Previous Suncoast Credit Union Student-Athletes of the Month

FORT MYERS, Fla. –  The Suncoast Credit Union FGCU Athletics Scholar-Athletes of the Month for April 2023 have been announced, with senior beach volleyball player Maddison Parmelly (Rockwall, Texas/Rockwall Heath) and junior men's golfer Austin Cherichella (Orlando, Fla./Lake Nona HS) earning the honor.

One male and female Eagle are chosen each month as the FGCU Athletics scholar-athlete throughout the academic year. Factors in the selection for the honor include a combination of significant athletic and overall academic success. Softball player Tayli Filla and baseball player Brian Ellis earned the February 2023 awards.
 
The award is the second for Parmelly and the second for Cherichella. It is the eighth Scholar-Athlete of the Month award for FGCU beach volleyball, and the 15th for men's golf.
 
Parmelly entered the 2022-23 season by being named to the ASUN All-Conference Team, and teamed with junior Kacie Johnson (Frisco, Texas/ Lebanon Trail) to win the first ASUN Pair of the Week award for the season. 
 
Johnson and Parmelly would go on to register a 19-17 overall record this season at No. 1, and delivered upset victories over No. 15 FAU on three separate occasions – most recently earning back-to-back victories against the Owls on April 12 for Senior Day. Johnson and Parmelly also downed teams from No. 10 Georgia State and No. 18 Stetson. Parmelly passed 60 career victories this season. 
 
Parmelly was named to the ASUN First-Team for a second straight year and made her way on the ASUN All-Academic team with a 3.79 GPA.  At the ASUN Tournament Parmelly and Johnson went 3-2 and played in the ASUN Title match against Stetson.   
 
"Maddie is about as dedicated as they come in the classroom and on the sand," said FGCU head beach volleyball coach Chris Sweat. "She knows how to balance being a student-athlete, and is going to do great in grad school the next few years. I'm very excited to see what the future holds for her."
 
Cherichella competed in all 11 of FGCU men's golf tournaments this season, boasting the lowest round average among any Eagle at 72.36 en route to earning ASUN Second Team honors. His 2023 season round average ranks as the 10th lowest in program history.
 
The Florida native carded a team-leading 16 par-or-better rounds -- six consecutive -- and also posted a team-leading eight rounds in the 60s with a season-low 65 at the ASUN Championship. Cherichella's second-round 65 tied the lowest round ever posted at an Eagle at the ASUN Championship. He finished tied for 21st at 6-under-par.
 
Through the first 36 holes, Cherichella sank eight birdies, produced two eagles, and had only two bogeys. He was one of just two golfers to connect on multiple eagles at the championship event. Cherichella was a mainstay near the top of the leaderboard all season long for FGCU, posting one top-five, one top-10, one top-15, one top-20, and three top-25 performances on the individual leaderboard.
 
Cherichella put together a season-best finish of T3rd at The Hayt to propel FGCU to a third-place team finish, including four top-five team efforts throughout the season and a season-best Golfstat.com team ranking of No. 51. In the classroom, Cherichella was a Dean's List recipient last fall and earned his first ASUN All-Academic Team distinction this season while holding a 3.54 GPA in PGA Golf Management.
 
"We are very proud of Austin, both on the golf course and in the classroom," said FGCU men's golf coach Andrew Danna. "He does a great job with time management, and this award is a testament to that skillset."
 
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 (https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/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 https://www.fgcu.edu/adminservices/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
 
ABOUT FGCU
FGCU teams have combined to win an incredible 98 conference regular season and tournament titles in just 15-plus seasons at the Division I level. Additionally, in just 11-plus seasons of D-I postseason eligibility, the Eagles have had a combined 48 teams or individuals compete in NCAA championships. In 2022, the men's golf team became the first program to earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament. Nine FGCU programs have earned a top-25 national ranking in their respective sport – including women's basketball (No. 20 in 2021-22 and No. 22 in 2022-23), baseball (No. 15 in 2023), beach volleyball (No. 20 in 2022), and both men's soccer (2018, 2019) and women's soccer (2018) as five of the most recent. In 2016-17, the Green & 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 3.67 GPA in the classroom in the fall 2022 semester and has outperformed the general University undergraduate population for 27 consecutive semesters. The past seven semesters (Fall 2019-Fall 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.
 
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