Shenandoah University

The Old Dominion Athletic Conference recently announced the 2023-24 ODAC Sportsmanship Teams in each of the conference's 25 sponsored sports. The squads are composed of a student-athlete selected by the coaching staff of each team competing under the conference banner, with all sports and schools fully represented.

Shenandoah University's men's lacrosse team earned the United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association (USILA) 2024 Team Academic Award while Mark Isabelle was named a Scholar All-American by the organization on June 14. The USILA Team Academic Award is given to teams who record a collective GPA of 3.0 or higher. Similarly, Scholar All-America honors are awarded to seniors with a cumulative GPA of at least 3.0. As a team, SU posted a GPA of 3.24 and was one of four Old Dominion Athletic Conference programs to make the listing, joining Hampden-Sydney College, the University of Lynchburg, and Washington and Lee University.

Shenandoah University field hockey standout Elise Velasquez and Hornets baseball star Gavin Horning earned the Old Dominion Athletic Conference's Marjorie Berkley and Harry G. "Doc" Jopson awards, the highest individual awards bestowed by the conference. This is the first time Shenandoah has swept the Berkley and Jopson Awards. Horning is first SU recipient of the Jopson prize, while Velasquez joins former women's basketball standout Olivia Weinel (2022) as winners of the Berkley Award.

The Shenandoah University baseball team earned four College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District awards in selections announced by the organization on June 4. First baseman Chandler Ballenger, pitcher Jacob Bell, third baseman Pearce Bucher, and outfielder Gavin Horning each earned the honor, and Bell was named a CSC Academic All-America team finalist.

Shenandoah University recognizes the 989 students who made the Spring 2024 Dean's List. To qualify for the Dean's List, students must be enrolled full-time in baccalaureate degree programs and earn a semester GPA of 3.50 or higher. Dean's List students who achieve a semester GPA of 3.90 or higher also qualify for the university's President's List.

Shenandoah University celebrates the 444 students who made the President's List for the Spring 2024 semester. To qualify for this prestigious academic recognition, students must be enrolled full-time in baccalaureate degree programs and attain a semester GPA of 3.90 or higher. All President's List honorees are also recognized on the university's Dean's List, which includes students who earn a semester GPA of 3.50 or higher.

The Shenandoah University softball program has earned five College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District awards in selections announced recently by the association. The five Hornets on the Academic All-District Division-III team are Tiffany Bower, Rachael Blumenschine, Danielle McNeill, Lexie Reid and Kayla Stephenson. The honor recognizes student-athletes who excel in their chosen sport as well as in the classroom.

Shenandoah University's baseball program earned five American Baseball Coaches Association/Rawlings All-Region honors for Region Six in teams announced by the organizations on May 28. Chandler Ballenger, Pearce Bucher, Frankie Ritter, and Gavin Horning accounted for four spots on the second team with Joey Mitchell rounding out the selections on the third team as a relief pitcher.

Shenandoah University presented the 2024 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Awards to recent graduates Maya Horner '24 and Gabriella Raspanti '24 and Associate Professor of Physician Assistant Studies Michelle Gruver, D.M.S., PA-C. Each year, the Sullivan Awards are presented to deserving individuals at over 70 colleges and universities in the U.S. First awarded in 1890, this award recognizes individuals of noble character who act as humble servants and place service to others above self-interest.

Four Shenandoah University baseball players were named to D3Baseball.com's All-Region team for Region 6 in selections announced by the website on May 28. Pearce Bucher highlights the group with first-team honors, while Gavin Horning made the second team and Frankie Ritter and Joey Mitchell the third team.

Shenandoah University junior Katya Hoover earned second team All-American accolades after placing 13th in the women's high jump at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships on May 24 in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

Shenandoah University's Eleanor Wade Custer School of Nursing announced the recipients of its 2024 awards during the school's pinning and hooding ceremony on May 17.

Shenandoah University athletic training students Chloe Tannenbaum '28, Meghan Flaherty '28, and Will Fleming '29, along with team alternate Molly Sobolewski '27, won the Mid-Atlantic Athletic Trainers' Association District III Student Quiz Bowl during the MAATA Annual Meeting on May 17 in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Those students will represent District III in the National Athletic Trainers' Association Student Quiz Bowl on June 26 in New Orleans. Shenandoah, which won its second straight Virginia Athletic Trainers' Association Quiz Bowl title in January, beat teams from Marshall University, the University of North Carolina Greensboro, the University of South Carolina and Towson University/Frostburg State University in the "Jeopardy"-style competition at the MAATA Annual Meeting this month.

Four members of the Shenandoah University women's lacrosse team were selected to the IWLCA Chesapeake Region Second Team on May 17. Ainsley Buckner, Julianna Fohner, Emily Lerch, and Madison Perry represent the Hornets on the list of honorees, which includes 256 student-athletes from across all eight regions. All four SU student-athletes were named first team All-ODAC earlier in the month.

Shenandoah University women's track & field student-athletes Kiara Felston and Katya Hoover were named USTFCCCA All-Region in selections released by the association on May 17. The two Hornets represent the team in the South Region after finishing in the top five of their respective events in the region.

