Textbook athletes reap accolades at 2005 AAA Banquet

Charissa Gingerich

The 2005 Athletic Academic Awards Banquet, which emphasizes the important roles academia and community involvement play in the athletic community, was held on April 13 in the Pharmed Arena. In total, 57 student-athletes from 18 FIU sports departments were honored before the 350 attendees.

Despite the fact that 45 student-athletes made the Dean’s List throughout the year and were presented with a certificate of recognition from the Athletic Department for it, only one could have the highest grade point average. This year, that person -- the recipient of the President’s Award -- was women’s soccer standout Charissa Gingerich, a senior with a 3.982 GPA who is specializing in cardiac rehabilitation and adult fitness within the exercise and sports sciences field. She and seven other athletes -- Dennis Diaz (baseball), Ivan Almonte (men’s basketball), Adam Cole (men’s track & field), Apryl Wall (women’s track & field), Chris Patullo (football), Allen Handy (men’s soccer) and Laura Leone (golf) -- were additionally recognized from the podium for possessing the highest GPA on their respective teams. It was a banner night for Gingerich, who was also honored with the Dr. Judith Blucker Scholarship Award for being the woman athlete who exhibited outstanding team leadership.

“I don’t want any regrets in life. I want to look back on my college experience knowing that I tried as hard as I could in school and soccer. So my inspiration comes from wanting to feel satisfied with the effort I gave,” said Gingerich. “Time comes through making priorities and sacrificing a lot of the ‘fun’ college experiences that most students have. I have had to learn to maximize my time, which means studying while I traveled for soccer, studying while I ate and even studying for classes during a different class lecture.”

Other individual honors included: the Sportsmanship Awards, which were won by softball’s Marleah Staph and football/baseball’s James Knapp; a total of 13 Sportsmanship Certificates, presented to one distinguished person from almost every FIU sports team; and finally, the Michael Felsbert Spirit Award, which was presented to women’s tennis player Desanka Jovanovic and men’s cross country/track & field athlete Jose Castro for the work they have done within the FIU sports community. Chances are good that if you have ever attended an FIU sporting event, these last two positive life-forces were in the bleachers with you, cheering on their fellow student-athletes.

As an integral member of the women’s tennis team, Jovanovic has won 11 consecutive matches. Away from the courts, she spends a lot of time studying and is an avid member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee, for which she attends meetings regularly. Castro, who has been a member of both the men’s cross-country and track & field teams since his first day at FIU, has also embraced his role as a student-athlete. Named cross-country’s Most Valuable Athlete as a freshman because of his top finish in every race that season, he has also become renowned for donning unusual headwear while supporting virtually every other FIU sports team at their respective events.

The team awards unfolded like a replay of 2004. The women’s basketball team won the Community Service Award for the second year running while the volleyball team was again presented the Athletic Director’s Award for possessing the highest team GPA.

Congratulations go out to everybody who was involved with this event.

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