GUELPH, Ont. – Throughout the 2021-22 season, the University of Guelph Department of Athletics will be highlighting various members from our Gryphon varsity programs as part of our "BioSteel Gryphon Athletes of the Week" series. This week's edition features a pair of standout lacrosse student-athletes, as
Emily Power and
Cam MacLeod take home the weekly honours.
Emily Power (Women's Lacrosse)
It was a stellar weekend in London for
Emily Power, who battled to score two goals for her team in their games against the Brock Badgers and the Laurier Golden Hawks.
With a previous goal in that morning's game against Laurier, the midfielder went on to capture the game-winning goal in their match against Brock, leading her team to a 9-8 victory over the Badgers. Power made her impact felt at both ends of the field, causing numerous turnovers while displaying a tremendous work rate throughout both matchups.
The biomedical science major from Mississauga, ON is also a dedicated two-sport star athlete. In addition to her impressive time with the Gryphons women's lacrosse team, she has also excelled in ringette, earning multiple accolades and representing Team Canada at the U21 World Ringette Championships in November 2019 in Burnaby, B.C. Power has also excelled in the classroom, having previously earned the title of OUA Academic Award Winner in 2019-20 (an honour given to varsity athletes who achieve 80% or higher in their respective fields of study). She was also awarded women's lacrosse team MVP at the 2019-20 Gryphon Athletic banquet for her exceptional season with the team. With her standout drive and work ethic already shining through, this season looks bright for the young star.
Cameron MacLeod (Men's Lacrosse)
Cameron MacLeod has started his 2021 season off with a bang. In what is a very impressive and rare feat for the sport of field lacrosse, MacLeod earned a shutout in the opening game of the season this past weekend (Sept. 19) versus Laurier. Cameron turned away all 12 shots sent his way in a dominating 14-0 season-opening victory over the Laurier Golden Hawks.
Of the 12 shots sent MacLeod's way, three came in the final :30 seconds of play, with the Gryphons on the penalty kill as Laurier generated a flurry of scoring opportunities, yet were still unable to find a way past the Gryphons netminder. The shutout was a rare accomplishment, one in which even long-time Gryphon head coach
Sam Kosakowski could not recall witnessing in his 30-plus years in charge of the men's lacrosse team at the University of Guelph.
Hailing from Georgetown, ON,
Cameron MacLeod is majoring in human kinetics and is now in his fifth season with the Gryphons men's lacrosse program. His first few years with the team, MacLeod featured primarily as a backup to Hayden Walsh, a former All-Canadian goalie with the Gryphons men's lacrosse team. However, following the graduation of Walsh, MacLeod has quickly shown that he is more than capable of filling the big shoes of the former Gryphon standout, with a statement performance in the team's 2021 season opener. MacLeod's talent has also put him on the radar of some pro teams in the National Lacrosse League (NLL), with the Georgetown native recently signing with the NLL's newest expansion team, Panther City Lacrosse Club (based out of Fort Worth, Texas). As the Gryphons new No. 1 goalie, MacLeod will look to continue his fine form when the Gryphons return to action on Wednesday night (Sept. 22) in Hamilton for a road matchup with the McMaster Marauders.
