BURLINGTON, Ont. – On Friday afternoon (Oct. 25), Ontario University Athletics (OUA) announced the major award winners and all-star selections for the 2024 OUA field hockey season. The Gryphons field hockey program was represented with not one, but two OUA major awards, with Abby Warriner being named OUA Most Valuable Player and
Michelle Turley being named OUA Coach of the Year. Warriner was also named an OUA All-Star, alongside fellow teammate
Elly Peters.
Fourth-year standout midfielder Abby Warriner has been named the OUA's "Most Valuable Player" for the 2024 field hockey season, becoming the first Gryphon since Katherine MacMillan in 2019 to be named the top player in the conference. Warriner, a biomedical engineer major at the University of Guelph, has put together an incredible Gryphon field hockey career to date, with the two-time U SPORTS All-Canadian standout now adding OUA MVP to her list of awards. Warriner this season has scored four goals and eight points, but her impact in the Gryphon midfield is immense. The Newmarket, Ontario native possesses power, speed and endurance from her sweeper position as she plays a crucial role for the team in defence and her great ball-handling skills allows her to transition the play from defence to attack. Warriner was also named an OUA All-Star as this marks her third consecutive appearance on the OUA All-Star team.
Joining Warriner as an OUA All-Star is fellow fourth-year midfielder,
Elly Peters. Peters, an accounting major from Kitchener, has a great understanding of the game as the leader and captain of the Gryphons. She has great vision and distribution skills and plays an important role defensively as well. Peters was one of the most productive players in the OUA this season, scoring 6 goals (tied for 1st in OUA) and had 12 points (tied for 2nd in OUA). The OUA All-Star nod marks the third consecutive season Peters has been named an all-star. Peters was the recipient of the OUA Community Service Award and U SPORTS Gail Kim Award last season.
For the third time as head coach of the Gryphons field hockey team,
Michelle Turley has been named OUA Coach of the Year. Turley led her team to a 7-1-2 record to finish atop the OUA West division, closing the regular season on a six-game win streak. Her team has scored the second-highest amount of goals (30) and conceded the third-fewest goals (5) on the season with four players in the top 10 in the conference in scoring. The award marks the third time Turley has been named OUA Coach of the Year in her 21st season as the head coach of the Gryphons. She previously won the award in 2004 and 2015 and she is also a recipient of the Marina Van der Merwe Award as U SPORTS Coach of the Year in 2004. Under the guidance of Turley, the Gryphons have won five OUA titles and medaled seven times nationally.
The Gryphons will now head to the University of Toronto's Back Campus Field for the OUA Field Hockey Championship as they take on the York Lions in the semifinals on Saturday (Oct. 26) with the medal games set to take place on Sunday (Oct. 27). See below for a full list of all-stars and award winners from the 2024 OUA field hockey season.
2024 OUA Field Hockey Major Award Winners
Most Valuable Player: Abby Warriner, Guelph Gryphons
Rookie of the Year: Clara Gerardin, McMaster Marauders
Goalkeeper of the Year: Deepi Gill, Toronto Varsity Blues
Outstanding Contributor: Jade Lew, York Lions
Coach of the Year: Michelle Turley, Guelph Gryphons
Umpire of the Year: Alex Miles
2024 OUA Field Hockey All-Stars
Abby Warriner, Guelph Gryphons
Abby Thompson, York Lions
Elly Peters, Guelph Gryphons
Megan Hobson, Waterloo Warriors
Elise Piper, York Lions
Lauren Breakell, Queen's Gaels
Olivia Hledin, Western Mustangs
Maggie Mullins, Toronto Varsity Blues
Clara Gerardin, McMaster Marauders
McKinley Kennedy, Toronto Varsity Blues
Goalkeeper: Deepi Gill, Toronto Varsity Blues
