Heap named Top Eight Academic All-Canadian

OTTAWA (CIS) – Canadian Interuniversity Sport proudly announced Tuesday the student-athletes honoured as Desjardins Top Eight Academic All-Canadians for the 2009-2010 season.

Every year, a growing number of CIS student-athletes are recognized as Academic All-Canadians, having maintained an average of 80 per cent or better over the academic year while competing for one – or more – of their university’s varsity teams.

In 2009-2010, a record 2,299 students achieved the prestigious status, eclipsing the previous mark of 2,256 set a year ago.

Five universities had over 100 CIS Academic All-Canadians last year including McGill (135), Laval (132), Alberta (128), Queen’s (118) and Western Ontario (113).

Rounding out the national top 10 were Dalhousie (97), Waterloo (92), Calgary (89), Guelph (85) and Saskatchewan (77). Wilfrid Laurier University fini shed outside the top 10 with 32 Academic All-Canadians.

Among these outstanding individuals, one female and one male student-athlete from each of the four CIS regional associations are selected annually as Desjardins Top Eight Academic All-Canadians.

The winners from Ontario University Athletics (OUA) are Megan Brown of Guelph, Ont., a cross-country and track runner and physical education and health student at Toronto, as well as Dillon Heap of Waterloo, Ont., a football player and business administration student at Wilfrid Laurier.

The 2009-2010 recipients from Atlantic University Sport (AUS) are Alex Legge of Mahone Bay, N.S., a basketball player and medicine student at Dalhousie, as well as Jacob Kilpatrick of Saint John, a volleyball player and civil engineering student at UNB.

Representing the Quebec Student Sports Federation (QSSF) are Marie-Michelle Genois of Cap-Santé, Que., a basketball player and masters of ce llular and molecular biology student at Laval, and Steven Bielby of Pointe-Claire, Que., a swimmer and electrical engineering student at McGill.

From the Canada West Universities Athletic Association (CWUAA), this year’s recipients are Jennifer Hinze of Vancouver, a volleyball player and cellular biology and genetics student at UBC, along with Thomas Hall of Winnipeg, at football player and kinesiology student at Manitoba.

“The high number of student-athletes who achieved 80 percent reflects the commitment of coaches and athletic departments to ensure success in the classroom and playing field,” said CIS chief executive officer, Marg McGregor.

“This year’s Top Eight recipients have accomplished great things and symbolize the many outstanding student-athletes and universities across Canada. I look forward to hearing great things about them in the years to come as they graduate and become leaders in our communities.”

Profile
Name: Dillon Heap
Hometown: Waterloo, Ont.
University: Wilfrid Laurier
Program: Business Administration
Sport: Football
Dillon Heap was sensational in 2009 in his third season with Wilfrid Laurier’s football team. Named a first-team OUA all-star as both a receiver and kick returner and a CIS first-team all-Canadian on special teams, he set no less than five school records, established a single-season CIS mark for most punt return yards (912) and ranked first in the country in all-purpose yards, 885 more than any other player. He went on to receive the President’s Award as WLU’s male athlete of the year.

A two-time Academic All-Canadian, Heap achieved a 10.17 grade point average out of 12 in 2009-10 in his third year of a business administration degree. He received the Academic Achievement Award which combines top academic achievement with outstanding athletic performance.

As a member of The Church of Christ of Latter Day Saints, he left Wilfrid Laurier to complete a two-year mission in Chile from September of 2006 to September of 2008. He is currently an academic mentor at WLU as part of the Athlete Academic Success Program (AASP).