Utah State Aggies

April 22, 2009

LOGAN, Utah - Utah State's athletics department recognized 150 student-athletes for achieving a 3.2 grade point average at the 16th annual Joe E. and Elma Whitesides Scholar-Athlete Luncheon here Wednesday. To be eligible for the honor, student-athletes must have a cumulative 3.2 grade point average or have posted a 3.2 GPA during the last two semesters.

In all, approximately 45 percent of USU's student-athletes earned a 3.2 GPA to qualify for the awards.

The top honorees during the luncheon was volleyball player Rebecca Anderson, and track athletes Tyler Ellis and Alison Taylor who were recognized as the Joe E. Whitesides Award recipients. It is the first time in the 54-year history of the award that three student-athletes have been honored.

Anderson, a senior from Logan, Utah (Logan HS) posted a 3.94 grade-point average while majoring in statistics. As a three-year letterwinner on the volleyball team, she appeared in 71 matches and earned academic all-Western Athletic Conference honors three times, including academic all-district honors twice.

Ellis, a senior from San Diego, Calif. (Rancho Bernardo HS) carries a 3.89 GPA and is majoring in pre-physical therapy. During his two years of competition on the track team, he earned second-team all-WAC honors in 2008 as he finished fifth in the shot put at the WAC Indoor Championships, and academic all-WAC honors twice.

Taylor, a senior from Salt Lake City, Utah (Skyline HS) has a 3.89 GPA while majoring in biology. As a member of the cross country and track teams, she helped Utah State win the 2008 WAC Cross Country Championship, and at the 2009 WAC Indoor Championships she was a member of the winning medley relay team. Taylor is also a three-time academic all-WAC honoree.

All three Joe E. Whitesides Award recipients will graduate from Utah State this spring with bachelor degrees.

Utah State also handed out team honors as the women's tennis team was named the top academic team with less than 20 members, while the women's track team was the top academic team with more than 20 members, and men's track was the most improved academic team.

Gary Wilkinson, who is a senior on the men's basketball team, received the Aggie Achievement Award for overcoming life challenges and personal adversity to ultimately excel as a student-athlete and obtain a high level of academic achievement at Utah State University.

Head Utah State Athletic Trainer Dale Mildenberger and Gary Stevens, who is the vice president of Spindler Construction, were presented the Meet The Challenge Award for their hard work and dedication to the Jim and Carol Laub Athletics-Academics Complex, and Morgan Summers was given the Outstanding Tutor Award for her work with USU's student-athletes.

The Whitesides honors started in 1953 by former USU athlete, coach and athletics director Joe E. Whitesides.

2009 UTAH STATE WHITESIDES SPECIAL HONORS
Whitesides Winner - Rebecca Anderson (Volleyball), Tyler Ellis (Men's Track), Alison Taylor (Women's Track)
Meet The Challenge - Dale Mildenberger and Gary Stevens
Aggie Achievement Award - Gary Wilkinson
Outstanding Tutor - Morgan Summers
Top Teams (20-plus members)
1. Women's Track
2. Women's Soccer
3. Men's Track
Top Teams (less than 20 members)
1. Women's Cross Country
2. Men's Cross Country
3. Women's Tennis
Most Improved Teams
1. Men's Cross Country
2. Men's Basketball
3. Softball

