Lois and Doug Mitchell Awards: Jessymaude Drapeau and Philippe Morneau-Cartier named RSEQ finalists

Jessymaude Drapeau, a women’s hockey forward from Concordia, and Philippe Morneau-Cartier, a cross-country runner from Laval, are the next two finalists for the Lois and Doug Mitchell Awards as the U SPORTS athletes of the year. Drapeau and Morneau-Cartier are the RSEQ athletes of the year.

Jessymaude Drapeau, Concordia women’s hockey

A fifth-year forward from Rivière-du-Loup, Que., Drapeau concluded one of the most accomplished careers in Concordia women’s hockey history by being named the 2025-26 U SPORTS women’s hockey player of the year.

The Stingers captain led the nation in scoring this season with 39 points, including 22 goals and 17 assists, while earning RSEQ player of the year honours and first-team all-star recognition at both the conference and national levels.

Drapeau helped guide Concordia to a dominant 22-2 regular-season record before the Stingers completed a perfect 4-0 run through the RSEQ playoffs to capture the conference championship. At the U SPORTS championship tournament, she led Concordia to a national silver medal.

Over the course of her university career, Drapeau helped the Stingers win two U SPORTS national championships and two national silver medals, cementing Concordia’s resurgence to be back among the top women’s hockey programs in the country.

Earlier this season, Drapeau surpassed the 100-point milestone for her university career, adding another achievement to an already decorated résumé.

Her success on the national stage was already well established before her final season. In 2023-24, Drapeau was named tournament MVP at the U SPORTS national championship after leading the Stingers to their second national title in three years.

Away from the rink, Drapeau excelled academically and in the community. She earned Academic All-Canadian honours and was the recipient of Concordia’s Weider Award, presented annually to student-athletes who demonstrate excellence in athletics, academics and community involvement. In 2024-25, she also received the RSEQ leadership and social engagement award.

Drapeau is the seventh individual Concordia student-athlete to be named a national finalist for the Lois and Doug Mitchell Awards. Concordia has produced one previous winner, Corinne Swirsky in 1998-99.

Philippe Morneau-Cartier, Laval cross-country / track & field

A doctoral student in medicine from Québec City, Morneau-Cartier completed another undefeated season in 2025-26 and capped his university career as one of the most dominant cross-country runners in recent Canadian university history.

Morneau-Cartier won every cross country race he entered this season, including victories in Ottawa, on the Plains of Abraham and at the RSEQ championship, where he claimed conference gold for a fourth consecutive year. In doing so, he became the first athlete in conference history to win four straight RSEQ men’s cross-country titles.

He concluded his university career having won his final 13 conference races, another RSEQ record.

Nationally, Morneau-Cartier captured the U SPORTS men’s cross-country championship for a third straight season, becoming the first athlete since the mid-1980s to win three consecutive national titles. After victories in London in 2023 and Kelowna in 2024, he dominated the eight-kilometre national championship race in 2025, finishing the course in 24 minutes 14 seconds — five seconds ahead of his nearest competitor.

Morneau-Cartier balanced his athletic success with the demands of medical school, completing the season while working long hours at the hospital as part of his clerkship.

A leader within Laval’s Rouge et Or program, Morneau-Cartier helped continue the school’s tradition of excellence in endurance sports while establishing himself as one of the top university distance runners of his generation.

The Lois and Doug Mitchell Awards for the U SPORTS athletes of the year will be announced at a ceremony in Calgary on Wednesday, May 20. 

Other finalists:

• AUS:  Emilia Mikanovich and Mika Cyr
• CW: Abby Guezen and Ryder Rattee
• OUA: To be announced on May 15