Ten athletes up for Reader’s Choice awards

As the 2015-16 athletics season winds down at Carleton, The Charlatan is looking for the top athletes from various teams to assemble an elite all-star squad. Online voting started on March 29, and readers can vote on the top five finalists.

Brett Welychka:
Men’s hockey

The men’s hockey team was led offensively by Welychka this season. He scored 46 points in 27 games, and broke the record for most points in a season by a Raven. Welychka’s season earned himself recognition across the nation. He was awarded Rookie of the Year by both the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) and the Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS), and was named to several all-star teams. In the only Ravens game at the University Cup, Welychka earned two points in a quadruple overtime loss.

Katelyn Steele:
Women’s hockey

Steele was a bright spot throughout another tough season for the women’s hockey team. She started 17 of 20 games for the Ravens and posted a save percentage of 0.930 and a goals-against-average of 2.74 even though she faced 598 shots, by far the most in the league. Two of Steele’s four wins during the season were shutouts, including a historic 1-0 victory over the visiting McGill Martlets on Nov. 13.

Thomas Leung:
Swimming

Leung made history for the Ravens swim team this season. He became the first swimmer to represent Carleton at the CIS swim championships in 10 seasons. The achievement is even more remarkable considering Leung hadn’t swam competitively for any team in the past three seasons. At the CIS swim championships, Leung qualified for the 50-metre freestyle at the Olympic trials that will be held in Toronto in early April.

Jesse Mills:
Football

Mills’ statistics improved tremendously in his third season with the Ravens. He completed 152 passes on 236 attempts and threw 16 touchdowns, all career highs for Mills. He also earned five wins and led the Ravens to the playoffs for the first time for the resurgent program. His play this season caught the attention of the Canadian Football League and he was invited to the Montreal Regional Combine in early March.

Heather Lindsay:
Women’s basketball

Lindsay was a rebounding machine for the women’s basketball team this year. She ranked second in the entire CIS by averaging 10.5 rebounds per game, and was third in the nation with 199 total rebounds. Along with rebounds, Lindsay averaged 15.9 points per game, which works out to an average of a double-double each game. The OUA recognized her at the end of the season by naming her a first team all-star.

Connor Wood:
Men’s basketball

In Wood’s fourth year on the team, the Ravens won their sixth straight national championship. The skilled shooting guard averaged 13.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists on the year as the Ravens’ most potent outside threat, hitting 54 triples this season. He was named as an OUA second team all-star for the second consecutive year, and was named tournament MVP at the ArcelorMittal Dofasco Canadian Interuniversity Sport Final 8.

Michael Calof:
Men’s soccer

Fifth-year centerback Michael Calof was the backbone of the men’s soccer team defence this year. The veteran defender led his team to the OUA quarter-finals, where they lost to the Ryerson Rams 3-0. Calof was named to the OUA East All-Star team, representing Carleton with two other teammates.

Megan Evans:
Nordic skiing

Evans was a rookie on the Carleton women’s Nordic ski team that won their first OUA Nordic title since 2004, and the ninth in program history. She won silver medals in both the 7.5-km interval free and the 10-km mass start events. Then in the Canadian Championships, she and her partner Emily Jones won bronze in the team sprints, and Evans won silver in the 5-k.m. interval start classic race with a time of 34:47.3.

Rodrigo Rojas:
Men’s water polo

Rojas was among the top players on Carleton men’s OUA championship water polo team. In the championship game against the University of Toronto, he scored two goals in regulation and two more in shootout to give the Ravens a 8-7 win. He was named an OUA All-Star and came back from the tournament with the OUA MVP award.

Abby Nicastro:
Women’s soccer

Nicastro was a forward for the Carleton women’s soccer team this season. In her fourth year, she was a veteran presence on a team that lost in the OUA East semifinals to the number three ranked Ottawa University Gee-Gees in an overtime thriller. She ended the season with 20 shots and a goal.