Ten Gee-Gees selected as RSEQ All-Stars, Cole and Mosindi earn Major Awards

Talia Hennessy, Claire Gallagher, Ketsia Kamba — Photo : Greg Mason

October 23, 2022

The Gee-Gees women's rugby team tied its program record with ten players selected to the 2022 edition of the RSEQ conference All-Star teams. The list of all-stars includes Mercedes Cole who also captured the league's Rookie of the Year honours, and Ngozi Mosindi who was named the winner of the Leadership and Community Engagement Award.

Cole tied for the team lead with eight tries during the regular season, ranking third in the conference. She appeared in all six regular season games for the Garnet and Grey in 2022 after missing the 2021 season due to injury. The psychology student from Ajax, Ont., was also named to the RSEQ First Team of All-Stars.

"The number one job of a wing is to score tries, and she's done that. Beyond that, Mercedes is a student of the game who picks up on things really quickly," notes Gee-Gees head coach Jen Boyd. "She's really coachable and has been receptive to taking on responsibilities. I'm really proud of her efforts and she's a very deserving winner."

The off-field efforts of Ngozi Mosindi have made an impact as she takes home the Leadership and Community Engagement Award. Now in her third year of study at uOttawa, Mosindi has planned and led rugby sessions at multiple local high schools as well as a tackle football clinic.

Mosindi, a member of the Gee-Gees Task Force for Equity and Diversity, helped organize Equity, Diversity and Inclusion workshops for grade 12 leadership students, and hosted a three-part Black Women in Sport Speaker series. She also provides support for incoming recruits and rookie team members. The criminology student from Ottawa, was also recognized as a Second Team All-Star. In 2021, she was named to the U SPORTS National Championship Tournament All-Star team.

Ottawa landed five players on the First Team of All-Stars, including Claire Gallagher and Georgia Stewart who were named all-stars for the second time in their careers. Gallagher was third in the conference with 66 points scored this season, a career high for the fourth-year Health Sciences Student from Caledon, Ont.

For Stewart, the second all-star recognition comes five years after her rookie season in 2017; the flanker from Douro-Dummer, Ont. returned to the Gee-Gees this year for her fifth year of eligibility and is a Master's student in Health Sciences.

Ketsia Kamba, a third-year lock and Communications and Sociology student, and Sarah White, a fourth-year centre and Human Kinetics student from Peterborough, Ont.,rounded out the Gee-Gees First Team representatives. Kamba notched eight tries in the regular season, with White adding three – both career highs.

Five first-time all-stars were named to the Second Team for Ottawa including two Gee-Gees seniors who have been with the team since 2018 - Talia Hennessy at prop and Emma Wade at centre. Rachel Steel, a second-year lock, and third-year scrum half Julia Latremouille complete the Garnet and Grey contingent.

2022 GEE-GEES RSEQ ALL-STAR AND AWARDS SUMMARY:

First team: Mercedes Cole (wing), Claire Gallagher (fly half), Ketsia Kamba (lock), Georgia Stewart (flanker), Sarah White (centre)

Second team: Talia Hennessy (prop), Julia Latremouille (scrum half), Ngozi Mosindi (wing), Rachel Steel (lock), Emma Wade (centre)

HISTORICAL GEE-GEES RSEQ ROOKIE OF THE YEAR WINNERS:

Mercedes Cole – 2022

Madison Grant – 2019

Claire Gallagher – 2018

Lauren Minns – 2017

Tegan Bradshaw – 2006

Sandy Simpson – 2002

HISTORICAL GEE-GEES RSEQ LEADERSHIP AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AWARD WINNERS:

Ngozi Mosindi - 2022