Track and field Justin Wells and Bobbi Erickson were named the UW-Platteville Athletes of the Year at the schoolıs annual athletic awards banquet Sunday night.
Track and field athletes also earned three other major awards. Andrea Honshel was the NCAA Woman of the Year winner, while Dave Hahn earned both the Pioneer Student-Athlete Advisory Council Leadership Award and shared the Male Scholar-Athlete Award with wrestler John Schimming. Volleyball player Kristen Shields earned the Female Scholar-Athlete award.
The department presented awards of thanks to Dennis Cooley of the UWP Publications office and Dr. Jeffrey White of Medical Associates. The Pioneer softball team won the Chamber of Commerce Directorıs Award for Community Service.
Wells (Sr., Waterloo, Wis.) had a standout career in both in cross country, where he led the Pioneers as a team to nationals for the first time ever, and in track and field, where he is rewriting the record. In cross country, he is a first-team all-conference runner who has also earned all-region and All-American honors. Wells earned eight WIAC track medals and two conference championships and three runner-up finishes. He holds school track records in the indoor 1,000-meter, 1,500-meter, one-mile and 3,000-meter runs and the outdoor 1,500-meters and 4 by 800-meter relay runs. Wellsıs sister Keri was a three-time winner of athlete of the year.
Erickson (Sr., Wisconsin Rapids/Lincoln) placed fifth in the NCAA nationals in March in the weight throw and is provisionally qualified for the outdoor national tournament. She is a conference champion in the hammer throw and holds the school indoor record in that event. Erickson also holds some of the top marks ever at UW-Platteville in the weight throw.
The NCAA Woman of the Year program is in its 11th year of existence. Each college or university selects one nominee for statewide and national awards based on exceptional performance in four categories: athletics, academics, service and leadership. Honshel (Sr., Platteville) recorded the fifth-best time in school history this fall, breaking the 20-minute barrier in the 3,000-meter run. She also has the third-fastest times in two different track and field events. She is a two-time captain of both the cross country and track and field teams. Academically, she carries a 3.54 grade-point average and has succeeded so well that she spend last summer doing an internship for NASA. She chaired the athletic community service projects for the past three years, and this year she was the co-engineer for the playground project for a Romanian orphanage.
The Pat Doyle award is named after the women's faculty athletic representative from 1987 until 1994 who died in 1995. Shields (Jr., Montfort/Iowa-Grant) is a three-time member of the deanıs list and has made the chancellorıs list for having a 4.0 grade-point average. Overall, she carries a 3.68 grade-point average while majoring in business and communications in graphic design. Shields is an academic all-conference selection as well as a two-time honorable mention all-conference volleyball pick. Last fall, she became just the fourth player in pioneer history to top 1,000 career kills.
Hahn (Sr., Elkhorn) is a two-time track and field All-American and all-conference thrower. He holds the UWP complex records in the hammer throw and is provisionally qualified for a return trip to the NCAA national championships. Twice, Hahn has earned academic All-american honors. He carries a 3.6 grade-point average while majoring in elementary and middle school education and minoring in natural science
Both Hahn and Schimming earned the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Scholar-Athlete award, given to the top student-athlete in the league in his sport. Wells joined the pair Saturday by being named the WIAC Scholar-Athlete in outdoor track and field
Schimming (Sr., Harmony, Minn.) is also an elementary and middle school education major with minors in math and natural science. He carries a 3.5 grade-point average and earned academic all-conference and All-American awards. Schimming is a three-time place winner at the conference wrestling tournament and two-year captain. he put back-to-back 20-win seasons together and helped the team achieve top-25 national rankings. He is a three-year co-chair of the pioneer student-athlete advisory committee and chaired the conference committee. While in the navy, he received a good conduct medal and the navy achievement medal services while on duty in Japan.