SASS Academic Excellence Gala Celebrates MSU Student-Athletes
4/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | General
EAST LANSING, Mich. - Michigan State's Student-Athlete Support Services (SASS) hosted the 18th annual Spartan Academic Excellence Gala on Monday evening at the Breslin Center. The event recognized the academic success of Spartan student-athletes during the 2014-15 academic year.
Student-athletes with at least a sophomore academic standing and a 3.0 or better cumulative GPA were honored, as well as a number of individual award winners who excelled not only in the classroom, but in other endeavors as well. In all, 322 student-athletes were honored on Monday evening, the most ever in the event's history.
This year's distinguished keynote speaker was Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins. A native of Holland, Michigan, Cousins finished his career as Michigan State's all-time record holder in passing touchdowns, completions, passing efficiency, total offense and 200-yard passing games. Cousins was one of MSU's most involved student-athletes in the community, participating in numerous initiatives. He volunteered at the pediatric ward at Sparrow Hospital and the Sparrow Children's Miracle Network Telethon. Cousins was named as the 2011 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award winner and was awarded the 2012 Michigan State recipient of the Big Ten Conference Medal of Honor.
For the fifth straight year, the Academic Gala was grand sponsored by Dr. Bruce and Linda Cohen.
A long-standing tradition and highlight of the Gala is the musical entertainment provided by MSU's own student-athletes, highlighting the talents that stretch beyond competition and the classroom. This year, Michigan State women's golf freshman Greer Clausen, women's soccer's junior Shauna Stadelmaier and sophomore Michelle Dear, and rowing's junior Zion Keck and freshman Nicole Marek joined forces to perform "Pompeii" by Bastille.
The President's Award, the night's most prestigious award, was presented to golfer Jenny Sritragul and David Zoltowski of the swimming & diving team. The award recognizes the male and female graduating senior with the highest cumulative GPA and who has exhausted their eligibility in the 2014-15 school year.
A two-year letterwinner, Sritragul has achieved Dean's List honors every semester and maintains an impressive 3.94 GPA. The Bangkok, Thailand, native earned MSU's Best First-Year Player award as a freshman and was named to the National Golf Coaches Association All-Scholar Team twice. She was claimed Academic All-Big Ten and Big Ten Distinguished Scholar honors in 2013.
Zoltowski, a four-year letterwinner and two-time captain, has been on the Dean's List every semester at MSU. A native of West Lafayette, Indiana, Zoltowski holds a perfect 4.0 GPA majoring in electrical engineering. Zoltowski was awarded the 2015 Churchill Scholarship and 2014 Goldwater Scholarship. In addition to his success in the classroom, Zoltowski is also active in various community outreach events including Teams for Toys, Student-Athlete Food Drive and Relay for Life.
Head football coach Mark Dantonio, MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon, keynote speaker Kirk Cousins, and MSU Athletics Director Mark Hollis at Monday's Student-Athlete Support Services Academic Gala.
The men's tennis team and the women's golf program were honored with the Athletic Director's Awards for achieving the highest team cumulative GPA after the fall 2014 semester. Winning the award for the ninth straight year and for a record 12th time, the men's tennis team, coached by Gene Orlando, holds a 3.422 team GPA. Meanwhile, the women's golf team was recognized with the honor for the fourth straight year after the team boasted a department-high cumulative GPA of 3.567 with all eligible members qualifying for the Gala for the fourth year in a row.
Volleyball's Rachel Minarick and hockey's Joe Cox were presented with the Harold & Raynor Shnider Office of the Provost Awards. The honor is presented to a freshman or sophomore student-athlete who embodies the characteristics promoted by Student-Athlete Support Services, with emphasis on academic performance, community involvement and leadership ability.
Minarick holds a perfect 4.0 GPA as a kinesiology major, and is the starting setter after appearing in 32 matches as a freshman. She was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team and was an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American. Off the court Minarick was actively involved in community services projects such as Chuck-A-Puck, Ronald McDonald House and March is Reading Month.
Cox, a sophomore majoring in accounting, owns a 3.837 GPA. The two-year letterwinner and 2015 alternate captain earned Academic All-Big Ten honors in 2015. Cox is an active participate with Teams for Toys, Student-Athlete Food Drive and Accessible Trick-or-Treating. He is also the hockey representative for the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
Track & field senior and three-time Big Ten triple jump champion Tori Franklin was the recipient of the Multicultural Award, presented to the student-athlete who promotes inclusion as well as exhibits strong leadership in the areas of community service and diversity. Franklin owns the MSU and Big Ten indoor record in the triple jump and is a two-time USTFCCCA All-American. She is a three-time First Team All-Big Ten honoree and three-time Big Ten Triple Jump champion. Franklin is an active member of Student-Athlete Support Services Multicultural program and is a motivational speaker for Chicago Public Schools.
Football's Keith Mumphery was the winner of the Gwendolyn Norrell Community Service & Leadership Award. The award is presented to the student-athlete who best exemplifies the goals of the PACT (Putting Athletes and Community Together) program, excelling in the field of community service and outreach. The four-year letterwinner and two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree was a member of the winningest senior class in Michigan State history (42 wins), helping the Spartans to victories in the 2014 Rose Bowl and 2015 Cotton Bowl. The native of Vienna, Georgia, is an active participant in several events throughout the Greater Lansing area including helping at Sparrow Hospital Children's Center, Teams for Toys, Children's Miracle Network Telethon, Student-Athlete Food Drive, March is Read Month, MIPA Summer Workshop and Chuck-A-Puck.
The 2015 Steve Smith Philanthropy Award was presented to Bob and Julie Skandalaris for their continued support and generosity toward the Michigan State Athletics Department.
Finally, the Scholar-Athlete Awards were presented to the individual from each team who has reached at least junior academic status, has received a minimum of one varsity letter, and while meeting these requirements, maintains the highest cumulative grade point average on their team.
Baseball - Ryan Krill
Men's Basketball - Colby Wollenman
Women's Basketball - Cara Miller
Men's Cross Country - Garret Zuk
Women's Cross Country - Alexis Wiersma
Field Hockey - Mallory Tyler
Football - Mike Sadler
Men's Golf - Sean Friel
Women's Golf - Jenny Sritragul
Gymnastics - Brittany Holmes
Hockey - Justin Hoomaian
Rowing - Olivia Jamrog
Men's Soccer - Andrew Herr
Women's Soccer - Sarah Kovan
Softball - Ellie Stoffer
Men's Swimming & Diving - David Zoltowski
Women's Swimming & Diving - Kelly Delorme
Men's Tennis - Harry Jadun
Women's Tennis - Emily Meyers
Men's Track & Field - Ryan Haag
Women's Track & Field - Lauren Chorny
Volleyball - Margaret Halloran
Wrestling - Joe Johnson
Players Mentioned
