Joey Payeur
“Buj” and “Baby Buj,” side by side.
It was a moment that forever will live in the Bujold family scrapbook.
The brotherly love and respect between Connor and Aaron Bujold was more than apparent on the Townshend Theatre stage last Wednesday night at the end of the 2015 Muskie athletic awards banquet.
Connor, or “Buj” to his teammates and coaches, was awarded the male athlete of the year trophy to cap off the Grade 12 student’s outstanding career in basketball, volleyball, and soccer.
His younger sibling, Aaron, nicknamed “Baby Buj,” was recognized as male co-rookie of the year along with Sekina Scheibler after the ninth-grader amazed the regional badminton community by excelling against much older and more experienced opponents in senior boys’ singles play.
“Being older, it was important to myself and my other two brothers to teach Aaron how to get better,” noted Connor Bujold, who won NWOSSAA gold with the senior boys’ volleyball team.
He also had a NorWOSSA title with the boys’ soccer team to go along with his NorWOSSA silver in senior boys’ basketball.
“We got him to the same level as us—or almost,” joked the graduating senior, who also was named MVP of both the soccer and senior boys’ basketball teams last Wednesday.
As well, Connor Bujold received a Letterman award for having been part of at least 10 sports teams in his time as a Muskie.
“It’s pretty cool being up here with Aaron,” he remarked.
“To have two brothers succeed like this is not something you get to see very often.”
Aaron Bujold captured NorWOSSA gold and NWOSSAA silver to advance to what likely will be the first of many OFSAA badminton championships to come.
He also played alongside his brother on the boys’ soccer team, was the starting point guard for the junior boys’ basketball squad, and was a member of the junior boys’ volleyball that won NorWOSSA silver.
“We played each other a lot since we were very young to help each other improve,” recalled Aaron, who also was selected MVP for the senior badminton and junior boys’ volleyball squads.
“Connor taught me different skills in soccer, basketball, and volleyball since I was very young so I would be ready when I reached high school,” he noted.
Winning the highest honour for a Muskie male athlete wasn’t uppermost in Connor Bujold’s mind entering this school year.
“It’s not always the first thing I think about, to be independently successful, as I play team sports throughout the year,” he noted.
“You just work hard and start to get better, and hopefully it all works out,” he reasoned.
Aaron Bujold, meanwhile, was able to excel beyond his years thanks to his having already played for many years.
“Going to other tournaments and playing at the club level here in Fort Frances helped me see I had the skills, but you still have to do it on the court,” he stressed.
“After the first tournament this year, I figured out the other players and was able to work on some strategies to beat them.”
As for Scheibler, he was named top rookie for the Muskie football team and also played for the junior boys’ basketball squad.
But it was his prowess with the track-and-field team that stood out the most this year.
Scheibler won only the third OFSAA gold medal for an individual athlete in Muskie history June 6 in Toronto when he captured the Midget boys’ discus event.
“This has been my main goal all year was to get this award,” admitted the ninth-grader, who also was selected as the track-and-field team’s most improved athlete.
“I love sports. It allows you to strive for excellence,” Scheibler remarked.
“It’s something to prove to myself that I tried my best. It’s all about having goals,” he noted.
Scheibler’s work ethic—forged in him at an early age while growing up on his family’s farm—is something he looks forward to passing on to younger Muskie athletes next year.
“You can have all the skill in the world but without the work ethic . . .,∏ he trailed off.
“When I got to OFSAA, you see everyone there and they’re all the best.
“It comes down to who wants it the worst is the one that wins it,” he stressed.
As for their female counterparts, Jenny Hammond took home female athlete-of-the-year honours after making her mark in three sports.
After emerging as a consistent threat in cross-country running, the Grade 12 student accepted the challenge of learning a brand new sport with the advent of Nordic skiing into the Muskie athletic program.
She then immersed herself in a key leadership role as lead captain of the Muskie track-and-field team, with whom she won two NWOSSAA silver medals and qualified for her second-straight OFSAA championships.
Hammond also was chosen as the track-and-field MVP, and was granted an athletic certificate for being part of at least eight Muskie teams during her tenure at Fort High.
“I just wanted to be part of the team, make new friends, and try different things,” said Hammond, who took her track-and-field captaincy very seriously.
“You’ve got so many athletes on the team in so many different events, and the coaches are working so hard to run everything,” she noted.
“I just wanted to take the pressure off the coaches somewhat and be a positive influence to the younger team members.
“I wanted to try and be a good example for others and teach them that you don’t have to win all the time, just do your best and don’t give up,” Hammond added.
Abby Sanders parlayed her efforts in junior girls’ basketball and volleyball, as well as on the girls’ soccer team, into being named female rookie-of-the-year.
“I made sure I tried really hard on all the teams and I was lucky to get to start on most of them,” said Sanders, who also was chosen for the outstanding contribution award in junior girls’ basketball.
“I think it helped that I already knew most of my coaches, so I had a little advantage over most of the girls,” she added.
“There was a lot more competition to get on the teams than there was in Grade 8, where you just basically showed up and you were on the team.
“I think having such tough tryouts really pushed us to be our best,” said Sanders, who already has a plan in place to keep up her development.
“I’ve got to start practising outside of the normal practice schedules, and go on my own time to work on my skills and try to improve every day,” she stressed.
The night was bookended with a pair of salutes to former Muskie girls’ hockey head coach Scott Clendenning, who died of a heart attack while vacationing in Mexico back in March.
A moment of silence was held in his honour before dinner began while the video presentation at the end of the evening was dedicated to his memory.
