Athlete of the Week - Robbie Luba

Luba was a busy athlete in his youth, spending most of his time playing hockey and soccer for CDS and area rep teams. He eventually decided to focus solely on playing AA hockey with the Aurora Tigers, until three years ago when a concussion suffered while playing rugby sidelined him. “I couldn’t play the rest of the year, it kind of killed me. They asked me to play the next year, but my brain just couldn’t function as it used to. So I decided to focus solely on playing school sports and slowly bringing myself back.” The set-back was difficult, but it hasn’t changed the competitive edge that Robbie brings to every single game. Now focusing solely on recreational and CDS sports, Robbie exhibits the same focus and intensity today.

 

With this change in schedule, Robbie returned to play CDS soccer and joined the Varsity team in Grade 11. He quickly began to prove himself, capitalizing on opportunities when given to him and earning a starting spot as an attacking mid-fielder. The determination to improve and his commitment to the squad was noticed by coaches Sandy Townsend and Peter Milonas, as Luba was awarded the captains armband for his final season at CDS. “[Luba] is one of the hardest working athletes in practices and games,” explains Coach Milonas. “As the captain, he always held his teammates accountable.”

 

The same leadership skills were recognized by Coach Smith, who helped choose Robbie as the captain of this year’s Senior Boys’ Hockey team. “Robbie is not only a pleasure to coach, but also a great teammate. He is a true competitor who hates to lose. His work ethic, effort, and resiliency makes everyone around him better.”

As a defenseman, it gives Robbie the perfect position to see the entire ice and lead his team. With the team sitting at 7-1-1, Robbie hopes he can bring the championship home for a third consecutive season, but admits his team must improve to make sure it happens. “We’ve had up-and-down results this season, losing to bad teams and destroying really good teams.” Make no doubt about it, he is determined to win another gold medal, “We totally want to win, I’m not missing school in my Grade 12 year to lose, we want to get out there and win [the championship].”

 

Robbie doesn’t hesitate when asked about his favourite CDS sports memory. At last year’s CISAA Championship Tournament semi-finals versus hosts, Toronto French School, Robbie popped up in the penalty box to get a toe on a corner kick from James Wyndham-West ’17, winning the game in the 90^th minute and sending them to the finals. “It was unforgettable, I ran over to James and was quickly piled on by our teammates as Coach Milonas went nuts. I actually hurt my ankle in the celebration.”

 

But his favourite memory doesn’t end there. Just a few hours later, CDS was in the final versus regional rival Villanova College. “It was a very physical game, we were trying our absolute best to beat a team which had some really great rep players.”  With the match tied 1-1 late in the game, Robbie once again found himself in a position to make a difference as the ball fell out of the air at the top of the 18 yard box. A calculated volley off his left foot saw the ball hit the net to settle the game, 2-1.  Once again, Robbie was swarmed and his coaches celebrated. “It was the best experience of my high school career.”

 

This spring, Robbie plans on joining the Track and Field team to compete in running, specifically the 400m, which he feels is his specialty.

 

Robbie is very complimentary of all of the coaches he has at CDS. He describes Mr. Smith as fiery, Mr. MacMillan as calm and collected, and has an interesting take on his soccer Coaches Townsend and Milonas. “They are like good cop, bad cop. But sometimes they can both be bad cop. They like to make us run all the time to build up our fitness.”

 

Known for his leadership qualities, Robbie has also been recognized with various sportsmanship and MVP awards throughout his years at CDS.