GENERAL
SoCon announces graduate scholars
Ten student-athletes honored with $2,000 scholarships
SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference announced its 10 postgraduate scholarship recipients for the 2019-20 academic year Thursday.
This year’s honorees include: Dave Hart Scholarship recipient William Stout (Wofford); Dorothy Hicks Scholarship recipient Danni Vines (Furman); Insurance Office of America Scholarship recipient Kirsty Beckwith (Chattanooga); David Knight Scholarship recipient Maggie Johnston (Samford); Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship recipients Jack Raines (Mercer) and Sam Franklin (VMI); William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith recipient Lakelyn Bouldin (Chattanooga); and Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship recipients Nikki Grupp (ETSU), Alexis Pitchford (UNC Greensboro) and Emily Zipay (Western Carolina).
The recipients are nominated by their schools and selected by the Southern Conference Graduate Scholar Committee. The scholarships, worth $2,000 each, are awarded to student-athletes about to receive their undergraduate degrees who intend to pursue advanced degrees in graduate or professional school. The student-athletes are evaluated on academics, athletics and community service.
William Stout, Wofford – Dave Hart Scholarship
Wofford’s William Stout is the 2020 recipient of the Dave Hart Scholarship. A member of the Terriers’ indoor and outdoor track and field teams, Stout earned all-conference honors for top-three finishes in the heptathlon at all four SoCon indoor championships of his career and medaled in the decathlon at the outdoor meet twice. In 2017, he earned all-freshman honors in the heptathlon, triple jump and pole vault at the indoor SoCon meet. The school record-holder in the pole vault for both indoor and outdoor, the three-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection and biology major earned the Commissioner’s Medal for posting at least a 3.8 GPA for the academic year all three times, posting a 4.0 twice. Stout also earned Academic All-SoCon honors in both the indoor and outdoor seasons in 2018 and 2019 and was a Google Cloud CoSIDA Academic All-District selection in 2019. A member-elect of Phi Beta Kappa, Stout was a Junior Marshall and has earned several scholarships, including the Phillip E. Foster, Jr., Endowed Scholarship, a Sigma Alpha Epsilon academic scholarship and the Larry H. McCalla Scholarship. From 2017-19, he earned the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Outstanding Academic Achievement Award and served as the SAE scholarship chairman and was a volunteer mentor at ARCH Ministries and a classroom helper at Arcadia Elementary. He will attend the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine as he begins his trek to becoming a doctor.
Danni Vines, Furman – Dorothy Hicks Scholarship
Furman’s Danni Vines is the recipient of the 2020 Dorothy Hicks Scholarship. A co-captain on the 2020 women’s tennis squad, Vines helped the Paladins to their highest ranking in program history, No. 35. Vines, who helped the Paladins win SoCon regular-season and tournament championships in 2017, 2018 and 2019, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in 2017 and 2018 and was also the recipient of the Pinnacle Award, given to the player with the highest GPA on the championship-winning ream, both years. The native of Elizabethton, Tennessee, was ranked No. 55 in doubles in 2017 and was named the SoCon Freshman of the Year. She was a first-team All-SoCon honoree in singles and doubles that season and a second-team selection in both in her sophomore campaign. Vines has shined in the classroom, carrying a 4.0 GPA in health sciences. A three-time member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll, Academic All-SoCon team and ITA All-Academic Team, Vines was a member of Phi Eta Sigma, a freshman honor society, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, America’s most prestigious honor society. In 2017, She was awarded Furman’s Winston Babb Memorial Award, given to one male and one female in the freshman class that exemplify excellence in leadership, scholarship and service. Vines has spent nearly 420 hours volunteering in the community, including at the Greenville Children’s Hospital through the Valiant Player organization, lifting spirits and morale of patients. Her sophomore year, Vines lived in the Greenbelt Community in an eco cabin, learning how to live an eco-friendlier lifestyle. During that time, she initiated a project, collecting used, flat tennis balls and redistributing them to local animal shelters as dog toys. She has volunteered over 100 hours of free lessons in the Greenville, South Carolina, community and spent about 10 hours participating in local tennis clinics. In the summer of 2018, Vines volunteered at the Johnson City Medical Center in Johnson City, Tennessee, and spent over 100 hours assisting nurses, answering phone calls from patients and providers, attending to needs of patients, escorting discharged patients and learning about patient/nurse/doctor interactions. Vines, who also spent over 190 hours shadowing dentists in public health and private practice, orthodontists and periodontists, will attend dental school at the Medical University of South Carolina in the fall.
