More than three dozen KCC student athletes earn postseason academic awards

Posted on by Kellogg Community College
KCC student athletes Emma Berning and Kyle Van Liere.

Thirty-eight individual student athletes from Kellogg Community College and five KCC athletic teams received academic awards for excellence in the classroom during the 2020-21 academic year.

Honors awarded to KCC student athletes for their academic performance include the following awards:

  • The KCC Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award, for which a student athlete must demonstrate outstanding academic achievement as well as athletic success, exhibiting an outstanding GPA and more than 60 credit hours completed. The winners are nominated by their coaches.
  • The Michigan Community College Athletic Association Academic All-Conference Award, for which a student athlete must have completed at least 24 credit hours in the last academic year and have a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher.
  • The Academic All-MCCAA Award, for which a student athlete must have completed at least 24 credit hours in the last academic year and have a cumulative GPA of 3.20 or higher.
  • The 3rd Team National Junior College Athletic Association Academic Award, for which a student athlete must have completed at least 24 credit hours in the last academic year and have a cumulative GPA between 3.60 and 3.79.
  • The 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award, for which a student athlete must have completed at least 24 credit hours in the last academic year and have a cumulative GPA between 3.80 and 3.99.
  • The 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award, for which a student athlete must have completed at least 24 credit hours in the last academic year and have a cumulative GPA of 4.0.

Additionally, MCCAA All-Academic Team and NJCAA All-Academic Team honors were awarded to teams with a cumulative team GPA of 3.0 or higher. KCC’s women’s cross-country (3.74 GPA), women’s basketball (3.26 GPA), women’s volleyball (3.25 GPA), women’s soccer (3.18 GPA) and baseball (3.08 GPA) teams were named to both lists.

Individual student athlete honors were awarded to the following KCC student athletes:

BASEBALL

  • Connor Brawley, of Dowagiac, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Zachary Brunet, of Commerce, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Matthew DeFay, of St. Joseph, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Jayden Dentler, of Allegan, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Nolan Hood, of Sterling Heights, MCCAA Academic All-Conference
  • Ben Hubert, of Komoka, Ontario, Canada, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Zachary Marshall, of Rockford, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Justin Ratliff, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Ryan Reincke, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Robert Slusher, of Lambertville, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Al Thorington, of Pinckney, MCCAA Academic All-Conference
  • Kyle Van Liere (pictured above), of Mattawan, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award, KCC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year
  • Ryan Vought, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA

MEN’S BASKETBALL

  • Evan Block, of Haslett, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Eddie Wesley, of Grand Rapids, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

  • Gabby Costello, of Bellevue, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Audrey DeWaters, of Richland, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Elizabeth Schreur, of Tekonsha, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award

MEN’S BOWLING

  • Zach Barker, of Charlotte, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Bryan Foote, of Bronson, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award

MEN’S CROSS-COUNTRY

  • Brian Frazee, of Watervliet, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA

WOMEN’S CROSS-COUNTRY

  • Emma Berning (pictured above), of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award, KCC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year
  • Ava Cooney, of Athens, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Gabby Costello, of Bellevue, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Kennedy Vanderlugt, of Plainwell, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Hannah Wilkinson, of Hillsdale, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award

WOMEN’S SOCCER

  • Kirsten Butler, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Bryn Cairns, of Waterford, MCCAA Academic All-Conference
  • Ava Cooney, of Athens, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Gabby Costello, of Bellevue, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Audrey Johnson, of Fremont, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 3rd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Destinee Lester, of Flint, MCCAA Academic All-Conference
  • Reba Lewis, of Springport, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Maya Ruelas, of Kalamazoo, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Sarah Smith, of Bellevue, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA

WOMEN’S VOLLEYBALL

  • Grace Hall, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Jaelyn Hampton, of Napoleon, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Kelsie Kemerling, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Alicia Lake, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA
  • Haidyn Markos, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 1st Team NJCAA Academic Award
  • Ondi Miller, of Battle Creek, MCCAA Academic All-Conference, Academic All-MCCAA, 2nd Team NJCAA Academic Award

High-resolution photographs of each student-athlete and team noted above can be downloaded for use by fans and the media from the respective album on KCC’s Flickr page at www.flickr.com/photos/kelloggcommunitycollege/albums or requested by emailing KCC Digital Marketing Manager Simon A. Thalmann at thalmanns@kellogg.edu.

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