April 15, 2002
ATLANTA – Golfer Troy Matteson and distance runner Renee Metivier came away with most valuable athlete honors, while volleyball player Kyleen Bell and quarterback George Godsey each earned the Student-Athlete Total Person Award at Georgia Tech’s annual Yellow Jacket Celebration.
The annual event was held Monday night at the Bill Moore Tennis Center.
Matteson, the nation’s fifth-ranked collegiate golfer, has led Tech’s top-ranked golf team to five team titles in 2001-02, while winning three consecutive tournaments himself, feats unprecedented in the ultra-successful Yellow Jacket golf program. A junior from Austin, Texas, Matteson has three other top-10 finishes this year, carries a 71.15 stroke average and has been Tech’s low scorer in seven of eight tournaments.
Metivier, a sophomore from Highland Village, Texas, has earned all-America honors in cross country and indoor track this year. The NCAA runner-up in cross country last fall, Metivier became only the second female all-America performer in Tech cross country history. She also won the NCAA South Regional and finished second at the ACC Championship. In indoor track, she earned all-America honors in the 3000- and 5000-meter events, while posting all-ACC efforts in both events and leading the Yellow Jackets to their first-ever ACC team title.
Tech’s Student-Athlete Total Person Awards are given to student-athletes demonstrating outstanding athletic achievement, scholarship and character.
Bell, a senior volleyball player from Rocklin, Calif., received all-ACC honors each of the past two years and has posted a near-perfect grade-point average while twice earning first-team Academic All-America honors. In addition to serving on the Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board, her volunteer work includes the 2002 Men’s Basketball Final Four, the Atlanta Community Food Bank and the Georgia Tech career fair. She plans to attend graduate school and pursue a career in athletics administration.
Godsey is an all-ACC quarterback whose two years as a starter were two of the most productive seasons in Tech and ACC history. In 23 games, he averaged 260.5 yards passing, completed 64.3 percent of his attempts and threw for 41 touchdowns, while also scoring six touchdowns himself. He posted the fifth-best career pass efficiency rating in ACC history and the best career completion percentage in Tech annals. An excellent student who has always been an outstanding representative for Georgia Tech, he earned his bachelor’s degree in Industrial Engineering a year ago and is now working toward a master’s degree.
The winners of the prestigious Bobby Dodd Scholarship Award, given in honor of legendary football coach Bobby Dodd, are junior tennis player Jaime Wong and junior football player Jeremy Muyres. Wong is an all-ACC performer who has led Tech to its highest ranking ever in women’s tennis. Currently ranked among the nation’s Top 50 players, she ranks third in Tech history in career singles victories. A Dean’s List student in management and a junior from Stone Mountain, Ga., Muyres has earned all-Atlantic Coast Conference honors on the football field and in the classroom the last two years. A three-year starter at free safety with seven career interceptions and 197 career tackles, he was Tech’s third-leading tackler in 2001. In addition to serving on the Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board, he volunteers at Centennial Elementary School, and is involved with Tech’s SAMs program, weekly Bible study, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Athletes in Action.
Laura Ozolins, a senior from Toronto, Canada, is this year’s recipient of the Robert Cup, presented annually to Georgia Tech’s top senior student-athlete in honor of Lawrence Wood “Chip” Robert. He was one of Tech’s earliest athletic stars, earning 15 varsity letters and serving as captain of the football, baseball and cross country teams. Ozolins has a near-perfect grade point average in biology and has also enjoyed a very successful athletic career on the tennis court, where she ranks as one of Tech’s all-time victory leaders. This year, she has helped the Yellow Jackets to the highest national ranking in school history. In addition, she conducts research in biology, and after graduation, she plans to attend medical school.
Basketball player Milli Martinez earned the Captain’s Captain Award, presented each year by the Georgia Tech Letterwinners’ Club to the Georgia Tech team captain who best exemplifies the principles of leadership, teamwork and dedication. A senior from Imlay City, Mich., Martinez enjoyed her best season as a senior, averaging 12.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game. She earned second-team all-Atlantic Coast Conference honors and first-team ACC All-Defensive accolades as she led the Tech women’s basketball team to its third straight postseason appearance.
Senior golfer Kris Mikkelsen won the Delta Air Lines Partners in Leadership Award, which recognizes a student-athlete who best demonstrates leadership qualities on the playing field, in the classroom and in the community. Mikkelsen, from Woodstock, Ga., has five Top-10 finishes this season, helping the Yellow Jackets to an unprecedented five team titles. He earned all-America honors as a junior with a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Championships. He is a Dean’s List student in Management and a very active member of the Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board.
