SMITH NAMED OCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR

ST. CATHARINES, Ont. - Conestoga College fifth-year guard Yasmeen Smith (Cambridge, Ont.) is the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) Women's Basketball Player of the Year. Smith received the award in a ceremony held in St. Catharines, Ont., on Thursday.

Smith was the OCAA Scoring Champion during the regular season averaging 22.3 points per game, scoring an OCAA-high 356 points while leading the conference with 149 field goals. Smith also led all players with 118 offensive rebounds. The Condor was third in total rebounds with 174; and fifth averaging 10.9 boards per game. Smith also hit double-digits in double-doubles with 10. Also named West Division Player of the Year and West Division Scoring Champion, Smith is a Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) All-Canadian and headlines the West Division First-Team All-Stars.

Dasia McDonald (Nepean, Ont.) of Algonquin College is the East Division Player of the Year. The second-year guard led all players with 63 steals during the regular season, an average of 5.3 per game. Offensively, McDonald was third in the conference with a 49.3 field goal percentage, and seventh with a 15.4 points per game average, leading Algonquin to an East Division championship and top defensive team honours. Also named East Division Defensive Player of the Year, McDonald is a CCAA All-Canadian and headlines the East Division First-Team All-Stars.

Kia Watt (Toronto, Ont.) of Humber College is also a CCAA All-Canadian. The third-year shooting guard was second in the OCAA in total assists with 71 and averaged a team-best 14.6 points per game, helping the Hawks generate a league-high 75.4 points per game average en route to a West Division crown. Watt was also fifth among OCAA players in steals with 44. Watt is also a West Division First-Team All-Star.

Ella Doull (Toronto, Ont.) of St. Lawrence College is the OCAA Rookie of the Year. The guard was fifth in OCAA scoring averaging 17.4 points per game during the regular season and seventh with 226 total points scored. The East Division Rookie of the Year is also an East Division First-Team All-Star and headlines the East Division All-Rookie Team.

Janine Day of Lambton College is the OCAA Coach of the Year. The Lions finished in second place in the West Division with a record of 13-3, an improvement on their abbreviated record of 5-3 last season. Lambton was second in the OCAA averaging 67.8 per game while allowing just 53.7 points per game. The West Division Coach of the Year is also the nominee for CCAA Coach of the Year.

Conestoga's Beth Fleming (Cambridge, Ont.) is the West Division Rookie of the Year. The guard averaged 9.3 points, 3.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game in all 16 regular season contests the Condors competed in. Fleming headlines the West Division All-Rookie Team.

Caleb Hugh of Loyalist College is the East Division Coach of the Year. The Lancers finished in third place in the East Division with a record of 8-6, much improved compared to their abbreviated record of 1-7 last season.

Brianna Morrison (Oshawa, Ont.) of Durham College was recognized as the East Division Scoring Champion. The second-year guard averaged 19.7 points per game in 14 contests totalling 276 points. Morrison is also an East Division First-Team All-Star.

Lambton's Breanna Pretty (Sarnia, Ont.) is the West Division Defensive Player of the Year. The third-year player was among the Top 15 players with 93 defensive rebounds, 42 steals and 10 blocks on a Lions team recognized as the top defensive team in the West Division. Pretty is also a West Division First-Team All-Star.

The East Division Sixth Woman of the Year is Marian Martin (Scarborough, Ont.) of Centennial College. The first-year guard played in 14 games, seven off the bench contributing 109 points, 62 rebounds and 16 steals.

Lambton's Morgan Goffar (Stratford, Ont.) is the West Division Sixth Woman of the Year. The first-year forward played in 16 games, making just one start, scoring 135 points while grabbing 65 rebounds. Goffar is also a member of the West Division All-Rookie Team.

In addition to Smith, Watt and Pretty, West Division First-Team All-Stars include Alison Cotton (London, Ont.) of Fanshawe College and Alyssa Lucier (Wallaceburg, Ont.) of St. Clair College. Joining McDonald, Doull and Morrison as East Division First-Team All-Stars are Algonquin's Libby Hirst (White Lake, Ont.); Loyalist's Cianah Miller (Mississauga, Ont.); and St. Lawrence's Melissa Gilligan (Cornwall, Ont.).

