3          Argyle Shore, P.E.I.     Arts
Fly       Emilie Chiasson           Acadia             3          Ottawa, Ont.                Sciences
Prop     Samantha Crandell       Calgary            4          Calgary, Alta.               Arts
No. 8   Hughanna Gaw            Concordia        4          Elgin, Que.                   Leisure Sciences
Scrum  Chelsea Guthrie           Alberta             4          Edmonton, Alta.          Physical Education & Recreation
Scrum  Lori Josephson            Western           4          Beaverton, Ont.           King's College
Centre  Lauren McEwen          Queen's           3          Newmarket, Ont.         Fine Arts
FB        Caitlin McNally           Guelph             5          Guelph, Ont.                Arts
Back    Brianna Miller              McGill             4          Pointe-Claire, Que.      Physical Education
Back    Miranda Monty            Alberta             5          Edmonton, Alta.          Business
No. 8   Cindy Nelles                McMaster         2          Belleville, Ont.             Civil Engineering
Prop     Claragh Pegg                Queen's           4          Barrie, Ont.                  Kinesiology
Back    Janna Slevinski            Acadia             3          St. Albert, Alta.            Kinesiology
2 Row  Emma Taylor               StFX                4          Scotsburn, N.S.            Business Administration         
Centre  Natasha Watcham-Roy     Ottawa             5          Gatineau, Que.             Health Sciences