FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Suncoast Credit Union FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month for January have been announced with
Haley Yerxa (Ottawa, Ontario/Hillcrest) of the women's golf program and
Brian Ellis (Oviedo, Fla./Hagerty HS) of baseball 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. Kerstie Phills of women's basketball and Osman Humeida of men's cross country earned the distinction for the month of December.
Yerxa had a strong fall campaign highlighted by winning the 44
th Annual Pat Bradley Invitational along with a 12
th-place finish at the Jupiter Women's Invitational. Since the start of the spring portion of the schedule she has also posted a third-place finish most recently at the First Coast Classic. For the season, Yerxa ranks second on the team in scoring average at 73.40 strokes per round including a low round of 69 at the Pat Bradley Invite.
In the classroom, Yerxa carries a perfect 4.0 grade-point-average as a software engineering major. The redshirt junior was named a WGCA All-American Scholar last spring. She has been a member of the President's List, the Dean's List, the AD Honor Roll, and the ASUN Commissioner's Honor Roll during her time at FGCU. Yerxa was also an inaugural member of the EAGLE Leadership Institute and a member of the Eagles Council (SAAC) where she currently serves as Vice President. In 2019, she took 2nd place in the 2019 Hertz Hackathon and has served as a Co-Op Student Software Developer for BlackBerry as well as a Junior Software Developer for Bell. She is currently a Junior Data Scientist for HELUX. Additionally, she serves as an Academic Tutor while also volunteering with several organizations in the community such as the Gulf Coast Humane Society, the Salvation Army, and Octagon.
"Haley is really having an outstanding year on the course and has always been a tremendous student," said head coach
Sarah Trew. "To see her having this level of success makes all of us proud because it's a reflection of her hard work and dedication both to golf and her academics."
Ellis has been a stalwart for the baseball program during his career and has helped the Eagles to a 2-2 start after its split with Cincinnati. He was earlier named to the Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award (BBCSA) Watch List which is based on performance at the plate, academics and personal integrity.
Ellis, first team captain in FGCU history, is coming off an outstanding 2021 season in which he was named to the All-ASUN First Team after slashing .361/.489/.475 with 31 RBI and 45 runs scored. He started every game in the outfield and hit leadoff, setting the tone for every contest, getting on-base in nearly half his at-bats as he is currently the active leader in the NCAA in on-base percentage at .494. He also used his speed to steal seven bases and roam the outfield to the tune of a .983 fielding percentage.
Starting his career as walk-on, the redshirt-junior has turned himself into one of the top-players not only in the ASUN but also the nation. Ellis also is always willing to help the community as he has volunteered over 80 hours of community service with multiple organizations. He is a member of the Eagles Council (SAAC) and is also a part of the E.A.G.L.E. Leadership Institute.
"Brian had a great opening weekend; he continues to do things that are special on the field, in the community, and in the classroom," said head coach
Dave Tollett. "He's the first captain I've had in 33 years of being a head coach which I think speaks volumes about the type of person he is. Brian's very deserving of this award."
In the classroom, Ellis excels as well, having already earned his undergraduate degree in health science with a GPA of 3.79. He is currently pursuing a graduate certificate in Health Services Administration where he has a 4.0 GPA.
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ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 87 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 43 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.
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