Kirsty Beckwith, Chattanooga – Insurance Office of America Scholarship
Chattanooga women’s golfer Kirsty Beckwith is the recipient of the 2020 Insurance Office of America Scholarship. After spending the first two years of her career and earning All-Big East Conference honors at St. John’s University, Beckwith spent the final three with the Mocs, starting in each of the last two seasons after taking a medical redshirt in 2017-18. Beckwith, who won the Quinnipiac Classic and posted six top-five finishes while at St. John’s, posted her best career 54-hole score as a redshirt junior for the Mocs last season and served as a team captain in 2019-20. Her best finish for Chattanooga came at the 2019 SoCon Championship, when she finished seventh. A native of Leeds, England, Beckwith balanced her collegiate golf career with her duties on the England International Golf Team. Among her international accomplishments, Beckwith won the Abraham Trophy in 2012 for being the most improved girls golfer on the U18 team and was named “Britain’s Best Putter” and represented England in the U18 Nations Cup in 2014. In her communities, Beckwith volunteered with Swing for Hope in 2018 and 2019, an event that benefited the Walter Boehm Birth Defect Center in Chattanooga, Tennessee. While at St. John’s, she volunteered with the Midnight Run and in a soup kitchen and was vice president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Beckwith was a three-time Women’s Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar and two-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection in the classroom, earning the Commissioner’s Medal for posting a 3.90 GPA in 2017-18. She also earned a spot on the Academic All-SoCon team in spring 2019. Beckwith, who was a teaching assistant in the Psychology Department, graduated magna cum laude from Chattanooga in May 2019, finishing her psychology degree with a 3.78 GPA and earning one of two WRCB Broadcasting Scholarships, which go to graduate students who display outstanding academic standing. She began work on an MBA at Chattanooga in the fall of 2019 as she completed her athletic eligibility, posting a 4.0 GPA in her first semester. Beckwith aspires to become an HR leader within a top American company.
Maggie Johnston, Samford – David Knight Scholarship
Samford’s Maggie Johnston is the 2020 recipient of the David Knight Scholarship. A thrower on the Bulldogs’ track and field teams, Johnston won five individual SoCon titles (one indoor, four outdoor) and six SoCon team championships (four indoor, two outdoor) throughout her career. The SoCon outdoor meet record-holder in the discus, Johnston was a three-time champion in the event, winning it each year of her career that the meet was held. Also the 2019 SoCon outdoor shot put champion, Johnston was the meet’s female Most Outstanding Athlete that season as the top point-scorer and was voted the Most Outstanding Field Performer by the league’s coaches. Following the SoCon indoor meet in 2020, Johnston, who won the title in the weight throw, was voted the Most Outstanding Field Performer for that meet, as well. A communications studies and Spanish double-major, Johnston, who aspires to be a lawyer and focus on immigration law, boasts a 3.79 GPA and was a 2019 USTFCCCA All-Academic Individual. In addition to earning SoCon Academic All-SoCon and SoCon Academic Honor Roll honors as many times as possible in her career, Johnston earned spots on Samford’s Howard College of Arts and Sciences Honor Roll from 2018-19 and earned the Samford University Communications Studies Department’s Outstanding Speaker of the Year Award in 2019. In the community, Johnston and her teams participated in the Bundles of Hope Diaper Drive from 2016-17, raising awareness and collecting donations for the organization, and in the Rise Against Hunger initiative in 2019, helping prepare pre-packaged meals for international hunger relief, in 2019. A member of the Lambda Phi Eta, the National Communication Association’s official honor society, Johnston serves as the vice president for Samford’s chapter.
