Scholar Teams of the Year
Awarded to the men's and women's teams with the highest respective cumulative team GPAs in the department.
Men's Golf
3.427 Team GPA
Jimmy Bunner, Nick Campeau, Jared Faber, KJ Haverdink,
Jonah Kumfer, Logan Marshall, Brendan Patmalnieks, Mark Sturm
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Women's Tennis
3.453Â Team GPA
Audrey Blodgett, Emma Crouse, Fatima Gutierrez, Kyla Heckaman,
Layla Jojo, Emily Kirkham, Makenna Moore, Alexia Pena,
Audriana Plothow, Anna Pope, Saige Rinkenberger, Moana de Souza Martins
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All-Academic Team
Awarded to a member from each team in the department with the highest individual cumulative GPA.
Sullivan Swingley
Baseball
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Filip Segota+
Men's Basketball
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Maggie Deboy+
Women's Basketball
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Maddie Hess
Women's Basketball
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Reed Ellis+
Men's Bowling
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Lauren Jackson
Women's Bowling
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Faith Livensparger+
Cheer
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Josiah Railton+
Men's Cross Country
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Megan Cooper
Women's Cross Country
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Becca Broadwick
Women's Lacrosse
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Franklin Joyce
Men's Soccer
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Emily Smithberger
Women's Soccer
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Jakob Forsythe+
Men's Swim & Dive
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Emma McClelland+
Women's Swim & Dive
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Jacob Ropp+
Men's Track & Field
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Jael Wood
Women's Track & Field
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Madyson Beaver
Women's Volleyball |
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+ Two-Time Honoree
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Greater Impact Community Service Award
Awarded to the team who shows a commitment to go above and beyond to support the greater Mishawaka community in line with the Bethel Athletics' core value of servant leadership as voted by Bethel's athletic administration.
Women's Basketball Reserves
Organized by Jamie Lawson, the women's basketball program served Faith Mission in Elkhart by helping clean and move furniture into a house for Faith Mission's discipleship housing program and returned to paint tiny homes for residents who have graduated from their programs.
Finalists: Men's & Women's Tennis w/ BuddyUp Tennis, Baseball w/ Score International, Men's Basketball w/ Transformation Ministries, Women's Volleyball w/ Transformation Ministries
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Student-Worker / Intern of the Year
Awarded to the athletic department intern or student-worker who has shown a commitment to the stewardship and betterment of Bethel Athletics, as voted by Bethel's athletic administration.
Jacob Imhof, Athletic Administration Intern
Imhof was an intern for athletic administration this year and assisted in all aspects of game and facility management and sports information all season long. Following his graduation in May, Imhof has accepted a position as a Sports Information Graduate Assistant at Bethel in the fall.
Finalists: Hannah Frady, Robert Schrock, Jessica Shurety, Rachel Vendl
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Coach of the Year
Awarded to the top coach in Bethel Athletics for success on and off the field of competition during the year as voted by Bethel's athletic administration.
Christopher Hess, Women's Golf
Hess returned to coaching this year and guided the women's golf program to the first national championship in program history with the win at the NCCAA National Championship in October. He was named the NCCAA National Coach of the Year and NCCAA North Central Region Coach of the Year and helped four Pilots earn NCCAA All-American status, including the program's second-ever national champion medalist.
Finalists: Thiago Pinto - Men's Soccer, Deb Thompson - Swim & Dive, Katie Weiss - Women's Volleyball, Dan Wort - Esports
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Ron Paulsen Memorial Grants
Awarded to the top male and female athletes who show a commitment to the four core values of Bethel Athletics of spiritual formation, athletic development, servant leadership, and academic excellence, as voted by Bethel's athletic coaching staff. Named after late student-athlete Ron Paulsen ('71).
Corey Jones, Men's Track & Field
Coach Wilkerson says of Jones, "His accomplishment both athletically and "Bethically" continue to grow each year, including being a two-time Crossroads League event champion, a four-time NCCAA event champion, and a four-time NAIA qualifier. He brings to his team a strong work ethic and leads by example. Off the track, Corey is a Resident Assistant and helps cultivate Christ-centered relationships. Through his time at Bethel, he has faced many different hardships, but through it all he remains strong in his faith and connected to his Bethel family. He embodies what it means to be a student-athlete at Bethel."
