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)Athletes of the Year Tiona Paton and Matheus Franca receive their honours this week. (Abbey Iversen/Lazy A Photography
a job well done

Olds College Broncos honour year’s top student-athletes

Apr 22, 2023 | 10:45 AM

The Olds College Broncos held their awards night on Thursday, honouring the best of the best from the 2022/2023 athletics season.

Women’s soccer and futsal player Tiona Paton and men’s volleyball player Matheus Franca were announced as Athletes of the Year.

According to the Broncos, a second-year Business Management student from Morinville, Paton was relentless up front in both the Broncos’ outdoor and indoor seasons, picking up an ACAC South All-Conference nod in soccer after finishing fourth in the ACAC with 16 goals in 12 matches as she led the Broncos to an ACAC South play-in game. On the futsal court, Paton was just as dominant with 20 goals as the Broncos program took significant steps forward.

Franca showed similar dominance on the volleyball court, as the third-year Sports Management student from Nova Lima, Brazil was a presence on every point with 158 kills and 114 digs in 17 matches, which he complemented with 25 blocks and 20 service aces, the Broncos say.

Franca’s production was good enough for an ACAC South All-Conference selection at outside hitter, and he was pivotal in the Broncos returning to the ACAC Men’s Volleyball Championship in February.

Elsewhere…

Maysa Powelson was named Female Rookie of the Year — the Welling native, a Land and Water Resources student, qualified for Canadian Finals Rodeo in barrel racing, breakaway roping, pole bending, and team roping.

Strahinja Lazarevic was named Male Rookie of the Year — the product of Serbia factored in majorly in Men’s Volleyball as an outside hitter. The Sports Management student finished with 69 kills and 26 stuff blocks with six service aces, playing every match.

Valentin Kirchner, a second-year Sports Management student, was named the Male Impact Athlete of the Year for his work with the Broncos’ Tri-Active program and the Holy Trinity soccer Sports Academy. The Salmunster, Germany native was also named Male Academic Student-Athlete of the Year for the second straight season with a 3.94 GPA, as well as receiving the Konica Minolta Leadership Award, which comes with a $1,000 scholarship.

Jesse Jack, Women’s hockey captain and Agribusiness student, was named Female Impact Athlete of the Year for the third time in her Broncos career (2018-19 and 2019-20) for her work on the ice as a mentor for younger teammates and being a strong community volunteer presence, while women’s volleyball player Madison Macaulay was recognized as the Female Academic Student-Athlete of the Year after posting a 4.0 GPA in the Business Management program.

Lastly, it was announced the Broncos earned second prize in the ACAC’s Make Some Noise for Mental Health campaign, which ran Jan. 13-26. The Broncos received $1,000 from RBC to go toward on-campus health and wellness services as well as A Beer For Sam, an initiative created in memory of a student from Olds College’s Brewmaster Program

Team Awards

Women’s Basketball
Rookie of the Year – Noa Jessen
Impact Athlete of the Year – Caitlin Paul
Athlete of the Year – Blu Rose

Men’s Basketball
Rookie of the Year – Gurech Gurech
Impact Athlete of the Year – Artemus Rapada
Athlete of the Year – Austin Nzige-Nyambok

Women’s Soccer
Rookie of the Year – Mirtalem Vriend
Impact Athlete of the Year – Kami Tams
Athlete of the Year – Tiona Paton

Men’s Soccer
Rookie of the Year – Pedro Noschang
Impact Athlete of the Year – Emmanuel Mukolo
Athlete of the Year – Valentin Kirchner

Women’s Futsal
Rookie of the Year – Alex Fortney
Impact Athlete of the Year – Jane Morris
Athlete of the Year – Kassidy Kelly

Men’s Futsal
Rookie of the Year – Dilan Vargas
Impact Athlete of the Year – Valentin Kirchner
Athlete of the Year – Diego Forno

Women’s Hockey
Rookie of the Year – Avery Kendall
Impact Athlete of the Year – Jesse Jack
Athlete of the Year – Sydney Jack

Rodeo
Rookie of the Year (Female) – Maysa Powelson
Impact Athlete of the Year (Female) – Charlotte Fisher
Cowgirl of the Year – Becky Bradley
Rookie and Cowboy of the Year (Male) – Rhett Tattrie
Impact Athlete of the Year (Male) – Brayden Byrne

Women’s Volleyball
Rookie of the Year – Kalyna Bahler
Impact Athlete of the Year – Lexi Lafreniere
Athlete of the Year – Tabitha Martin

Men’s Volleyball
Rookie of the Year – Strahinja Lazarevic
Impact Athletes of the Year – Jesse Stoddart and Phillip Sutherland
Athlete of the Year – Matheus Franca

Major Awards

Female Academic Student-Athlete of the Year – Madison Macaulay (4.0 GPA)
Male Academic Student-Athlete of the Year – Valentin Kirchner (3.94 GPA)

Female Rookie of the Year – Maysa Powelson
Male Rookie of the Year – Strahinja Lazarevic

Female Impact Athlete of the Year – Jesse Jack
Male Impact Athlete of the Year – Valentin Kirchner

Female Athlete of the Year – Tiona Paton
Male Athlete of the Year – Matheus Franca

(with files from Olds College Broncos media release)