University of Toronto Varsity Blues goaltender Nicole Kesteris has been named to the Canadian women's hockey roster for the 2015 Winter Universiade in Granada, Spain, as announced by the CIS on Friday.
 
The 27th biennial Games will run from Feb. 4-14, with the women's hockey final set for Feb. 13.
 
Kesteris etched her name in the U of T history book as the first goalie in any sport and only the second women's hockey player to be honoured as the Varsity Blues female athlete of the year last season. She was named a 2013-14 OUA first team all-star and CIS first team all-Canadian after leading all goaltenders in the country with a .948 save percentage and five shutouts.
 
The Aurora, Ont., native also won both the OUA and CIS Marion Hilliard award, recognizing excellence in athletics, academics and community involvement.
 
Early in 2014-15, Kesteris is on the same track after leading the No. 10 Blues to an undefeated record and holding a .947 save percentage after the first three games of the season.
 
"This has been a dream and goal of mine from the first time I stepped on the ice in a Blues uniform," said an elated Kesteris. "To receive the opportunity to represent Canada, the CIS, OUA, and especially the University of Toronto at such a prestigious international event is an incredible honour. In addition to having great teammates at the University of Toronto I consider myself extremely fortunate to now have a chance to work with some of the best players from across Canada with a common goal of representing our country in the spirit of good sportsmanship and great competition."
 
Just 13 months after winning a third straight gold medal in Trentino, Italy in December 2013, the Canadians head to Spain as the favourites with a perfect 20-0 record since the women's hockey competition made its debut in Harbin, China in 2009. There, Canada defeated the host Chinese 3-1 to win the inaugural gold medal before following that triumph with a 4-1 win against Finland in 2011 (Erzurum, Turkey) and a 5-0 defeat of Russia in Trentino.
 
The women's hockey schedule in Granada has yet to be announced, but Canada will be in Pool B with Russia and Kazakhstan. Pool A consists of host Spain, the United States, China, and Japan.
 
Head Coach Jon Rempel and his staff, including assistants Bruce Donaldson (UPEI) and Jim Hunter (University of Windsor), made the team selections. The 20-player roster features standouts from across the four CIS conferences, including seven from OUA, five from Canada West, and four each from AUS and RSEQ.
 
"Our coaching staff believes that the experience of the returning players from last year's squad combined with an influx of energy from a number of first-time players going to this event will make this year's team very tough to play against," said Rempel, a two-time Canada West coach of the year who has led the Manitoba Bisons to five CIS championship appearances in his 11 seasons at the helm.
 
Four players from the 2013 championship team will make a return appearance at the tournament: goaltender Élodie Rousseau-Sirois from the University of Montreal, McGill defenceman Brittany Fouracres, and forwards Laura Brooker (Wilfrid Laurier) and Alex Normore (StFX). Brooker picked up a goal and an assist in the gold medal game against Russia in Trentino.
 
Montreal leads the way with three selections, with Rousseau-Sirois joined by Carabins teammates Élizabeth Mantha and Ariane Barker. Alberta, St. Francis Xavier, and Windsor each had two players selected to the team.
 
Alberta Pandas forwards Tess Houston and Jessica Kampjes, StFX X-Women Normore and Daley Oddy, and Windsor Lancers Jenny MacKnight and Bree Polci anchor the forward group. They'll be joined by Montreal's Barker, Jessica Fickel of Brock, Breanna Lanceleve of Saint Mary's, Manitoba's Maggie Litchfield-Medd, recent Queen's graduate Morgan McHaffie, and returnee Brooker from Laurier.
 
On the blue line, McGill's Fouracres will be joined by Sarah Casorso from UBC, Saskatchewan's Julia Flinton, Katelyn Gossling of Western, Montreal's Mantha, and Keirsten Visser from UPEI. And between the pipes, Nicole Kesteris from the University of Toronto will team up with Rousseau-Sirois.
 
"This year's team represents a great mix of skill, speed, character and hockey IQ," said Rempel. "We are looking forward to representing the CIS and our country at this prestigious event."
 
The team will depart Canada in late January to begin preparations for the Universiade. The opening ceremony is set for Wednesday, Feb. 4.
 
