By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Foundation Celebrating a year that has seen Baylor earn No. 1 national rankings in four different sports, win its first Big 12 championship in women's indoor track and make postseason appearances in 11 sports and counting, the athletic department paused Monday night to recognize its academic success as well.
Honorees included track All-American Annie Rhodes and basketball/football player Ishmail Wainright as Big 12 Seniors of the Year.
"I was in shock," said Wainright, who joined the football team this spring as a tight end after helping the basketball team make its school-record fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and fourth trip to the Sweet 16 in eight years. "Everyone looked at me at the table, and I'm like, `Nah, I'm not winning this.' And then when they said Baylor basketball and football, I said, `What in the world!' It really is a blessing."
Wainright was also named to the Big 12 All-Defensive Team and was a key role player for a team that won 27 games and earned the program's first-ever No. 1 national ranking.
A two-time indoor All-American, Rhodes won her second conference title at the Big 12 Indoor Championships and was the runner-up at the NCAA Indoor Championships. She has been a seven-time Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll selection and two-time Academic All-Big 12 first-team member.
This year's recipients for the John Westbrook Award for Courage and Perseverance were football's Seth Russell and Alexis Jones from women's basketball. The award recognizes one male and female student-athlete annually who has overcome great personal, academic or emotional challenges to achieve academic success while making positive contributions to their respective teams.
Russell, a May 2016 graduate, had season-ending injuries each of the last two years, but still finished as Baylor's career leader in total offensive yards per play (8.324), second in career passing efficiency (159.36), third in passing touchdowns (60) and seventh in career passing yards (5,461). He was invited to the Oakland Raiders' rookie mini-camp as an undrafted free agent.
Jones, who had surgeries on both knees before transferring to Baylor from Duke, was a two-time All-Big 12 pick and honorable mention All-American. A first-round draft pick by the WNBA's Minnesota Lynx, Jones finished her career second in 3-point percentage (.411), second in triple-doubles (1), fourth in assist average (4.6) and eighth in 3-pointers made (132).
Winners of the Dr. Gerald Lage Award, the Big 12's highest academic honor, were Blair Shankle and Kely Putri from women's tennis, Bridget Hamway and Johanna Lee from soccer, Tyler Stayer from men's tennis, Jenna Pfeiffer from women's track and field and Richard Cunningham from baseball.
The national champion A&T team was a Provost Award winner, along with baseball, men's cross country, equestrian and men's tennis, while women's golf won its third straight President's Cup for having the highest cumulative GPA among Baylor's 19 varsity sports.
Baseball received the CHAMPS Cup for its community service over the last year.
"Our Baylor student-athletes continue to be successful on the competition field and in the classroom," said Deedee Brown, assistant athletic director for academic support services. "We are blessed with outstanding coaches, academic staff and administration that support and expect excellence from all student-athletes. We are Preparing Champions for Life!"
Here is a list of this year's awards winners:
Big 12 Conference Senior Award: Ishmail Wainright, men's basketball/football; Annie Rhodes, women's track and field
John Westbrook Award for Courage and Perseverance: Seth Russell, football; Alexis Jones, women's basketball
Academic Achievement Award (highest team GPA): Alexandria Gulley, sophomore, women's basketball; Jake Lindsey, sophomore, men's basketball; Caitlin Charlton, junior, softball; Matthew Perrine, junior, men's golf; Marques Jones, junior, football; Blair Shankle, women's tennis; Maggie Burton, sophomore, soccer; Jana Brusek, junior, volleyball; Jenna Pfeiffer, senior, women's track; Sam Sahli, senior, men's track; Samantha Howell, sophomore, equestrian; Dylan Kim, junior, women's golf; Richard Cunningham, junior, baseball; Avery WeHunt, sophomore, trainer; Anna Webb, sophomore, acrobatics & tumbling; Jimmy Bendeck, sophomore, men's tennis; Sean McCullough, sophomore, men's cross country; Leila Rohde, junior, women's cross country
Big 12 Dr. Gerald Lage Award: Blair Shankle, senior, women's tennis; Kely Putri, senior, women's tennis; Bridge Hamway, senior, soccer; Johanna Lee, senior, soccer; Tyler Stayer, senior, men's tennis; Jenna Pfeiffer, senior, women's track; Richard Cunningham, junior, baseball
Leadership Academy Graduates: Maggie Montoya, women's track/cross country; Ingrid Lecot, equestrian; Matthew Parham, men's track/cross country; Victoria Griffith, equestrian; Kelsey Wolf, equestrian; Blair Shankle, women's tennis; Taylor Sutton, equestrian; Alex Ryan, equestrian; Eric Anderson, men's track/cross country; Theresa Van Zyl, women's tennis; Madie Zimmerman, women's track/cross country
Provost Award (teams achieving highest-ever term or cumulative GPA): Acrobatics & Tumbling, Baseball, Men's Cross Country, Equestrian, Men's Tennis
CHAMPS Cup (community service): Baseball
President's Cup (highest cumulative team GPA): Women's Golf
Outstanding Professors: Ron Davis, human performance, recreation; Jane Damron, communication; Cari Edison, accounting/business; Alex Engrebretson, English; Randy Hacker, marketing; Heidi Marcum, environmental science; Laura McBride, English; Jeremy McElroy, information systems technology
