Alaska Nanooks end season with awards
March 25, 2019
Last Friday, the Alaska Nanooks Department of Athletics celebrated the conclusion
of the 2018-2019 season for all 10 of its athletic teams with the annual Nanook Student-Athlete
Achievement Awards Banquet at the Westmark Gold Room. The evening was highlighted
by volleyball sophomore Cate Whiting and rifle senior JT Schnering being named the
Most Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year and the Most Outstanding Male Athlete
of the Year, respectively.
Whiting was given the highest athletic honor on Friday night by earning the title
of Most Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year, while also earning her team’s Dr.
William Wood Scholar-Athlete of the Year. At the conclusion of the 2018 Alaska volleyball
season, Whiting was named to the All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s First Team
after leading the Nanooks to a monumental season.
Additionally, Whiting was named the GNAC’s Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 8),
the AVCA’s Division II Player of the Week (Oct. 9), selected to the GNAC All-Academic
Team (Nov. 9) and honored as UAF’s Joseph Thompson Student of the Month for February.
The Rapid City, South Dakota, native appeared in 99 sets through 27 matches for the
Nanooks, ranking fifth in the GNAC with 9.97 assists per set average, totaling 987
throughout the season. Whiting also picked up 228 digs (2.30 per set), 51 blocks (three
solo, 48 assisted), 25 aces and 93 kills (0.94 per set). Whiting also tallied seven
double-doubles throughout the 2018 campaign, including a single-game high of 21 digs
on Nov. 8 at Northwest Nazarene and registered four matches with 50-or-more assists.
Schnering earned the honor of the Most Outstanding Male Athlete of the Year after
a career-best season with the Alaska Nanooks coed rifle team. Schnering picked up
three All-America honors this season, being named to the NRA Smallbore All-America
Second Team, the NRA Air Rifle All-America Second Team and the Collegiate Rifle Coaches
Association’s All-America Third Team.
Furthermore, Schnering was named to the All-Patriot Rifle Conference’s Smallbore Team
following the team’s fifth place finish in the conference championships. Schnering
posted a career-best score in air rifle on Oct. 13, earning a 597 against Nebraska
at home.
The Fairbanks native’s final season as a Nanook was highlighted by a third-straight
appearance at the NCAA Rifle National Championships, where he placed fourth individually
in the air rifle finals. The Nanooks finished eighth as a team in the national championships.
The Nanook Athletics Advisory Committee Scholar-Athletes of the Year were awarded
to cross country running senior Alex Bergholtz and Nordic ski redshirt-senior Seiji
Takagi. The NAAC Scholar-Athletes of the Year were selected based on a combination
of academic and athletic achievements, as well as their on- and off-campus leadership
activities, dedication to community service and character. Bergholtz and Takagi were
selected and vetted by a committee of university staff and faculty and will be recognized
at the UAF Student Awards Breakfast next month.
Rifle junior Amy Gentry was named the Bart LeBon Humanitarian of the Year after volunteering
her the majority of her free time with the local high school rifle teams, coaching
and offering her expertise to beginners. The Bart LeBon Humanitarian of the Year is
presented to, “a student-athlete who embodies a positive athletic role model through
selfless volunteer work in the community.” LeBon played on UAF’s NAIA National Championships
men’s basketball team in 1973 and became a Nanook booster in 1975. LeBon continues
to support UAF, its student-athletes and numerous organizations around the Fairbanks
community.
The Linda Moffit Leadership in Courage award was given to volleyball junior Kim Wong,
who uses her voice to advocate on campus and in the community to fight sexual assault.
The award is given to “a female student-athlete whose actions have demonstrated leadership
to promote social justice, equality, diversity and equal opportunity for women.” The
award is named after the late Linda Moffit, who was a student at UAF and wrote a letter
to the Office of Civil Rights in Washington, D.C., in 1973 to report discrimination
in the UAF Athletic Department. Moffit's action continues to impact opportunities
for women at UAF and throughout the state.
Joe Lendway, a senior on the Alaska Nanooks men’s basketball team, was given the Joe
Tremarello Student-Athlete Sportsmanship award for his interactions with teammates,
coaches, administrators and fellow competitors and his engagement with the on-campus
community. The award is given to “a student-athlete who competes with respect and
acts in a professional manner.” The late Joe Tremarello played men’s basketball for
the Nanooks from 1954-1958 and coaches the women’s team from 1990-1994.
