Utah State Recognizes 150 Student-Athletes at Annual Whitesides Luncheon

Utah State Univesity’s athletics department recognized 150 student-athletes for achieving a 3.2 grade point average at the 16th annual Joe E. and Elma Whitesides Scholar-Athlete Luncheon, held on the USU campus April 22. To be eligible for the honor, student-athletes must have a cumulative 3.2 grade point average or have posted a 3.2 GPA during the last two semesters.

In all, approximately 45 percent of USU’s student-athletes earned a 3.2 GPA to qualify for the awards.

 

The top honorees during the luncheon was volleyball player Rebecca Anderson, and track athletes Tyler Ellis and Alison Taylor who were recognized as the Joe E. Whitesides Award recipients. It is the first time in the 54-year history of the award that three student-athletes have been honored.

 

Anderson, a senior from Logan, Utah (Logan HS), posted a 3.94 grade-point average while majoring in statistics. As a three-year letterwinner on the volleyball team, she appeared in 71 matches and earned academic all-Western Athletic Conference honors three times, including academic all-district honors twice.

 

Ellis, a senior from San Diego, Calif. (Rancho Bernardo HS), carries a 3.89 GPA and is majoring in pre-physical therapy. During his two years of competition on the track team, he earned second-team all-WAC honors in 2008 as he finished fifth in the shot put at the WAC Indoor Championships, and academic all-WAC honors twice.

 

Taylor, a senior from Salt Lake City, Utah (Skyline HS), has a 3.89 GPA while majoring in biology. As a member of the cross country and track teams, she helped Utah State win the 2008 WAC Cross Country Championship, and at the 2009 WAC Indoor Championships she was a member of the winning medley relay team. Taylor is also a three-time academic all-WAC honoree.

 

All three Joe E. Whitesides Award recipients will graduate from Utah State this spring [2009] with bachelor’s degrees.

 

Utah State also handed out team honors as the women’s tennis team was named the top academic team with less than 20 members, while the women’s track team was the top academic team with more than 20 members, and men’s track was the most improved academic team.

 

Gary Wilkinson, who is a senior on the men’s basketball team, received the Aggie Achievement Award for overcoming life challenges and personal adversity to ultimately excel as a student-athlete and obtain a high level of academic achievement at Utah State University.

 

Head Utah State Athletic Trainer Dale Mildenberger and Gary Stevens, who is the vice president of Spindler Construction, were presented the Meet The Challenge Award for their hard work and dedication to the Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex, and Morgan Summers was given the Outstanding Tutor Award for her work with USU’s student-athletes.

 

The Whitesides honors started in 1953 by former USU athlete, coach and athletics director Joe E. Whitesides.

 

 

Whitesides Winner ­(s): Rebecca Anderson (Volleyball), Tyler Ellis (Men’s Track), Alison             Taylor (Women’s Track)

Meet The Challenge: ­ Dale Mildenberger and Gary Stevens

Aggie Achievement Award:­ Gary Wilkinson

Outstanding Tutor: ­ Morgan Summers

 

 

1. Women’s Track

2. Women’s Soccer

3. Men’s Track

 

 

1. Women’s Cross Country

2. Men’s Cross Country

3. Women’s Tennis

 

 

1. Men’s Cross Country

2. Men’s Basketball

3. Softball

 

 

College of Agriculture: Jennifer Day, Women’s Track & Field; and Heidi Hopkins, Women’s Track & Field.

 

Jon. M. Huntsman School of Business: Katie Astle, Volleyball; Steven Atkinson, Men’s Track & Field; Lindsey Benson, Softball; Michael Bills, Men’s Track & Field; Blake Bolen, Men’s Track & Field; James Brindley, Football; Brandon Broadhead, Golf; Adrian Bybee, Football; Ben Calderwood, Football; Alice Coddington, Women’s Basketball; Devin Daniels, Golf; Chase Griffiths, Football; Heather Heinrich, Gymnastics; Brady Jardine, Men’s Basketball; Nicole Johnson, Women’s Basketball; Tyler Labrum, Golf; LeeAnn Palo, Women’s Basketball; Alexandra Marsh-Gentry, Soccer; Jordan McMurray, Men’s Track & Field; Eric Moats, Football; Brandon Nielsen, Men’s Tennis; Casey Parker, Men’s Track & Field; Sydne Porter, Soccer; Angelina Rawls, Softball; Marissa Sanchez, Soccer; Patrick Scales, Football; Hailey Swenson, Women’s Tennis; Thad Truman, Golf; and Chris Ulinski, Football.