Finalists: Trevor Miller - Men's Cross Country, Myles Moser - Men's Bowling
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Katie Blauw, Women's Golf
Coach Hess says of Blauw, "Katie displays so many of the qualities that define what a Bethel Pilot is all about and it makes her a wonderful representative of the Ron Paulsen Award. Katie brings an outstanding work ethic and leads her team with a fierce loyalty and love for her teammates. Her love for Christ is on display consistently and Katie's joyful character is contagious with her team and on Bethel's campus."
Finalists: Megan Cooper - Women's Cross Country, Kayla Kunkel - Women's Track & Field, Maddy Payne - Women's Volleyball, Quinn Slattman - Softball
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Dave Slater University Spirit Award
Awarded to the top male and female athletes who show a commitment to go above and beyond to support the Bethel University community, as voted by Bethel's Student-Athlete Leadership Team. Named in honor of late Bethel legend Dave Slater.
Life Granville, Men's Basketball
Coach Drabyn says of Granville, "Life is a student-athlete that has great character, is a positive leader on campus, and makes everyone around him better. Life is driven to be the best student and athlete he can be, thinks about others before himself, and understands how to treat people. He models our core values of unity, humility, gratefulness, mindset, and fearlessness extremely well and we love having him a part of our program."
Finalists: Sebastian Alonso - Men's Track & Field, Cannon Harris - Esports, Ellis Jones - Men's Soccer, Andrew Miranda - Baseball
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Addi Jones, Women's Basketball
Coach Auker says of Jones, "Addi is extremely outgoing, friendly, and cares about others more than herself. It seems as though she knows every single person on campus, and she attempts to attend multiple sporting events across campus every week! When hearing the applause from her fellow student-athletes, I heard her name shouted from every section of the gym, just reinforcing my thought that she is known by every team on campus! She is the ultimate competitor, and I truly believe she will continue supporting her fellow Pilots as often as she can."
Finalists: MarKalah Barnes, Women's Track & Field, Emma Crouse - Women's Tennis, Madison Garton - Women's Soccer, Shikara Rollf - Cheer
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Reserves Team Players of the Year
Awarded to the top male and female athletes that have contributed to a reserves role this year, as voted by Bethel's Student-Athlete Leadership Team.
Logan Marshall, Men's Golf
Coach Hess says of Marshall, "Logan is a great example of what strong work ethic and personal discipline can do for you in your sport, but even more impressive is his Christian character and the ultimate teammate that he is. He is Salt & Light daily on this campus and having his peers recognize this is amazing!"
Finalists: Kory Kern - Men's Soccer, Drew Polsgrove - Men's Basketball, Reylyn Yoder - Esports
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Haley Berger, Women's Volleyball
Coach Weiss says of Berger, "Haley is hardworking and brings energy to the court. She has been a positive teammate and has added to the success of the reserve program for several years."
Finalists: Lydia Andrews - Women's Basketball, Morgan Kast - Women's Golf, Tatum Strayer - Women's Soccer
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Plays of the Year
Awarded to the best and most exciting male and female highlights across the department this year, as voted by Bethel's Sports Information Department.
Luan Bressy, Men's Soccer
Bressy's golden goal off Maza's assist in the 99th minute of the regular season finale secured the win over Spring Arbor 2-1 and gave the Pilots the outright Crossroads League Championship for the second consecutive season.
Finalists: Thomas Jackson - Men's Track & Field, Cam Napier - Esports, Jeremy Wiersema & Alex Stout - Baseball
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Jordan Mihut, Women's Soccer
Mihut lofted a shot from the right-side edge of the 18-yard box over the goalie off Beck's assist just before time expired in the 100th minute of Crossroads League season opener to give the Pilots a 2-1 win for their second straight overtime win and eclipse their win total from the previous year.
