SOCCER PLAYERS domi- nated the first-ever athletic awards banquet at Capilano College, held last weekend at the college’s North Van- couver campus, as both male and female Athlete of the Year awards went to members of the Blues varsi- ty soccer squads. : By A.P. McCredie Sports Reporter Silvana Burtini, named top striker at the provincial tourna- ment last fall, was named Female Athlete of the Year for her out- standing ‘season leading the lady Blues to a league-winning season - (6-1). Burtini,’ a practising -member of the national team, scored -12 goals in seven league games. The 23-year-old 4&4 The GPA of (student athletes for fall 92) was the highest in the history of the college. 99 “kinesiology student was the No. 1 . selection to the women’s BCCAA all-conference team, and was also . selected as a CCAA all-Canadian ‘award winner. ;. ©n the men’s side, the Blues ‘three-year veteran Tony Mobitio was named Male Athlete of the Year. Like Burtini, Mobilio en- joyed a stellar season, scoring eight goals during the Blues’ league-leading season (7-1). He. was selected as a BCCAA all- conference first team player, and — along with teammate Nico Berg — as a recipient of a CCAA all- Canadian award. A highlight of Mobilio’s season. was. a hat trick against BCIT in the third annual Presidents’ Cup match. Both Burtini and Mobilio also Just the facts, ma’am, as 86ers get ready for 1993 ' GOAL LINES ~.HARDLY A day goes by ‘when the mailperson doesn’t deliver some slick- looking brocnure or media received Scholar Athlete Certifi- cates. Fifteen. other student- athletes also won these awards, given to athletes who achieved a minimum grade-point average of 3.0 in the fall term. These 17 athletes comprise almost a third of the total number of Capilano Blues team members, The Male Scholar Athlete of the year was awarded to Berg, a mid- fielder with the men’s soccer team. Berg joined teammate Mobilio as a member of the first team BCCAA all-Conference and | ‘as a winner of a CCAA all-Cana- dian award. Berg will be com- peting with the junior national team in the Francophone Games in Paris this July. Lisa Armstrong, of Vernon, was the winner of the Female Scholar Athlete of the Year award. The 24-year-old student in the legal assistant program played both forward and defender on the lady Blues soccer tearn. In her address to the athletes at the banquet, college registrar Dianna Larsen mentioned a recent Simon Fraser University study which found that students who participate in school athletics are generally more successful in terms of their careers and in their con- tributions to society than those students who do not play Sports while in school. She also ‘noted that the grade- point average of the student athletic body for the 1992 fall term was the highest in the history of the college. Other award wituners included: @® Team MYP plaques: Carla King (women’s basketball); Mike Barber (men’s basketball); Christy Keiland (women’s soccer); and Darren Nott (men’s soccer). . ®: Special Team Awards: Women’s basketball — Karly McKay (most improved player); Adrienne Ng (best defensive player). Men’s basketball — Dar- ren Moscovitch (most improved/ defensive player); Jeff Winslade {mest dedicated player). Women’s soccer — Susie Sutherland (most improved player); Maria Grieco (most dedicated player)... Men’s soccer — Danny Pecile (veteran award for distinguished services}; Simon Tait (most dedicated player). kit promoting the opening of another golf course or the upcoming sports televi- sion schedules on TSN, CTV or CBC. In today’s computer-crazed society, these four-color publica- tions are just too pretty to chuck out.. The artwork alone almost makes them colfector’s items. And then there’s the Vancouver 86ers — the ‘small kids’ on the professional sporting block — where the humble soccer office on Douglas Road in Burnaby can’t provide a lavish budget for pro- motional material. Their 1993 pre-season and training camp guide arrived the other day in a plain brown envelope. Held together by three staples, it is 24 pages of black and white copy ... no pictures, no dancing illustrations ... just the facts, ma’am, and plenty of them. The 86ers’ ‘‘media officer’’ is NEWS photo Weil Lucente LADY BLUES soccer player Silvana Burtini — seen here (ieft) in game against. Malaspina — was Finalists meet in season THE NORTH Shore Men’s Basebail League (NSMBL) will open its seventh season with a rematch of the two teams who played in last season’s playoff final. Yorkton will take on the 1992 NSMBL playoff champion. Pirates on Tuesday, April 20, at Inter- River Park North on, Premier Street. The league is made up of seven teams which include Jack Lons- dale’s, Queen’s Cross, the Black Sox, the Keg and Skylights Only. Each team plays 24 regular season games as well as mid- season and season-ending playoff tournaments. , North Vancouver’s Ian Michaud, who is also listed as a member of the team’s board of directors. Michaud {pronounced Mee- showed} just happens to be one of Canada’s most talented soccer play-by-play commentators but without a radio contract in place, the 86ers are unable io utilize his expertise in that area. Where NHL and CFL public relations directors, or media of- ficers, draw comfortable salaries to carry out their functions as li- aisons with the press, radio and television vultures, Michaud per- . forms the same duties without a dime’s pay. In fact, time factor involved, costs him money. The tip-off, if you read be- tween the lines, becomes evident on page 3 of the pre-season media guide where the background of the Vancouver 86ers is presented. It reads: ‘‘Within weeks of the demise of the Vancouver when you consider the it actually By Kevin Gillies Contributing Writer According to league president Mark Bodweill,. most of the league’s teams have already started their spring training. ‘Last’ year was a highly suc- cessful season and we expect much the same this year,’ Bodwell said. The first five places in the Whitecaps and the North Ameri- can Soccer League in October, 1984, a group of local soccer [a- natics was hard at work doing the spadework to re-establish the pro game on Canada’s west coast. Two years later, the West Coast Soccer Society (WCSS) had sold more than 400 memberships and used that money to acquire a charter franchise in the new Ca- nadian Soccer League.” lan Michaud was one of those ‘Jocal fanatics’? who put up their own money to keep the great game of soccer breathing in Van- couver, On a. proverbial budget, the 86ers opened for business on June 7, 1987 — a night when 7,646 fans stormed the 4,800-seat Swangard Stadium to watch the locals spank Edmonton 4-2. It was in 1989 when Richmond contractor and land developer Milan Wich purchased the 86ers from the financially strapped shoestring Named Female Athlete of the Year at Capilano College’s inaugural athletic award banquet. Tony Mobilio, a standout pluyer with the men’s soccer squad, was named Male Athlete of the Year. opener standings were not decided until the last week of play, with Jack Lonsdaie’s emerging as regular season champs. “The league plays intermedi- ate-level ball and it’s very com- petitive, although not at the same level as. the metro. or premier leagues,’’ Bodweil said. . The league will hold tryouts for new players on Sunday, April 4, at 1 p.m. on the top fieid at In- ter-River. Anyone interested in further in- formation can call Bodwell at 924-7291. WCSS. . ft was hardly a money-making _venture on Tlich’s part but, in- stead, a compassionate move that would see him lose upwards of $500,000 a year to ensure the game didn’t die in the Vancouver marketplace. Today, the 86ers are poised to begin a new chapter in their short - history book by joining the Amer- ican Professional Soccer League alongside franchises in Colorado, Fort Lauderdale, Los Angeles, Tampa Bay, Montreal and Toron- to. The 24-game schedule begins April 30 with a home assignment against Toronto, and ends’ with Los Angeles here on Sept. 8. Michaud will be with them every step of the way, strictly in a voluntary capacity, No fancy news conferences, no pretty pictures in his weekly up- dates ... just the facts, ma’am. And plenty of them, regular-season .