 

Emma Eccles Jones College of Education & Human Services: Justine Baugh, Women’s Track & Field; Alan Bishop, Football; Rayna Bradshaw, Softball; Ashlee Cannon, Women’s Track & Field; Jessie Chugg, Women’s Track & Field; Candice Clark, Soccer; Kira Datwyler, Women’s Track & Field; Shantell Durrant, Volleyball; Tyler Ellis, Men’s Track & Field; Nicole Felley, Gymnastics; Josh Flores, Football; Kaylene Gastaldi, Women’s Track & Field; Vanessa Gledhill, Women’s Track & Field; Jared Glenn, Men’s Track & Field; Chance Godderidge, Golf; Sonia Grabowska, Women’s Track & Field; Kate Greenough, Softball; Nnamdi Gwacham, Football; Blake Hadfield, Men’s Track & Field; Kali Hamby, Women’s Track & Field; Lauren Hansen, Soccer; Jeanine Hernandez, Softball; Brittni Hopkin, Women’s Track & Field; Stacey Howard, Women’s Basketball; Jacob Hutton, Football; Washington Igboeli, Football; Brad Jakel, Football; Katelyn Jensen, Women’s Track & Field; Megan Johnson, Soccer; Kimiko Kamo, Women’s Track & Field; Shanda Larsen, Volleyball; Krista Larson, Women’s Track & Field; Marie Livingston, Women’s Tennis; Jacob Mabey, Men’s Track & Field; Bryan Marchant, Men’s Tennis; Christine Morrill, Volleyball; Otis Nelson, Football; Shanna Nielsen, Women’s Track & Field; Kiersten Nilsson, Soccer; Ana Pares, Women’s Basketball; Emily Reilly, Softball; Erin Salmon, Soccer; Kandace Shoell, Women’s Track & Field; Stefani Shiozaki, Soccer; Clinton Silcock, Men’s Track & Field; Lindsey Smart, Soccer; John Strang, Men’s Track & Field; Erin Stratton, Women’s Track & Field; Bridgette Strickland, Women’s Tennis; Summer Tillotson, Soccer; Shasta Tyteca, Softball; Tai Wesley, Men’s Basketball; Lori Wilson, Volleyball; and Lisa Willardson, Soccer.

 

College of Engineering: Sam Hawkins, Men’s Track & Field; and Ruth Hilton, Women’s Track & Field.

 

College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences: Chelsea Burns, Women’s Basketball; Camille Fehlberg, Women’s Track & Field; Karlie Fitzgerald, Women’s Track & Field; Matt Formisano, Men’s Basketball; Ali Griffin-Godfrey, Soccer; Heather Hillier, Volleyball; Kris Hymas, Volleyball; Camarie Jones, Softball; Nathan Lloyd, Men’s Track & Field; Alyssa Lowry, Soccer; Devin Markle, Gymnastics; Brooke McNaughton, Women’s Track & Field; Tyler Newbold, Men’s Basketball; Melissa Osterloh, Volleyball; Kelsie Packham, Women’s Track & Field; Tanner Richins, Football; Heidi Saville, Women’s Track & Field; Richard Sirju, Men’s Basketball; Steven Strickland, Men’s Track & Field; Britney Watts, Women’s Tennis; Gary Wilkinson, Men’s Basketball; and Heath Wing, Men’s Track & Field.

 

College of Natural Resources: Daniel Howell, Men’s Track & Field; Kimberly Quinn, Women’s Track & Field; Casey Snider, Men’s Track & Field; and Chalese West, Women’s Track & Field.

 

College of Science: Rebecca Anderson, Volleyball; Cortnie Broadus, Women’s Track & Field; Maria Halton, Women’s Track & Field; Erica Huelsmann, Gymnastics; Spela Hus, Women’s Track & Field; John Johnson, Men’s Track & Field; Molli Merrill, Soccer; Dusty Ott, Men’s Track & Field; Nicole Rupp, Softball; Danielle Shorts, Soccer; and Alison Taylor, Women’s Track & Field.

 

University: Jordan Barlow, Men’s Tennis; Brittney Boyack, Soccer; Liran Braun, Men’s Tennis; Dominique Cooks, Men’s Basketball; Rachel Flessner, Gymnastics; Jordan Glass, Football; Jervon Graves, Football; Todd Griffith, Men’s Track & Field; Aimee Haertel, Women’s Track & Field; Skyler Halford, Men’s Basketball; Madison Jensen, Women’s Track & Field; Tyler Killpack, Men’s Track & Field; Mitchel Lancaster, Men’s Track & Field; Carla Limon, Women’s Tennis; Elizabeth McArthur, Volleyball; Cache Morgan, Football; Taylor Perry, Women’s Tennis; Megan Rhoads, Soccer; Alexis Venable, Soccer; and Jon Wilson, Football.

School of Graduate Studies: Caroline Berry, Women’s Track & Field; Michael Green, Football; Derek Hoke, Football; Ashley Johnson, Women’s Track & Field; and Lydia Whitehead, Women’s Basketball.

 

Additional Aggie sports news is available at the Athletics homepage Web site.

Contact: Doug Hoffman, (435) 797-3714