Wayne State College recognized its top student athletes for the 2016-17 school year Monday at the annual Athletic Honors Banquet held at the WSC Student Center. Six major awards were presented Monday evening along with Most Valuable Player awards for each sport.
Sophomore track and field athlete Robert Sullivan was named Male Athlete of the Year while senior volleyball All-American Alyssa Frauendorfer was voted Female Athlete of the Year for a second straight year. Freshman Athlete of the Year Awards went to baseball player Jackson Petersen and volleyball player Haley Kauth. The Cunningham Scholar Athletes of the Year were presented to senior baseball player Joey Lenihan and senior volleyball player Megan Gebhardt.
Sullivan set a new school record and was the NSIC Indoor champion in the heptathlon with 5,141 points. He qualified for the NCAA Indoor National Championships and placed 12th to earn second-team All-American honors. In the outdoor season, he currently ranks sixth in the 110-meter hurdles with a time of 15.17 seconds.
Frauendorfer was named first-team All-NSIC for a fourth straight year after averaging 3.01 kills and 0.75 blocks per set this season. She is just the second player in school history to be named first-team All-NSIC all four years and was selected either AVCA All-American or honorable mention All-American all four years. Frauendorfer closed her career ranked ninth in kills with 1,411 and is the school’s all-time leader in attack percentage at .337.
Petersen was named Male Freshman Athlete of the Year after leading the Wildcats in batting average at .392. He is second on the team in stolen bases (7) and is one of only two players to have a four-hit game this season for the Wildcats. Petersen has the second-longest hitting streak on the team this season at 13 games and is fourth in multi-hit games (11) and multi-RBI games (4).
Kauth received the Female Freshman Athlete of the Year award after ranking 10th in the NSIC in digs per set this season at 4.17. She was second on the Wildcat team in service aces with 31 and had 10 or more digs in 27 of 32 matches this season, helping WSC to a 24-8 record and 11th trip to the NCAA Division II National Tournament in the last 12 years.
Lenihan was named the Bob Cunningham Male Scholar Athlete of the Year. Lenihan carries a 3.76 grade-point average majoring in sport management. On the field, Lenihan was second on the team in appearances and led the team in saves until suffering a season-ending arm injury April 14th. He finished his Wildcat career tied for sixth in appearances with 50 and had five saves. Off the field, Lenihan serves as President of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, is active with Team Impact, a member of Fellowship of Christian Athletes and served as a volunteer coach for the Wayne American Legion baseball program.
Gebhardt has a 4.00 grade-point average majoring in finance and will earn her bachelor’s degree in three years. On the court, she started all 32 matches this season and ranked ninth in the NSIC in assists per set at 10.13 to go with 1.97 digs per set. Off the court, Megan volunteers with the Wayne Green Team, WSC Student Food Pantry, Mercy Meals, makes nursing home visits, Highway 35 cleanup and coaches Wayne youth volleyball teams amongst her extra activities away from the volleyball court.
Both Gebhardt and Lenihan receive a $2,500 post-graduate scholarship.
