Spartans' Paul Hamilton named CIS men's soccer player of the year

Fourth-year Trinity Western defender Paul Hamilton was named the Canadian university men's soccer player of the year Wednesday.

In 2009, Hamilton led the Spartans to second place in Canada West with an 8-2-4 mark, helping his team reach the top of the national rankings for three weeks, and earning a fifth consecutive trip to the Canadian university championship.

The Calgary native is the second Spartan to receive the Joe Johnson memorial trophy since TWU joined CIS in 2001. Midfielder Nick Perugini was honoured in 2007.

"Paul is the keystone to our backline. He is the emotional and physical leader of our team," Spartans head coach Pat Rohla said in a release. "He is our best tackler and is respected for his ability to win challenges both on the ground and in the air.

Other major award winners at Wednesday's All-Canadian Banquet were Guelph's Robert Murphy of Ottawa, who was named rookie of the year, Saint Mary's Guiseppe Scichilone of Gondola Point, N. B., who received the Student-Athlete Community Service award, and Laval's Samir Ghrib, who earned the coach-of-the-year honours.

The 2009 CIS championship gets under way Thursday at Trinity Western University in Langley, B.C. The national final is slated for Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Pacific Time.

Teams competing this year include: Victoria, McMaster, Laval, Cape Breton, Toronto, McGill, UPEI and Trinity Western.

Spartans' Alicia Tesan wins CIS women's rookie of the year

Fifth-year Queen's striker Renee MacLellan was named the Canadian women's university soccer player of the year.

The Kingston, Ont., native finished second in OUA scoring with a career-high 12 goals in 16 conference outings, including six game winners.

MacLellan helped the Gaels reach the No. 2 spot in the national rankings and take first place overall in Ontario with a 13-1-2 record, highlighted by a 14-game unbeaten streak.

She's the third Gael to receive the Chantal Navert memorial award since the trophy's inception in 1995.

Trinity Western University's Alicia Tesan became the second straight Spartan to be named CIS rookie of the year following current teammate Nikki Wright's selection in 2008.

The 5-foot-4 forward had an immediate impact with the reigning national champions scoring seven goals in 12 conference outings to finish second on the team behind Wright (9) and in a tie for fifth place in the Canada West scoring race. She also tied Wright for the team lead with 10 points, which was good for eighth place in the conference.

The human kinetics major, who earned a spot on the second Canada West all-star team, was a major factor all season as TWU led eight of 10 national rankings en route to claiming the program's third conference banner.

"Alicia has been one of the most consistent and dangerous threats to opposing teams all season," said Trinity Western head coach Graham Roxburgh. "She has scored timely goals against the strongest competition in the conference and has been a major force in helping TWU to the Canada West title."

Other major award winners announced Wednesday at the All-Canadian Banquet were Alberta's Veronique Mayer of Edmonton, who received the Student-Athlete Community Service award, and McGill's Marc Mounicot, who earned coach-of-the-year honours.

With files from The Canadian Press and TWU Sports Information