Jack Raines, Mercer – Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
Mercer’s Jack Raines is one of two recipients of a Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship. A defensive lineman and outside linebacker for the Bears’ football team, Raines went from walk-on to starter and team captain over the course of his career, earning a full athletic scholarship after two seasons and wrapping his career with 53 tackles that included six tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks during his redshirt senior season. Throughout his career, Raines was active in the Mercer community and beyond, volunteering with the MS Society of Georgia, Rebuilding Macon, the American Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity and Traffick Jam in the Macon, Georgia, area, and traveled to Zaruma, Ecuador, with the Mercer on Mission program, serving as a translator for Mercer engineering students and working with the city council of Zaruma to create an economic redevelopment plan. Raines, who was also president of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, annually raised money for the fraternity’s Nick Whitlock Foundation. A first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2019, Raines is a three-time Academic All-SoCon performer and a four-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection, earning the Commissioner’s Medal all four times for posting a GPA of 3.8 or higher and posting a 4.0 GPA three times. He finished his undergraduate career with a 3.99 GPA, completing University Honors Program curriculum and graduating summa cum laude, and turned in a 3.75 GPA in 12 hours as a non-degree seeking student in his final semester. Raines was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi honor society and was a Mercer Presidential Scholar, a status he maintained throughout his college career. A finance and Spanish double-major, Raines is a member of Columbia Business School’s first deferred enrollment class, which will allow him to enter the workforce for two to four years before enrolling to complete his MBA. Raines was recently hired by UPS to serve as a domestic finance specialist in the company’s global headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.
Sam Franklin, VMI – Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
VMI’s Sam Franklin is one of two recipients of a Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship. A midfielder for the Keydets’ women’s soccer team, Franklin started 70 of her 72 career games played, scoring nine points on four goals and an assist, with a career-high three goals as a junior in 2018. A two-year team captain, Franklin earned Southern Conference All-Tournament honors in 2019 and was the 2020 winner of the Three-Legged Stool award, which is presented to the VMI first class cadet-athlete who best exemplifies the three aspects of a VMI education: athletics, academics and military discipline. An Arabic and international studies double-major and a member of the Phi Sigma Iota international languages honor society, Franklin earned VMI Academic Stars for earning a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 from spring 2017 to spring 2020. She also was a recipient of a Project GO Scholarship, which allowed her to study Arabic in Fez, Morocco, in the summer of 2019. Franklin was a three-time member of the SoCon Honor Roll, twice earning the Commissioner’s Medal for posting a GPA of at least 3.8 for the academic year, and also earned Academic All-SoCon honors three times. She served as the president of VMI’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee in 2019, organizing community service events for student-athletes and ensuring maximum support for sporting events at VMI. Franklin was also captain of the VMI Morale and Welfare Group and organized Salvation Army bell-ringing events for VMI SAAC student-athletes in 2018 and 2019. She also twice volunteered with Habitat for Humanity with the VMI women’s soccer team and helped organize a weekly event to read to children at an elementary school in Lexington, Virginia. Franklin, who will serve in the United States Air Force as an intelligence officer after graduating from VMI, plans to pursue a master’s degree in Homeland Security Policy.
Lakelyn Bouldin, Chattanooga – William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
Chattanooga’s women’s basketball player Lakelyn Bouldin is the 2020 recipient of the William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith. A 2016-17 SoCon regular-season and tournament champion and a third-team All-SoCon performer and regular-season tri-champion in 2019-20, Bouldin finished her career with over 1,400 points and ranks third in program history for 3-pointers made and eighth in total points. The native of Spencer, Tennessee, was named to the Chattanooga’s Dean’s List and the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll every semester and was a recipient of the Wes Moore Women’s Basketball Scholarship and the UC Foundation Peaslee Women’s Basketball Scholarship. The guard was honored with the 2020 Ann Lashley Award, presented to a women’s basketball player or coach at a Southern Conference institution who, when challenged by a life-altering situation used grace, perseverance, dedication and determination to face the event and serve as a role model to give hope and inspiration to others in similar situations, and was the recipient of the 2020 A.C. Scrappy Moore Award, presented annually to a Chattanooga student-athlete who best personifies the athletic department’s mission of equipping student-athletes for success in the classroom, in competition and in the community. Bouldin has spent countless hours volunteering, spending most of her time volunteering at a local elementary school, the Bethlehem Church of Christ and at Chattanooga basketball camps. Bouldin, who graduated in December with honors in biology, was a three-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection and a two-time Academic All-SoCon pick and is already enrolled in graduate school at the University of Tennessee. She will earn a Master of Science degree in agricultural leadership, education and communication with hopes of working for the UT extension program or the United States Department of Agriculture.
