Athletics Announces 2015-16 Award Winners
The 2015-16 award winners for each Wright State team and for the athletic department were announced on Friday.
Junior golfer Ryan Wenzler was the recipient of the Don Mohr Male Athlete of the Year Award while women's basketball senior Kim Demmings was awarded the Peg Wynkoop Female Athlete of the Year Award. Junior swimmer Mitchell Paul and track junior Gabrielle Markley were recipients of the Dr. Carl Benner Scholar-Athlete Awards while baseball coach Greg Lovelady received the Terry Hall Coach of the Year Award for the second consecutive year and women's soccer senior MacKenzie Hamilton was awarded the Dr. Michael Cusack LifeSkills Award.
Wenzler (Centerville, OH/Centerville) claimed medalist honors at the Horizon League Championships, earning an automatic bid to the NCAA Vanderbilt Regional. A First Team All-Horizon League selection, he posted a team-best 72.91 round average. Along with his first-place finish at the league tournament, Wenzler also finished first at the NKU Collegiate Classic and at the Earl Yestingsmeier Invitational.
Demmings (Richmond, IN/Richmond) was the Horizon League Player of the Year as she led the league in scoring at 20 points per game and was also selected to the league’s All-Tournament Team. A Third Team High-Major All-American and named to the Naismith Watch List, Demmings finished her career with 2677 points, which is the most in school and league history. She helped lead the Raiders to a 24-11 record and a second straight appearance in the WNIT.
Paul (Beavercreek, OH/Beavercreek), a Physics major with a 3.89 grade point average, competed in several different events for the Raiders this season, with his highest finish being sixth in the 100 breaststroke at Ohio State. He was eighth in the 100 breaststroke and 200 backstroke at Cincinnati and in the 100 freestyle at home against Xavier.
Markley (Beavercreek, OH/Beavercreek), a Sports Science major who holds a perfect 4.00 grade point average, finished fifth in the heptathlon at the Horizon League Championships. She also posted the team’s second-best mark of the season in the long jump, third-best time in the 200 meter dash, fourth-best mark in the high jump and fifth-best time in the 100 meter hurdles, shot put and javelin throw.
Lovelady, the ABCA/Diamond Mideast Regional and Horizon League Coach of the Year, directed WSU to a school-record 46 wins in 2016 as the Raiders won the Horizon League regular-season and tournament titles. Wright State then advanced to a NCAA Regional final for the second consecutive season before falling to #2 Louisville 3-1.
Voting for the Athlete of the Year Awards is conducted by members of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee while the Coach of the Year Award is decided by a vote of Wright State's head coaches.
MVP and Raider Awards
| Team | MVP | Hometown | Raider Award * |
Hometown |
| Baseball | Ryan Fucci | Lexington, KY | Jason DeFevers | Cincinnati, OH |
| Brad Macciocchi | West Chester, OH | |||
| Men's Basketball | None | None | ||
| Women's Basketball | Kim Demmings | Richmond, IN | Symone Denham | Columbus, OH |
| Men's Cross Country | Andrew Lake | Maineville, OH | Matt Peters | Canal Fulton, OH |
| Kameron Powell | Cincinnati, OH | |||
| Women's Cross Country | Alexandra Brown | Yellow Springs, OH | Hailey Brumfield | Tipp City, OH |
| Golf | Ryan Wenzler | Centerville, OH | Conner Lash | Centerville, OH |
| Men's Soccer | Sam DeRoy | Powell, OH | Eric Hutton | Chillicothe, OH |
| Women's Soccer | Ashley Gogolin | Gahanna, OH | Amy Anderson | Lancaster, OH |
| Softball | Ashley Sharp | West Chester, OH | Hanna Floyd | Minster, OH |
| Men's Swimming & Diving | Mitch Stover | Versailles, OH | Wiehan Boshoff | Sinoville Pretoria, South Africa |
| Women's Swimming & Diving | Emily Hayhow | Cincinnati, OH | Samantha Miller | Fremont, OH |
| Women's Tennis | Karoline Haller | Bekkestua, Norway | Megan Brdicka | Galena, OH |
| Linsey Verstrepen | Westerlo, Belgium | |||
| Women's Indoor Track | Jessica Doepker | Kalida, OH | Natassia Roberts | Xenia, OH |
| Women's Outdoor Track | Jessica Doepker | Kalida, OH | Brittany Busse | Botkins, OH |
| Natassia Roberts | Xenia, OH | |||
| Volleyball | Maddie Lohmeier | Cincinnati, OH | Rachel Kremer | Versailles, OH |
| Jessie Thornton | Louisville, KY | |||
| Cheerleader | Jordan Garcia | Atlanta, GA | Caillen French | Huber Heights, OH |
| Jordan Whitaker | Dayton, OH | |||
| Dance | Jordan Ludwig | Van Wert, OH | Lazette Carter | Beavercreek, OH |
| Mascot | Caine Barber | Beavercreek, OH | Kyle Ralston | Vandalia, OH |
* The Raider Awards are given annually by each sport to the student-athlete who gives the most emotionally, physically and mentally on and off the court or field.
Departmental Awards
| Award | Recipient | Hometown |
| Dr. Carl Benner Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year | Mitchell Paul, Jr., Swimming | Beavercreek, OH |
| Dr. Carl Benner Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year | Gabrielle Markley, Jr., Track | Beavercreek, OH |
| Don Mohr Male Athlete of the Year | Ryan Wenzler, Jr., Golf | Centerville, OH |
| Peg Wynkoop Female Athlete of the Year | Kim Demmings, Sr., Basketball | Richmond, IN |
| Terry Hall Coach of the Year |
Greg Lovelady, Baseball | |
| Dr. Michael Cusack LifeSkills Award | MacKenzie Hamilton, Sr., Women's Soccer | Lebanon, OH |
