FORT MYERS, Fla. - The Suncoast Credit Union FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month for October have been announced with fifth-year Dana Axner (Dublin, Ohio) of volleyball and fifth-year Jon Hopkins (Bishop's Stortford, England/
Mississippi Gulf Coast CC) of men's golf earning the honor.
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. Ashley Labbe of women's soccer and
Magnus Johnson of men's tennis earned the distinction for the month of September.
Axner has been a force in the back row this season with 475 digs toward the Eagle cause, placing fourth in the ASUN and 52 nationally. The Dublin, Ohio native is just 24 digs away from becoming the ASUN's all-time career digs leader. Earlier this season, Axner surpassed Whitney Hendry to become FGCU's all-time leader.
She has been vital in helping the Eagles boast one of the nation's lowest opponent hitting percentages this season, No. 24 at 164 percent. Axner has also guided the Eagles to 23 wins, 15 sweeps and the No. 2 overall seed for the upcoming ASUN Tournament. Her 4.66 digs per set ranks fourth in the ASUN, 49th in the nation.
Axner has produced 20-or-more digs in eight matches with a season high of 33 at Central Arkansas and been named the ASUN Player of the Week.
In the classroom, Axner has been just as solid with 3.92 undergrad GPA while studying secondary mathematics ed and is now striving for her master's in educational technology. She has also contributed to the community with more than 100 hours of service hours, including organizing and rallying Hurricane Ian relief efforts.
"From the volleyball court to the classroom, Dana is a high achiever that works extremely hard to put herself in the best position she can to succeed," said head coach
Matt Botsford. "Having the opportunity to watch that from my position, knowing what she balances on a daily basis and the level to which she does so, continues to amaze me. While this recognition is for the month, Dana's consistent performance over the entirety of her career is what really stands out and we are so proud of her."
Hopkins has suited up in three of the four fall tournaments for the Eagles this season, amassing a 73.89 round average. He led all Eagles at the Daniel Island Intercollegiate with a season-best finish of T3rd on the player leaderboard, helping propel the Eagles to a runner-up team effort just behind No. 23 Mississippi State,
Despite not taking first, FGCU still bested No. 61 South Carolina by 10 strokes and No. 48 Mercer by 22 shots.
Hopkins improved each round and shot a 2-under 70 during the final round of play. He entered the clubhouse 2-over (218) for the tournament. For the fall, Hopkins has carded two par or better rounds in nine tries, including a season low 69.
When not on the links, Hopkins has a 3.9 GPA in management with a concentration in international business. He has also contributed more the 30 hours of community service with the food bank and Hurricane Ian cleanup efforts.
"We are really proud of Jon," said head coach
Andrew Danna. "This award is a testament to all his hard in the classroom."
For complete coverage of FGCU athletics, follow the Eagles on Twitter (@FGCUEagles), Instagram (@FGCUAthletics) and Facebook (@FGCUAthletics) and online at www.FGCUAthletics.com. You can also sign-up to have news on FGCU athletics and all 15 sport programs delivered directly to your inbox by visiting www.fgcuathletics.com/email.
E.A.G.L.E. CAMPAIGN
IT TAKES A TEAM to achieve our newest goal - a $10 million campaign to address student-athlete needs in continued academic success, life skills, mental health, nutrition, and strength and conditioning as well as departmental needs in facility expansion and improvement as well as mentoring and leadership training for coaches and staff. The name embodies our mission and the purpose of the E.A.G.L.E. Campaign - Eagle Athletics Generating Lifetime Excellence. Join Our Team and pledge your gift today to help the Eagles of tomorrow!
#FEEDFGCU
FGCU Athletics sponsors events in November and April 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.
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 93 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15 seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11 seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 45 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn at at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Eight FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport - including women's basketball (No. 20, 2021-22), beach volleyball (No. 20, 2022) and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as four 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 26 consecutive semesters. The past five semesters (Fall 2019 – Spring 2022) saw another milestone reached as all 15 programs achieved a 3.0-or-higher cumulative team GPA. 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.
