It was quite the rookie campaign for York University Lions women's rugby coach Spencer Robinson. 

Robinson, who hails from Pickering, Ont., has been involved in the sport of rugby at the provincial, national and interuniversity levels for three decades. Though, he had never held a U SPORTS head coaching job prior to being hired by the Lions in June to take over a young York team in search of a new direction. 

All Robinson did in his first season at the helm was bring the program its first two wins since 2022, guiding them to a 2-4 season. With a win in the season finale against Toronto, the Lions would have qualified for the OUA playoffs for the first time since 2019. However, a loss in that game meant the Lions narrowly missed out on the OUA playoffs. 

Despite finishing on the outside looking in on the postseason picture, the success achieved by the Lions under Robinson garnered the former firefighter the OUA Coach of the Year award. Robinson becomes just the second Lions bench boss to win the award, after Joe Costello, who led the program from 2009-15, won the award three times in four years (2012, 2014-15).

By winning the conference award, Robinson also became the OUA nominee for the Jim Atkinson Award as U SPORTS Coach of the Year, which was one by Duncan McNaughton of the Ottawa Gee-Gees, who play out of the RSEQ.