Off at college: Illinois Wesleyan's Morton earns golf All-America honors
Illinois Wesleyan junior Jimmy Morton from Sugar Grove was one of five Titans on the Division III PING All-America teams announced by the Golf Coaches Association of America on Wednesday.
The Titans' five honorees were the most in Division III.
Morton and senior Rob Wuethrich both garnered first-team honors, while senior Andrew Abel (Geneva) was one of two Titans who were named honorable mention. It is the second time Morton and Abel have picked up the accolade.
In 27 rounds, Morton compiled a 73.1 stroke average and recorded eight top-10 finishes. He picked up wins at the NCAA Division III Preview and Olivet Nazarrene's Fall Intercollegiate.
Morton garnered All-CCIW honors after finishing runner-up at the conference championship. His season closed with a sixth-place finish at the NCAA Championship.
Abel played in 12 tournaments and posted seven top-10 finishes. He notched All-CCIW honors with a fourth-place finish and wrapped up his career tying for 12th at the NCAA Division III National Championship.
Reitz selected:
Millikin University junior Tyler Reitz (Glenbard East) also was selected as an honorable mention All-American.
Last week, Reitz was named to the All-Central Region team after finishing the 2020-21 season with a 73.67 scoring average. He finished in the top 10 in six of the eight tournaments including a second-place finish at 224 at the CCIWchampionship.
Academic honors:
The Northern Illinois University baseball team had 10 student-athletes selected to the Mid-American Conference Academic All-MAC Team, including sophomores Erik Hedmark from Algonquin and Paddy McKermitt from Hampshire.
Hedmark, a pitcher, has a 3.479 GPA majoring in middle level teaching and learning. McKermitt, a business major who plays the infield, has a 3.701 GPA.
"Our players did an outstanding job in the classroom this year," said NIU coach Mike Kunigonis. "With a team grade-point average of 3.45, the team eclipsed all previous best totals in recent years."
To qualify for the Academic All-MAC Team, a student-athlete must have at least a 3.20 GPA and have participated in at least 50% of the contests scheduled or completed.
Lewis soccer adds 3 locals:
Lewis University women's soccer coach Chris Koenig announced Wednesday the addition of six players for the fall season including Melisa Hadzic, Kenedi Jones and Alejandra Melo.
Hadzic, a 5-foot-5 midfielder from Wheaton, played at Wheaton Warrenville South. This past spring, she scored 14 goals and added nine assists to help lead her team to a regional championship. She earned All-Conference honors, was an honorable mention selection on the All-Sectional team and was named Offensive Player of the Year.
Jones, a 5-4 midfielder from Cary, played at Cary-Grove. During her sophomore season in 2019 she scored nine goals and added 16 assists in helping lead her team to a 14-3-1 record, a conference and regional championship and a second-place finish at sectionals. Jones was a first team All-Conference selection.
Melo, a 5-3 midfielder from Carpentersville, played at Dundee-Crown. She was named to the Fox Valley Conference All-Conference team, was an IHSSCA All-Sectional honorable mention selection and was the Dundee-Crown spring Athlete of the Year in 2021.
Waubonsee awards:
Waubonsee Community College's softball team had six players recognized by the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC) and the NJCAA's Region IV Committee.
They included second baseman Alyssa Eby (St. Charles North) named to the All-ISCC first team, third baseman Megan White (Geneva) selected All-ISCC second team, and outfielder Jessica Wilson (St. Charles North) being picked All-ISCC honorable mention.
Eby finished her Chiefs' career with five program records. The right-handed hitter set Waubonsee records for at-bats (366), hits (154), doubles (38), multihit games (51), and established a single season mark for multihit games (30).
Waubonsee's baseball team had seven players recognized by the ISCC. They included center fielder Carter Wardell (Metea Valley) named to the All-ISCC first team, and pitcher Alijah Acevedo (Kaneland) and first baseman Mason Barnick (Glenbard South) each selected second team.
Wardell batted .385 in conference action with a .543 on-base percentage before an injury ended his season the third week of April. Acevedo posted a 1.35 ERA while limiting opposing hitters to an .091 batting average in a relief role. Barnick batted .317 with 20 RBI to go along with stealing 17 bases in 23 attempts.