With the Canadian provincial post-secondary soccer seasons (University and College) now concluded, the time is ripe to take a closer look at current and former League1 Ontario players that made a difference for their schools.
In the second of a series of stories illuminating the achievements of League1 Ontario players in post-secondary competition, Part II takes a look at the impact of players in women's Canadian competition.
And what an impact they had, in short...
And the National Championship Finals - both University and College - are yet to come!
Ontario University Association (OUA) Championship:
Gold: UOIT Ridgebacks; Silver: Queen's University Gaels (1-0)
University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) Ridgebacks won their first first OUA Championship in school history after defeating the defending national champions, Queen's University Gaels, 1-0.
No less than 14 players with League1 Ontario appearances under their belts were in the squads for UOIT and Queen's:
UOIT: Rachel Matthews (Aurora United FC/ UOIT); Jessica Mithrush (Aurora/ UOIT); Shynice Williams (Aurora/ UOIT); Katherine Koehler-Grassau (Aurora/ UOIT); Helen Frampton (Aurora/ UOIT);
Queens: Brittany Almeida (Kingston Clippers/ Queens); Jenny Wolever (North Mississauga Panthers/ Queens); Rachel Radu (Kingston; Queens); Kyra Steer (Kingston/ Queens); Tara Bartram (Kingston; Queens); Matija Skoko (Sanjaxx/ Queens); Lidia Bradau (North Miss/ Queens); Sara Nixon (North Miss/ Queens); Savannah Meyer-Clement (Kingston/ Queens);
CIS Women's Top Scorer: Nour Ghoneim (Photo: Martin Bazyl)
League1 Ontario players also made a mark in the University individual player rankings, with two players cracking the top ten in the country.
Nour Ghoneim (Vaughan Azzurri/ York Lions) finished the season with the most goals in the country (14 in 15 matches), and fifth overall in points (17), while Jenny Wolever (North Mississauga Panthers/ Queen's) finished the regular season 10th overall in assists (seven in 16 matches).
Five League1 Ontario players were selected to the respective OUA All-Star First Teams, between both the East and West divisions respectively:
Two players were selected to the East Div First Team:
Katherine Koehler-Grassau (Aurora United FC/ UOIT); Helen Frampton (Aurora/ UOIT).
Three players were selected to the West Div First Team:
Kiyani Johnson (Vaughan Azzurri/ York Lions); Nour Ghoneim (Vaughan/ York); Marilyn Grammenopoulos (Vaughan/ York Lions).
Five more players in total were selected to the OUA second teams between East and West divisions, including:
Three players in second team East:
Tori Edgar (North Mississauga Panthers/ University Of Toronto); Cooper Lee (Sanjaxx Lions/ Ottawa Gee Gees); Sarah Sanford (Kingston Clippers/ Laurentian Voyageurs).
Two players in second team West:
Peyton Lozzi (Vaughan/ York Lions); Tomika McIntosh (Vaughan/ York Lions).
Finally, one player was chosen to the Atlantic University Sport (AUS) Conference Championship Second Team All-Star list:
Tamara Brown (Durham United FA/ Cape Breton Capers).
2016 OCAA Player Of The Year: Jade Kovacevic (FC London/ Fanshawe)
Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) Championship:
Gold: Algonquin Thunder
Silver: Humber Hawks
Algonquin College Thunder won the OCAA title 3-1 over Humber Hawks and League1 players were instrumental in the match.
Melissa Harrison (Kingston Clippers/ Algonquin) was named OCAA Championship All-Star MVP, while Vanessa Fiore (North Miss/ Humber) was chosen as one of four OCAA Championship All-Stars.
It would not be a stretch to say that League1 Ontario players cleaned up in the 2016 OCAA Women's Individual Awards.
A name well-known to League1 Ontario and FC London followers, Jade Kovacevic (FC London/ Fanshawe), was once again among the best in the country at College level.
Kovacevic took home the 2016 OCAA Women's Player Of The Year award - her second in as many years - and led the OCAA West Division scoring charts with 23 goals. Kovacevic also led Fanshawe to a West division championship with 9-0-1 undefeated record, and finished the season as the third highest OCAA scorer All-Time (49 goals in two seasons).
Along with these honours, Kovacevic was named an OCAA All-Star and a Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) All-Canadian.
OCAA Championship All-Star MVP: Melissa Harrison (Photo: Martin Bazyl)
The hits kept coming for League1 players, with Jamie Smith (Aurora/ Seneca) earning the 2016 OCAA Women's Central Division Defensive Player Of The Year award, and Amber Hodgins (FC London/ Fanshawe) chosen as 2016 OCAA Women's West Division Rookie Of The Year.
It wasn't just players from League1 that got in on the trophies, as 2014-2016 Kingston Clippers' technical director Chris Eveleigh was named 2016 OCAA Women's East Division Coach Of The Year for his work with St. Lawrence-Kingston College.
Finally, seven League1 players were among those listed as 2016 OCAA Women's All-Stars:
Mallory McQueen (Kingston Clippers/ St. Lawrence-Kingston); Vanessa Fiore (North Miss/ Humber); Sarah Donato (Aurora United FC/ Seneca); Jamie Smith (Aurora/ Seneca); Jade Kovacevic (FC London/ Fanshawe); Marisa Oliveira (FC London/ Fanshawe); Selena Roberts (FC London/ Fanshawe).