The 18th Annual BLG Awards: Cordonier, Glavic named CIS athletes of the year

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CALGARY (CIS) – University of British Columbia volleyball player Liz Cordonier and University of Calgary football player Erik Glavic are the 2010 BLG Award winners as Canadian Interuniversity Sport female and male athletes of the year.

Official website: www.blgcanada.com/blgawards

Award winners video highlights

CWUAA: Liz Cordonier (Vancouver, B.C.), volleyball, University of British Columbia
http://english.cis-sic.ca/video/09-10_blg_nominees/UBC_Liz_Cordonier_Highlights

CWUAA: Erik Glavic (Pickering, Ont.), football, University of Calgary
http://english.cis-sic.ca/video/09-10_blg_nominees/Calgary_Eric_Glavic_Highlights

The recipients of the 18th annual BLG Awards were announced Monday night at EPCOR Centre's Jack Singer Concert Hall in Calgary. The awards show will premiere on TSN on Sunday, May 16, at 11 a.m. EDT.

All eight nominees – one female and one male from each of CIS' four regional associations - received a commemorative gold ring, while Cordonier and Glavic were also presented with a trophy and a $10,000 scholarship to attend a Canadian University graduate school.

The winners were selected by the Canadian Athletic Foundation, a not-for-profit Board established for the purpose of administering the BLG Awards and protecting the integrity of the selection process.

"Once again this year, all nominees would have been worthy winners," said CIS Chief Executive Officer, Marg McGregor. "Over 10,000 student-athletes compete in CIS annually and to make it to the final eight is an exceptional accomplishment. We are very proud of all the finalists and congratulate Liz and Erik on winning these prestigious awards."

A native of Vancouver, Cordonier took home the Jim Thompson Trophy, named after the late President of TSN and presented annually to the female BLG Award winner since 2003.

She was the third UBC athlete to receive a BLG Award following Olympic swimmers Annamay Pierse a year ago and Brian Johns in 2002. Five women's volleyball players had previously claim the honour including Montreal's Laetitia Tchoualack in 2008, Laval's Marylène Laplante in 2006, Calgary's Joanna Niemczewska in 2004, Alberta's Jenny Cartmell in 2000 and Winnipeg's Diane Scott in 1993.

Cordonier, a 6-foot-1 outside hitter, was simply the best player on the best team in the country in her fifth and final campaign at UBC. The 23-year-old arts major became the first Thunderbird in history to be named CIS player of the year in women's volleyball after she finished third in Canada West in both kills (3.37) and points (4.00) per set, fifth in service aces (0.36 per set) and eighth in hitting percentage (.281). Her stellar play helped UBC maintain No. 1 status in each of the 13 weekly national coaches' polls, post a 20-0 record in the regular season and a 27-0 overall mark against CIS opponents, including a sweep of their three duels at the CIS championship en route to a third straight national title. Fittingly, she earned one final honour following the gold-medal final as she was chosen MVP of the CIS tournament.

A three-time Canada West all-star and two-time all-Canadian, Cordonier excels both at the indoor and beach games. A member of the national team who represented Canada at the 2007 Summer Universiade in Thailand, she is also part of the National Beach Program and will compete on the World Beach Volleyball Tour in 2010.

She played her rookie season with UBC alongside older sister Emily, a two-time CIS all-Canadian who was also on the Team Canada roster at the 2007 Universiade. Her brothers Joe and John currently play for the T-Birds men's team. Her father, John, rowed for Canada at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.

"My teammates and coaches deserve a lot of credit for this award," said Cordonier. "I was privileged to be part of a group of exceptional athletes and individuals these past few years. There were no egos on our team. We were all pursuing the same objective. I will forever cherish my time at UBC."

Cape Breton basketball player Kelsey Hodgson of Fredericton, Montreal soccer player Véronique Maranda of Saint-Lambert, Que., and Wilfrid Laurier hockey player Liz Knox of Stouffville, Ont., were the other nominees for the 2010 Jim Thompson Trophy.

Glavic became the second recipient of the Doug Mitchell Trophy, named in honour of the BLG Awards founder, National Co-Chairman of BLG LLP, and Chairman of the Canadian Athletic Foundation.

The 6-foot-6, 230-pound quarterback joined a long list of UofC BLG Award winners that also includes track and field standout Jessica Zelinka (2007), volleyball player Joanna Niemczewska (2004), basketball player Leighann Doan-Reimers (2001), swimmer Curtis Myden (1997), football player Don Blair (1996) and volleyball player Andy Cameron (1993). Previous football recipients include McMaster running backs Jesse Lumsden (2005) and Kojo Aidoo (2001), Blair, who was a receiver with the Dinos, Wilfrid Laurier quarterback Bill Kubas (1995) and Western Ontario running back Tim Tindale (1994).

