TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (June 22, 2022) – The Florida College System Activities Association has announced the 2021-22 Scholar-Athlete of the Year winners across its platform of sanctioned sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross country, softball, women's tennis and volleyball.
From a total of 42 nominees, eight individuals were selected through a process coordinated by each sport's conference and/or state chairs.
The eight individual winners are now under consideration for FCSAA Male and Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year, which is part of the FCSAA's End-of-Year Awards that includes Male and Female Athlete of the Year and Male and Female Academic Teams of the Year.
Finalists for each of the award categories will be announced Thursday with the winners being announced on Friday.
Hal Chasey Award (men's basketball)
Winner: Chris Peterson, St. Petersburg
Has posted a 3.94 GPA…graduated from St. Petersburg with his A.A. degree in May…majoring in business…appeared in 26 games for St. Petersburg in 2021-22…averaged 6.5 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists…participated in several community service projects while enrolled at St. Petersburg.
Other nominees: Nicholas Cross, Florida Gateway; Darik Tannis-Harriet, State College of Florida
Sandy Miller Award (women's basketball)
Winner: Ameera Thomas, Florida State College at Jacksonville
Posted a 3.95 GPA…was inducted into FSCJ's chapter of Phi Theta Kappa…was the Blue Wave's Team Captain…appeared in 19 games in 2021-22 and averaged 11.3 points and 5.3 rebounds…has been involved in various campus and community events, including downtown and beach clean-ups, the community pregnancy center, Northeast Florida Food Bank and supporting local youth at weekend basketball games.
Other nominees: Kelli Cunningham, Santa Fe; Aniyah Jenkins, Indian River State; Ana Nikulochkina, Tallahassee; Polina Nikulochkina, Tallahassee; Sara Pedraza-Cupido, Santa Fe; Douthshine Prien, Pensacola State; Jillian Schenk, Eastern Florida State; Olivia Smith, Santa Fe; Megan Watson, St. Petersburg
Larry Monts Award (men's cross country)
Winner: Bryce Bass, Tallahassee
Posted a 3.69 GPA and graduated with honors from Tallahassee in April…helped Tallahassee to a third-place finish in the FCSAA/Region 8 Championships in 2021 and finished 27th in the individual standings…helped his team to an 18th-place finish at the 2021 NJCAAs…personal best in the 8K was a 28:10.72 at the 2020 NJCAA Championships…also ran track for the Eagles and participated in the NJCAA Half Marathon…led a volunteer group who assisted in storage unit relocation for Gulf Winds Track Club, moving tons of equipment across town.
Other nominees: Shawn Marcum, Tallahassee
Larry Monts Award (women's cross country)
Winner: Harleigh Bilz Crist, Daytona State
Has posted an institutional GPA of 3.92, earning her A.A. from Daytona State in December 2020 and is currently finishing her bachelor of science in elementary education…two-time FCSAA Individual Champion and two-time FCSAA All-State runner…won the 2021 FCSAA title with a time of 19:37.3, the fastest 5K in race history…was the region's top runner at the 2021 NJCAA Championships, finishing 17th…was named NJCAA Atlantic Region Runner of the Year by the USTFCCCA…volunteers as track and field coach at Umatilla High School and in various local road races…also participated in the NJCAA Half Marathon.
Other nominees: Merlin Leal, Florida Gateway
Vicki Schnurr Award (women's tennis)
Winner: Viktoryia Zhadzinskaya, Hillsborough
Has posted a GPA of 3.79 and is on track to graduate in July…plans to major in biological science…earned NJCAA All-America honors by virtue of her Flight #3 singles championship at the NJCAA Tournament, helping Hillsborough to a runners-up finish as well as a FCSAA Championship…two-time FCSAA Singles Champion to earn FCSAA All-State honors in 2021 and 2022 and picked up a second All-State award in 2022 by winning a FCSAA Doubles Championship…active in HCC community service efforts.
Other nominees: Kia Carvhallo, State College of Florida
Roberta Stokes Award (volleyball)
Winner: Erin Ellis, Lake-Sumter State
Has posted a 3.90 GPA and graduated with her A.A. from Lake-Sumter State…averaged 2.4 kills and 2.4 digs per set in 2021…two-year started for the LakeHawks and helped Lake-Sumter State to the 2021 FCSAA Division II Championship and a berth in the NJCAA Tournament…also participated in beach volleyball and was named a AVCA All-American…off the court, she volunteered to serve on the College's Student Activities budget committee, assisted with the athletic department's gold tournament, LSSC Foundation 5K and the Pro Beach Volleyball Tournament.
Other nominees: Janelly Ceopa, Miami Dade; Isabella Hurtado, South Florida State; Yunju Lee, Florida SouthWestern; Irene Verdino, Miami Dade; Jenna Zimmerman, Daytona State
Bill Tuten Award (Baseball)
Winner: Nick Calero, Central Florida
Posted a 3.99 GPA, including 4.0 in 2021-22 and will graduate from Central Florida with honors…majoring in business administration…has signed to continue his academic and athletic careers at Davidson College…helped Central Florida to the Mid-Florida Conference and FCSAA Championships in 2022…named First-team All-MFC after batting .333 with three home runs and 39 RBI…has worked tireless with special needs children in the Miami area.
Other nominees: Adam Berry, Pasco-Hernando State; Lance Bolton, Santa Fe; Nick Cosentino, State College of Florida; Carter Geier, Polk State; Ryne Guida, Indian River State; Aidan Keenan, Tallahassee; Brady Markham, South Florida State; Logan McClure, Daytona State; Andrew Spolyar, Seminole State
Jean Williams Award (softball)
Winner: Raissa Bianco, Miami Dade
Earned her A.A. in April with a perfect 4.0 GPA, graduating from Miami Dade with highest honors…pursuing a degree in electrical engineering…athletically, she was the Southern Conference Player of the Year and FCSAA First-team All-State, helping the Sharks to a postseason berth in 2022…batted .418 with two home runs and 46 RBI…received Miami Dade's Outstanding Student Award in Philosophy…volunteer activities include working with young girls on the Lady Canes travel softball team, Spooky Night, where the College hosted more than 100 children from the community on Halloween, Special Olympics and Live Like Bella Foundation.
Other nominees: Bri Abel, Seminole State; Gabby Bess, Chipola; Shelby Jones, St. Petersburg; Hannah Meyer, Central Florida; Breanna Swanson, Florida State College at Jacksonville; Taylor Wroten, Indian River State