Three Stars: Kilbreath, Davis, Thiessen earn honours
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – Women's basketball student-athlete Noelle Kilbreath is the MacEwan Athletics' first star of the week after leading the Griffins to a weekend split against Mount Royal University.
Kilbreath led the Griffins with 33 points in two games, while playing 65 of a possible 80 minutes on the weekend.
Men's hockey goaltender Thomas Davis and women's hockey defenceman Rebecca Thiessen are the second and third stars, respectively.
It's the first appearance on the Three Stars list for all three student-athletes in 2022-23.
1st STAR: Noelle Kilbreath, G, women's basketball
Calgary, AB, third-year, Science
With the Griffins down to just eight players due to illness, Kilbreath was among four Griffins tasked with playing more than 30 minutes a night during a weekend road trip to her hometown of Calgary.
In Friday's 69-61 loss to Mount Royal University, Kilbreath led the Griffins with 14 points, adding four rebounds, an assist and a team-high four steals in 35 minutes on the court.
In Saturday's 71-64 win, Kilbreath was second on the Griffins with 19 points in 30 minutes, adding two rebounds, three assists and two steals.
For the season, Kilbreath is second on the Griffins, averaging 15.3 points per game (tied for 14th in Canada West).
She will lead the Griffins back out on the road to Calgary this weekend as they visit the Dinos on Friday (6 p.m.) and Saturday (4 p.m., both Canada West TV).
2nd STAR: Thomas Davis, G, men's hockey
St. Albert, AB, third-year, Arts
Thomas Davis made 58 saves on Saturday against Saskatchewan, which broke his own program record (Joel Kingston photo).
After beating the U SPORTS No. 4 Saskatchewan Huskies 3-1 on Friday night, the Griffins knew they were come out with a response in Saturday's rematch.
The response was more than they could bear, though, as backup goaltender Thomas Davis faced 63 shots in a 5-1 loss. He made several big saves as he did all he could to keep MacEwan in it.
Davis' 58 saves broke his own program record for the most in a Canada West game (previously, he made 52 saves in a 9-3 loss Mount Royal University last season).
For the season, Davis has stopped 118 of 130 shots in 147:08 on the ice.
Davis and the Griffins will visit the Manitoba Bisons on Friday (6 p.m. MT) and Saturday (1 p.m. MT, both Canada West TV).
3rd STAR: Rebecca Thiessen, D, women's hockey
Morris, MB, second-year, Science
Rebecca Thiessen, seen shooting against Mount Royal University in a game last month, scored her first career Canada West goal against Saskatchewan last Friday (Joel Kingston photo).
The Balmoral Hall product scored the first goal of her Canada West career in last Friday's loss to the Saskatchewan Huskies and played solid defence for the Griffins.
Thiessen tied the game with 50 seconds left in the first period, but the Griffins fell 5-2.
On Saturday, she was part of a strong defensive effort from the Griffins, but the team's woes came at the other end as they couldn't score in a 1-0 loss to the Huskies.
For the season, Thiessen has one point and 16 shots in 12 games so far.
Thiessen and the Griffins will host the Manitoba Bisons on Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m., both Downtown Community Arena, Canada West TV).
