FORT MYERS, Fla. – Under the umbrella of the FGCU Athletics Life Skills Program, the Sixth Annual Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation Academic Honors Luncheon was held on Wednesday, Feb. 11, in the Cohen Center Ballroom on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University.
 
With a program that included Dr. Ronald Toll, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, student-athletes honored at the luncheon achieved a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 or higher and have attended FGCU for a minimum of two semesters. Among the 61 honorees at this year's event, 11 earned a perfect 4.0 GPA during the Fall 2014 semester.
 
"We are extremely proud of our student-athletes for the terrific effort they continue to put forth in the classroom while undertaking the demands of a Division-I schedule," said Director of Athletics Ken Kavanagh. "Their devotion to succeeding in the classroom, in athletic competitions and in the community is a source of pride for not only the department but for the entire University."
 
Highlighting the program – which was emceed by Bill Banfield – was Kelly Jean Brock, Director of Student-Athlete Learning, and Brian Boveington, Athletic Academic Coordinator, who presented the team awards, recognizing those who continue to reach new levels of excellence, not only on an individual basis, but collectively as a group.
 
With a 3.61 fall GPA, the highest team GPA was awarded to women's basketball as each member of the club earned a 3.0 or higher, and two women earned a perfect 4.0.
 
Women's golf won highest term GPA for an individual sport with a 3.76, continuing its stalwart success in the classroom as it posted a record 3.9 GPA last spring, and as a group it holds a 3.80 team GPA.
 
The third award of the afternoon was for most improved team GPA, which went to baseball. With nearly 35 men on the roster, the team went from a 2.89 in the spring to a 3.18 in the fall.
 
The final award of the luncheon was presented to women's tennis for the individual sport which made the greatest GPA improvement from spring to fall with a 3.63 GPA.
 
Jorge Lopez, Director of Student Financial Services since 2006, was bestowed the Special Recognition Award, presented annually to someone who has distinguished himself or herself by providing a superior level of service and support to student-athletes at FGCU in their pursuit of academic and athletic success. 
 
"Jorge is most deserving of this high honor and fits in extremely well with the outstanding group which has been recognized previously. He has continuously gone above and beyond to help all FGCU students to the best of his capabilities," stated Kavanagh. "In turn, over the course of the nearly decade since, he certainly has been of great assistance to not only countless Eagle student-athletes, but as a colleague to our Athletics staff.
 
"In particular, he has been a tremendous contributor of his valuable time and talents as FGCU Athletics made the important transition to Division I, serving as both a member of the NCAA Certification Review Steering Committee and as the Chair of the important Athletics Equity & Diversity subcommittee," Kavanagh continued. "A long-time member of the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee that is appointed by, and reports to, President Bradshaw, we are blessed to be able to work with such a quality individual who proudly serves his alma mater and makes our program better in the process."

The Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation recognizes student-athletes from Lee, Collier or Charlotte counties attending FGCU. It is named after Monk Hillmyer, founder of U.S. Homes Lennar in Southwest Florida and Elmer Tremont, Hall of Fame basketball coach in Lee County. It's the second scholarship endowment, and was established in 2001.
 
The FGCU Department of Athletics Life Skills Program was developed to provide a comprehensive program designed to reach each student-athlete based on his or her own individual needs. The focus of the program is holistic in nature – addressing the needs of the whole person athletically, academically, personally and emotionally.
 
The Life Skills Program is based on the premise that the same qualities and skills necessary for an athlete to attain a level of competitiveness in athletics can be applied to "real world" situations after college. The program's goals focus on supporting efforts of every student-athlete toward intellectual development and graduation, using athletics as preparation for success in life, meeting the changing needs of student-athletes, assisting student-athletes in building positive self-esteem and promoting ownership by the student-athletes of their academic, athletic, personal and social responsibilities. Additionally, the program seeks to encourage the development of leadership skills, enable student-athletes to make meaningful contributions to their communities and promote respect for diversity among student-athletes.
 
In addition to the individual successes which were recognized at the luncheon, as a whole, the student-athlete body earned a cumulative GPA of 3.28 for the fall semester, which surpassed that of the overall student body (2.98 GPA) for the 11th consecutive semester. Among the overall population of 254 student-athletes, 83 percent of the total 1,188 grades earned were above average ("B-" or higher), including a total of 594 "A"s.
 
