SFCC athletic teams celebrate record-breaking year in the classroom

Sedalia, Mo.-The State Fair Community College (SFCC) Athletic Department had another outstanding year in the classroom.   SFCC had 12 athletic teams qualify for NJCAA Academic Team Awards, which requires a team grade point average of 3.0 or above for the entire academic year. SFCC also had 80 student-athletes qualify for NJCAA Academic Student-Athlete Awards, which requires a grade point average of 3.60 or above for the entire academic year.

The men's soccer team earned NJCAA Academic team honors along with the women's soccer team, men's cross country team, women's cross country team, and the men's indoor track and field team, women's indoor track and field team, men's basketball team, women's basketball team, men's outdoor track and field team, women's outdoor track and field team, baseball team, and softball team.

"It is wonderful that our athletes are students first," said SFCC President Dr. Brent Bates. "They perform well in the classroom, as well as on their athletic team. We are extremely proud of these student-athletes and their coaches, their faculty, and the rest of their college support team."

Student-athletes must have a 4.0 grade point average for the academic year to earn NJCAA All-Academic First Team. Student-athletes with a GPA of 3.99 to 3.80 earned NJCAA All-Academic Second Team. Student-Athletes with GPAs of 3.79 to 3.60 earned NJCAA All- Academic Third Team.

The Lady Roadrunners softball team earned an NJCAA Academic Team Award for the seventh consecutive year with a team GPA of 3.37. Addison Wallace, Courtney Dehn, Elana Clark, Grace Evans, and Madelyn Backes all earned first team recognition for the Lady Roadrunners. Jenna Herald, Piper Costello, and Valerie Meyer all earned third team honors.

The Roadrunners baseball team earned an NJCAA Academic Team Award for the sixth consecutive year with a team GPA of 3.30. Chase Grady, Drake Odneal, and Samson Jost earned first team recognition. Andrew Hill, Christian Kuchta, Evan Bishop, Jacob Tellman, Jakob Riggin, and Silas Antle earned second team honors. Conner Rice, Grayson Harris, Mason Kates, and Tanner Patterson earned third team recognition.

The Lady Roadrunners basketball team earned an NJCAA Academic Team Award for the fifth consecutive year with a team GPA of 3.53. Elizabeth Buscher earned second team recognition along with Kamaree Pollard, and Kelsey Frederick. Sophia Edwin and Taylor Wilson represented SFCC on the third team.

The Roadrunners soccer team was represented by Luke Fink and Nathaniel Wilson on the second team. Landon Rehagen and Trevor Boschert earned third team recognition. The Roadrunners had a team GPA of 3.14.

The Lady Roadrunners soccer team was represented by Brenda Aguilar on the first team. Brooklyn Black earned second team recognition. Catherine Armenta and Ella Smith earned third team recognition. The women's soccer team had a team GPA of 3.07.

Joseph Stillfield and Sam Tagtmeyer represented the Roadrunners cross country team on the first team. Juan Matacua-Ubaldo earned second team recognition. Adam Broekemeier and Owen Weatherspoon earned third team honors. The Roadrunners had a team GPA of 3.09.

The Lady Roadrunners cross country team was represented by Emily Trelow, Libbey Baadsgaard, and Maryn Clausing, who all earned second team recognition with a team GPA of 3.32.

The Roadrunners indoor track and field team was represented by Jonah Slovensky, Marcel Milner, and Sam Tagtmeyer all with first team honors. Colby Jenkins, Juan Matacua-Ubaldo, and Steven Skelton earned second team recognition. Gage Marshall and Owen Weatherspoon earned third team accolades. The Roadrunners had a team GPA of 3.11.

The Lady Roadrunners indoor track and field team was represented by Callie McWilliams on the first-team. Anjyu Mckee, Elizabeth Burbank, Samantha Podorski, and Vivian Barton all earned second team honors with a team GPA of 3.41.

The Roadrunners basketball team was represented by Rahman Loic Mimche Hapi Nkouandou on the first team. Imran Din Gabisi and Malick Ndiaye earned third team recognition and a team GPA of 3.1.

The Roadrunners outdoor track and field team was represented by Jonah Slovensky, Marcel Milner, and Sam Tagtmeyer on the first team. Colby Jenkins earned second team accolades. Adam Broekemeier, Gage Marshall, Owen Weatherspoon, and Steven Skelton earned third team recognition. The Roadrunners had a team GPA of 3.18.

The Lady Roadrunners outdoor track and field team was represented by Callie McWilliams and Libbey Baadsgaard on the first team. Anjyu Mckee, Elizabeth Burbank, Emily Trelow, Kamaree Pollard, Kelsey Frederick, Lily Long, Maryn Clausing, Samantha Podorski, and Vivian Barton all earned second team accolades. Jocelyn Nunez, Lindsey Burnett, and Sophia Edwin earned third team honors. The Lady Roadrunners had a team GPA of 3.63.

The SFCC shooting sports team had another good year in the classroom. Benjamin Wieland, Ty Mckinzey, Benjamin Harris, Mitchell O'Reilly, Ava Harris, Ava Cooper, Logan Pinkham, and Zoey Wilson all had a GPA of 3.6 or above.

SFCC spirit squad member Emily Fetterman earned a 4.0 grade point average.

"Our athletic department philosophy has always placed the student before the athlete," said SFCC Athletic Director Darren Pannier. "These individual and team awards show the hard work that our student-athletes put in in the classroom. Our coaches also do a good job of recruiting and retaining quality student-athletes to represent SFCC. Our faculty, navigators, and college support staff also play a critical role in the academic success of our student-athletes."

David Rohrbach

SFCC Athletics