Nikki Grupp, ETSU – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
ETSU softball player Nikki Grupp is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. A 2019 All-SoCon first-team performer and 2020 preseason first-team pick, Grupp was one of 30 candidates nominated for the NCAA Senior CLASS Award, honoring those with notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. In 2017, Grupp was an all-freshman honoree as the Bucs won the Southern Conference Championship. The third baseman ranked second amongst active SoCon players in RBIs, amassing 88 in her career. Grupp has volunteered throughout her entire career, helping with multiple events, some of which included the Scarecrow Skeddaddle, where the ETSU team volunteered with an event for the Niswonger Children’s Hospital, picking up trash along Jacksonville Beach, reading to children at local elementary schools, volunteering at an animal shelter and coaching a travel softball team in the summer. She also completed an internship with the Center of Excellence at ETSU in the summer of 2019, serving as a student strength and conditioning coach and working with both ETSU and Olympic athletes. The native of Jacksonville, Florida, will graduate with a B.S. in physical education and a minor in coaching in May. Grupp plans to enroll in ETSU’s Applied Sport Science program in the fall and hopes to be a top-level strength and conditioning coach.
Alexis Pitchford, UNC Greensboro – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
UNCG women’s basketball player Alexis Pitchford is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. Pitchford, who played in all 128 UNCG games with 95 starts in her career, helped UNCG to a share of the SoCon regular-season title and an appearance in the championship final in the 2019-20 season. In her junior campaign, she was third in the league for assist-to-turnover ratio and fourth in assists. As a freshman, she helped the Spartans reach the title game of the Women’s Basketball Invitational and post UNCG’s first 20-win campaign since 2006-07. Pitchford was inducted into the Golden Chain Honor Society in 2017, the National Society of Collegiate Scholars in 2018 and the Omnicron Delta Kappa Honor Society and the Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society in 2019. The Orlando, Florida, native was a three-time member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll and a two-time Academic All-SoCon selection. Pitchford has served as a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative since 2017 and has also served as a sportswriter/copy editor for the UNG student newspaper, the Carolinian, and a member of the Spartan Sportslink video staff, helping to stream UNCG athletics on ESPN+, for the last three years. She’s volunteered at Dream Camp, a day camp designed for children with social skills and friendship challenges, and for Heads Up For Our Youth, a community partnership to teach, motivate and inspire young people to achieve academic success. Pitchford has served as a promotions assistant for the UNCG Kaplan Center, served as event staff at UNCG athletic events, and was selected as UNCG’s representative at the NCAA Career in Sports Forum. Pitchford will graduate in May with a degree in media studies and a minor in communication studies. She hopes to attend graduate school in the fall and seek a career in broadcasting, sports information or videography for an athletic department or sports organization.
Emily Zipay, Western Carolina – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
Western Carolina women’s soccer player Emily Zipay is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. Zipay played in 19 matches, starting 17, in the 2019 season, scoring two goals and adding three assists. The midfielder/forward scored a goal and added an assist as a junior in 2018, also serving as a co-captain, and had a goal and two assists in her sophomore campaign for the Catamounts. Zipay was a member of the SoCon Academic All-Conference squad three straight seasons and has received the SoCon Commissioner’s Medal and been a member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll all four years. In addition to claiming a spot on the Chancellor’s List all four years, Zipay was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team and the CosIDA Academic All-District First Team in 2019. During her time at Western Carolina, Zipay’s received five scholarships and presented at four conferences. Her junior year, she was also the recipient of Western Carolina’s Female Scholar Athlete of the Year. The native of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, has spent over 300 hours volunteering, most of which were spent shadowing those in the medical field. Zipay shadowed doctors in multiple fields, ranging from orthopedic surgery to obstetrics and gynecology. During her collegiate career, she also spent over 50 hours volunteering with the Catamounts’ team, helping to promote exercise in elementary aged children, teaching middle schoolers about the importance of proper nutrition, and teaching high schoolers about the properties of the periodic table. She also spent over 20 hours preparing meals for the homeless and singing to the elderly. Zipay, who holds a 4.0 GPA, will graduate in May with a degree in biology with a pre-professional health concentration and a minor is psychology. She plans to take the next two years to obtain experience in the medical field, starting with a job as a surgical sales representative in the orthopedic operating room, before beginning medical school in 2022.
