UPEI Women’s Basketball takes home major 2021–21 AUS awards
UPEI extends a big congratulations to Carolina Del Santo, Lauren Rainford, and head coach Matt Gamblin, of Women’s Basketball, for winning three major 2021–21 AUS awards. The AUS announced its slate of award winners for this season on March 16.
Fifth-year player Carolina Del Santo, from Barcelona, Spain, was named defensive player of the year in addition to being chosen a second team all-star. Del Santo led the AUS in blocks (2.1 per game) and defensive rebounds (12.8 per game) this season. She also averaged the second-most rebounds per game (15.0) in both the conference and the country.
This is the third time Del Santo has won the award—and the fourth consecutive time a member of the UPEI Panthers has received it. She is now the Atlantic conference nominee for the U SPORTS defensive player of the year award.
Third-year political science student Lauren Rainford won the AUS student-athlete community service award, and she is the AUS nominee for the U SPORTS Sylvia Sweeney Award. She was also named an AUS first team all-star.
Rainford has been a stellar performer on the basketball court, and in the classroom and the community. In 13 games this season, she averaged 18.6 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game. She led the conference in three-point percentage, at 44.1 percent, and had the second-best free-throw percentage at 87.3 percent. She has a 4.1 GPA, is a two-time Academic All-Canadian, and has been named to the Dean’s List since 2019. Her community involvement includes volunteering with Global Brigades, a non-profit health and sustainable development organization; organizing fundraisers for an upcoming medical brigade trip to Honduras; volunteering with a local elementary school’s breakfast program and a high school writing centre; and leading UPEI’s Shoot for the Cure initiative.
Head coach Matt Gamblin was selected by his peers to receive the Dr. Carolyn Savoy Memorial Award for AUS coach of the year—the first time that he has won the award. Under his leadership, the Panthers finished the 2021–22 season with an 11–2 record to claim the top spot in conference standings. The defending AUS champions averaged 75.5 points per game, an 80.9 free-throw percentage, and a 40.6 field goal percentage. The team leveraged its defensive power to hold opponents to a conference low 60.8 points per game. Gamblin is now the Atlantic conference nominee for the U SPORTS coach of the year award.