The following are highlights and benchmarks achieved by each team in the fall semester:
 
Baseball: Most improved team from Spring 2014 to Fall 2014. Improved from 2.89 to a 3.18 term GPA.
 
Men's Basketball: Five scholarship players earned Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll recognition.
 
Men's Cross Country: Nine of the 13 members of the team earned a 3.0 term GPA or higher.
 
Men's Golf: During a coaching transition, the team still earned a 3.12 term GPA and overall 3.15 GPA.
 
Men's Soccer: Nine student-athletes earned Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll recognition.
 
Men's Tennis: Highest male team GPA with a 3.56 term GPA and 3.42 cumulative GPA.
 
Women's Basketball: Earned highest team GPA for Fall 2014 with a 3.61. All team members earned a 3.0 term GPA or higher.
 
Women's Cross Country: Improved their cumulative GPA from 3.38 to 3.43. All team members have higher than a 3.0 cumulative GPA.
 
Women's Golf: Earned the highest term GPA for all individual and team sports with a 3.76 GPA. Three of the eight team members had a perfect 4.0 term GPA.
 
Women's Soccer: 15 team members earned a 3.5 term GPA or higher.
 
Softball: Improved its term GPA from a 3.34 in the spring to a 3.60 GPA in the fall.
 
Swimming & Diving: 27 student-athletes had a term GPA of 3.0 or higher, and four student-athletes had a perfect 4.0 GPA for the term.
 
Women's Tennis: Improved its term GPA from 3.59 to 3.63. Eight team members had a term GPA of 3.2 or higher.
 
Volleyball: Improved its term GPA from 3.18 to 3.34.
 
Honorees:
Baseball (2)
Mario Leon
Bryan Voelkl
 
Men's Cross Country (3)
Courtland Bernard
Alex Delle Monache
Mathew Titus
 
Men's Golf (1)
Blake Biggs
 
Men's Soccer (1)
Steven Oliveri
 
Men's Tennis (3)
Chris Perrigan
Jordi Vives
Michael Beiler
 
Women's Basketball (9)
Jenna Cobb
DyTiesha Dunson
Taylor Gradinjan
Stephanie Haas
Haley Laughter
Amanda Moore
Bethany Murrell
Randa Payne
Chelsey Hanson (manager)
 
Women's Cross Country (1)
Courtney Corredetti
 
Women's Golf (5)
Sara Detlefsen
Chelsea Guoynes
Georgia Price
Rebecca VanEtten
Mei Khuan Yong
 
Women's Soccer (11)
Melissa Arnold
Emma Blackwell
Brittany Brown
Ally Kasun
Emily Dolan
Lauren Knight
Ashley Parks
Shea Rhoney
Julia Roddar
Tabby Tindell
Shannen Wacker
 
Softball (4)
Kelsey Carpenter
Louie Ross
Jeanie Verderese
Taylor Wade
 
Swimming & Diving (11)
Lani Cabrera
Caroline Hamilton
Sara Hamilton
Maggie Holling
Marcella Marinheiro
Claudia Reyes
Natalie Rochette
*Nina Schiffer
Blaine Small
Emma Svensson
Ellen Vann
 
Women's Tennis (4)
Elizabeth Means
Sarah Means
Candela Munoz Giron
Johanna Sterkel
 
Volleyball (4)
Whitney Masters
Gigi Meyer
Caroline Jordan
Marlene Moeller
 
Cheerleading (2)
Lauren Allen
Katie Jones
 
Bold indicates 4.0 Fall 2014 GPA    *Denotes 4.0 cumulative GPA
 
Former Special Recognition Award Winners:
2010 – Bernie & Elaine Lester
2011 – Hillmyer-Tremont Foundation Board
2012 – Dr. Cecil Carter (retired Faculty Athletics Representative)
2013 – Dr. Jim Wohlpart (Dean of Undergraduate Studies)
2014 – Sam & Carol Crimaldi
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU has won a combined 40 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 7+ Division-I seasons as a member of the A-Sun and Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association. Furthermore, in only 3+ seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, FGCU has sent 10 teams to the NCAA Tournament, while men's golf, swimming and diving and men's tennis have had an individual participate in their respective NCAA Championship, bringing the total NCAA appearances for FGCU to 16 since the 2011-12 season.

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