A couple weeks ago, the Women’s Athletic Association (WAA) and Order of the “C” (OOC) athletic organizations held banquets to recognize outstanding Maroons for their athletic, as well as academic, endeavors.
Tuesday, May 13 was the 110th annual WAA Banquet. The head coaches of each sport spoke about their teams and announced their Most Valuable Players as voted on by the players themselves.
After the MVPs were announced, the Ballwebber Award was presented to four athletes, one from each class. The Class of 2017 recipient was Britta Nordstrom (basketball), 2016’s was Jordan Poole (softball), 2015’s was Eirene Kim (volleyball), and 2014’s was Natalia Jovanovic (soccer).
The prestigious Gertrude Dudley Medal was given to runner Michaela Whitelaw for her leadership skills and her four stellar years on cross country and track and field. The Patricia R. Kirby Award was given to fourth-year softball player Maddie McManus for her service to the community, and the Mary Jean Mulvaney Scholar-Athlete Award was presented to fourth-year runner Sarah Peluse for maintaining the highest GPA. Twenty-five fourth-years were also nominated as Senior Blanket Winners.
The banquet concluded with the presentation of the Heart of the Team Award, which was given to fourth-year volleyball player Morgan Clark.
Second-year teammate Maren Loe was not surprised with the recognition of Clark’s accomplishments.
“I cannot think of a more deserving candidate than Morgan Clark,” Loe said. “She’s the hardest worker and best teammate, she was dedicated to WAA, and she graduated early (even as a transfer) to go into the Peace Corps this spring.”
The following week’s event, on Tuesday, May 20, marked the 111th annual Order of the “C” Varsity Letterman’s Banquet. In keeping with tradition, the ceremony began with the customary signing of the book for the new Order of the “C” inductees. After the final introduction of the outgoing Executive Board came a formal introduction and ceremonial induction of the new 2013–2014 Executive Board of the OOC.
Following the ceremonial induction of the new inductees, several new head coaches presented the Most Valuable Players and individual Sport Awards.
The individual Sport Awards included: the J. Kyle Anderson Award, given to fourth-year baseball player Brett Huff; the Max Davidson Award, given to fourth-year tennis player Krishna Ravella; the Ted Haydon Medal, given to fourth-year runner Daniel Povitsky; the Joseph A. Stampf Award, given to fourth-year basketball player Sam Gage; and the Wrobel Trophy, given to first-year wrestling standout Charles Banaszak.
After the presentation of the Mary Jean Mulvaney Scholar-Athlete Award to fourth-year runner Samuel Butler, the OOC Rookies of the Year were announced. This honor was granted to Banaszak and first-year tennis player Sven Kranz. In addition, 35 fourth-years were nominated as Senior Blanket Winners.
Krishna Ravella gave a moving speech and then the esteemed Amos Alonzo Stagg Medal was presented. This award, which was bestowed by Athletic Director Erin McDermott, is traditionally given to the senior male athlete who embodies an exemplary student-athlete through devotion to his sport, as well as to his character and work ethic outside of his sport. This year, the award winner was swimmer Eric Hallman for his four exceptional seasons and admirable attitude.
