RICHARDSON, Texas – Six student-athletes from four different member universities were named American Southwest Conference Distinguished Scholar-Athletes for the 2013 fall semester in their respective sports, the league office announced on Friday (Jan. 24).
 
Award recipients include Concordia Texas sophomore Riley Zoch for men’s cross country; Concordia senior Megan Wagenaar in women’s cross country; Mary Hardin-Baylor senior Josh Holt in football; UMHB sophomore Kendall Pye in volleyball; Texas-Tyler senior Enoch Shipman for men’s soccer; and Hardin-Simmons senior Caitlin Cramer in women’s soccer. Overall, 51 student-athletes were named to the American Southwest Conference Fall 2013 Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Teams.
 
The award, in its seventh academic year, recognizes student-athletes who achieve a high level of academic achievement (a 3.20 grade-point average or better) while competing as a starter or important reserve on their team. From that list – limited to one nominee per school in each ASC championship sport – the sports information directors from the 12 ASC member institutions select a Distinguished Scholar-Athlete in each sport.
 
Zoch (Giddings, Texas/Giddings HS) qualified for the NCAA Division III South/Southeast Regional after placing ninth at the ASC Championships. An education major with a 4.00 grade-point average, Zoch was Academic All-Conference in addition to his Second-Team All-ASC honor. He led Concordia Texas in five of the six meets last fall winning two races. A three-time ASC Runner of the Week during the fall campaign, Zoch won the season-opening Southwestern Dual (Aug. 30) and the Concordia Texas Invitational (Oct. 18).
 
Wagenaar (Missouri City, Texas/Logos Prep HS) became the first runner in Concordia Texas history to qualify for the NCAA Championships, as she finished 11th at the NCAA Division III South/Southeast Regional. Wagenaar, a business marketing major with a 3.97 grade-point average was Academic All-Conference and also recorded a runner-up finish at the ASC Championships. In her final season, Wagenaar set two Concordia cross country records. She bested the program’s 5,000-meter standard by nearly 35 seconds placing fourth at the Concordia Texas Invitational (18:38.75). Wagenaar also set the 6,000-meter record with a time of 22:54.80 at the NCAA Division III cross country regional.
 
Shipman (Lindale, Texas/Lindale HS) was a four-year defensive standout at Texas-Tyler, excelling on the field as well as in the classroom. Shipman is an interdisciplinary studies major with 3.98 grade-point average and was named Academic All-Conference. He led the Patriots to the ASC men’s soccer championship game. He was also named Second-Team All-American by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, First-team All-Region (NSCAA) and First-Team All-ASC.
 
Cramer (Abilene, Texas/Wylie HS) is a three-time CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-American. An exercise/science major with a 4.00 grade-point average, Cramer is a three-time Academic All-ASC selection. A standout for the Hardin-Simmons women’s soccer team all season, Cramer was named first-team all-conference for her play on the field and led the Cowgirls to their 11th consecutive ASC championship and a berth in the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Championships.
 
Holt (Lorena, Texas/Lorena HS) was named All-American by both D3football.com and Beyond Sports Network, in addition to first-team All-South Region and first-team all-conference. An exercise and sport science major with a 4.00 grade-point average, Holt is a two-time CoSIDA/Capital One Academic All-American and a two-time Academic All-District selection. Holt earned Academic All-Conference honors three times. He helped lead Mary Hardin-Baylor to an NCAA Division III national semifinal football championship appearance and a No.2 ranking in the final D3football.com Top 25 Poll.
 
Pye (College Station, Texas/A&M Consolidated) was a Second-Team All-Conference selection and an Academic All-ASC honoree. A mathematics major with a 4.00 grade-point average, Pye posted 200 kills, 467 assists and 22 service aces in helping lead Mary Hardin-Baylor to a program record 29 victories. UMHB also advanced to the NCAA Division III Volleyball Championship tournament for the first time in school history.
 
All Distinguished Scholar Athletes were also named ASC Fall 2013 Academic All-Conference.
 
