Three Stars: Christmann, Presingular, Zeyha earn honours

Three Stars: Christmann, Presingular, Zeyha earn honours

MacEwan Athletics

EDMONTON – Women's hockey student-athlete Mikayla Christmann is the MacEwan Athletics' first star of the week after making 50 saves in a 4-1 win over Regina last Friday.

The Warman, Sask. product not only broke the program rookie record, she also broke the record for the most saves in a Canada West game by any Griffins goaltender.

Men's basketball point guard Diego Presingular and women's volleyball middle blocker Evangeline Zeyha were named the second and third stars, respectively.

It's the second time this season that Christmann has cracked the Three Stars list after having been named second star on Jan. 28.

Presingular also appears for the second time, following first-star honours on Jan. 14, while Zeyha is being named to the Three Stars for the first time as a Griffin.

Griffins goaltender Mikayla Christmann stopped 50 of 51 shots she faced to lead MacEwan past Regina 4-1 last Friday (Rebecca Chelmick photo).

1st STAR: Mikayla Christmann, G, women's hockey

Warman, SK, first-year, Science

After the Griffins scored three goals on their first three shots against Regina last Friday, the visitors came at them in waves in an effort to get back in the contest, but Christmann slammed the door shut.

Stopping 50 of 51 shots, she led MacEwan to a 4-1 win over Regina even though the Griffins were outshot more than 3-to-1 (51-15).

The performance not only broke Lindsey Johnson's rookie record of 38 saves in a Canada West game, it also topped Brianna Sank's program record of 47 saves for the most by a Griffins goaltender in a U SPORTS contest.

Christmann didn't earn her first start in 2024-25 until last month, but finished the season on a tear, recording a 1.78 GAA and .949 save percentage in four games.

Diego Presingular finished his rookie season with a flourish, scoring a combined 41 points in two games at the Alberta Golden Bears last weekend (James Maclennan photo).

2nd STAR: Diego Presingular, PG, men's basketball

Winnipeg, MB, first-year, Correctional Services

Rising to the occasion amid a tough atmosphere in cross-town rival University of Alberta's gym on the weekend, the rookie point guard led the Griffins in scoring both nights, scoring a combined 41 points across two games.

In Friday's 77-64 loss, Presingular had a team-high 19 points with four assists, four steals and three rebounds, matching the most three-pointers made by a Griffins rookie with five of them.

In Saturday's 78-57 defeat, he again led the Griffins with 22 points, adding four assists, four rebounds and a steal.

As a result of a strong finish to the season, Presingular broke program rookie single Canada West season records for the most points (235), best points/game average (11.8), most assists (55), best assists/game average (2.8) and most steals (22).

Evangeline Zeyna was a force in the middle for the Griffins during their final series of the 2024-25 season, helping them secure a split with the Calgary Dinos (Dave Mahussier photo).

3rd STAR: Evangeline Zeyha, MB, women's volleyball

Grande Prairie, AB, second-year, Communciations

The second-year middle blocker was a difference-maker for the Griffins on their final weekend of the 2024-25 season, recording 23 kills, seven blocks and 28 points across two matches against the Calgary Dinos.

In Friday's 3-2 victory, she made the decisive play on match point, winning a joust at the net to give MacEwan its third triumph of the season. Zeyha finished with 12 kills on a .450 hitting percentage, added six blocks and accounted for 16.5 points in the contest.

In Saturday's 3-1 loss, Zeyha was again super efficient with a tidy 11 kills on a .533 percentage, with one block and 11.5 points.

For the season, Zeyha finished third on the Griffins with 106 kills, second in blocks with 47 and third in points with 147.0.