NWP Wolves Celebrate Excellence During Festival of Gold

Northwestern Polytechnic (NWP) brought together student-athletes, coaches, alumni, and supporters on April 2 for its annual Festival of Gold celebration, honouring the academic and athletic achievements of the Wolves community throughout the 2025–26 season.

Held at NWP’s Grande Prairie campus, the event highlighted the commitment, leadership, and performance of student-athletes across all programs, while also celebrating the broader community that supports their success.

“This is a special opportunity to recognize the commitment our student-athletes bring to both their sport and their studies,” said James Phillips, Director of Athletics. 

“Festival of Gold is about more than awards - it’s about celebrating the people behind the achievements and the strong sense of community that defines Wolves Athletics.”

Phillips hosted the event as Master of Ceremonies, presenting the top honours for 2025-26 to:

• Female Athlete of the Year - Reece Hollingworth, Women’s Soccer
• Male Athlete of the Year - Justice Bigstone, Men’s Volleyball
• Female Rookie of the Year - Reece Hollingworth, Women’s Soccer
• Male Rookie of the Year - Austin Guttinger, Golf

Individual Academic Excellence Awards were also presented to the student-athletes with the highest GPA on each team in the Fall Semester.

Men’s Volleyball

• Hudson Forbes

Women’s Volleyball

• Haley Demmans and Harshpreet Dhaliwal

Cross Country and Indoor Track

• Alana Paziuk

Women’s Soccer

• Emma Ecclestone

Men’s Soccer

• Evan Doerksen

Women’s Basketball

• Peyton Breen and C-aira Stucklschwaiger

Men’s Basketball

• Luca Citrigno

Each year, NWP recognizes the contributions of Wolves supporters who have played a major role in shaping the legacy of the Wolves program. Through our Wolves Leadership and Memorial Awards, we celebrate our motto, once a wolf, always a wolf.

• Darryl Nicoll Memorial Basketball Award - Kaden Gravengard
• Tim Pomeroy Memorial Volleyball Award - Jeremy Krileitch
• The Gary Kostiuk Memorial Volleyball Awards - Haley Demmans and Carter Tuttle
• Arthur Dunn Memorial Volleyball Scholarship - Josie Lund
• Aaron Tiller Memorial Soccer Award - Lily Marie Norigeon-Grehan and Michael Boucher
• Women’s Basketball Leadership Award - Peyton Breen
• Indigenous Student-Athlete Award - Savannah Lambert and Austin Guttinger 

Visit NWP.me/FOG to learn more about this year’s award winners and to view photos from the night’s festivities.

If you are inspired to support Wolves’ athletic and academic excellence, explore your options at NWP.me/PowerThePack.