This past week, RMC Paladins announced its Athletes of the Year via social media in lieu of an in-person awards banquet:
RELEASE — Chris Paquette (Kingston, Ont.) from the men’s hockey team and Garrett Whelan (Grandora, Sask.) from fencing tied for the Paladins Male Athlete of the Year award, while Lauryne Mvuezolo (Ottawa), of the women’s volleyball team, claimed the title of Female Athlete of the Year.
Because the Royal Military College of Canada has sent its students home, the Paladins announced their varsity award winners via social media throughout the week of April 6-10 in lieu of an in-person awards banquet.
Paquette and Whelan shared the Tommy Smart Cup as RMC’s top male athletes, as both earned the highest achievements in their respective sports during the 2019-20 seasons.
In his first year at RMC, Paquette made an immediate impression with the hockey team. As the first NHL draft pick to join the Paladins, he raised the level of play at Constantine Arena and led RMC in goals (15) and assists (17). With 32 points in 28 games, Paquette was named the OUA East MVP, the OUA East Rookie of the Year, an OUA East First Team All-Star, a U SPORTS Second Team All-Canadian, and a member of both the OUA and U SPORTS All-Rookie Teams.
He is the first hockey player from RMC to earn OUA MVP or U SPORTS All-Canadian honours. Paquette’s incredible rookie season helped the Paladins return to the playoffs for the first time since 2006 and defeat West Point for the first time since 2002.
In his final year at RMC, Whelan had another standout year on the Paladins sabre team. After collecting a few medals throughout the season, he dominated at the OUA Championship in February. In the individual competition, he went undefeated through the first and second rounds of Poules, before capping off the perfect day with the gold medal.
Whalen was once again perfect in the team relay competition, winning every single matchup en route to winning his second OUA gold medal in as many days. Whalen’s efforts earned him recognition as an OUA All-Star and led the Paladins to overall silver at the OUA Championship.
From the women’s volleyball team, Mvuezolo was awarded the Kelly Gawne Memorial Cup as the top female athlete at the College. Mvuezolo performed impressively in 2019-20, scoring 206 points (a career-high) and making 174 digs.
For the second consecutive season, she recorded more than 30 aces and was once again in the OUA’s top three among non-liberos, in terms of digs per set. Mvuezolo’s efforts on both offence and defence earned her OUA East Second Team All-Star recognition at the end of the season.
The Paladins also award the H.R.H. Prince of Wales Cup to a graduating cadet in recognition of athletic performance and excellence in the four College components (academics, bilingualism, military leadership, physical fitness) throughout their entire college years. Kyle Grenier (Winnipeg) from the fencing team was this year’s recipient after earning an OUA All-Star nod in 2020 as a member of the gold medal sabre team.
Full details on all award-winners can be found at: gopaladinsgo.ca/
Complete list of major award winners:
Tommy Smart Cup (male athlete of the year): Chris Paquette and Garrett Whelan – hockey and fencing, respectively
Kelly Gawne Memorial Cup (female athlete of the year): Lauryne Mvuezolo – volleyball
H.R.H. Prince of Wales Cup (top graduate in RMC’s four pillars): Kyle Grenier – fencing
Douglas Massey Cook Memorial Cup (team of the year): men’s fencing
Captain Matthew Dawe Memorial Cup (Truth, Duty, Valour): Mathew Michie (Port Coquitlam, B.C.) – hockey
Whitaker Cup (best team captain): Matthew Michie (Port Coquitlam, B.C.)
Fair Play Award: Jeremy McBride (Kingston, Ont.) – soccer
Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada, Hamilton Branch Cup (top 4th year cadet): Garrett Whelan – fencing
Royal Military Colleges Club of Canada Trophy (top 3rd year cadet): Hugo Clements (Belleville, Ont.) – fencing
Hutton Trophy (top 2nd year cadet): Brad Van Schubert (Barrie, Ont.) – hockey
Hutton Trophy (top 1st year cadet): Noah Rowe (Nepean, Ont.) – hockey
Release | Photo submission: RMC.ca
