Cedarville Magazine, Fall 2015

Cedarville Magazine | 29 Yellow Jackets Earn Presidents’ Cup and Many Individual Honors The Yellow Jackets captured nine Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) titles in 2014–15 to claim the Presidents’ Cup all-sports award for the second straight year. Cedarville won G-MAC championships in men’s cross country, women’s cross country, men’s soccer, women’s volleyball, men’s indoor track and field, women’s basketball, men’s outdoor track and field, women’s outdoor track and field, and women’s tennis. Cedarville finished as the runner-up in women’s indoor track and field, men’s tennis, and softball. The Yellow Jackets totaled 93 out of a possible 110 points. Individual G-MAC honors for Cedarville in 2014–15 included: • Men’s Golf Coach of the Year – Zach Brown ’13 • Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Year – Connor Gilmour ’16 • Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Year – Jarrett Kersten ’15 • Men’s Soccer Coach of the Year – Brett Faro • Indoor Men’s Field Athlete of the Year – James Blackwell ’15 • Coach of the Year for Indoor/Outdoor Men’s Track and Field, Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field, and Women’s Cross Country – Jeff Bolender ’91 • Women’s Basketball Player of the Year – Raegan Ryan ’15 “God brings us some great student-athletes,” noted Alan Geist ’83, Athletic Director. “Our coaches, many of whomgraduated fromCedarville, understand our mission as a Christian organization and a strong academic university. We also have a very strong faculty that works with our kids very well.” The recent Academic All-Conference honor coincides with findings from the NCAA regarding Cedarville’s graduation success rate. According to Federal Graduation Rate (FGR) data from 2014, Cedarville tied for 12th nationally among 313 Division II schools with a 78 percent FGR. The FGR computes the percentage of student-athletes who earned their degree during a six-year window, starting their freshman year in the 2007–08 academic year through 2012–13. The Academic Success Rate (ASR) was created by the NCAA as a more complete measurement of college completion. According to that metric, Cedarville, at 91 percent, tied for 21st in the country in that category. The ASR starts with first-time fall freshmen on scholarship; adds non-scholarship athletes, midyear enrollees, and those who transfer into the school; and doesn’t count student- athletes who leave the school while still eligible to compete. Cedarville University earned the G-MAC Presidents’Cup for the 2014–15 season. Yellow Jackets won conference titles in nine different varsity sports and claimed the all-sports award for the second year in a row. • Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year – Kirk Martin ’76 • Women’s Tennis Coach of the Year – Dee Morris • Volleyball Freshman of the Year – Krissy Pratt ’18 • Outdoor Women’s Track and Field Freshman of the Year – Carsyn Koch ’18 • Co-Outdoor Women’s Field Athlete of the Year – Ruth Towne ’16