This year’s honorees include: Dave Hart Scholarship recipient William Stout (Wofford); Dorothy Hicks Scholarship recipient Danni Vines (Furman); Insurance Office of America Scholarship recipient Kirsty Beckwith (Chattanooga); David Knight Scholarship recipient Maggie Johnston (Samford); Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship recipients Jack Raines (Mercer) and Sam Franklin (VMI); William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith recipient Lakelyn Bouldin (Chattanooga); and Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship recipients Nikki Grupp (ETSU), Alexis Pitchford (UNC Greensboro) and Emily Zipay (Western Carolina).
The recipients are nominated by their schools and selected by the Southern Conference Graduate Scholar Committee. The scholarships, worth $2,000 each, are awarded to student-athletes about to receive their undergraduate degrees who intend to pursue advanced degrees in graduate or professional school. The student-athletes are evaluated on academics, athletics and community service.
William Stout, Wofford – Dave Hart Scholarship
Wofford’s William Stout is the 2020 recipient of the Dave Hart Scholarship. A member of the Terriers’ indoor and outdoor track and field teams, Stout earned all-conference honors for top-three finishes in the heptathlon at all four SoCon indoor championships of his career and medaled in the decathlon at the outdoor meet twice. In 2017, he earned all-freshman honors in the heptathlon, triple jump and pole vault at the indoor SoCon meet. The school record-holder in the pole vault for both indoor and outdoor, the three-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection and biology major earned the Commissioner’s Medal for posting at least a 3.8 GPA for the academic year all three times, posting a 4.0 twice. Stout also earned Academic All-SoCon honors in both the indoor and outdoor seasons in 2018 and 2019 and was a Google Cloud CoSIDA Academic All-District selection in 2019. A member-elect of Phi Beta Kappa, Stout was a Junior Marshall and has earned several scholarships, including the Phillip E. Foster, Jr., Endowed Scholarship, a Sigma Alpha Epsilon academic scholarship and the Larry H. McCalla Scholarship. From 2017-19, he earned the Sigma Alpha Epsilon Outstanding Academic Achievement Award and served as the SAE scholarship chairman and was a volunteer mentor at ARCH Ministries and a classroom helper at Arcadia Elementary. He will attend the University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine as he begins his trek to becoming a doctor.
Danni Vines, Furman – Dorothy Hicks Scholarship
Furman’s Danni Vines is the recipient of the 2020 Dorothy Hicks Scholarship. A co-captain on the 2020 women’s tennis squad, Vines helped the Paladins to their highest ranking in program history, No. 35. Vines, who helped the Paladins win SoCon regular-season and tournament championships in 2017, 2018 and 2019, was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player in 2017 and 2018 and was also the recipient of the Pinnacle Award, given to the player with the highest GPA on the championship-winning ream, both years. The native of Elizabethton, Tennessee, was ranked No. 55 in doubles in 2017 and was named the SoCon Freshman of the Year. She was a first-team All-SoCon honoree in singles and doubles that season and a second-team selection in both in her sophomore campaign. Vines has shined in the classroom, carrying a 4.0 GPA in health sciences. A three-time member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll, Academic All-SoCon team and ITA All-Academic Team, Vines was a member of Phi Eta Sigma, a freshman honor society, and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, America’s most prestigious honor society. In 2017, She was awarded Furman’s Winston Babb Memorial Award, given to one male and one female in the freshman class that exemplify excellence in leadership, scholarship and service. Vines has spent nearly 420 hours volunteering in the community, including at the Greenville Children’s Hospital through the Valiant Player organization, lifting spirits and morale of patients. Her sophomore year, Vines lived in the Greenbelt Community in an eco cabin, learning how to live an eco-friendlier lifestyle. During that time, she initiated a project, collecting used, flat tennis balls and redistributing them to local animal shelters as dog toys. She has volunteered over 100 hours of free lessons in the Greenville, South Carolina, community and spent about 10 hours participating in local tennis clinics. In the summer of 2018, Vines volunteered at the Johnson City Medical Center in Johnson City, Tennessee, and spent over 100 hours assisting nurses, answering phone calls from patients and providers, attending to needs of patients, escorting discharged patients and learning about patient/nurse/doctor interactions. Vines, who also spent over 190 hours shadowing dentists in public health and private practice, orthodontists and periodontists, will attend dental school at the Medical University of South Carolina in the fall.
