FORT MYERS, Fla. – The first two Papa John's FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month have been announced with volleyball's Erin Shomaker (Granville, Ohio/Granville HS) and men's soccer's Ethan Dudley (St. John's, Fla./Bartram Trail HS) earning the distinction for August. Shomaker has led the volleyball team offensively with 99 kills this season, while Dudley has been a fixture on the defense for the men's soccer team starting all five matches so far this season.
 
A female and male Eagle are chosen as the Papa John's FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athlete of the Month throughout the academic year. Factors in the selection for the honor include a combination of significant athletic and overall success.
 
Shomaker entered the 2021 season as the ASUN's Preseason Volleyball Player of the Year after earning the league's highest honor last spring. Following the season, which was moved from the fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the outside hitter was named an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American and a VolleyballMag.com Honorable Mention All-American. She tallied 242 kills while hitting .304 and adding 152 digs and 28 blocks. For her career, she now has 574 career kills with 265 digs, 83 blocks, and 41 aces.
 
She holds a 3.85 grade-point-average in Health Science where she's been honored on the Dean's List, the ASUN Honor Roll, and the A.D. Honor Roll during her career. In addition to her work in the classroom, Shomaker has provided 32.5 hours of community service by helping with events such as beach clean-up, Night at the Nest, helping with the Wildlife Trail Cam project, and volunteering at San Carlos Elementary.
 
"Erin is off to another great start both in the classroom and on the court," said head coach Matt Botsford. "She does such an amazing job finding balance between these two areas; it's no surprise to see her achievements reflect those efforts."
 
Dudley entered his senior year as a member of the ASUN Men's Soccer Preseason All-Conference Team. Following last spring, he was named the ASUN Defensive Player of the Year while also earning distinction on the CoSIDA All-District Team and the ASUN All-Academic Team. He started all 10 games during the season where he played over 900 minutes while scoring two goals. Overall in his career, he has played nearly 2,300 minutes over 40 matches.
 
In the classroom, Dudley holds a 3.85 grade-point-average in communications where he has also been a member of the President's List, the Dean's List, the A.D. Honor Roll, and the ASUN Honor Roll. In the community, he has over 80 hours of volunteer service including events such as Night at the Nest, working at San Carlos Elementary, the Lee County Strikers, and the FGCU Thank-A-Thon.
 
"Ethan has been a tremendous leader for us; he is driven, ambitious and talented," said head coach Jesse Cormier. "His influence in the program and the field is obvious and he represents the academic values of the program and institution as an outstanding student."