Canada West Dale Iwanoczko Nominee

Jordan Parkyn
Men's Volleyball
Outside Hitter â€" 4^th Year
Calgary, Alberta

Jordan Parkyn is this year's Canada West winner and CIS nominee for the Dale Iwanoczko Award. The Dale Iwanoczko Award rewards excellence in the student-athlete. The recipient exhibits outstanding achievement in three areas: volleyball, academics and community involvement.

Jordan was one of the Cougars' most important leaders on and off the court this season. The fourth year, Calgary Christian High School grad, led the team in all major offensive categories. His 2.8 kills per set and 3.45 points per set, ranked him in the top 20 in the conference and amongst the highest in the nation.

In the classroom Jordan is equally impressive. He holds a 4.0 GPA (fall semester) and has twice been honoured as an Academic All-Canadian. Jordan is an example to his teammates of what you can accomplish with hard work and strong time management skills.

It is Jordan's work in the community that is perhaps the most impressive. Jordan is the president and co-founder of the Power to Change MRU campus group which encourages students to live well and consistently encourage positive and healthy lives. This past summer he spent six weeks in Uganda building an orphanage with the program. He also finds time during the volleyball season to involve himself in mentorship programs and tutoring for a wide range of advanced level university courses.

Jordan is the model student-athlete. His work ethic is exceptional. He simply gets better as a student-athlete every semester, adding new components to his game and taking his academics to a new level (4.0 GPA for the fall). His community service and student leadership is unparalleled to anyone I have ever coached. The amount of time he commits to the community, his church and helping others in need is truly special. He possesses tremendous empathy for his teammates and fellow students. He embodies the concept of student-athlete. â€" Head Coach Shawn Sky

Canada West Rookie of the Year
Tyler Scmidt
Men's Volleyball
Outside Hitter â€" 1^st Year
Calgary, Alberta

Tyler Schmidt is this season's Canada West Rookie of the Year. The Calgary, Alberta native is the first male Cougar athlete to win top rookie honours. Carolyn O'Dwyer of the women's program won the award two seasons ago.

Tyler was exceptional this season. He was not only one of the most impressive rookies in 2014-15 but showed that he could match up with some of the best players in the entire conference.  His numbers were staggering this season, leading Canada West rookies in seven of the top ten statistical categories (while not being any lower than third in the other three). His offensive numbers were second on the team to only to fourth year Jordan Parkyn.

"Tyler was so impressive this year. He exceeded the coaching staff's expectations. He played 4 matches on the rightside and 20 matches on the leftside, having never played the leftside position before in club or high school. Tyler has such a fantastic work ethic, outlook and attitude. He picks up concepts very quickly. The best thing about him is that he is only scratching the surface of his potential." Head Coach ShawnSky