Canada West MVP

Navid Mashinchi, a fifth-year midfielder for the UBC Thunderbirds men’s soccer team was named the 2014 Canada West Most Valuable Player.

The selection was announced at the Canada West Awards Reception hosted by the Saskatchewan Huskies at the Saskatoon Inn.

Mashinchi led the T-Birds to a 9-2-1 record and their consecutive Pacific Division title.

A Sauder School of Business student, Mashinchi scored eight goals in nine regular season games, which tied him for second in the league. The Port Moody, B.C., native also led the Canada West with nine assists to tie for first in the conference with 17 points.

“We are thrilled to see Navid receive this prestigious award in this his final season at UBC,” said head coach Mike Mosher. “Navid has been a top player in Canada West now for many seasons and this is a nice way to top off his university career following a very successful season in league play so far. Navid has also been a great teammate through his years and will go down as one of the nicest guys to come through our program.”

Along with the MVP honour, Mashinchi was also named to the Canada West’s First All-Star Team for the fourth time in his career.

The Port Moody, B.C., native is a Sauder School of Business student and a former Vancouver Whitecaps player.

Mashinchi is the third T-Bird in a row to win the MVP award after Gagan Dosanjh (2012) and Reynold Stewart (2013).

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR.

Mashinchi’s teammate on the T-Birds, Chris Serban, was named the 2014 Canada West Rookie of the Year today. 

The Calgary native becomes the second UBC Thunderbirds player in a row to be named the Canada West Rookie of the Year.

At just 18 years old, Serban quickly became an integral of the UBC defence, which surrendered a league-low seven goals during the season.

He started all 11 games in which he appeared, and rarely left the field. Serban played all but 16 minutes in his 11 regular season appearances. Offensively, he chipped in with two assists

“Chris has had a terrific first season at UBC and in Canada West,” said UBC head coach Mike Mosher. “He was one of our top performers each and every game this season.

He epitomizes what a good outside defender should be – quick, strong defensively, a good range of passing to keep possession and an ability to get forward and join the attack.”

Serban is a student in the Sauder School of Business. He came to the UBC program after graduating from the Vancouver Whitecaps Residency Program. Serban also played for the Whitecaps U-23 Premier Development League squad last year.

Congratulation on the recognition.