MOUNT PLEASANT – The Iowa Wesleyan College Athletic Department honored twelve Tiger athletes at its 4th annual National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Champions of Character Banquet on Monday, March 23, held in the Fellowship Hall at First United Methodist Church in Mount Pleasant.
One athlete was named a Champion of Character in each of IWC’s twelve sports. Award winners were:
Baseball: Curt Barnes (Sr.-Lone Tree, Iowa)
Men’s Basketball: Michael Lowe (Jr.-Panora, Iowa)
Women’s Basketball: Kelli Garrison (Sr.-Johnson, Kan.)
Football: Kyle DeRossett (Sr.-Dupo, Ill.)
Men’s Golf: Emery McGraw (So.-Loveland, Colo.)
Women’s Golf: Ashlee Winner (Sr.-Rushville, Ill.)
Men’s Soccer: Shaun Mueller (Sr.-Stillman Valley, Ill.)
Women’s Soccer: Serina Reyna (Fr.-Selma, Calif.)
Softball: Kali Hills (So.-Fruitland, Iowa)
Men’s Track and Field: Lonzell Maddock (Sr.-Seattle, Wash.)
Women’s Track and Field: Corrie Wagner (Jr.-Iowa City, Iowa)
Volleyball: Nicole Orth (Sr.-Burlington, Iowa)
In addition to the Champion of Character awards, DeRossett, Hills and Orth all received the Tiger Spirit Award, given to athletes who “have demonstrated exceptional courage in the face of adversity, courage in the support of their community, and who exemplifies the courage to have a good conscience in spite of any obstacles.”
The Champion of Character awards are given in conjunction with the NAIA’s program of the same name. The Champions of Character program is “an educational outreach initiative which emphasizes the tenets of character and integrity, not only for NAIA college students, but for younger students, coaches and parents in our communities.” The program emphasizes the NAIA’s five core values of respect, responsibility, integrity, servant leadership and sportsmanship.
For more information regarding IWC athletics programs, contact sports information director Adam Glatczak (319-385-6306 phone; 319-385-6384 FAX; aglatczak@iwc.edu e-mail) or log on to IWC's athletics web site at www.iwc.edu/athletics.
