Drouin to make leap from Prep to CIS
Posted on 21. Feb, 2011 by Barry Hayes in Canada Spotlight, High School
As one of the many Canadians currently playing for a prep school program looking for an eventual post-secondary playing career, Charlie Drouin is proving you can stay in Canada to do both. The Next Level Academy (Oakville, ON) forward recently committed to the University of Western Ontario (London, ON) Mustangs for the fall.
“We are very excited Charlie has committed to our program,” said Western head coach Brad Campbell. “He is a very versatile forward and is a strong competitor. Charlie is a winner and does many of the little things it takes to win games.”
The 6’5” combo forward transferred to Next Level this year after helping lead the St. Thomas Aquinas Raiders (Oakville, ON) to two OFSAA ‘AA’ medals. In 2009, he scored a game-high 20 points in their dramatic 55-53 overtime win for Gold. Last year, Aquinas medalled again, finishing with a Bronze. His inside-outside game has continued to flourish at Next Level Academy this season, as head coach Adam Nicholson has organized a busy schedule of challenging games across Canada and the USA.
“My Next Level basketball experience has been very good,” said Drouin. “It’s a high level of competition and we travelled to some very big tournaments, which got me a lot of exposure.”
Charlie’s decision came down to Western and the University of Alberta Golden Bears. The Mustangs recently honoured their three graduating seniors, All-Canadian Andrew Wedemire (6’6” F), Brett Lawrence (6’0” G), and Marcus Barnett (6’1” G).
“What I liked about Western was the way I was welcomed on my visits to campus,” said Drouin. “The coaches made me feel welcome and wanted. The Western program can excel into a top program in the next couple years and I feel that I will really excel and grow under (head coach Brad Campbell’s) style of play.”
“Charlie will have a bright future in the Purple & White,” added Campbell.
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