Michael Isenhour, Tech’s senior basketball player who was stricken with leukemia in the fall, earned the Yellow Jacket Perseverance Award. A 6-8 center from Lawrenceville, Ga., Isenhour missed all of last season after being diagnosed with the disease in October and continues to undergo treatment. Isenhour earned his degree in mechanical engineering in December and plans to begin graduate school at Tech in the summer term.
Bell and basketball player Regina Tate were recognized for earning the Weaver-James-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship, announced earlier this year by the ACC, while senior track and cross country performer Nicole Campbell and senior swimmer David Laitala earned ACC Scholar-Athlete Awards.
Special recognition awards were given to volleyball player Maja Pachale, who earned Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year honors in volleyball as she led Georgia Tech to the NCAA Tournament, and basketball player Tony Akins, Tech’s lone senior who helped Tech win eight of their last 11 games to come within one victory of a postseason berth. Pachale, from Schwerin, Germany, was named first-team all-ACC for the third straight season and first-team all-District for the second year in row. She finished her career as Georgia Tech’s all-time leader with 1,836 kills, which ranks fifth in ACC history, and she also holds the Tech records for kills in a match and in a season. Akins, from Lilburn, Ga., earned second-team all-ACC honors as he averaged 17.0 points and 5.7 assists per game. He finished his career with 1,658 points, 560 assists and 301 three-point field goals, second most in Tech history. Following the season, he won the ESPN Three-Point Shootout and was MVP of the NABC All-Star Game.
Georgia Tech Faculty/Staff Awards went to two members of the Tech faculty for their outstanding contributions to Tech athletics. Dr. William Wepfer, the Professor and Associate Chair for Graduate Studies for the School of Mechanical Engineering, is a member of the Georgia Tech Athletic Board and has served on numerous special committees. He also gives very generously of his time to assist with recruiting. Dr. George Nemhauser was honored for his service as Tech’s Faculty Representative for Athletics for the last seven years. The Faculty Representative serves as the liaison between athletics and academics. Before he was appointed Faculty Representative, Dr. Nemhauser also served on the Athletic Board beginning in 1989. A professor in the School of Industrial & Systems Engineering and a member of the Tech faculty since 1985, Dr. Nemhauser’s specialty is in the area of scheduling, and his software has been used to develop the basketball schedules for the Atlantic Coast Conference.
The Total Person Alumnus Award was given to former all-Southeastern Conference swimmer William T. “Tommy” Towles. Towles won SEC individual championships in the 200 breaststroke in 1949 and 1950. A lieutenant in the U.S. Navy who served in the Korean War, Towles went on to become a builder, developer, manager and investor in commercial and residential real estate. He is a member of the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame and a former trustee of the Athletic Association.
The Georgia Tech Student-Athlete Advisory Board awarded student-athlete spotlight awards to Bell, Metivier, Ozolins, Isenhour, Martinez, Mikkelsen, football players Dan Dyke and Kelley Rhino, track and field standouts Phillip Gable, Shanta Smith and Bryan Swarn, tennis player Roger Anderson, swimmer Shilo Ayalon, and baseball shortstop Victor Menocal.
All-ACC Top Six for Service Awards were given to Muyres, Swarn, track athletes Amy Dock and Tosan Osaigbovo, softball player Mimi Utt and tennis player David Wright.
Georgia Tech All-Academic TeamShilo Ayalon, Men's Swimming, 3.74 GPA, Junior, Computer ScienceKyleen Bell, Volleyball, 3.98, Junior, ManagementNicole Campbell, Women's Cross Country, 3.31, Senior, Science, Technology and CultureFabio Campos, Men's Tennis, 3.27, Junior, Mechanical EngineeringJennifer Christenson, Women's Swimming, 4.00, Junior, Chemical EngineeringDan Dyke, Football, 3.86, Senior, Electrical EngineeringJulia Engle, Cheerleading, 4.00, Senior, ChemistryPhillip Gable, Men's Cross Country, 3.51, Senior, History, Science and TechnologyKris Mikkelsen, Golf, 3.64, Senior, History, Science and TechnologyWinston Neal, Men's Basketball, 3.03, Senior, ManagementJamie Ostrov, Women's Track and Field, 3.67, Junior, Industrial DesignLaura Ozolins, Women's Tennis, 3.97, Senior, BiologyPhilip Perry, Baseball, 3.55, Junior, ManagementJoe Stegall, Men's Track and Field, 3.44, Senior, ManagementRegina Tate, Women's Basketball, 3.34, Senior, Mechanical EngineeringErin Voeltz, Softball, 3.59, Softball, Management
