FORT MYERS, Fla. – Former women's basketball combo guard Whitney Knight has been named FGCU's Most Outstanding Female Athlete and former baseball second baseman Jake Noll garnered FGCU's Most Outstanding Male Athlete award for 2015-16, department officials announced Thursday.
 
The honors culminate brilliant final seasons by both athletes. Knight is just the fifth athlete in FGCU Athletics history to be named a two-time recipient of the award (co-winner last year), joining men's tennis's Jordi Vives (2014, '15), women's basketball's Sarah Hansen (2012, '13) and Kate Schrader (2006, '07) and softball's Kelly Powe (2004, '05).
 
Noll, meanwhile, is the third-different baseball player in the last three years to win the award, joining Nick Rivera last year (co-winner with Vives) and Mike Murray in 2014. Noll and Knight continue a tradition of excellence for their respective teams as baseball and women's basketball now have nine winners each – tied for the most in the award's history.
 
The award honors the best FGCU male and female athlete for the previous year. It has been handed out since 2002-03 – FGCU's first year as an NCAA member (Division I since 2007-08) – and the award is presented annually at the Welcome Back Picnic, which this year will take place on Aug. 22. All nominees (included at the end of this release) have either earned all-conference first team honors or better and been named as a league player of the year in their respective sport.

Knight was selected with the 15th overall pick in the WNBA Draft in April by the Los Angeles Sparks following her redshirt senior season. Noll, meanwhile, was a 7th-round selection of the Washington Nationals in the MLB Draft in June following his redshirt junior campaign.
 
WHITNEY KNIGHT
The 2016 Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year, Knight (Winston-Salem, N.C./R.J. Reynolds High School) was also named an Associated Press All-American Honorable Mention.
 
"I am honored and happy to have been selected as the Most Outstanding Female Athlete," said Knight. "There are so many talented athletes at FGCU, and it's an honor to be recognized among them for my abilities. FGCU helped me grow tremendously as an athlete, and I'm so grateful for this honor."
 
Knight missed the first eight games of the 2015-16 season, but despite that she still posted team highs of 13.2 points and 7.2 rebounds per game over 30 contests. Knight scored 10 or more points on 20 occasions with five 20-point performances, including a season-high 25 at Lipscomb on Jan. 24. The versatile guard also recorded eight double-doubles on the year, including three in the team's WNIT run.
 
Knight knocked down 83 3-pointers and a posted a 79.4 percent success rate from the free-throw line. Defensively, she pulled down 216 rebounds, with 55 coming in the team's six WNIT games. Knight topped the team and the ASUN with 99 blocks and finished the year ranked 12th nationally, despite playing just 77 percent of the season. Even with the limited playing time, Knight also finished among the nation's top 35 in 3-pointers made.
 
"Whitney had an outstanding career at FGCU, and she had an amazing final season coming off injuries and still being ASUN Player of the Year and being drafted into the WNBA," commented head coach Karl Smesko. "We're tremendously proud of her achievements."
 
In Knight's 30 games on the court, FGCU went 27-3 with a 21-game win streak and a run to the WNIT Championship Final. With Knight, the Eagles outscored opponents by an average of 63.4 to 46.3 points per game and continued their run to national prominence.
 
JAKE NOLL
The 2016 ASUN Player of the Year, Noll (Punta Gorda, Fla./Charlotte HS) was tabbed as a First Team All-American by two different national media outlets. Additionally, he was named a Second Team All-American by two other outlets and was a member of the All-South Region Team.
 
"I grew a lot both as a player and a person during my time at FGCU, and I'm thankful for every opportunity I was given," commented Noll. "This award is special to me as it comes from the administration and coaches, and it's a great way to cap off my career."
 
A former walk-on without a single D-I scholarship offer, Noll finished the season ranked first or second in the conference in seven offensive categories while ranking third in another. Noll led the ASUN in runs scored (58), hits (87) and total bases (147), while ranking second in slugging (.620), RBI (61), doubles (20), tied for second in home runs (12) and third in average (.367).
 
Not only was Noll the only player in the ASUN to rank inside the top-five in all the aforementioned categories, but also, entering the final week of the regular season, was the only player in the NCAA to rank inside the top-40 in hits, RBI, runs scored, doubles and average.
 
"I couldn't think of anyone more deserving of this award than Jake," stated head coach Dave Tollett. "He's a special talent, and that paired with his hard work and dedication to the sport has paid dividends. This is another great honor to add to his long list of accolades."
 
After entering the season with three home runs in his career, Noll's 12 long balls last year ranked tied for seventh most in FGCU's single-season history. His 87 hits during the 2016 campaign that saw the Eagles advance to their first ASUN Tournament title game ranked sixth, while his 20 doubles and 61 RBI ranked tied for ninth and his 58 runs scored and .620 slugging percentage registered 10th.
 
2015-16 NOMINEES
MALE
Aaron Guillen – Soccer
Nathan Ingham – Soccer
Jake Noll – Baseball
Marc-Eddy Norelia – Basketball
Rodrigo Saravia – Soccer

FEMALE
Emma Blackwell – Soccer
Elise Haan – Swimming
Whitney Knight – Basketball
Katie Latham – Swimming
Riley Randolph – Softball
Louie Ross – Softball
Fanny Teijonsalo – Swimming
Tabby Tindell – Soccer
 
PREVIOUS AWARD WINNERS
2015-16 – Jake Noll (Baseball) & Whitney Knight (W. Basketball)
2014-15 – Jordi Vives (M. Tennis)/Nick Rivera (Baseball) & Emma Svensson (Swimming & Diving)/Tabby Tindell (W. Soccer)/Whitney Knight (W. Basketball)
2013-14 – Mike Murray (Baseball)/Jordi Vives (M. Tennis) & Kira Toussaint (Swimming)/Kelly Perzanowski (W. Cross Country)
2012-13 – Sherwood Brown (M. Basketball) & Sarah Hansen (W. Basketball)
2011-12 – Ricky Knapp (Baseball) & Sarah Hansen (W. Basketball) 
2010-11 – Adam Glick (M. Soccer) & Shannon Murphy (W. Basketball)/Courtney Platt (Softball) 
2009-10 – Chris Sale (Baseball) & Chelsea Lyles (W. Basketball) 
2008-09 – Josh Upchurch (Baseball) & Cheyenne Jenks (Softball) 
2007-08 – Jason Peacock (Baseball) & Carmen Paez (Softball) 
2006-07 – Beau Bauer (M. Basketball) & Kate Schrader (W. Basketball) 
2005-06 – Juan Carlos Osorio (Men's Tennis)/Jason Louwsma (Baseball) & Kate Schrader (W. Basketball) 
2004-05 – Bryan Crislip (M. Basketball)/Richard Stempnowski (M. Tennis) & Kelly Powe (Softball) 
2003-04 – Leighton Bowie (M. Basketball) & Kelly Powe (Softball) 
2002-03 – Chris Brown (Baseball) & Trish Fleming (W. Basketball)
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 53 conference regular season and tournament titles in just nine seasons at the Division-I level. Additionally, in just five seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had 23 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Seven programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sports. In 2014-15, FGCU finished 9th in the Division I-AAA Learfield Sports Director Cup final standings, ahead of several prominent Big East, Missouri Valley and Atlantic 10 Conference members.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
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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.