2009 UTAH STATE WHITESIDES HONOREES
Jon. M. Huntsman School of Business
Katie Astle, Volleyball
Steven Atkinson, Men's Track & Field
Lindsey Benson, Softball
Michael Bills, Men's Track & Field
Blake Bolen, Men's Track & Field
James Brindley, Football
Brandon Broadhead, Golf
Adrian Bybee, Football
Ben Calderwood, Football
Alice Coddington, Women's Basketball
Devin Daniels, Golf
Chase Griffiths, Football
Heather Heinrich, Gymnastics
Brady Jardine, Men's Basketball
Nicole Johnson, Women's Basketball
Tyler Labrum, Golf
LeeAnn Palo, Women's Basketball
Alexandra Marsh-Gentry, Soccer
Jordan McMurray, Men's Track & Field
Eric Moats, Football
Brandon Nielsen, Men's Tennis
Casey Parker, Men's Track & Field
Sydne Porter, Soccer
Angelina Rawls, Softball
Marissa Sanchez, Soccer
Patrick Scales, Football
Hailey Swenson, Women's Tennis
Thad Truman, Golf
Chris Ulinski, Football
College of Science
Rebecca Anderson, Volleyball
Cortnie Broadus, Women's Track & Field
Maria Halton, Women's Track & Field
Erica Huelsmann, Gymnastics
Spela Hus, Women's Track & Field
John Johnson, Men's Track & Field
Molli Merrill, Soccer
Dusty Ott, Men's Track 7 Field
Nicole Rupp, Softball
Danielle Shorts, Soccer
Alison Taylor, Women's Track & Field
College of Engineering
Sam Hawkins, Men's Track & Field
Ruth Hilton, Women's Track & Field
College of Education & Human Services
Justine Baugh, Women's Track & Field
Alan Bishop, Football
Rayna Bradshaw, Softball
Ashlee Cannon, Women's Track & Field
Jessie Chugg, Women's Track & Field
Candice Clark, Soccer
Kira Datwyler, Women's Track & Field
Shantell Durrant, Volleyball
Tyler Ellis, Men's Track & Field
Nicole Felley, Gymnastics
Josh Flores, Football
Kaylene Gastaldi, Women's Track & Field
Vanessa Gledhill, Women's Track & Field
Jared Glenn, Men's Track & Field
Chance Godderidge, Golf
Sonia Grabowska, Women's Track & Field
Kate Greenough, Softball
Nnamdi Gwacham, Football
Blake Hadfield, Men's Track & Field
Kali Hamby, Women's Track & Field
Lauren Hansen, Soccer
Jeanine Hernandez, Softball
Brittni Hopkin, Women's Track & Field
Stacey Howard, Women's Basketball
Jacob Hutton, Football
Washington Igboeli, Football
Brad Jakel, Football
Katelyn Jensen, Women's Track & Field
Megan Johnson, Soccer
Kimiko Kamo, Women's Track & Field
Shanda Larsen, Volleyball
Krista Larson, Women's Track & Field
Marie Livingston, Women's Tennis
Jacob Mabey, Men's Track & Field
Bryan Marchant, Men's Tennis
Christine Morrill, Volleyball
Otis Nelson, Football
Shanna Nielsen, Women's Track & Field
Kiersten Nilsson, Soccer
Ana Pares, Women's Basketball
Emily Reilly, Softball
Erin Salmon, Soccer
Kandace Shoell, Women's Track & Field
Stefani Shiozaki, Soccer
Clinton Silcock, Men's Track & Field
Lindsey Smart, Soccer
John Strang, Men's Track & Field
Erin Stratton, Women's Track & Field
Bridgette Strickland, Women's Tennis
Summer Tillotson, Soccer
Shasta Tyteca, Softball
Tai Wesley, Men's Basketball
Lori Wilson, Volleyball
Lisa Willardson, Soccer
University
Jordan Barlow, Men's Tennis
Brittney Boyack, Soccer
Liran Braun, Men's Tennis
Dominique Cooks, Men's Basketball
Rachel Flessner, Gymnastics
Jordan Glass, Football
Jervon Graves, Football
Todd Griffith, Men's Track & Field
Aimee Haertel, Women's Track & Field
Skyler Halford, Men's Basketball
Madison Jensen, Women's Track & Field
Tyler Killpack, Men's Track & Field
Mitchel Lancaster, Men's Track & Field
Carla Limon, Women's Tennis
Elizabeth McArthur, Volleyball
Cache Morgan, Football
Taylor Perry, Women's Tennis
Megan Rhoads, Soccer
Alexis Venable, Soccer
Jon Wilson, Football
College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences
Chelsea Burns, Women's Basketball
Camille Fehlberg, Women's Track & Field
Karlie Fitzgerald, Women's Track & Field
Matt Formisano, Men's Basketball
Ali Griffin-Godfrey, Soccer
Heather Hillier, Volleyball
Kris Hymas, Volleyball
Camarie Jones, Softball
Nathan Lloyd, Men's Track & Field
Alyssa Lowry, Soccer
Devin Markle, Gymnastics
Brooke McNaughton, Women's Track & Field
Tyler Newbold, Men's Basketball
Melissa Osterloh, Volleyball
Kelsie Packham, Women's Track & Field
Tanner Richins, Football
Heidi Saville, Women's Track & Field
Richard Sirju, Men's Basketball
Steven Strickland, Men's Track & Field
Britney Watts, Women's Tennis
Gary Wilkinson, Men's Basketball
Heath Wing, Men's Track & Field
College of Agriculture
Jennifer Day, Women's Track & Field
Heidi Hopkins, Women's Track & Field
College of Natural Resources
Daniel Howell, Men's Track & Field
Kimberly Quinn, Women's Track & Field
Casey Snider, Men's Track & Field
Chalese West, Women's Track & Field
School of Graduate Studies
Caroline Berry, Women's Track & Field
Michael Green, Football
Derek Hoke, Football
Ashley Johnson, Women's Track & Field
Lydia Whitehead, Women's Basketball