Trailblazing University of Manitoba placekicker out boots the men to earn Canada West all-star honours

November 7, 2024 Canuck

Maya Turner is continuing to kick down the doors to the male-dominated world of Canadian university football.

One year after becoming the first female to play a game in U Sports football, the University of Manitoba Bisons placekicker has been chosen a Canada West all-star.

“It’s always been one of my goals not just to be good at kicking for a girl, but good in the league, in the conference,” Turner said during a video news conference Thursday.

The second-year starter was named the best kicker in the six-team conference after making 12 of 16 field goals and converting all 25 of her extra-point attempts in the regular season.

She followed that up with a perfect performance in the Canada West semifinal last weekend, splitting the uprights on two field goal attempts and one extra point. Despite her efforts, the top-seeded Bisons were upset by the University of Regina Rams.

“Maya had a great year, flat-out,” U of M head coach Brian Dobie said Thursday.

A football coach has his hands in the shoulders of a female football kicker, who smiles as they speak. — Bisons head coach Brian Dobie, right, says Maya Turner’s all-star selection is further proof the second-year kicker is ‘the real deal.’ (Danielle Langlois/Intuition Studios)

Despite losing “a shocker” to the Rams only a few days earlier, Dobie was all smiles on Thursday when saying how proud and happy he was about Turner’s all-star nod.

“If there were any doubters about her abilities and her accomplishments, that was certainly validation right there,” he said.

And lest anyone question Turner’s range, her 48-yard field goal against the Saskatchewan Huskies last month was the eighth-longest in the country this season.

“Maya is the real deal,” Dobie said. “Even in the CFL, a 48-yarder isn’t just a chip shot, it’s not a gimme.”

Turner an ‘unbelievably humble’ athlete: coach

After taking over as the Bisons kicker midway through last season, Turner said she wasn’t expecting year-end accolades so early in her career.

“Our team played really well this year throughout the season and just really set me up for success and allowed me to have this opportunity,” she said.

Turner was one of nine Bisons to earn conference all-star honours, including quarterback Jackson Tachinski and left guard Giordano Vaccaro, who on Thursday were named player of the year and lineman of the year, respectively.

Dobie, who was chosen the Canada West coach of the year, described Turner as an “unbelievably humble” athlete, who has been embraced by her teammates and students. He said she is routinely surrounded by flocks of fans after games, wanting to talk and take pictures with her.

WATCH || How one football player has started The Maya Effect

How one football player has started The Maya Effect

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Maya Turner is a trailblazer in university men’s football, and she’s inspiring other young women to follow in her cleats.

“I’ve done this for 50 years, I’ve never seen anything close to this … in our country and university,” he said.

Turner said she loves to connect with fans, especially the girls who might one day follow in her footsteps.

“I’m just so humbled to be able to be that person that other girls look up to in that way.”

Now that the season is over, Turner said she probably won’t practise kicking for a month or two. Instead, she plans to hit the gym, working out lifting weights and sprinting on the track, in the hopes of improving her explosiveness.

With two years of university eligibility remaining, Turner isn’t looking too far ahead. But she doesn’t sound interested in hanging up her cleats any time soon.

“I want to just keep playing, see how much I can improve,” she said.

“Then after that, yeah, just try to play at the highest level whether that’s on some sort of men’s professional team … just play at the highest level I can.”

Dobie said there’s no reason why Turner couldn’t play at the next level, whatever that may be. He noted she’s already shown no obstacle is too great, having left her old university in Chicago, her home in Minnesota and her original sport of soccer.

A teammate holds the ball for a placekicker, who is seen in mid-kick, just before contacting the ball. — Turner made a conference-leading 75 per cent of her field-goal tries this past season, booting 12 of 16 attempts through the uprights. (Courtesy University of Manitoba Bisons)

“She had to climb a lot of hills and a lot of mountains,” he said. “She’s tough, I think that’s part of the reason for her success is because she’s really mentally tough.”

As she continues on her athletic journey, Turner said she continues to be motivated by her love of kicking, the game of football and the experience of being part of a team competing at a high level.

“If you have a goal and it’s what you really want to do, there’s nothing that’s stopping you from achieving that,” she said.

“If you want it bad enough, it can be done.”

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