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WINDSOR, Ont. - Noelle Montcalm of the Windsor Lancers and Sam Effah of the Calgary Dinos have captured the CIS track athlete-of-the-year honours.
Western Ontario's Jen Cotten and Ottawa's Christopher Greenaway won the same honour in field events, announced Thursday on the eve of the CIS track and field championships.
Guelph's Genevieve Lalonde and Jason Diston were named the top rookies, while Alberta's Amanda Schneck and Queen's Matt Hulse claimed the Student-Athlete Community Service award.
Montcalm, a fourth-year kinesiology major from Windsor, won gold medals at the Ontario conference championships in the 60-metre hurdles, 300 metres and 4x200 relay. She added silver in the 60 metres sprint and led the Lancer women to their fifth conference team title in six years.
Montcalm is ranked No. 1 in the CIS in the 60 hurdles and 4x200 relay, second in the 300 and third in the 60m.
"Noelle is having a phenomenal season," said Windsor head coach Dennis Fairall, who called her one of the top sprinters/hurdlers in CIS history.
Effah, a fourth-year communications and culture student, won gold in both the 60-and 300-metre events at the Canada West championships in Edmonton, where he was named the outstanding male performer (track). The 21-year-old is the top seed for both the 60 and 300 at the CIS championships, and is the reigning two-time CIS gold medallist in the 60.
"There is no question that Sam is a gifted and amazing athlete," said Calgary head coach Doug Lamont. "But what really sets him apart is that he is an outstanding person, a leader, and a role model."
Cotten, from Barrie, Ont., won gold in the pentathlon, long jump and 4x400 relay at last month's OUA championships to earn top female athlete honours. She was named top female performer at last year's CIS championships after capturing three gold.
Greenaway, a third-year criminology student from Brossard, Que., was named the top male performer at the OUA championships (field) last month after breaking an 11-year-old conference record in the long jump.
Lalonde, from Moncton, N.B., was the top female freshman at the OUA championships after winning bronze in the 3,000 metres. The environmental biology student is ranked No. 3 in that event going into the CIS meet.
Diston, a human resources management student from Niagara Falls, Ont., was named the top male freshman at the OUA championships as well as an OUA all-star after winning the pentathlon with a score of 3,620, which ranks him third heading into the CIS meet.
Schneck, a native of Edmonton and the captain of the Pandas, won gold in the pentathlon at the Canada West championships.
A two-time CIS Academic All-Canadian as an engineering student, she volunteers with the U of A student athletics board as its vice-president, the Engineering Students Society board, and The Bridge, a newsletter for engineering students.
"Amanda is an exceptional individual who does everything with a sense of pride and a spirit of excellence," said Alberta head coach Georgette Reed.
Hulse was the male MVP in track events at the OUA championships, where he captured gold in the 1,500 metres and added silver in the 1000 metres and 4x800 relay.
The fourth-year physical and health education student from Hartington, Ont., volunteers with Queen's student government and works with a girl with cerebral palsy, helping her with exercises and stretches.
While on student exchange at the University of Western Australia in 2009, Hulse worked with the residence community service and environment committee, organizing and directing a college energy and water challenge.