The East Division Second-Team All-Stars include Algonquin's Meaghan McNamara (Ottawa, Ont.); Centennial's Christianna Crooks (Brampton, Ont.); Durham's Emily Glendinning (Plattsville, Ont.); Jordyn Dawkins (Ajax, Ont.) of George Brown College; and Tianna Leveridge (Scarborough, Ont.) of Seneca College.

Humber's Kayah Clarke (Hamilton, Ont.); Lambton's Maddy Bishop (Windsor, Ont.); Taryn Mitchell (Port Colborne, Ont.) and Jamira Rousseau (Welland, Ont.) of Niagara College; and St. Clair's Shae-lyn Murphy (Windsor, Ont.) are West Division Second-Team All-Stars.

Joining Doull on the East Division All-Rookie Team are Algonquin's Piper Hatherall (Ottawa, Ont.); George Brown's Jordyn Dawkins (Ajax, Ont.) and Kiara Graham (Thornhill, Ont.); and Seneca's Emily Balkissoon (Scarborough, Ont.). In addition to Fleming and Goffar, West Division All-Rookie Team members include Julia Stayshyn (Dundas, Ont.) and Talia Vreugdenhil (Frankford, Ont.) of Redeemer University; and Damika Warner (Brampton, Ont.) of Sheridan College.

2023 OCAA WOMEN'S BASKETBALL AWARDS

OCAA Women's Basketball Player of the Year
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga

CCAA Women's Basketball All-Canadians
Dasia McDonald, Algonquin
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga
Kia Watt, Humber

OCAA Women's Basketball Rookie of the Year
Ella Doull, St. Lawrence

OCAA Women's Basketball Coach of the Year
Janine Day, Lambton

OCAA Women's Basketball Scoring Champion
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Player of the Year
Dasia McDonald, Algonquin

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Player of the Year
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Rookie of the Year
Ella Doull, St. Lawrence

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Rookie of the Year
Beth Fleming, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Coach of the Year
Caleb Hugh, Loyalist

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Coach of the Year
Janine Day, Lambton

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Scoring Champion
Brianna Morrison, Durham

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Scoring Champion
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Basketball East Division Defensive Player of the Year
Dasia McDonald, Algonquin

OCAA Women's Basketball West Division Defensive Player of the Year
Breanna Pretty, Lambton

OCAA Women's Basketball East Division Sixth Woman of the Year
Marian Martin, Centennial

OCAA Women's Basketball West Division Sixth Woman of the Year
Morgan Goffar, Lambton

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Champions
Algonquin Wolves

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Champions
Humber Hawks

OCAA Women's Basketball East Division Best Defensive Team

Algonquin Wolves

OCAA Women's Basketball West Division Best Defensive Team
Lambton Lions

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional First Team All-Stars
Ella Doull, St. Lawrence
Melissa Gilligan, St. Lawrence
Libby Hirst, Algonquin
Dasia McDonald, Algonquin

Cianah Miller, Loyalist
Brianna Morrison, Durham

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional First Team All-Stars

Alison Cotton, Fanshawe
Alyssa Lucier, St. Clair
Breanna Pretty, Lambton
Yasmeen Smith, Conestoga
Kia Watt, Humber


OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional Second Team All-Stars

Christianna Crooks, Centennial
Jordyn Dawkins, George Brown
Emily Glendinning, Durham

Tianna Leveridge, Seneca

Meaghan McNamara, Algonquin

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional Second Team All-Stars
Maddy Bishop, Lambton
Kayah Clarke, Humber

Taryn Mitchell, Niagara
Shae-lyn Murphy, St. Clair
Jamira Rousseau, Niagara

OCAA Women's Basketball East Divisional All-Rookie Team
Emily Balkissoon, Seneca
Jordyn Dawkins, George Brown
Ella Doull, St. Lawrence
Kiara Graham, George Brown
Piper Hatherall, Algonquin

OCAA Women's Basketball West Divisional All-Rookie Team
Beth Fleming, Conestoga
Morgan Goffar, Lambton
Julia Stayshyn, Redeemer
Talia Vreugdenhil, Redeemer
Damika Warner, Sheridan

- OCAA -

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