PSAC Names Winter 2004-05 Top Ten
PSAC Names Winter 2004-05 Top Ten
(May 5, 2005)
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference has named a group of outstanding student-athletes as the league’s Winter Top Ten Awards winners.
The Top Ten Awards, selected by the PSAC’s sports information directors, recognize student-athletes who distinguish themselves in the classroom, as well as in the arena of competition. The conference designates Top Ten Award winners after each of the sports seasons: fall, winter and spring.
To be a candidate for the Top Ten Awards, a student-athlete must have achieved a minimum of a 3.25 cumulative grade point average and must be a starter or key reserve with legitimate athletic credentials. Only student-athletes from the winter sports season are eligible for the Winter Top Ten Awards. Those sports are: wrestling, men’s and women’s basketball, men's and women's swimming, and men’s and women’s indoor track & field.
At the end of the academic year, the league announces the Scholar-Athlete Awards, which recognize student-athletes on all PSAC squads with 3.25 cumulative GPAs or better. Additionally, the PSAC names the top Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of Year.
Following are biographical sketches of the PSAC’s 2004-05 Winter Top Ten recipients:
Michelle Albanese
Senior, Bloomsburg
Women’s Basketball (Wilmington, Del./St. Mark's)... Albanese carries a 3.69 GPA while studying secondary education. She finished the season averaging 10.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.9 steals per game. She was second on her team in three-point field goals made with 45 and led the Huskies in three-point field goal percentage (11th in the PSAC - 34.6%). Albanese was chosen for first-team All-PSAC East honors for the second year in a row. She ends her career first in school history in three-pointers made with 207, fifth in assists with 369, and eighth in all-time scoring with 1,208 points.
Heather Cigich
Senior, Clarion
Basketball (Johnstown, Pa./Conemaugh Twp.)...Cigich carries a 3.68 GPA in the field of elementary/early childhood education. Due to her success this season, she was selected as a first team All-PSAC West team and second team all-region. Cigich ended the season ranked second in the PSAC in field goal percentage (56%), third in the PSAC in scoring (17ppg), and fifth in the PSAC in rebounding (9.7 per game). She helped lead Clarion to a Western Division second place finish with a PSAC record of 10-2. Cigich was a three-time first-team PSAC-West pick and was second-team PSAC-West her freshman year. Cigich ended her career as Clarion's third in career points (1,832), second in career rebounds (1,121) and third in career blocks (82).
Preston Gibbs
Sophomore, Slippery Rock
Indoor Track & Field (Hermitage/Hermitage)... Gibbs maintains a 3.86 GPA as a business major. He won the PSAC Championship this year in both the triple jump and the long jump, qualifying him for the NCAA Division II Indoor National Championships, where he placed 10. Due to his success this season, Gibbs was named as the U.S. Track Coaches East Regional Athlete of the Year for the 2004-05 indoor season.
Corey Jacoby
Junior, Shippensburg
Wrestling (Hanover/Delone Catholic)... Jacoby has earned a 3.43 GPA as a marketing major. At 197 pounds, Jacoby captured the NCAA Division II title in his weight class. He had the highest placement of any Division II wrestler at the PSAC Championships, placing second. This year he finished with an overall record of 30-3, with all three loses coming in overtime. He collected 12 pins, four major decisions, and one technical fall on the year. Jacoby is a two-time All-American (4th in 2004) with a career record of 81-17. Going into his senior year, he has tallied 23 pins and 11 major decisions.
Matt Kurtz
Senior, West Chester
Basketball (Schwenksville/Spring-Ford)... Kurtz maintains a 3.71 GPA while studying business management. He earned first-team All-PSAC East honors for the first time in his career after finishing the season fifth in PSAC in three-point field goals made (63) and sixth in PSAC in free throw shooting (.805). Kurtz led West Chester with 14.2 points per game and 92 total assists.
Julie Nemergut
Junior, Edinboro
Indoor Track & Field (Youngstown, Ohio/South Range)... Nemergut has established a 3.87 GPA in the field of special education. She was the PSAC Champion in the 1-mile run with a time of 5:01.05, a meet record and an NCAA provisional qualifying time. She earned at least one first place finish in every indoor meet she competed in, including victories in the 1,000, 1,500, and 3,000 meter runs. She also earned Top Ten honors in the fall, after leading Edinboro to first-place finishes at the PSAC and East Regional Championships, and school-best second-place finish at the Division II national championship. She was named the PSAC Women's Cross Country Athlete of the Year after earning All-America honors with a fifth-place finish at nationals.
Mindy Sawtelle
Junior, IUP
Track & Field (Indiana/Clearfield)... Sawtelle holds a 3.47 GPA as a health and physical education major. This past indoor season she won the 3,000 meter race (10:02.03) and was part of the winning distance medley relay squad (12:19.97). She was a key part of IUP's fourth-place team finish, also placing second in the mile. She would then go on to earn All-America status with a seventh place finish in the 5,000 meters. Competing season-long, she is a five-time All-American with two indoor, one outdoor and two cross country placements.
Keith Veldhuis
Junior, Lock Haven
Indoor Track & Field (Thamesford, Ontario/Ingersoll DCI)...Veldhuis holds a 3.974 GPA while studying health and physical education. This past season he set a school record for the heptathlon with 4496 points. He would later go on to win the tightly contested event at the PSAC Championships. In 2003, Veldhuis was a PSAC outdoor champion in the decathlon, earned All-America honors in the 4x400 relay was named the PSAC Rookie of the Year.
Jamie Wolf
Sophomore, Clarion
Women's Swimming & Diving (South Park/South Park)... Wolf boasts a 4.00 GPA while majoring in pre-med/biology. In just two seasons at Clarion, she has garnered national championships in the one- and three-meter diving events as both a freshman and a sophomore. In both seasons she was named the NCAA Division II Female Diver of the Year. Her efforts this past season led Clarion to a 10th place finish at the NCAA II Swimming and Diving Championships. She also won both events in dual meets with West Chester and Shippensburg, and took first place in the one-meter against Division I Pittsburgh.
Curtis Yeager
Senior, Millersville
Wrestling (Bloomsburg/Bloomsburg)... Yeager has earned a 3.42 GPA in the field of occupational safety and environmental health. At 174 pounds, he finished the season with a 27-8 overall record, 14-0 in dual bouts. He posted five technical falls this season, second best among PSAC competitors. He placed second in the PSAC Championships and the NCAA Division I East Regionals. Yeager won three consecutive East Region titles from 2002-2004. He finished his career at Millersville with an overall record of 86-49 and 43-17 in dual matches.