Kirsty Beckwith, Chattanooga – Insurance Office of America Scholarship
Chattanooga women’s golfer Kirsty Beckwith is the recipient of the 2020 Insurance Office of America Scholarship. After spending the first two years of her career and earning All-Big East Conference honors at St. John’s University, Beckwith spent the final three with the Mocs, starting in each of the last two seasons after taking a medical redshirt in 2017-18. Beckwith, who won the Quinnipiac Classic and posted six top-five finishes while at St. John’s, posted her best career 54-hole score as a redshirt junior for the Mocs last season and served as a team captain in 2019-20. Her best finish for Chattanooga came at the 2019 SoCon Championship, when she finished seventh. A native of Leeds, England, Beckwith balanced her collegiate golf career with her duties on the England International Golf Team. Among her international accomplishments, Beckwith won the Abraham Trophy in 2012 for being the most improved girls golfer on the U18 team and was named “Britain’s Best Putter” and represented England in the U18 Nations Cup in 2014. In her communities, Beckwith volunteered with Swing for Hope in 2018 and 2019, an event that benefited the Walter Boehm Birth Defect Center in Chattanooga, Tennessee. While at St. John’s, she volunteered with the Midnight Run and in a soup kitchen and was vice president of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Beckwith was a three-time Women’s Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar and two-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection in the classroom, earning the Commissioner’s Medal for posting a 3.90 GPA in 2017-18. She also earned a spot on the Academic All-SoCon team in spring 2019. Beckwith, who was a teaching assistant in the Psychology Department, graduated magna cum laude from Chattanooga in May 2019, finishing her psychology degree with a 3.78 GPA and earning one of two WRCB Broadcasting Scholarships, which go to graduate students who display outstanding academic standing. She began work on an MBA at Chattanooga in the fall of 2019 as she completed her athletic eligibility, posting a 4.0 GPA in her first semester. Beckwith aspires to become an HR leader within a top American company.
Maggie Johnston, Samford – David Knight Scholarship
Samford’s Maggie Johnston is the 2020 recipient of the David Knight Scholarship. A thrower on the Bulldogs’ track and field teams, Johnston won five individual SoCon titles (one indoor, four outdoor) and six SoCon team championships (four indoor, two outdoor) throughout her career. The SoCon outdoor meet record-holder in the discus, Johnston was a three-time champion in the event, winning it each year of her career that the meet was held. Also the 2019 SoCon outdoor shot put champion, Johnston was the meet’s female Most Outstanding Athlete that season as the top point-scorer and was voted the Most Outstanding Field Performer by the league’s coaches. Following the SoCon indoor meet in 2020, Johnston, who won the title in the weight throw, was voted the Most Outstanding Field Performer for that meet, as well. A communications studies and Spanish double-major, Johnston, who aspires to be a lawyer and focus on immigration law, boasts a 3.79 GPA and was a 2019 USTFCCCA All-Academic Individual. In addition to earning SoCon Academic All-SoCon and SoCon Academic Honor Roll honors as many times as possible in her career, Johnston earned spots on Samford’s Howard College of Arts and Sciences Honor Roll from 2018-19 and earned the Samford University Communications Studies Department’s Outstanding Speaker of the Year Award in 2019. In the community, Johnston and her teams participated in the Bundles of Hope Diaper Drive from 2016-17, raising awareness and collecting donations for the organization, and in the Rise Against Hunger initiative in 2019, helping prepare pre-packaged meals for international hunger relief, in 2019. A member of the Lambda Phi Eta, the National Communication Association’s official honor society, Johnston serves as the vice president for Samford’s chapter.
