Three Stars: Shimoda, Obasuyi, Janda earn honours
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – Women's volleyball student-athlete Payton Shimoda is the MacEwan Athletics first star of the week after averaging a nuclear 14 assists per set in the Griffins' weekend sweep of the Brandon Bobcats.
Shimoda finished with 84 assists in six sets and joined the conference's top 20 in career assists, currently sitting in 19th.
Women's basketball guard Unity Obasuyi and men's basketball forward Job Janda are the second and third stars of the week, respectively.
It's the third time this season that Shimoda has made the Three Stars list, following third star selections on Sept. 30 and Dec. 2.
Obasuyi is also being honoured for the third time in 2025-26 after being named first star on Nov. 18 and third star on Nov. 4.
Janda is making his first appearance of the campaign on the Three Stars list.
Payton Shimoda finished with 84 assists in six sets against the Brandon Bobcats last weekend (Husain Dhooma photo).
1st STAR: Payton Shimoda, S, women's volleyball
Edmonton, AB, fifth-year, Commerce
In the final home weekend of her illustrious five-year career, Shimoda delivered one of her finest performances, racking up 84 combined assists in six sets in the series against Brandon.
That's an eye-popping 14 assists/set average.
In Friday's 3-0 win over Brandon, she cracked the top 20 in Canada West history in career assists with her 2,650th in the first set. She finished with 38 assists, two kills, an ace, nine digs and a block.
W��| TOP 20
— MacEwan Griffins (@MacEwanGriffins) January 31, 2026
Congrats to @GriffinsWVB setter Payton Shimoda, who, with her third assist vs. the @BUBobcats on Friday night has moved into the top 20 in @CanadaWest history in career assists!
She's at 2,650 and climbing.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/hqOJMNmwDs
In Saturday's 3-0 win over Brandon, Shimoda produced 36 assists, one kill, an ace and 12 digs.
Shimoda will enter the final regular season weekend of her career at Alberta on Feb. 13-14 with 2,721 assists – currently 19th in conference history.
For the season, she has 577 assists (fifth in Canada West) and is averaging 8.49 assists/set (eighth).
The Griffins are on a bye this weekend.
Unity Obasuyi scored a combined 45 points in two games against the Brandon Bobcats last weekend (Aidan Froese photo).
2nd STAR: Unity Obasuyi, G, women's basketball
Edmonton, AB, third-year, Commerce
For the third time this season, Obasuyi cracked 30 points in a game as she put up 30 against Brandon last Friday.
In the 108-91 loss to the Bobcats, she led the Griffins in scoring and added three rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block.
Unity doing Unity things.
— MacEwan Griffins Women's Basketball Team (@Griffins_WBB) January 31, 2026
Obasuyi has 18 first-half points to pace the @MacEwanGriffins, who are hanging in there vs. @BUBobcats but have some work to do in the second half, trailing 63-48 after 20 minutes.#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/9XVxDhb55L
In Saturday's 72-66 defeat, Obasuyi co-led the Griffins with 15 points, adding three rebounds and two steals. She was also a strong defensive presence, tasked with guarding Brandon's top player Piper Ingalis, holding her to just five points in the second half.
For the season, Obasuyi continues to lead the Griffins in scoring, averaging 16.4 points/game, which is tied for the third-best mark in Canada West.
The Griffins are back home for their final weekend of 2025-26 as they host Regina on Friday (5 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m., both David Atkinson Gym, Canada West TV).
Job Janda led the Griffins in scoring both nights against Brandon and nearly had a triple double on Saturday (Aidan Froese photo).
3rd STAR: Job Janda, F, men's basketball
Calgary, AB, fifth-year, Commerce
The fifth-year senior had his best weekend of the 2025-26 season, leading the Griffins in scoring both nights against Brandon.
In Friday's 100-89 loss to the Bobcats, Janda had 15 points, four rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Job Janda knocks down a big three to start the fourth quarter for the @MacEwanGriffins!#GriffNation pic.twitter.com/l4S8sVuKqS
— MacEwan Griffins Men's Basketball Team (@Griffins_MBB) February 1, 2026
In Saturday's 96-84 defeat, the Griffins' captain came close to a triple double with 18 points, eight boards, seven assists and a steal. His work defensively was huge for MacEwan also.
For the season, Janda is third on the Griffins in scoring, averaging 8.5 points/game, and also third in rebounding with 4.5/game.
Janda will head into the final series of his university career this weekend when the Griffins close out the season vs. Regina on Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (5 p.m., both David Atkinson Gym, Canada West TV).
