Green and White club honors students, members
By Katherine Bercik, Copy Editor
May 22, 2007 | 12:51 p.m.
The Green and White Club hosted its 45th annual Senior Athlete Recognition Banquet May 21 to honor athletes and club members for their dedication and hard work toward the Ohio University athletic program.
The night was kicked off by Club President Alan Swank and included appearances by Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt and Ohio University President Roderick McDavis. The guest speaker for the night was Geno Ford, an OU alumnus and former Bobcat basketball player.
Academic Recognition
Before Ford took to the stage, Hocutt said this was one of the athletic department's best academic year, with many students receiving academic honors. The Alumni Scholar Athlete Award was presented to baseball players Matt Gault, J.T. Osburn, Daniel Utts and Jon Vondrell; men's basketball players Matt Annen, Steve Hartings and Stephen King; cheerleader Briana Derck; dancer Allison Marshall; field hockey players Amanda Arnold and Celine McNamara; football players Matt Coppage, Austen Everson, J.J. Knabb, Matt Lasher, Tyler Russ and Shane Yates; golfers Grant Christman, Blake Russell, Ryan Sickmann, Kristen Mautez and Meredith Waterston; lacrosse players Jayme Levy and Kathleen Macari; soccer players Tiffany Horvath and Amy Switzer; softball players Marian Davis, Danielle Kelley, Katlyn Mallette, Kelly Rodriguez and Debbie Szalejko; swimmer Elspeth Gibb; track and field/cross country athletes Dan Bailey, Chris Campbell, Brian King, Craig Leon, Austen Schiele, Katie Bailey and Brittany Begg; volleyball players Michaele Blackburn, Jenna Gaughran and Savanah Parra; and lastly, wrestlers Marcus Adelman and Matt Smith.
Everson and Gibb were also named as the nominees for the Bob James Scholarship.
After all the athletes were presented, the audience heard a short speech given by OU alumnus Geno Ford.
Ford's Piece of Advice
His speech was brief, but the story was memorable. He told a story about a young Mexican boy, his grandfather and their most prized possession, a donkey. The boy wanted to travel to town down the mountain with his grandfather because he had never done so before; so, he rode the donkey along the narrow path down the mountain.
However, as they reached the first village, the villagers commented on how they thought the boy was too young to be riding the donkey down the narrow path. To fix this problem, the grandfather decided to ride upon the donkey as well. But when they reached the next village, those villagers commented about why they thought they should kill the donkey because of how tired it looked. Instead, the boy and his grandfather decided to carry the donkey.
The boy and his grandfather continued this way until they reached a rickety bridge. Unfortunately, since the bridge was unsturdy, the two lost their balance and dropped the donkey into the river below, where it died.
According to Ford, the moral of this story: "If you go through life getting advice from the wrong people, you're going to lose your ass."
The Awards
Shortly following Ford's speech, special honors were awarded to both Green and White club members and athletes.
The 2007 Green and White Special Services award went to Lori Moorman and Derek Scott while the Jonesy Sams Award, which honors fans for their lasting loyalty, was presented to Herb and Sara Evans. This was the first time that the Jonesy Sams Award was presented to an entire family rather than one individual, according to Swank.
For the student athletes, the highest honors - Female Student-Athlete of the Year and Male Student-Athlete of the Year - were presented to softball player Debbie Szalejko and football and track athlete Scott Mayle.
"My heart is pounding," Szalejko said while accepting her award. "I don't know what else to say, I'm speechless," she added, after mentioning that nothing would have been possible if it hadn't been for her team.
Mayle, who is one of very few two-sport athletes, was even more speechless, only managing a simple "thank you" when he reached the stage. After graduation, Mayle will try to make the Buffalo Bills's roster after signing a contract last month.
Before announcing the Student-Athlete of the Year awards, presenter Scott said "There are usually more qualified athletes than there are awards to give." Though some people received different forms of recognition, everyone who attended was honored simply by being a part of the athletic program.