December 16, 2016
BLUFFFTON, Ohio - The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference recently announced the fall honorees of the HCAC All-Academic awards for the 2016-17 school year. Twenty-seven Bluffton University athletes were recognized for their efforts in the classroom. Volleyball led the way for the Beavers with eight honorees. Football and Cross Country were impressive with seven honorees apiece. Women's Soccer checked in with three honorees, while two were recognized from Men's Soccer.
Senior COLTEN ROYER (Convoy/Van Wert) earned his second Academic All-HCAC honoree while junior NOAH RATHBUN (Erving, Mass./Pioneer Valley Regional) also picked up his second straight award. Sophomores BRADLEY STINE (Laura/Milton Union), SAM STURM (Miamisburg), JASON SUMMERS (Alvada/Vanlue), THOMAS WAGLER(Bloomdale/Elmwood) and ETHAN WILLIAMS (Van Wert) all secured Academic All-HCAC recognition in their first year of eligibility.
Bluffton had seven runners from the cross country team named Academic All-HCAC following the 2016 season. Senior ANNA HAIRSTON(Mansfield/Ontario) secured her third straight HCAC All-Academic award while ALISSA HAUKE (Hillsboro) took home her second straight honor. A group of five sophomores earned Academic All-HCAC in their first season of eligibility. Honored were JONAH ECKERT (Terre Haute, Ind./West Vigo), DANIEL GREGG (Ontario/Mansfield Christian), JOHN JACOB HILL(Dayton/Wayne), MICHAEL LEHMAN (West Liberty/West Liberty-Salem) and AMELIA DEVONY MILLER (Findlay/Liberty Benton).
Seniors MACKENZIE MCFARLIN (Ashland) and LAUREN WEISGARBER (Bolivar/Tuscarawas Valley) collected Academic All-HCAC honors for the third consecutive season, all three years in which they were eligible. She was joined by junior LAUREN MILLER(Dayton/Miamisburg) who was recognized last year as well. Sophomores CASEY CLARK (Lima/Central Catholic), JESSIE GIBSON(Warsaw/River View), BETHANY MARTINI (Pickerington/North), ERIN WEISGARBER (Bolivar/Tuscarawas Valley) and COURTNEY ZIMPFER(Jackson Center) made it eight award winners from volleyball.
Senior ABBY KARIKAS (Curtice/Genoa Area) along with juniors KATELYN GARDELLA (Troy/Miami East) and BRITTANY HUFF (Union/Northmont) are both second-time honorees from the women's soccer team.
Seniors CHRIS WAGLER (Leipsic/Pandora-Gilboa), with his third straight Academic All-HCAC honor, and BLAKE HERSHBERGER(Canton/McKinley) were both honored following their final seasons on the Bluffton pitch.
To be named All-Academic HCAC, a student-athlete must have completed a full year at the institution, be a varsity athlete and carry a minimum cumulative grade point average of at least 3.50 through the semester preceding the end of the season.
Bluffton University is a liberal arts residential campus with undergraduate programs, adult degree completion programs in organizational management and human resource management and master's degree programs in education, organizational management and business administration. Founded in 1899 and affiliated with Mennonite Church USA, Bluffton is located in northwest Ohio. The institution has a growing enrollment of more than 1,100 students and 14 NCAA Division III athletics teams. Bluffton's hundred-year legacy is expressed today in its enduring values of discovery, community, respect and service that are woven into the academic program and campus life. Bluffton students go into the world prepared for life as well as for their chosen vocation.
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