Emma Brightwell isn't taken by surprise too often.
Usually it's the Lakehead University national champion wrestler who catches the opposition off guard. But on Thursday it was the Guelph, Ont. native's who was unexpectedly rewarded for a comeback season for the ages.
Well, unexpected to her.
Brightwell outpolled three other athletes to capture the school's prestigious female athlete-of-the-year honours after two seasons on the sidelines before storming back to the mat in January, ultimately winning CIS gold last month at the Thunderdome.
"I'm kinda speechless," Brightwell said, after watching a video interview she conducted with school officials talking about what it might be like to win.
Little did she know it was actually her acceptance speech.
"I didn't think it would be me because I've only been competing for half the year, and I thought it had to be somebody competing for the full year," Brightwell said.
"So it was a pretty big shock when I saw it. I was kind of nervous before and once I saw the wrestling come up, I kinda got the shakes and I got a big smile."
It was a great way to cap off a pretty remarkable season, she added.
"It's an amazing way to cap it off, I think. It's the definition of going out with a bang," said Brightwell, who will return to Lakehead next year as the school's student body president.
On the men's side, Greg Carter wasn't a difficult choice, after a season that saw him lead the Thunderwolves basketball squad back to the national championship and individually take home the CIS defensive player of the year award.
The Ottawa native, who returns next fall for a fifth and final season in Thunder Bay, scored 10.5 points a game for the Wolves in 2011-12, 5.5 assists and 4.1 rebounds a game, shooting a career-high 74 per cent from the free throw line.
He was the OUA defensive player of the year for the third straight season, finished second in the nation in steals, fourth in the OUA in assists, sixth in assists-to-turnover ratio and was named to the OUA West second all-star team.
"It's a great feeling," Carter said. "A lot of the work I put in during the summer basically paid off for me, and it feels really good."
Mitch Fillman of the hockey Thunderwolves grabbed rookie-of-the-year honours on the men's side, with cross country skier Alannah McLean grabbing the freshman award for the women.
Basketball's Ben Johnson earned the Hank Akervall Award for his combined performance on the court, in the classroom and in the community, while outgoing hoops star Lindsay Druery won the Argus Award for her record-setting achievements on the court.
The following is a list of award winners for individual varsity teams at Lakehead University:
Women's Volleyball
Rookie of the Year - Sara Hudson
Coaches Award - Michelle Cournoyer and Brittany Macleod
Corrine Kollman Award - Jori Daymond
Most Improved Player - Vanessa Masters
Most Valuable Player - Breanne Hilhorst
Women's Basketball
Rookie of the Year - Erika French
Most Improved Player - Carolyn Fragale
Best Defensive Player - Ayse Kalkan
Amanda Nesbitt Award - Lindsay Druery
Most Valuable Player -Lindsay Druery
Cross Country Running
Most Valuable Runner - Female Tess Naroski
Most Valuable Runner - Male Alastair Brown
Indoor Track & Field
Most Valuable Runner - Female Tess Naroski
Most Valuable Runner - Male Alastair Brown
Men's Hockey
Rookie of the Year - Mitch Fillman
Most Improved Player - Devin Welsh
Best Work Ethic - Adam Sergerie
Best Defensive Player - Mitch Maunu
Most Valuable Player - Andrew Wilkins
Women's Wrestling
Rookie of the Year - Kelsey Dayler
Most Improved Wrestler - Bre Beh
Most Valuable Wrestler - Alexi Kreps & Emma Brightwell
Men's Wrestling
Rookie of the Year - Jake Devlin
Most Improved Wrestler - Scott Christian
Most Valuable Wrestler - Preston Mikulaski
Frank Schaller Award - Dustin Helwig
Men's Basketball
Rookie of the Year - Sylvester Alexander
Most Improved Player - Ben Johnson
Best Defensive Player - Greg Carter
Most Valuable Player - Venzal Russell
Nordic Skiing - Female
Rookie of the Year - Moira Haggarty
Most Valuable Skier - Andrea Lee
Nordic Skiing - Male
Rookie of the Year - Lucas Shewen
Most Valuable Skier - Harry Seaton
Nordic Skiing
Sportsperson of the Year - Britt Bailey
