University of Toronto volleyball standout Evan Falardeau and cross country champion Lucia Stafford have been named the Varsity Blues athletes of the week for the period ending November 10.

Lucia Stafford won the individual gold medal at the 2019 U SPORTS cross country championships on Saturday, November 9 at Fort Henry in Kingston, Ont.

The fourth-year engineering major crossed the 8km finish line in 27:30.3,  almost a full 14 seconds ahead of silver medalist Anne-Marie Comeau of the Laval Rouge et Or. A Toronto native, Stafford earned her first U SPORTS cross country athlete of the year honour, as well as a first team all-Canadian nod for the third time in her cross country career.

Stafford is the second Varsity Blue to win the U SPORTS individual gold medal in the past three years, after Sasha Gollish claimed the title in 2017.

Second-year left side hitter Evan Falardeau totaled 34 points and 10 digs in leading the Varsity Blues men's volleyball team to two big wins at home this past weekend.

The political science major led all players with 20 points off of 20 kills as the Blues upset the No. 7 nationally-ranked Queen's Gaels on Friday night.

A native of Stratford, Ont., Falardeau followed that up with a 14-point performance on Sunday. He notched nine kills, a game-high four serving aces and one block as the Blues defeated the RMC Paladins in straight sets.

Falardeau currently ranks second in the OUA, averaging 4.6 points per set.

For more information, scores and highlights on your favourite U of T athletes and teams, please visit www.varsityblues.ca. Don't forget to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for the latest and greatest in Varsity Blues intercollegiate athletics.