In his first Canada West season last fall after transferring from Saint Mary's and recovering from two knee surgeries, Glavic set a school record completing 67.5% of his passes and led the conference in total offence (336.1 yards per game), touchdown responsibility (20), rushing average (10.5 yards per carry), pass efficiency (181.6) and passing TDs (14), all of this while helping the Dinos set single-season team marks for total offence and first downs and tie the team record with 39 touchdowns. After leading Calgary to a 7-1 mark in conference play – the program's best since 1988 – the social sciences student was named Canada West player of the year, MVP of the conference final and guided the Dinos to their first Vanier Cup appearance since 1995 thanks to a 38-14 win over his former team, Saint Mary's, in the Uteck Bowl.

On Nov. 26, Glavic became the first player in history to capture the Hec Crighton Trophy with two different teams. He had previously claimed CIS player-of-the-year honours with the Huskies in 2007, a season that was unfortunately cut short by a major knee injury that forced him to watch from the sidelines as his teammates lost to Manitoba in the national final.

Glavic, who also played basketball at Saint Mary's - reaching the CIS semifinals in 2007 - and may join the Dinos hoops team after the 2010 football season, comes from an athletic family. Both his brothers are currently playing pro football in Switzerland, including Marko who won the Euro Bowl in 2008 and the Swiss Bowl in 2009, and Sasha who played three years with Hamilton in the CFL. His father, Tomo, was a champion volleyball player in Croatia.

"This is a tremendous honour. Just to think the eight of us were selected amongst over 10,000 CIS athletes, it's pretty amazing," Glavic said. "I was surrounded by very talented athletes with the Dinos last season and I can't wait to get back on the field with them."

UNB hockey player Hunter Tremblay of Timmins, Ont., McGill hockey player Francis Verreault-Paul of Mashteuiatsh, Que., and Western Ontario football player Michael Faulds of Eden Mills, Ont., were the other finalists for the 2010 Doug Mitchell Trophy.

BLG AWARD WINNERS:

2009-10: Liz Cordonier (UBC – volleyball), Erik Glavic (Calgary – football)
2008-09: Annamay Pierse (UBC - swimming), Joel Schmuland (Alberta - volleyball)
2007-08: Laetitia Tchoualack (Montreal - volleyball), Rob Hennigar (UNB - hockey)
2006-07: Jessica Zelinka (Calgary - track & field), Josh Howatson (Trinity Western - volleyball)
2005-06: Marylène Laplante (Laval - volleyball), Osvaldo Jeanty (Carleton - basketball)
2004-05: Adrienne Power (Dalhousie - track & field), Jesse Lumsden (McMaster - football)
2003-04: Joanna Niemczewska (Calgary - volleyball), Adam Ens (Saskatchewan - volleyball)
2002-03: Kim St-Pierre (McGill - hockey), Ryan McKenzie (Windsor - cross country & track)
2001-02: Elizabeth Warden (Toronto - swimming), Brian Johns (UBC - swimming)
2000-01: Leighann Doan (Calgary - basketball), Kojo Aidoo (McMaster - football)
1999-00: Jenny Cartmell (Alberta - volleyball), Michael Potts (Western Ontario - soccer)
1998-99: Corinne Swirsky (Concordia - hockey), Alexandre Marchand (Sherbrooke - track)
1997-98: Foy Williams (Toronto - track & field), Titus Channer (McMaster - basketball)
1996-97: Terri-Lee Johannesson (Manitoba - basketball), Curtis Myden (Calgary - swimming)
1995-96: Justine Ellison (Toronto - basketball), Don Blair (Calgary - football)
1994-95: Linda Thyer (McGill - track & field), Bill Kubas (Wilfrid Laurier - football)
1993-94: Sandra Carroll (Winnipeg - basketball), Tim Tindale (Western Ontario - football)
1992-93: Diane Scott (Winnipeg - volleyball), Andy Cameron (Calgary - volleyball)

About the BLG Awards

The BLG Awards were established in 1993 to recognize the top female and male athletes from universities affiliated with CIS. The BLG Awards are based on athletic accomplishments, outstanding sportsmanship and leadership. Each of 52 CIS schools selects one female and one male athlete of the year. From these nominees, one female and one male athlete are chosen within each of the four regional associations: Atlantic University Sport (AUS), Quebec Student Sports Federation (QSSF), Ontario University Athletics (OUA) and Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA). To be eligible, a student-athlete must have competed in a CIS sport for a minimum of two years and cannot be a previous recipient of a BLG Award.

Nominees receive a commemorative gold ring, and winners are presented with a trophy and a $10,000 scholarship to attend a Canadian University graduate school. Winners are selected by the Canadian Athletic Foundation, a not-for-profit Board established for the purpose of administering the BLG Awards and protecting the integrity of the selection process. The CAF Board of Trustees consists of 22 members from five Canadian cities representing major corporations from across the country who are committed to ensuring that Canadian University athletes receive the recognition they deserve.

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