Men's Volleyball: Andrew Richards Wins Dale Iwanoczko Award, Passalent and Richards Named All-Canadians

Richards is the first Marauder to win the Iwanoczko Award at the national level since its inception in 1994

A week after McMaster's Hilary Hanaka won a national award for her exemplary combination of athletic and academic excellence and community service, Andrew Richards did the same Thursday, as U SPORTS announced its men's volleyball major award winners and All-Canadians at the All-Canadian Breakfast in Quebec.

Richards claimed the Dale Iwanoczko Award, and became the Marauders first national winner of the honour in its 25-year history, while simultaneously being recognized for his skill on the volleyball court.

While teammate and newly-crowned OUA West Player of the Year Matt Passalent was named as a First Team All-Canadian, Richards graced the Second Team, and achieved All-Canadian status for a second consecutive year in the process.

"This is something that, when my playing days are over, I'll always carry with me and be proud of," said Richards. "It's an individual award, but I go to the most amazing University in Canada and I've always had super supportive people helping me along the way. Since I arrived in first year, I had people that I looked up to pushing me to always do more."

"I was the product of an amazing system, and I'm so happy that after five years it's culminated in this."

A member of McMaster's leadership council and designated captain during matches, Richards' well-developed leadership abilities were recognized when he became an inaugural recipient of the Wilson Leadership Scholar Award at McMaster.

Richards is a two-time Academic All-Canadian, and volunteers his time to outreach initiatives like the Dress for Success campaign, which recycles business wear for underprivileged men looking to re-enter the work force, and motionball, which raises awareness and funds for the Special Olympics Canada Foundation.

The inclusion of Passalent and Richards among the All-Canadians marked the second consecutive year that the Marauders have boasted two representatives, and the six consecutive with at least one.

Although the missed time holds him off the OUA's official leaderboards, Passalent's effectiveness both as an attacker and a server in the winter would stick him atop them. He averaged 3.97 kills per set and five points per set in his nine matches played, which would rank third and second respectively, and particularly shone from the service line.

There, the right side averaged 0.68 aces per set, which would top the league, and finished just seven aces back of Richards for the team lead with 21 despite his time missed.

Taking on the role of McMaster's high-usage player on the left, Richards tallied a team high 185 kills over 16 matches, and enjoyed a .312 hitting percentage that ranked third in the conference.

Barely lagging behind Passalent from the service line, he averaged 0.51 aces per set, which ranked him third in the OUA.

The seventh-seeded Marauders open their account at the U SPORTS Championship on Friday, March 15, when they battle the second-seeded Trinity Western Spartans in a national quarterfinal at 6:00 p.m.

That match will be webcast live and on demand on USPORTS.live.

2019 U SPORTS Men's Volleyball Major Award Winners

Player of the Year: Elliott Viles, Brandon
Rookie of the Year: Xander Ketrzynski, Ryerson
Dale Iwanoczko Award: Andrew Richards, McMaster
Coach of the Year: Grant Wilson, Brandon

2019 U SPORTS Men's Volleyball All-Canadians

First Team

Pos.	First Name	Last Name	School	Elig.	Hometown	Program
OH	Xander	Ketrzynski	Ryerson	1	Toronto, Ont.	Arts & Contemporary Studies
OH	Elliott	Viles	Brandon	3	Adelaide, Australia	Business Admin.
OH	Vicente	Ignacio Parraguirre Villalobos	Laval	5	Santiago, Chile	Business Admin.
OH	Eric	Loeppky	Trinity Western	3	Steinbach, Man	Arts
OH	Tyler	Schmidt	Mount Royal	5	Calgary, Alta	Business
OH	Matt	Passalent	McMaster	4	Hamilton, Ont.	Geography & Environmental Studies
OH	Tim	Dobbert	Thompson Rivers	5	Aichelberg, Germany	Business

Second Team

Pos.	First Name	Last Name	School	Elig.	Hometown	Program
OH	Andrew	Richards	McMaster	5	London, Ont.	Communication Studies
S	Gabriel	Chancy	Montreal	4	Montreal, Que.	Law
OH	Pierce	Johnson	Windsor	3	Chatham, Ont.	Liberal Arts
OH	Alex	McMullin	Alberta	5	Brisbane, Australia	Kinesiology, Sport, and Rec
OH	Eduardo	Luchese	UNB	1	Bento Goncalves, Brazil	Business Administration
OH	Jacob	Kern	Trinity Western	4	Edmonton, Alta.	Human Kinetics
S	Zane	Grossinger	Queen's	2	Richmond Hill, Ont.	Kinesiology

All-Rookie Team

Pos.	First Name	Last Name	School	Hometown	Program
OH	Xander	Ketrzynski	Ryerson	Toronto, Ont.	Arts & Contemporary Studies
OH	Robin	Baghdady	Brandon	Geneva, Switzerland	Phys. Ed. Studies
OH	Michael	Dowhaniuk	UBC	White Rock, B.C.	Applied Science
MB	Jackson	Bere	Western	Toronto, Ont.	Social Sciences
OH	Eduardo	Luchese	UNB	Bento Goncalves, Brazil	Business Administration
MB	Luis	Lange	Mount Royal	Calgary, Alta.	Business
OH	Evan	Falardeau	Toronto	Stratford, Ont.	Humanities

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Players Mentioned

#13 Matt Passalent: 4

#8 Andrew Richards: 5

Players Mentioned

#13 Matt Passalent
: 4

#8 Andrew Richards
: 5

Players Mentioned

#13 Matt Passalent

#8 Andrew Richards

Players Mentioned

#13 Matt Passalent

#8 Andrew Richards