The Harris Shelton Spirit of Competition award was presented to Alaska Nanooks hockey
senior Jack Weiss. In November of 2017, Weiss was diagnosed with testicular cancer
and had to miss the remainder of the 2017-18 season to undergo chemotherapy treatment
in his home state of Minnesota. After working tirelessly throughout the summer and
in the preseason and less than a year of being diagnosed, Weiss cracked the lineup
in the Nanooks’ season-opener on Oct. 6 at Arizona State. The Harris Shelton Spirit
of Competition award is given to “a student-athlete whose ‘never-say-quit’ attitude
is the finest amongst Nanooks.” The award is named after Shelton, who was the UAF
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs from 1971-1992 and became an advocate for student-athletes.
The Owen Tinker Fan of the Year was given to Vinny Cacieri, who can be found cheering
on the Nanooks at every men’s basketball, women’s basketball or volleyball game, and
emptying and filling up water bottles at intermission of every home hockey game. The
award is given to “a person who passionately supports UAF and its student-athletes
in competition and in the community.”
Alaska Nanooks Director of Athletics Sterling Steward handed out honors to the top
staff member and coach within the athletics department. Assistant Athletic Director
of Compliance and Facilities Kayne Gutierrez was given the Staff Member of the Year
award, while head volleyball coach Brian Scott was selected as the Coach of the Year.
Steward also handed out two new awards for the Student-Athlete Achievement Awards,
including the Athletic Director’s Female and Male Top Scholar awards. The awards are
handed to the female and male student-athletes who have the highest cumulative grade
point average in the department. In case of a tie, the award is given to the student-athlete
with the most credit hours. In its inaugural year, the AD’s Female Top Scholar was
cross country running and Nordic skiing sophomore Sage Robine, while the Male Top
Scholar was cross country running and Nordic skiing sophomore Josiah Alverts.
In addition to the Alaska Nanooks department-wide awards, each sport recognized their
Most Valuable Player and their Dr. William Wood Scholar-Athlete of the Year. This
year’s winners were submitted by their coaching staff and include:
Women’s Basketball: Kylie Wallace (Scholar-Athlete) & Marian Wamsley (MVP)
Men’s Basketball: Zach Hatch (Scholar-Athlete) & Michael Kluting (MVP)
Women’s Cross Country: Alex Bergholtz (Scholar-Athlete & MVP)
Men’s Cross Country: Jack Matherly (Scholar-Athlete) & Lukash Platil (MVP)
Hockey: Nikolas Koberstein (Scholar-Athlete) & Steven Jandric (MVP)
Women’s Nordic Skiing: Sage Robine (Scholar-Athlete) & Kati Roivas (MVP)
Men’s Nordic Skiing: Arnaud Guyon (Scholar-Athlete) & Seiji Takagi (MVP)
Rifle: Morgan Erickson (Scholar-Athlete) & JT Schnering (MVP)
Swimming: Kaia Norbye (Scholar-Athlete) & Oda Bygdnes (MVP)
Volleyball: Cate Whiting (Scholar-Athlete) & Lahra Weber (MVP)
The 2018-19 Alaska Nanooks All-Sports Awards Ceremony Winners
Most Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year: Cate Whiting (Volleyball)
Most Outstanding Male Athlete of the Year: JT Schnering (Rifle)
NAAC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Alex Bergholtz (Cross Country Running)
NAAC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Seiji Takagi (Nordic Skiing)
Bart LeBon Humanitarian of the Year: Amy Gentry (Rifle)
Linda Moffit Leadership in Courage Award: Kim Wong (Volleyball)
Harris Shelton Spirit of Competition Award: Jack Weiss (Hockey)
Owen Tinker Fam of the Year: Vinny Cacieri
Joe Tremarello Student-Athlete Sportsmanship Award: Joe Lendway (Men’s Basketball)
Staff Member of the Year: Kayne Gutierrez (Assistant AD for Compliance and Facilities)
Coach of the Year: Brian Scott (Volleyball)
AD’s Female Top Scholar: Sage Robine (Cross Country Running & Nordic Ski)
AD’s Male Top Scholar: Josiah Alverts (Cross Country Running & Nordic Ski)
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