THUNDER BAY – Make it 2-for2 for Leashja Grant.
The Thunderwolves star forward on Tuesday was named OUA player of the year for a second straight season, after leading the league with 20.6 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, leading No. 6 Lakehead to a 20-4 record and a spot in Wednesday night’s semifinal against No. 1 Ottawa.
Grant wasn’t the only Thunderwolves player to take home hardware.
Sharpshooter Nikki Ylagan was named an OUA third-team all-star, while freshman Sofia Lluch was named to the OUA all-rookie team.
Thunderwolves coach Jon Kreiner said Grant’s recognition was well-deserved.
“Leashja Grant has been absolutely terrific for us,” Kreiner said in a release.
“She does what's asked of her by making the extra pass and playing tough defence. Her steals this year are amazing as she leads our team (and our team leads the OUA). She has become a complete player and her teammates have benefited because of that.”
Ylagan finished 20th in the league in scoring, putting up 12.6 points a night, including hitting 37.3 per cent of her three-point attempts, fifth best in the OUA.
She also finished eighth in steals.
"Nikki Ylagan has made more threes than anyone else in the nation and she's doing that at just under 40 per cent, which is phenomenal,” Kreiner said.
“She's among the leaders in steals and has learned to become a very solid point guard. She has sacrificed some scoring lately in our offence to distribute the ball and run our offence, and she has improved her defence greatly.”
Lluch, who has incredible court vision, started 17 games as a rookie and finished in the top 15 in the league in assists.
"Sofia Lluch started most of our games early on and then accepted a strong role for us off the bench,” Kreiner said.
“Since that change she has played better than ever. Her assist-to-turnover ratio has gone way up and she has made great decisions for our team on both ends of the floor."
The Wolves and Gee-Gees semifinal, scheduled for 6 p.m. on Wednesday, will be live-streamed at the LU Outpost. The game is also available on OUA.tv.
A complete list of the award winners:
Player of the Year – Leashja Grant, Lakehead
Defensive Player of the Year – Nicole Gilmore, Carleton
Rookie of the Year – Kaitlyn Overeem, Waterloo
Coach of the Year – Andy Sparks, Ottawa
Joy Bellinger Award – Hilary Hanaka, McMaster
Tracy MacLeod Award – Mackenzie Robinson, Laurentian
First Team All-Stars
Leashja Grant, Lakehead
Nicole Gilmore, Carleton
Hilary Hanaka, McMaster
Linnaea Harper, McMaster
Brooklynn McAlear-Fanus, Ottawa
Second Team All-Stars
Marianne Alarie, Queen’s
Sarah Besselink, Ottawa
Sarah Gates, McMaster
Sofia Paska, Ryerson
Melissa Tatti, Brock
Third Team All-Stars
Burke Bechard, Guelph
Jama Bin-Edward, Ryerson
Alyssa Cerino, Carleton
Brigitte Lefebvre-Okankwu, Ottawa
Nikki Ylagan, Lakehead
All-Rookie Team
Kaitlyn Overeem, Waterloo
Angeline Campbell, Nipissing
Sofia Lluch, Lakehead
Jessica Muha, Toronto
Alana Renon, Ottawa