Finalists: Halle Shipp - Women's Basketball, Hannah Frady - Softball, Cheyanne Seymour - Women's Volleyball
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Breakthrough Athletes of the Year
Awarded to the most improved male and female athletes of the year, as voted by Bethel's Student-Athlete Leadership Team.
Franklin Joyce, Men's Soccer
Last year, Joyce made one start in six appearances, with three saves and 1.49 goals against average in 120 minutes played. This year, Joyce received Honorable Mention All-Crossroads League, made 16 starts in 16 appearances with 30 saves and 0.44 goals against average with 7 shutouts—both top 10 marks in the NAIA—in 1,444 minutes played.
Finalists: James Goodlink - Men's Bowling, KJ Haverdink - Men's Golf, Frank Plesac - Baseball, Avery Richarson - Men's Cross Country
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Madison Kauffman, Women's Track & Field
Last year, Kauffman recorded a PR in the Indoor Weight Throw of 14.90m. This year, Kauffman was named the NCCAA Indoor Field Athlete of the Meet, an NCCAA national champ in the Indoor Weight Throw, with a PR of 16.40m, and qualified for the NAIA Indoor National Championship.
Finalists: Katie Blauw - Women's Golf, Jenna Crockett - Women's Lacrosse, Emma McClelland - Women's Swim & Dive, Emmie Pugh - Softball
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Rookies of the Year
Awarded to the best male and female athletes in their first year at Bethel, as voted by Bethel's Student-Athlete Leadership Team.
Brennen Bargesser, Men's Track & Field
Bargesser was an NCCAA Indoor National Champion in the 4x200m Relay and a three-time NCCAA Indoor All-American in the 4x200m Relay, DMR, and 400m, as well as qualifying for the NAIA Indoor National Championship in the 200m and 400m with top 30 finishes in each.
Finalists: Alexavier Arce - Men's Cross Country, Nick Bohm - Men's Swim & Dive, Victor Bonsergent - Men's Tennis, Brandon Hunt - Men's Basketball
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Josefina Gonzalez, Women's Swim & Dive
Gonzalez finished her season as an NAIA All-American and an KCAC champion. She qualified for the NAIA National Championship in eight events and recorded 22 top five times in program history—including eight program records.
Finalists: Alexia Pena - Women's Tennis, Ella Schipma - Women's Bowling, Elaina Schwendenmann - Women's Cross Country, Maiah Shelton - Women's Basketball
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Players of the Year
Awarded to the top male and female student-athletes of the year, as voted by Bethel's Student-Athlete Leadership Team.
Thomas Jackson, Men's Track & Field*
Jackson repeated as the NAIA Indoor Long Jump National Champion—becoming the third Pilot in men's program history to win multiple individual NAIA national titles—and was named the USTFCCCA Great Lakes Region Indoor Field Athlete of the Year for the second consecutive year. Jackson is currently the third-ranked Long Jumper in the NAIA in Men's Outdoor.
Finalists: Jonah Kumfer - Men's Golf, Joao de Oliveira - Men's Soccer, Zak Shaffer - Esports
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Caleb Berrong, Men's Swim & Dive
Berrong was a two-time NAIA All-American this year and qualified for the NAIA National Championship in eight events. He set 10 program records and recorded 21 top five times in program history, helping the Pilots to a 14th-place finish at the NAIA National Championship.
Finalists: Jonah Kumfer - Men's Golf, Joao de Oliveira - Men's Soccer, Zak Shaffer - Esports
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Jessica Shurety, Women's Golf
Shurety led the Women's Golf program to their first-ever team national title at the NCCAA National Championship and earned All-American status and Medalist honors for the program's first-ever NCCAA individual national title as well. She has five medalist finishes this season in nine events and finished in the top three in three of the other four—jumping into a tie for second in program history with eight medalist finishes in her career. She has recorded an average of 77.0 this season.
Finalists: Esther Karhayu - Women's Golf, Kayla Kunkel - Women's Track & Field, Isabelle North - Women's Volleyball, Gabrielle Reinoehl - Cheer
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*Repeat Winner