Shenandoah University men's tennis players Artem Babaiev and Keith Orr were named first team All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference for doubles in selections announced on May 16. The tandem, selected as the No. 1 doubles team in the conference, scored a 7-2 record in ODAC play and went 12-7 overall.

Shenandoah University women's tennis players Erin Talko and Tanea Spruill were named to the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Academic All-District team for women's tennis in selections announced by the association in May.

The Shenandoah University women's tennis team has earned two All-ODAC second team honorees in selections announced by the conference on Wednesday afternoon. Tanea Spruill and Olivia Guzzo were named second-team in doubles with Guzzo also earning a second-team nod for her work in singles.

Shenandoah University senior Ainsley Buckner was named a third team All-American by USA Lacrosse in selections recently released by the organization.Buckner is the third player under SU head lacrosse coach Lindsey Lutz to earn All-American honors after Allison Bittinger and Emma Stiffler earned the recognition in 2021 and 2023, respectively. Buckner, an attacker, ranked fourth in the ODAC in goals and assists with 57 and 32, respectively. While leading the Hornets in goals, assists, and points (89), the senior also had a team-high 107 draw controls, which ranked third in the conference. In her career, Buckner had 140 goals, 76 assists, 216 points, and 181 draw controls. Buckner was also named first team All-ODAC earlier this month.

Shenandoah University's Esports program recently announced the recipients of the 2024 Shenandoah Esports Awards. A total of seven individuals received one of six awards during a ceremony on May 7.

Shenandoah University softball players Allison McQueeney and Brenna Westwood have been named to the All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference second team in selections announced recently by the ODAC. McQueeney and Westwood, both first-years, are the first Hornets to make the all-conference second team or better since the 2017 season. This season also marks the first time that SU has had two players make the first or second team in the same year.

Shenandoah University's baseball program had eight student-athletes earn All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference honors in selections announced on May 9. The Hornets had three first-team honorees, four second-team selections, and one third-team honoree. Graduate student Jacob Bell was named the ODAC's Co-Pitcher of the Year as well as the ODAC/Virginia Farm Bureau Insurance Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Joining Bell on the first team were graduate student Matt House and first-year pitcher Joey Mitchell. First baseman Chandler Ballenger, third baseman Pearce Bucher, outfielder Gavin Horning and outfielder Haden Madagan were named to the second team, while catcher Brody Pickette made the third team.

Eight members of the Shenandoah University women's lacrosse team received All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference honors in selections announced on May 8, setting a new program record for All-ODAC honorees in a single season. Ainsley Buckner, Emily Lerch, Madison Re, Julianna Fohner, Talia Maria, and Madison Perry represent the Hornets on the first team, while Gabriella Raspanti and Caitlyn Lepkowski round out the SU selections on the second team.

Two Shenandoah University men's lacrosse players earned All-Old Dominion Athletic Conference honors in selections announced on May 7. Graduate student Logan Clingerman and senior Stephen Graham both earned third-team All-ODAC accolades.

The Shenandoah University Student Government Association held its inauguration on April 21 and announced the winners of the 2024 Leadership Awards. Thirteen awards were given out within three categories: individual, organization and student employment. Individual Awards Outstanding Leader of the Year - Undergraduate: Emma Shockey Outstanding Leader of the Year - Graduate: Katelyn Pomajzl Emerging Leader of the Year: Amy Oleksy Hornet Spirit Award: Victoria Hannen Community Builder Award: Kathy Evans Organization Awards Diversity Program of the Year: Shen First Gen Student Organization of the Year - Undergraduate: Alpha Psi Omega Most Innovative Program: Campus Activities Network Student Employment Awards Collaboration Award: Madison Cavalet Empowerment Award: Elizia Seymour Growth Award: Miles McKee Responsibility Award: Malori Carlson Inclusion Award: Linda Diaz-Gil

Over 131 undergraduate and graduate students presented a display of 73 projects at the 2024 Shenandoah University Research Expo. Nearly all schools at SU were represented in the expo, which featured an array of creative/portfolio, empirical and proposal/review projects across a variety of disciplines. Thirty-six faculty mentors supported these projects with an eye toward fostering scientific and creative inquiry among their students. Individual and group winners were announced in 11 categories in 2024.

Shenandoah University wrestler Dylan Weaver was named a 2024 NCAA Division III Scholar All-American by the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA). Weaver is the first Hornet wrestler to earn the honor.

Shenandoah University's English department recently announced the winners of the 2024 Writing Contest. Joshua Lewis '24 won the S. Gordon Link Poetry Award for "Blossom From This Microcosm," and Axel Manica '24 won the Bruce C. Souders Fiction Award for "The Fugue Soldier."

Shenandoah Conservatory announced the winners of the 2024-25 Student Soloists Competition. Category I winners were Gabrielle Gans (violin) and Noah Alden Hardaway (piano), while Category II winners were Jean Lin (piano) and John Tuvera Lim (baritone).

Nine Shenandoah University football players were selected to the 2024 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society, which is composed of college football players from all divisions of the NCAA, NAIA and sprint football who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college careers.