ASC Fall 2013 Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Teams   
(Sport’s Distinguished Scholar-Athlete*)
 
Men’s Cross Country

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Riley Zoch*	Concordia Texas	So.	Education	Giddings, Texas
Landon Price	East Texas Baptist	Jr.	Religion & Missions	Mount Vernon, Texas
Josh Hooks	LeTourneau	So.	Mechanical Engineering	Lake Village, Ind.
Griffin Metcalf	Mississippi College	Jr.	Biology-Medical Sciences	Anquilla, Miss.
Matt Friant	Ozarks	Sr.	Environmental Studies	Conway, Ark.
J.P. Harris	Texas-Dallas	Jr.	Biology	San Antonio, Texas
Matthew Markert	Texas-Tyler	So.	Pre-Business	Lucas, Texas

 
Women’s Cross Country

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Megan Wagenaar*	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Business Marketing	Missouri City, Texas
Madison Kauffman	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Music	Sugar Land, Texas
Katie DeGroot	LeTourneau	Jr.	Business Administration	La Plata, Md.
Lydia Magallanes	Louisiana College	Sr.	Broadcast Journalism	Leesville, La.
Meredith Johnson	Mississippi College	Jr.	Kinesiology (Pre-Phys Therapy)	Vancleave, Miss.
Kara Willbanks	Ozarks	Sr.	Physical Education	Fort Smith, Ark.
Hannah Creech	Texas-Dallas	Jr.	Marketing	Lake Jackson, Texas
Missy Hebert	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Interdisciplinary Studies	Hudson, Texas

 
Men’s Soccer

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Enoch Shipman*	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	Interdisciplinary Studies	Lindale, Texas
Matt Ruhe	Concordia Texas	Jr.	Kinesiology	The Woodlands, Texas
Brett Forbus	East Texas Baptist	So.	Athletic Training	Kilgore, Texas
Dillon Parkhill	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Business Education	Plano, Texas
Edgar Villa	Howard Payne	Jr.	Marketing	Balch Springs, Texas
Patrick Tchekane	LeTourneau	Grad.	Electrical Engineering	Douala, Cameroon
Isaiah Minick	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Jr.	International Business	Chang Mai, Thailand
Ryan Dunbar	Mississippi College	Sr.	Accounting	Madison, Miss.
Austin Benner	Ozarks	So.	General Bus./Mgmt./Admin.	Allen, Texas
Steven Nicknish	Texas-Dallas	Sr.	Mechanical Engineering	Spring, Texas

 
Women’s Soccer

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Caitlin Cramer*	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Exercise/Science	Abilene, Texas
Marcia Kaiser	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Behavioral Science	Cypress, Texas
Kelsey Biscoe	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Business	Clear Lake, Texas
Rebecca Lamar	Howard Payne	Sr.	Elementary Education	Ovilla, Texas
Katy Wallace	LeTourneau	Jr.	Biology	Honolulu, Hawaii
Eliza Faillace	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Master’s of Education	Bradenton, Fla.
Caitlin Chapman	Mississippi College	Sr.	Biology-Medical Sciences	Seminole, Fla.
Mary Eoff	Ozarks	So.	Math/Secondary Education	Rogers, Ark.
Sarah Borg	Texas-Dallas	Jr.	Physics	Tomball, Texas
Kathryn Haag	Texas-Tyler	Sr.	History	Kingwood, Texas

 
Football

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Josh Holt*	Mary Hardin-Baylor	Sr.	Exercise & Sport Science	Lorena, Texas
Jacob Alford	East Texas Baptist	Sr.	Education/Kinesiology	Lindale, Texas
Chuck North	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Social Studies Education	Montgomery, Texas
Joshua Kennedy	Howard Payne	Sr.	Chemistry/Biochemistry	Fort Worth, Texas
Hunter Feibel	Louisiana College	Sr.	Biology	Shreveport, La.
Randal Pharr	Mississippi College	Sr.	Exercise Science	Memphis, Tenn.

 
Volleyball

Name	University	Cl.	Major	Hometown
Kendall Pye*	Mary Hardin-Baylor	So.	Mathematics	College Station, Texas
Emma Clifford	Concordia Texas	Sr.	Director of Christian Ed.	Magnolia, Texas
Kayla Taylor	East Texas Baptist	Jr.	Nursing	Arlington, Texas
Christine Sas	Hardin-Simmons	Sr.	Communications	Cedar Park, Texas
Hannah Hicks	Howard Payne	Sr.	Exercise and Sport Science	Flower Mound, Texas
Sarah Krippner	LeTourneau	So.	International Business	Oceanside, Calif.
Nicole Horton	Mississippi College	Sr.	Christian Ministry Studies	Rye, Colo.
Kaitlyn Thomas	Sul Ross State	So.	Kinesiology	Del Rio, Texas
Taylour Toso	Texas-Dallas	Jr.	Speech Pathology	Helotes, Texas
Breanna Brummett	Texas-Tyler	Jr.	Accounting	Little Elm, Texas