FORT MYERS, Fla. – The FGCU Department of Athletics has announced its monthly academic honorees for December. Women's basketball's
Taylor Gradinjan and baseball's
Marc Coffers were named the Scholar-Athletes for the month of December.
Each month during the school year, the FGCU Athletics Communication Office and Athletic Academic staff will choose a pair of Eagles – one male and one female – as the FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month. Those selected for the honor will have exhibited a combination of superior athletic and overall academic success.
Gradinjan (Cudahy, Wis./Cudahy HS) possesses a 4.0 GPA (3.78 undergraduate) after earning a Bachelor's in Exercise Science and working toward a Master's in Health Science. The redshirt senior has been named to the ASUN All-Academic Team two times in her career and was selected to the CoSIDA Academic All District 4 Team last season.
The Wisconsin native joined the 1,000 point club in the team's win over Southeastern on Dec. 5. The 10th player to reach that milestone, she also now has 1,032 career points, which is 9th most in program history and the 8th most in the Division-I era. She is on pace to become the program's all-time leader in games played, needing 15 more for a total of 141 to edge out Jaime Gluesing. Gradinjan has scored double figures in seven of 13 games this year, and is the team's third-leading scorer at 10.6 PPG.
Coffers (Naples, Fla./Barron Collier HS) currently carries a 3.64 GPA while majoring in Communications. Coffers was named the 2017 ASUN Tournament MVP as a freshman after hitting .500, posting a .593 on-base percentage and slugging .650 with five runs, one home run and five RBI's in six ASUN Tournament games.
The Naples native scored the game-winning run in the top of the 10th inning against Jacksonville to give FGCU its first-ever ASUN Tournament title. Coffers was one of three FGCU freshmen to join the ASUN All-Freshman Team after appearing in 48 games and earning 46 starts in the outfield. His defense showcased well as he turned in a .971 fielding percentage and ranked second on the team with four outfield assists.
TOYS FOR TOTS
The FGCU Athletics Department, FGCU Police Department, Lee County Sheriff's Office and Heroes Unlimited have teamed up to participate in a holiday toy drive. New, unwrapped toys are being collected, and will be delivered to the Golisano Children's Hospital of Southwest Florida on Friday, Dec. 23. Collection boxes have been placed in the lobbies of Alico Arena, UPD and the FGCU Family Resource Center until Wednesday, Dec. 20. No toy is too small, and all toys will be wrapped prior to delivery.
ABOUT FGCU
In its 11th season at the Division-I level, FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 65 conference regular season and tournament titles. Additionally, in just 6+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had 31 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best 6th-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. FGCU also claimed the ASUN All-Sports Trophy for the third-straight year and fourth time in five years in 2016-17, in addition to collectively earning a 3.27 GPA in the classroom and serving an all-time high 7,200+ volunteer hours – being recognized as one of two runner-ups for the inaugural NACAD Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
FOLLOW ALONG
Ticket information for upcoming events is available by logging on to FGCUTickets.com or by calling 239-590-7145. Additional news and schedule information is available at FGCUAthletics.com. Follow us on Twitter (@FGCUEagles), Facebook (/FGCUAthletics), Instagram (@FGCUAthletics) and YouTube (/FGCUAthletics).
SUPPORT THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
