Abby Guezen named U SPORTS Player of the Year

Alberta outside hitter Abby Guezen has been named the winner of the Mary Lyons Award as U SPORTS women’s volleyball Player of the Year. The announcement was made Wednesday night at the All-Canadian Gala in Langley, B.C., host of the 2026 U SPORTS Women’s Volleyball Championship Presented by Booster Juice. 

Montreal outside hitter Eva Génier captured the Mark Tennant Award as Rookie of the Year, while McMaster outside hitter Abby Delamere took home the Thérèse Quigley Award for Student-Athlete Community Service, and UNB head coach Lauren Hale-Miller earned the Marilyn Pomfret Award as Fox 40 Coach of the Year. 

The 2026 U SPORTS Women’s Volleyball Championship Presented by Booster Juice begins Friday at the Langley Events Centre and concludes Sunday with the gold medal game at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. Tickets for all 11 games can be purchased at usportstickets.ca and the entire championship will be broadcast live on CBC digital platforms in English and Radio-Canada’s digital platforms in French.  

MARY LYONS AWARD (Player of the Year): Abby Guezen, Alberta

Leading the Pandas to the top seed in Canada West, the U SPORTS No.1 ranking for a majority of the season and the top seed at the national tournament, Abby Guezen has been named the 2026 U SPORTS Women’s Volleyball Player of the Year.

Guezen, the 2024 U SPORTS Rookie of the Year, put forth one of the most impactful seasons in team history. The Sherwood Park, Alta., product finished with 277 kills, 3.90 kills/set, 344.5 points and 44 aces this season, each ranking top six in U SPORTS. She also added 173 digs and 39 total blocks, with her .301 attack percentage ranking second among all outside hitters in the conference.

Her 44 aces were the second most in a single season in Pandas history, with her 3.90 kills per set ranking ninth ever for a Panda. This marks the eighth time a Panda has won U SPORTS regular season MVP, and first since Kory White in 2022.

Other nominees: Oceane Raymond-Leduc (Nipissing), Béatrice Dubreuil (Sherbrooke), Emilia Mikanovich (Saint Mary’s) 

MARK TENNANT AWARD (Rookie of the Year): Eva Génier, Montreal

Eva Genier played her first university volleyball game eight days before her 18th birthday, but her defensive and offensive play already had the consistency of a seasoned veteran.

In her first season with the Carabins, the Ottawa-born attacker racked up 142 points in 68 sets, with 107 killsm 17 total blocks (including three solo) and 25 aces. 

Her consistent presence in reception had a positive effect on the team’s performance, which reached the RSEQ championship for the third consecutive season. Genier picked up 106 digs, the third-highest total on her team, while maintaining the third-best reception percentage for the Carabins.

Despite her young age, the former Maverick Volleyball Club member has shown that she excels in all phases of the game, and that a bright future lies ahead for her and the Carabins.

Genier becomes the fourth member of the Carabins to win the award, following Josée Corbeil (1992-93), Marie-Sophie Nadeau (2010-11) and Katia Forcier (2013-14). 

Other nominees: Julia Martens (Manitoba), Marina Gustke (Toronto), Naomie McWhinney (Memorial)

THÉRÈSE QUIGLEY AWARD (Student-Athlete Community Service): Abby Delamere, McMaster 

Abby Delamere has been a consistent and versatile contributor for McMaster women’s volleyball throughout the 2025–26 season. Appearing in 20 matches, she recorded 89 kills (1.39 per set) with a .324 hitting percentage, ranking sixth in the OUA and 12^th nationally in efficiency. She added 51 digs, 44 total blocks (0.69 per set), and 12 assists, highlighting her all-around game and earning her OUA Third Team All-Star recognition this season. A three-time team co-captain, Delamere has guided the Marauders throughout her second, third, and fourth years, making three straight OUA finals.

A three-time Academic All-Canadian, Delamere has maintained exceptional academic standing throughout her degree. As a coach with Mountain Volleyball Club, an Academic Peer Mentor, a Varsity Leadership Council executive, and a co-coordinator for McMaster’s summer volleyball camps, Delamere demonstrates a genuine dedication to giving back and supporting others within both the sport and the university community. 

Delamere has also dedicated herself to community outreach. She has led youth volleyball clinics at the Boys and Girls Club of Hamilton and Oakville Trafalgar Community Centre, and served as a recurring guest coach at Dundas Valley Secondary School. She has also contributed as a Volunteer Research Assistant in the Faculty of Kinesiology and as a Patient Assistant Volunteer at Runneymede Healthcare Centre.  

Delamere is the third Marauder to take home the award honouring the former McMaster volleyball head coach and athletic director, following Meagan Nederveen (2012-13) and Christina Stratford (2022-23).  

Other nominees: Kinna Fisher (Fraser Valley), Anna Dubuc-Ventura (UQAM), Taylor Lougheed (Saint Mary’s)

MARILYN POMFRET AWARD (Fox 40 Coach of the Year): Lauren Hale-Miller, UNB

In just her second season at the helm of the UNB REDS women’s volleyball program, Lauren Hale-Miller has been chosen by her peers as the U SPORTS Coach of the year. 

Hale-Miller led the U SPORTS No. 5-ranked REDS to an undefeated 20-0 finish in the regular season – the most wins in a season by a women’s volleyball program in AUS history – and first place in the conference standings.

The REDS led the nation this season in service aces per set (2.52) and finished tied for second nationally and first in the AUS in points per set (17.0).

The UNB squad also led the Atlantic conference in kills per set (12.12), hitting percentage (.200) and assists per set (11.41) – good for eighth, 13^th and sixth across the country, respectively. They finished second in U SPORTS in digs per set (16.45) and ninth in blocks per set (2.34).

Coach Hale-Miller is the first UNB winner of the award, and just the fourth from the Atlantic conference, following current Acadia Axewomen head coach Michelle Wood (2023-24), former Dalhousie coach Rick Scott (2016-17) and Moncton’s Monette Boudreau-Carroll (2007-08). 

Other nominees: Chad Grimm (Thompson Rivers), Natasha Spaling (Guelph), Olivier Faucher (Laval)

2026 U SPORTS WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL AWARD WINNERS & ALL-CANADIANS 

MARY LYONS AWARD (Player of the Year): Abby Guezen, Alberta

MARK TENNANT AWARD (Rookie of the Year): Eva Génier, Montreal 

THÉRÈSE QUIGLEY AWARD (Student-Athlete Community Service): Abby Delamere, McMaster

MARILYN POMFRET AWARD (Fox 40 Coach of the Year): Lauren Hale-Miller, UNB

First Team All-Canadians

Second Team All-Canadians

All-Rookie Team