GUELPH, Ont. – One is a veteran swimmer who is growing into a bigger role with her Gryphon team, while the other is a newcomer making an impact for his squad. After helping lead their respective teams to big wins,
Veronica Dietrich and
Evan Cormier have earned Gryphon MUSCLE MLK Athlete of the Week honours for the period ending Sunday, November 15, 2018.
Veronica Dietrich (Swimming)
Dietrich is the prefect example of a Gryphon athlete who showed an incredible work ethic and is seeing the fruits of all that labour. The 5-11 Toronto, ON native, who is in her fourth year as a Marketing Management student, was one of the anchors for a Guelph team that took top spot at the DeBray Divisional Championships held at Laurentian this past weekend. Dietrich produced one of the best performances of her collegiate career as she took first place in four individual free events, the 100m, 200m, 400m, and 800m. She swam the 100m in a time of 58.99, the 200m in 2:04.51, the 400m race in 4:22.89, and the 800m in 9:04.75. She was also part of the Gryphons foursome that finished second in the 200m free relay, teaming with Sydney Chin, Meghan Kearney, and Victoria Di Caro for a time of 1:48.42, just .34 seconds behind first-place Laurentian, and second in the 400m free relay with Chin, Kearney, and Sophia Teng. In a meet where the Gryphons stood out, Dietrich was the catalyst.
"This is a breakout year for Veronica," said Gryphons Swimming coach Chantique Payne. "She's worked incredibly hard over the past few years and this season, everything is finally coming together. Veronica is one of the strongest female trainers this team has seen in probably close to a decade. She takes her training seriously but loves to have fun with teammates. This seems to be just the beginning of what she's capable of."
Evan Cormier (Men's Hockey)
Cornier came to the U of G campus this summer with a great hockey pedigree. The Bowmanville, ON native played in the OHL last year with the Saginaw Spirit and was a fourth-round pick (105
th overall) of the New Jersey Devils in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Unsurprisingly, the talented netminder is transitioning well to OUA hockey and Cormier had one of the best weeks of his young Gryphon career, manning the net for two important wins. It started Thursday night on home ice when the Gryphons hosted the red-hot York Lions for the annual Aggies Night game. In desperate need of a victory, the Gryphons got a good start and Cormier was sensational in turning away 25 of 27 shots on goal, making several timely saves to help the hosts preserve a lead and in the end, win comfortably. He was back at it on Saturday night in Windsor. Cormier was perfect against the rival Lancers, making 28 saves for his second shutout of the season. Through 12 games, he ranks third in the OUA with a 2.11 goals against average and is fifth in save percentage at .928. And the two shutouts ties him with Brock's Logan Thompson and Windsor's Jonathan Reinhart, who was across the rink from him Saturday, for the most in U SPORTS.
"Evan has a professional attitude and professional habits," Gryphon head coach Shawn Camp said of the program's newest addition in between the pipes. "He has quickly established himself as a premier goalie in our conference. Evan makes timely saves and has a settling influence on our group."
2018-19 GRYPHON ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
| Period Ending: |
MALE: |
FEMALE: |
| Nov. 26 |
Evan Cormier (MHKY) |
Veronica Dietrich (Swimming) |
| Nov. 19 |
Banky Alade (MBB) |
Michaela Hellinga (WVB) |
| Nov. 12 |
Connor Black (XC) |
Danielle Jossinet (XC) |
| Nov. 5 |
MacKenzie Kea (MRGBY) |
Emilie Nicholl (WRGBY) |
| Oct. 28 |
Jean-Paul Cimankinda (FB) |
Carly Zanatta (ROWING) |
| Oct. 21 |
Connor Mitchell (BASEBALL) |
Talia Hoffman (WRGBY) |
| Oct. 15 |
Mark Patton (XC) |
Haylie Burton (SWIMMING) |
| Oct. 7 |
Marcello Wainwright (MRGBY) |
Erin Murray (WLAX) |
| Sept. 30 |
Job Reinhart (FB) |
Katherine MacMillan (FH) |
| Sept. 24 |
Mark Patton (XC) |
Sarah Dunning (GOLF) |
| Sept. 16 |
Josiah Dixon (GOLF) |
Emmanuela Jada (WRGBY) |
| Sept. 9 |
Jace Kotsopoulos (MSCR) |
Libby Brenneman (WSCR) |
| Sept. 3 |
Jace Kotsopoulos (MSCR) |
Victoria Hinchliffe (WSCR) |
| Aug. 26 |
Jalen Noronha (MSCR) |
Jenna Holtz (WSCR) |
* green signifies OUA Athlete of the Week
* red signifies U SPORTS Athlete of the Week
