NORTH Shore sports stars found their way to the head of the class as both Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia handed out their season-long awards at recent ceremonies.
West Vancouver track star Helen Crofts was part of a three-way tie for female athlete of the year at SFU while North Vancouver's Kris Young took home the Marilyn Pomfret Trophy as UBC's female athlete of the year
Crofts became the second ever athlete from a non-American institution to win an NCAA title when she won gold at the Division II NCAA indoor track and field championships in the 800metre race last month. This season marked the first year SFU was eligible to win NCAA titles and Crofts missed being the first to claim one by one day as fellow athlete of the year winner Mariya Chekanovych earned a championship in the 100yard breaststroke the day before Crofts's victory. Crofts was also named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference's indoor track and field female athlete of the year.
Crofts stellar season - which is still ongoing with outdoor meets now underway - came less than a year after a stress fracture in her foot forced her to the sidelines for five months of rehabilitation.
Over at UBC Young did her damage on the basketball court where she starred with the Thunderbirds, earning the Canada West Most Valuable Player award as well as CIS All-Canadian status. The multi-talented guard led her team in scoring and ended the season sixth in the Canada West league in scoring, sixth in assists, ninth in rebounding and seventh in steals - the only player to finish in the top-10 in all four categories.
The third-year player helped UBC post a 17-5 record in the regular season but the Thunderbirds were upset by the University of Alberta in the opening round of the playoffs. Even in defeat, however, Young still shone, scoring a game-high 29 points while adding six rebounds, four assists, four steals and two blocks as the Thunderbirds fell 67-64 in overtime in the clinching game against Alberta.