Jack Raines, Mercer – Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
Mercer’s Jack Raines is one of two recipients of a Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship. A defensive lineman and outside linebacker for the Bears’ football team, Raines went from walk-on to starter and team captain over the course of his career, earning a full athletic scholarship after two seasons and wrapping his career with 53 tackles that included six tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks during his redshirt senior season. Throughout his career, Raines was active in the Mercer community and beyond, volunteering with the MS Society of Georgia, Rebuilding Macon, the American Red Cross, Habitat for Humanity and Traffick Jam in the Macon, Georgia, area, and traveled to Zaruma, Ecuador, with the Mercer on Mission program, serving as a translator for Mercer engineering students and working with the city council of Zaruma to create an economic redevelopment plan. Raines, who was also president of Sigma Alpha Epsilon, annually raised money for the fraternity’s Nick Whitlock Foundation. A first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American in 2019, Raines is a three-time Academic All-SoCon performer and a four-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection, earning the Commissioner’s Medal all four times for posting a GPA of 3.8 or higher and posting a 4.0 GPA three times. He finished his undergraduate career with a 3.99 GPA, completing University Honors Program curriculum and graduating summa cum laude, and turned in a 3.75 GPA in 12 hours as a non-degree seeking student in his final semester. Raines was a member of the Phi Kappa Phi honor society and was a Mercer Presidential Scholar, a status he maintained throughout his college career. A finance and Spanish double-major, Raines is a member of Columbia Business School’s first deferred enrollment class, which will allow him to enter the workforce for two to four years before enrolling to complete his MBA. Raines was recently hired by UPS to serve as a domestic finance specialist in the company’s global headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia.
Sam Franklin, VMI – Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
VMI’s Sam Franklin is one of two recipients of a Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship. A midfielder for the Keydets’ women’s soccer team, Franklin started 70 of her 72 career games played, scoring nine points on four goals and an assist, with a career-high three goals as a junior in 2018. A two-year team captain, Franklin earned Southern Conference All-Tournament honors in 2019 and was the 2020 winner of the Three-Legged Stool award, which is presented to the VMI first class cadet-athlete who best exemplifies the three aspects of a VMI education: athletics, academics and military discipline. An Arabic and international studies double-major and a member of the Phi Sigma Iota international languages honor society, Franklin earned VMI Academic Stars for earning a cumulative GPA of at least 3.5 from spring 2017 to spring 2020. She also was a recipient of a Project GO Scholarship, which allowed her to study Arabic in Fez, Morocco, in the summer of 2019. Franklin was a three-time member of the SoCon Honor Roll, twice earning the Commissioner’s Medal for posting a GPA of at least 3.8 for the academic year, and also earned Academic All-SoCon honors three times. She served as the president of VMI’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee in 2019, organizing community service events for student-athletes and ensuring maximum support for sporting events at VMI. Franklin was also captain of the VMI Morale and Welfare Group and organized Salvation Army bell-ringing events for VMI SAAC student-athletes in 2018 and 2019. She also twice volunteered with Habitat for Humanity with the VMI women’s soccer team and helped organize a weekly event to read to children at an elementary school in Lexington, Virginia. Franklin, who will serve in the United States Air Force as an intelligence officer after graduating from VMI, plans to pursue a master’s degree in Homeland Security Policy.
Lakelyn Bouldin, Chattanooga – William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
Chattanooga’s women’s basketball player Lakelyn Bouldin is the 2020 recipient of the William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith. A 2016-17 SoCon regular-season and tournament champion and a third-team All-SoCon performer and regular-season tri-champion in 2019-20, Bouldin finished her career with over 1,400 points and ranks third in program history for 3-pointers made and eighth in total points. The native of Spencer, Tennessee, was named to the Chattanooga’s Dean’s List and the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll every semester and was a recipient of the Wes Moore Women’s Basketball Scholarship and the UC Foundation Peaslee Women’s Basketball Scholarship. The guard was honored with the 2020 Ann Lashley Award, presented to a women’s basketball player or coach at a Southern Conference institution who, when challenged by a life-altering situation used grace, perseverance, dedication and determination to face the event and serve as a role model to give hope and inspiration to others in similar situations, and was the recipient of the 2020 A.C. Scrappy Moore Award, presented annually to a Chattanooga student-athlete who best personifies the athletic department’s mission of equipping student-athletes for success in the classroom, in competition and in the community. Bouldin has spent countless hours volunteering, spending most of her time volunteering at a local elementary school, the Bethlehem Church of Christ and at Chattanooga basketball camps. Bouldin, who graduated in December with honors in biology, was a three-time SoCon Academic Honor Roll selection and a two-time Academic All-SoCon pick and is already enrolled in graduate school at the University of Tennessee. She will earn a Master of Science degree in agricultural leadership, education and communication with hopes of working for the UT extension program or the United States Department of Agriculture.