Team Canada website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/universiade/winter/2015/index
Granada 2015 website: http://www.granada2015.org/en/
 

TEAM CANADA ROSTER  

           
Name                           University       Elig.     Hometown                  Academic Program               
 
Goaltenders
Nicole Kesteris                Toronto           5          Aurora, Ont.                Human Geography
Élodie Rousseau-Sirois    Montreal          4          Pohenegamook, Que.   Architecture
 
Defence
Sarah Casorso              UBC                5          Kelowna, B.C.             Arts
Julia Flinton                 Saskatchewan  4          Williams Lake, B.C.     Agriculture & Bioresources
Brittany Fouracres       McGill             4          Calgary, Alta.               Chemical Engineering
Katelyn Gossling         Western           4          London, Ont.               Social science
Élizabeth Mantha         Montreal          5          Longueuil, Que.            Industrial Relations
Keirsten Visser            UPEI                5          Crapaud, P.E.I.           Science
 
Forwards
Ariane Barker              Montreal          4          Napierville, Que.         Communications
Laura Brooker             Wilfrid Laurier  5          Fergus, Ont.                 English
Jessica Fickel               Brock               5          Fort Erie, Ont.           Kinesiology
Tess Houston               Alberta             4          Winnipeg, Man.            Nursing
Jessica Kampjes           Alberta             3          Sturgeon County, Alta. Native Studies
Breanna Lanceleve      Saint Mary's    2          Lower Sackville, N.S.  Science
Maggie Litchfield-Medd  Manitoba         5          Winnipeg, Man.             Environment, Earth, & Resources
Jenny MacKnight         Windsor           5          Regina, Sask.               Environmental Studies
Morgan McHaffie        Queen's           --          Guelph, Ont.                Physical & Health Education
Alex Normore              StFX                5          Bedford, N.S.              Human Kinetics
Daley Oddy                 StFX                2          Cranbrook, B.C.          Human Kinetics
Bree Polci                    Windsor           5          London, Ont.               History
 
NOTE: The year of CIS eligibility listed is for the 2014-15 season. Morgan McHaffie of Queen's used her fifth and final year of CIS eligibility in 2013-14.
 
Staff
Team Leader:               Kelsie Graham             Regina, Sask.
Head Coach:                Jon Rempel                  University of Manitoba
Assistant Coach:          Bruce Donaldson         University of Prince Edward Island
Assistant Coach:          Jim Hunter                   University of Windsor
Athletic Therapist:       Nadine Smith               Carleton University
Equipment Manager:    Jean Huynh                 McGill University
 
CANADA'S ALL-TIME RESULTS IN WOMEN'S HOCKEY AT UNIVERSIADE
 
2013 (Trentino, Italy)
21-0 vs Spain
5-0 vs. Russia
13-0 vs. Great Britain
9-1 vs. USA
15-0 vs. Japan (semifinal)
5-0 vs. Russia (final)
 
2011 (Erzurum, Turkey)
2-1 vs. Finland (SO)
3-0 vs. Slovakia
14-0 vs. Great Britain
9-0 vs. USA
11-0 vs. Turkey
8-1 vs. USA (semifinal)
4-1 vs. Finland (final)
 
2009 (Harbin, China)
11-0 vs. Great Britain
5-0 vs. Finland
6-3 vs. Slovakia
7-1 vs. China
4-1 vs. Japan
10-1 vs. Slovakia (semifinal)
3-1 vs. China (final)
 
About the Winter Universiade

The Winter Universiade is a biennial international multi-sport event open to competitors who are at least 17 and less than 28 years of age as of January 1 in the year of the Games. Participants must be full-time students at a post-secondary institution (university, college, CEGEP) or have graduated from a post-secondary institution in the year preceding the event.
The Granada Universiade will feature nine compulsory sports and one optional sport. Compulsory sports: alpine skiing, biathlon, ice hockey, curling, nordic skiing, short track speed skating, figure skating, synchronized skating, snowboarding. Optional sport: freestyle skiing.
NOTE: Biathlon and nordic skiing will take place in Strbske Pleso and Osrblie, Slovakia from January 24 to February 1, prior to the start of the Games in Granada.
Official website: www.granada2015.org
 

About Canadian Interuniversity Sport

 
Canadian Interuniversity Sport is the national governing body of university sport in Canada. Every year, 11,000 student-athletes and 700 coaches from 55 universities and four regional associations vie for 21 national championships in 12 different sports. CIS also provides high performance international opportunities for Canadian student-athletes at Winter and Summer Universiades, as well as numerous world university championships. For further information, visit www.cis-sic.ca or follow us on:
 
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/CIS_SIC  
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cissports
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/universitysport
 
-CIS-
 
For more information:
 
Ben Matchett
Communications Manager
Team Canada, 2015 Winter Universiade
Off: (403) 220-8143
Cell: (403) 863-8143
ben.matchett@ucalgary.ca
www.cis-sic.ca
 
Matt Gutsch
Communications Officer
Team Canada, 2015 Winter Universiade
Off: (780) 492-7214
Cell: (780) 914-7096
mgutsch@ualberta.ca
www.cis-sic.ca