HSN Presents the 2019-20 Play of the Year Showdown
ETOBICOKE – With the postponement of the fall varsity season, Humber student-athletes, staff and fans are missing Humber sports more than ever. This time of year, ten teams would be in the midst of hunting banners, while the other eight programs would be gearing up to begin their championship aspirations. To help alleviate some of the longings for Humber sports, the Hawks Sports Network is releasing a new segment: the 2019-20 Play of the Year showdown.
The 16-play bracket highlights the top plays and individual moments of the 2019-20 season, and the winner will be chosen by Humber's student-athletes, staff, and fans. Hours of game footage was watched to hunt down the top plays with more than enough options to fill up the bracket, so even some worthy nominees were left on the cutting room floor.
With the bracket revealed, voting will begin for each daily matchup and will be conducted on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram via the Humber Hawks accounts. Votes will be tallied and the play receiving the most votes will move on to the next round. Winners will be announced at the completion of each round.
Tournament Showdown Schedule
All rounds will have a 24-hour voting period.
- Round of 16 – October 5 to 15
- Quarter-Finals – October 19 to 22
- Semifinals – October 26 to 27
- Championship Showdown – October 29
HSN 2019-20 Play of the Year Field
(1) Rally, Rally – Susanna Quach and Chloe Rowe put together an incredible rally against Concordia before going on to win the national championship in straight sets.
(2) Walk Off – With the provincial championship on the line, rookie Jess MacPherson hits an 0-1 pitch back up the middle to score Meaghan Muir, walking off the Durham Lords in extras.
(3) Skip Shurtleff – Trailing late in the OCAA championship match, skip Zack Shurtleff made a brilliant chip and roll to force extra ends. With the hammer, he then curled the final stone into the house to seal the victory.
(4) At the Buzzer – With time running out and trailing by one to Sheridan, senior Amber Bechard took a pass, spun around a defender and made a contested layup to win the game. The win secured the west division title for the Hawks.
(5) Spin Cycle – Hosting Redeemer at home, rookie Julian DeSousa made a brilliant pass into the box for Nicholas Machado. Machado stayed onside, spinning around and beat the keeper on the short side.
(6) Game Winner – Down to the last play of the match, the Hawks took a corner kick that found the head of Taylor Thomson for the go-ahead tally but the Sheridan keeper made a nice save. Rookie Emma Stushnoff was there to bury the rebound, securing the victory for the Hawks.
(7) Golfing Gold – A tournament-low 79 on day two helped Hayley McCallum win the OCAA individual golf championship by six strokes – giving Humber its first individual title since 2013.
(8) Big Game Hough – After throwing a complete game shutout the day before, Hough returned to the mound less than 20 hours later in the winner-take-all championship game against Durham, throwing six solid innings to earn the win.
(9) 40-Burger – Looking to extend Humber's win streak to ten, Humber superstar Jaylan Morgan became just the third player in program history to score 40 points in a game.
(10) Free Fed – Free kick specialist Federico Leal had a chance to extend Humber's lead over No. 5 Fanshawe. Outside of the 18-yard box, Leal curled his kick around four Fanshawe defenders, giving the Fanshawe keeper no chance at making a save.
(11) Pierson Perfection – The author of two career no-hitters, senior Myranda Pierson left her best pitching performance for her final home game. The hard-throwing righty carved up Seneca hitters, recording a program-record 12 strikeouts en route to the program's first-ever perfect game.
(12) Bombs Away – In a win over Sheridan, senior Andrew Blakey had a massive killing, beating the OCAA all-time digs leader for the point.
(13) Dynamic Duo – The best OCAA rugby sevens players to ever compete played for Humber, concluding their careers at the top-two scorers in league history. Player of the Year Christina Branch and two-time scoring champion Cheyenne De Luca finished their careers scoring 924 points in four seasons.
(14) Otoo Oop – With a one-point lead on the road in Windsor, Fowzi Mohamoud intercepts a Saints pass before making a no-look dime to Kevin Otoo for the alley-opp.
(15) All the Way – In a dominant win over Mohawk, men's rugby went try line to try line, extending their lead to 30. Shemar Morris beats three defenders, makes a spin move, and passes to Daniel Sheffield to score the try.
(16) Bartmann Dimes – It only took 39 career matches for Alex Bartmann to become the women's volleyball all-time assists leader. The Uxbridge native passed Brittany Vanderlaan on Humber's career list, becoming the first player to reach 800 career assists.