Nikki Grupp, ETSU – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
ETSU softball player Nikki Grupp is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. A 2019 All-SoCon first-team performer and 2020 preseason first-team pick, Grupp was one of 30 candidates nominated for the NCAA Senior CLASS Award, honoring those with notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. In 2017, Grupp was an all-freshman honoree as the Bucs won the Southern Conference Championship. The third baseman ranked second amongst active SoCon players in RBIs, amassing 88 in her career. Grupp has volunteered throughout her entire career, helping with multiple events, some of which included the Scarecrow Skeddaddle, where the ETSU team volunteered with an event for the Niswonger Children’s Hospital, picking up trash along Jacksonville Beach, reading to children at local elementary schools, volunteering at an animal shelter and coaching a travel softball team in the summer. She also completed an internship with the Center of Excellence at ETSU in the summer of 2019, serving as a student strength and conditioning coach and working with both ETSU and Olympic athletes. The native of Jacksonville, Florida, will graduate with a B.S. in physical education and a minor in coaching in May. Grupp plans to enroll in ETSU’s Applied Sport Science program in the fall and hopes to be a top-level strength and conditioning coach.
Alexis Pitchford, UNC Greensboro – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
UNCG women’s basketball player Alexis Pitchford is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. Pitchford, who played in all 128 UNCG games with 95 starts in her career, helped UNCG to a share of the SoCon regular-season title and an appearance in the championship final in the 2019-20 season. In her junior campaign, she was third in the league for assist-to-turnover ratio and fourth in assists. As a freshman, she helped the Spartans reach the title game of the Women’s Basketball Invitational and post UNCG’s first 20-win campaign since 2006-07. Pitchford was inducted into the Golden Chain Honor Society in 2017, the National Society of Collegiate Scholars in 2018 and the Omnicron Delta Kappa Honor Society and the Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society in 2019. The Orlando, Florida, native was a three-time member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll and a two-time Academic All-SoCon selection. Pitchford has served as a Student-Athlete Advisory Committee representative since 2017 and has also served as a sportswriter/copy editor for the UNG student newspaper, the Carolinian, and a member of the Spartan Sportslink video staff, helping to stream UNCG athletics on ESPN+, for the last three years. She’s volunteered at Dream Camp, a day camp designed for children with social skills and friendship challenges, and for Heads Up For Our Youth, a community partnership to teach, motivate and inspire young people to achieve academic success. Pitchford has served as a promotions assistant for the UNCG Kaplan Center, served as event staff at UNCG athletic events, and was selected as UNCG’s representative at the NCAA Career in Sports Forum. Pitchford will graduate in May with a degree in media studies and a minor in communication studies. She hopes to attend graduate school in the fall and seek a career in broadcasting, sports information or videography for an athletic department or sports organization.
Emily Zipay, Western Carolina – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
Western Carolina women’s soccer player Emily Zipay is the recipient of a 2020 Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship. Zipay played in 19 matches, starting 17, in the 2019 season, scoring two goals and adding three assists. The midfielder/forward scored a goal and added an assist as a junior in 2018, also serving as a co-captain, and had a goal and two assists in her sophomore campaign for the Catamounts. Zipay was a member of the SoCon Academic All-Conference squad three straight seasons and has received the SoCon Commissioner’s Medal and been a member of the SoCon Academic Honor Roll all four years. In addition to claiming a spot on the Chancellor’s List all four years, Zipay was named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team and the CosIDA Academic All-District First Team in 2019. During her time at Western Carolina, Zipay’s received five scholarships and presented at four conferences. Her junior year, she was also the recipient of Western Carolina’s Female Scholar Athlete of the Year. The native of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, has spent over 300 hours volunteering, most of which were spent shadowing those in the medical field. Zipay shadowed doctors in multiple fields, ranging from orthopedic surgery to obstetrics and gynecology. During her collegiate career, she also spent over 50 hours volunteering with the Catamounts’ team, helping to promote exercise in elementary aged children, teaching middle schoolers about the importance of proper nutrition, and teaching high schoolers about the properties of the periodic table. She also spent over 20 hours preparing meals for the homeless and singing to the elderly. Zipay, who holds a 4.0 GPA, will graduate in May with a degree in biology with a pre-professional health concentration and a minor is psychology. She plans to take the next two years to obtain experience in the medical field, starting with a job as a surgical sales representative in the orthopedic operating room, before beginning medical school in 2022.
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