EAU CLAIRE - Football players Austin Crow (Woodbury, MN) and Mike Bestul (Chippewa Falls), wrestler Adam Kolo (Vesper), women's basketball players Kristi Channing (Fall Creek) and Janel Soppeland (Cadott), and three-sport athlete Brook Wozniak-Schmidt (Stanley) will be honored as recipients of the 2003 Super Six award at the Hall of Fame banquet November 1.
The Blugold Super Six Salute award, in its 17th year of existence, is the highest honor UWEC can bestow upon a student-athlete. Its purpose is to recognize and honor outstanding athletes who have also demonstrated a high level of proficiency in the classroom. Each year the award honors three female and three male student-athletes. These individuals epitomize the ideals of intercollegiate athletics as an educational experience at UWEC.
To be nominated for the award, the student-athletes must have completed their junior or senior year of eligibility, must have attended UWEC for two years, must have a cumulative resident grade point average of 3.00 or better, must have a declared major, must be recommended by the head coach and must demonstrate above average performance in their sport.
"The six athletes that will be honored November 1 represent the elite of the student-athletes from our 20 intercollegiate athletic teams from last season," said Sports Information Director Tim Petermann who will present the awards. With more than 600 athletes participating in the Blugold athletics program each year, these six were selected from a ballot that included 29 outstanding candidates.
"Intercollegiate athletics at UW-Eau Claire has been and will continue to be a classroom outside the classroom," said Petermann. "All of our athletes, like these six, come to UWEC as students first and use athletics as an enjoyable recreational activity in which to broaden their horizons and learn things that may not be offered in specific academic areas. Any career choice students make academically can be enhanced through participation in athletics from learning teamwork to time management to interpersonal communication skills, discipline, assertiveness, overcoming adversity and motivation among many. Our athletes continue to be up for the challenges that athletics offer, achieving success in that arena as well as maintaining the high quality of excellence for which this institution is known in the classroom. The 469 participants in our athletic program last year achieved a 3.02 grade point average for the two semesters of the academic year," said Petermann.
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Kristi Channing
A four-year letterwinner in basketball, Channing was a two-time All-WIAC First Team selection and the 2003 WIAC Player of the Year.
The two-time team MVP led the Blugolds to third place in the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championships in 2003. Channing earned several regional and national awards including being named to the D3hoops.com All-American Second Team and the Kodak/WBCA All-American Team. She was also a member of the D3hoops.com All-Central Region First Team and is a two-time Jostens Trophy Division III Women's Basketball Player of the Year finalist.
Channing earned NCAA Sectional Most Valuable Player honors and was named to the Eau Claire Thanksgiving Showcase All-Tournament Team. She grabbed a spot in the Blugold record book when she scored the second most points in a game in school history with a 35-point effort against Millikin in 2001-02.
As a student, Channing was a WIAC Scholar Athlete and a Verizon Academic All-District V College Division Third Team member. She did public speaking for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA), including speaking at a banquet featuring keynote speaker Dick Bennett. She was also a guest speaker at a Fall Creek Athletic Banquet and at a Minnesota Lynx Basketball Clinic for young girls.
Channing graduated in May, 2003 with a 3.44 GPA and a psychology major. She is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll and is planning to go to graduate school to become a school counselor.
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Janel Soppeland
A four-time letterwinner, Soppeland earned All-Conference and All-Region honors as a member of the Eau Claire women's basketball team.
Soppeland helped lead the 2003 Blugolds to a 32-2 overall record and 16-0 record in the WIAC as Eau Claire took third place in the NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championships. A three-year starter, Soppeland was team Rookie of the Year and team Most Improved Player in 1999-00 and 2000-01 and was also a first team All-WIAC selection. She was a member of the NCAA West Regional All-Tournament Team and the D3hoops.com All-Central Region Second Team. Soppeland earned honors at the Eau Claire Thanksgiving Showcase as she was named tournament MVP.
Academically, Soppeland was President of the Student-Athlete Advisory Council and was an Athletics/Recreation Chair on the Student Senate. She volunteers her time with the Special Olympics and is a guest speaker for DARE award Winners.
