FORT MYERS, Fla. - The Suncoast Credit Union FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month for December have been announced with
Kerstie Phills (Charlotte, N.C/Charlotte Christian/Wagner) of women's basketball and
Osman Humeida (South Riding, Va./Freedom HS/Virginia Tech) of men's cross country earning the honor. Phills helped the Eagles go 4-1 in December while Humeida came off a strong finish at NCAA Regionals.
A female and male Eagle are chosen as the 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. Caleb Catto of men's basketball and Wiktoria Czarnecka of swimming and diving earned the distinction for the month of November.
Phills started all five games for the Eagles in December as the Green and Blue went 4-1, including wins over Michigan State and High Point. She averaged 5.4 points and 3.0 rebounds per contest, highlighted by a nine-point, seven-rebound performance against Ave Maria. For the season, Phills has started all 14 games and is averaging 7.1 points per game, fourth-highest on the team, as well as shooting .405 from beyond the arc, the best among the starters. This past weekend, she had a season-high 19 points in the win over Jacksonville as the Eagles improved to 13-1 overall and 2-0 in ASUN play.
Off the court, Phills holds a 3.74 GPA while pursuing her master's in Health Science. She has also contributed over 80 hours of community service, volunteering her time at Night at the Nest, Midwest Food Bank, PPEC, Spring Fling, Soaring with Service, and Meals of Hope.
"Kerstie is an excellent student and she takes her classes seriously," said head coach
Karl Smesko. "She is also performing very well on the court and is playing some of the best basketball of her career."
Humeida finished off one of the finest seasons in FGCU cross country program history when he finished 56th overall at the NCAA Southeast Regionals. His time of 31:25.08 is the third-fastest 10K in program history which came just two weeks after he set the 8K school record with a time of 24:32.80 at the ASUN Championship in which he finished 13th overall en route to earning All-ASUN Second-Team honors.
In the classroom, Humeida holds a 3.43 GPA while pursuing his master's in Educational Leadership with a Concentration in Higher Education. He has also volunteered his time in the community, helping out at Night at the Nest and Immokalee Middle School.
"We are so happy for Osman to receive this honor. Not only did he break our school record this fall he continues to excel in his graduate work," said head coach
Cassandra Goodson. "The intangibles are what really sets him apart he's calm, easy to work and positive. He brings this energy to his running and academics."
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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 86 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 14+ seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just nine seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 42 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 25, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2021) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as three of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green and Blue posted a department-best sixth-place finish in the DI-AAA Learfield Directors' Cup and top-100 showing nationally, ahead of several Power-5 and FBS institutions. In 2018-19, the Eagles had an ASUN and state of Florida best seven teams earn the NCAA's Public Recognition Award for their Academic Progress Rate in their sport. FGCU also collectively earned a record 3.50 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2020 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 24 consecutive semesters. The 2019 Fall, 2020 Spring, 2020 Fall, and 2021 Spring semesters each saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher team GPA in each. The Eagles also served an all-time high 7,200 volunteer hours in 2017 - being recognized as one of two runners-up for the inaugural NACDA Community Service Award presented by the Fiesta Bowl.
