Two Vernon women are finalists for three year-end UBC Okanagan athletic awards.
A gala evening to announce the winners was planned for Tuesday, March 24, but was canceled due to COVID-19.
Basketball standout Jordan Korol of Coldstream is a double finalist for Women’s Athlete of the Year and Women’s Graduating Player of the Year.
Last season, Korol was UBCO’s female outstanding player of the year, becoming the first player in program history to average a double-double and the first to win one of Canada West’s major awards, the Sylvia Sweeney Award, for her outstanding athletic achievement along with academic success, and community service.
READ MORE: Major honour for Coldstream basketball star
Korol graduates this spring with her BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) as the fourth leading scorer in team history with 840 points and the leading rebounder in team history, hauling in 752 rebounds in her career.
A four-time Academic All-Canadian, and on her way to a fifth, Korol’s influence and success both on and off the court have set a standard of excellence that will lead the way for the program for years to come.
She is up against volleyball player Claudia Corneil of Surrey for the Graduating Player of the Year.
Korol is one of five finalists for the Women’s Athlete of the Year. She averaged 12.3 points per game in 2019-20 and 9.3 rebounds per game. Korol was awarded a Conference third start of the week following her final home games in a Heat uniform, which included an astounding 23 rebound game, 10 of those coming on the offensive glass to establish a new team record.
Korol will contest the award with cross-country runner Camille Galloway, and volleyball players Natalie Livingston, Amaya Perry and Hellen Lacava.
Vernon’s Kelsey Falk, a teammate of Korol’s on the Heat basketball team, is a finalist for Female Rookie of the Year.
READ MORE: Falk turns up the Heat
Falk saw the court in all 20 games, including 19 starts, averaging 7.5 points and 7.9 boards a game. The science student was a force to be reckoned with around the glass, her 158 rebounds ranked her 10th overall in the Canada West conference and was good for second-best in the nation among all U-SPORTS rookies.
She complimented her rebounding game with some timely scoring throughout the season, recording two double-doubles, including a 16-point, 10-rebound outing in the team’s first-ever victory over the University of Victoria Vikes.
Other finalists for the award include Abigail Dueck (volleyball), Jaeli Ibbetson (basketball), Catriona McFadden (soccer) and Amaya Perry (volleyball).
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
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