She may be done her university career, but the honours continue for Jessica King.
King, a midfielder on the Trinity Western women’s soccer team, was named the Canada West female athlete of the year and a nominee for the BLG Awards on Wednesday morning.
She completed her eligibility this past year and helped guide the Spartans to a silver medal at the CIS national championships in November. The CIS national player of the year, King has 12 goals in 11 regular season contests, including seven game-winners.
King came to Langley from Liverpool, England and helped the soccer program win back-to-back CIS national championships in 2012 and 2013.
“To see Jess grow and develop from being relatively quiet and reserved into an influential leader and teammate on and off the field has been special,” says TWU head coach Graham Roxburgh. “Jessica has left an indelible mark on our program and all involved.”
King is the fourth Spartan athlete to be nominated for the award and hopes to join Josh Howatson (2007, men’s volleyball) as a recipient.
The BLG Awards were established in 1993 to recognize the top female and male CIS athletes. The winners — one from each gender — receive a $10,000 post-graduate scholarship.
The winners will be announced on May 4 at a ceremony in Calgary.
“We continue to be amazed by the talents and accomplishments of these outstanding athletes,” said Doug Mitchell, the national co-chair of BLG.
“Each year, as we follow the past winners and hear about their accomplishments or what they are involved in, we realize how important their university sports background has been to them. We congratulate the universities who have provided the great education and athletic programs for these students to succeed in their careers.”
“Not only are these eight extraordinary athletes, each one is also a leader in the classroom and in the community,” said CIS president Thérèse Quigley.
King is up against Emma Taylor (St. Francis Xavier, rugby), Mariam Sylla (McGill, basketball) and Korissa Williams (Windsor, basketball).
To vote for one of the recipients click here.