Chilliwack's Alexa McCarthy, a women's basketball player at the University of the Fraser Valley, has been selected the 2013 CIS Sylvia Sweeney Award.
The award is named in honour of Sylvia Sweeney, a past player at McGill, Concordia and Laurentian who excelled both on the court and in the classroom. Sweeney played on three Olympic teams and continues to support university basketball.
McCarthy was selected by the CIS Women's Basketball Coaches Association for outstanding achievement in three areas: basketball, academics and community involvement.
She becomes UFV's second student-athlete to receive a major CIS award. McCarthy is active in several community service initiatives, organizing and leading what has become a major UFV athletics community outreach initiative. The ‘Walk and Knock Food Bank Drive’ has UFV athletes walking around Abbotsford on Halloween night collecting food for the Abbotsford Food Bank.
In recent years, McCarthy has also participated in the Fraser Valley’s chapter of the ’Operation Red Nose’ program and has led UFV’s CIS 'Shoot for the Cure' event.
The Kinesiology major does the majority of the ground work, organization and recruitment of helpers and guest speakers for all the fundraising events for non-profit organizations involving the Cascades.
McCarthy is a three-time winner of the UFV athletics community service award and has thrice been recognized by the University of the Fraser Valley for her outstanding contribution and leadership with the community service she provides.
“Alexa has been a major contributor to UFV, the athletics program and the Fraser Valley communities,” said UFV athletic director Rocky Olfert. “Her efforts to continually put others before herself has been an inspiration to all of us.”
McCarthy follows in the footsteps of Michelle Buhler, a former UFV athlete who won the Sylvia Sweeney award in 2007-08.
“I am very proud of Alexa’s contributions to our program and the community,” said UFV women's basketball coach Al Tuchscherer. “She is a true student-athlete playing, practicing, studying and contributing to the needs of others without asking for anything in return. Alexa is a role model for our program.”