Soppeland currently owns a 3.65 GPA and is continuing as a comprehensive kinesiology major with a physical education emphasis. She plans to graduate in May, 2004 and hopes to coach physical education at the high school or college level. She is a four-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll.
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Brooke Wozniak-Schmidt
Wozniak-Schmidt enters the 2003-04 season having already won three letters in volleyball, basketball, and track.
A volleyball team captain in 2003, Wozniak-Schmidt earned All-WIAC first team honors in 2002 and All-WIAC honorable mention in 2001. She was named the team Best Offensive Player last season and was a member of the UWEC Labor Day Classic, Augsburg, and UW-La Crosse Classic All-Tournament Teams. She earned AVCA All-Midwest Region honors as a junior.
Wozniak-Schmidt garnered All-WIAC Defensive Team honors in basketball as she broke the school record for rebounds in a single season in 2002-03. She helped the team to a third place finish in the 2003 NCAA Division III Women's Basketball Championships. She has qualified for NCAA Division III Outdoor Championship competition in track and field in the discus event.
Wozniak-Schmidt carries a 3.76 GPA and plans to graduate in May, 2005. She plans to get into math education and coach either basketball or volleyball. She is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll and is currently serving as the President of the Student Athlete Advisory Council this year.
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Mike Bestul
A four-year letterwinner in football, Bestul garnered All-Conference, All-Region, and All-American honors as an offensive lineman for the Blugolds.
The Team Offensive Lineman Award winner anchored the offensive line that led the Blugolds to second place in the WIAC with an 8-2 record. An All-Conference First Team member in 2002 and Second Team member in 2001, Bestul also earned First Team Football Gazette All-West Region honors in 2002. Football Gazette named the Blugold team captain to its 2002 All-America Third Team.
Academically, Bestul stands out as one of the premier student-athletes in the country. He was the WIAC Co-Scholar Athlete last year and a four-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll. He was a Verizon Academic All-American College Division First Team member in 2001 and 2002 and a Verizon All-Academic All-District V First Team selection.
Bestul carries a 3.87 GPA and is a member of the KINS Club and the Golden Key National Honor Society. He will graduate in December, 2004 and plans to go into coaching.
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Austin Crow
Crow is in his fourth season as a Blugold football player, already having won three letters and earned two All-WIAC selections.
Crow anchored a Blugold defense that led Eau Claire to second place in the WIAC in 2002 with an 8-2 record. A former team Outside Linebacker of the Year award winner, he is currently a team captain for the 2003 Blugolds. Crow earned first team All-WIAC honors in 2001 and second team All-WIAC honors in 2002 despite playing much of the season with a cast on his hand due to a broken bone in his wrist.
In 2001, Crow was named to the second team Football Gazette All-West Region and was also a D3Football.com All-American honorable mention. He was a second team Football Gazette Pre-Season All-American in 2002.
Academically, Crow is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll. A biology major, Crow carries a 3.45 GPA and will graduate this December and continue on to medical school.
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Adam Kolo
A four-time letterwinner as a wrestler, Kolo was a three-time conference runner-up while finishing third once.
Named team co-MVP and team captain last season, Kolo finished the year 30-6 overall at 197 pounds. In five tournaments he finished first once, second three times, and third once. He took second at the WIAC Championships to 2002 national champion Yan White of UW-Stevens Point.
Kolo took fifth at the NCAA Division III Wrestling Championships to earn All-American status. He led the Blugolds as a team in both pins and points in 2000, 2001, 2002, and 2003. Kolo finished his career with a record of 102-33 and was a three-time national qualifier.
As a student, Kolo was a Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar Athlete in 2001 and 2003 and was a WIAC Scholar Athlete in 2003. He was a member of SAAC in 2000-2001 and a member of the Student Accounting Society (SAS).
Kolo graduated in May, 2003 with a 3.34 GPA and an accounting major. He is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll and is currently working as an auditor for Clifton Gunderson in Stevens Point. He is studying to take his CPA exam in November.
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