',
Storm Celebrate With Awards Ceremony
May 25, 2010
Synchronized swimming team members from left: Sarah Silverman, Shannon O'Donnell, Courtney Karolinko, and Tracy Ringel.
The annual Keuka College athletics award ceremony was held in the Weed Physical Arts Center Saturday, May 22 to honor and recognize all of the accomplishments of the Storm’s 15 intercollegiate teams and players.
Among the teams recognized was synchronized swimming, which competed its final season in 2009-10.
Keuka College had long been among the country’s synchronized swimming elite, cracking the top 5 on some occasions and regularly finishing in the top 6 or 7 at the U.S. Collegiate Championships.
So, the Storm’s 11th place finish at the 2010 championships might seem like a disappointment.
But when you take into consideration the adversity faced by the team in 2009-10, its showing at the Avery Aquatic Center on the campus of Stanford University was nothing short of remarkable.
Prior to the start of the season, Head Coach Nancy Wightman retired and the team went from varsity (intercollegiate) to club status. Despite being self-coached and fielding a team of just four swimmers, Keuka finished 11th out of 21 teams, missing the top 10 by a half-point.
“Our whole department is very proud of what this team of young women has accomplished this year,” said Director of Athletics David Sweet. “Not having a coach and working under some very difficult conditions they not only represented the College very well but demonstrated the leadership and dedication that we want to see from all our student-athletes. I commend them for what they have done.”
Senior Courtney Karolinko (Boynton Beach, FL/Park Vista) and junior Tracy Ringel (Columbia, MD/Atholton) turned in a stellar performance in the duet competition, advancing to the final and finishing eighth. Karolinko finished 22nd and Ringel 29th in the “B” figures while junior Shannon O’Donnell (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Athena) and senior Sarah Silverman (Shrewsbury, MA/Shrewsbury) placed fourth and 12th, respectively, in the “D” figures.
Kelin Wheaton and Dana Schillinger.
Ringel and Silverman earned Academic All-America honors for having grade-point-averages of 3.25 and above.
Among the other award winners at the ceremony were senior Kelin Wheaton (Cameron Mills, N.Y./Jasper-Troupsburg), who received the Walt Scott Outstanding Senior Male Award and senior Jessica VanScoter (Canisteo, N.Y./Canisteo-Greenwood), who collected the Dana Schillinger Outstanding Senior Female Award. Wheaton was also the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) Male Leadership award recipient while senior Kayla Scouten (Port Leyden, N.Y./South Lewis)
Jessica VanScoter and Walt Scott.
was the SAAC Female Leadership award winner. Scouten was also recognized with the Rob Smets Heart of a Champion award for overcoming adversity.
The Faculty Appreciation Award went to Kris Pearson while the Community Member Appreciation Award was presented to Ed Webber.
