The Howard Payne University athletic department announced today its top athletic awards. The recipients were recognized at a ceremony earlier this month.
The Howard Payne University athletic department honored Rick Henderson, Shannon Costello, Katie Poerner and Houston Holmes with its four highest honors at the 2013 Academic Awards presentation in Mims Auditorium earlier in the month of May.
Howard Payne recognized Rick Henderson and Shannon Costello as the men’s and women’s Outstanding Scholar-Athletes. This award is giving to the junior or senior HPU student-athlete with the highest grade point average.
In 2012, Rick Henderson was named to the Who’s Who Among US Colleges and Universities list. He was honored with a HPU Servant Leadership Award for the 2012-2013 school year. Rick has also served as a Coggin Avenue Baptist Church Youth Intern, FCA Council and MEMBER 2010-13, HPU Resident Assistant (11-12), Baptist Student Ministry Team, Sigma Theta Phi Vice President (12-13), future 13-14 Sigma Theta Phi President and this semester took a spring break mission trip Uganda. A two-time Academic All-Conference honoree, Rick has been named to the ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete Team for football and is a member of HPU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.
Shannon Costello is second all-time at HPU in Assists (18), Assists per game (.28), Shot Attempts (129) and Shots on Goal (72) and in Games Started. Shannon has been an Honorable Mention and 3rd Team All-Conference selection for the Howard Payne. From Farmington Hills, Michigan, she has been among the ASC leaders in assists the past two seasons and is a three-time Academic All-Conference honoree. She has also been named one of three Outstanding Lower Division Students in Chemistry at HPU boasting a 4.0 GPA. This semester, she received the award for highest GPA among HPU Exercise and Sport Science majors and was named the Outstanding Exercise and Sports Science female student.
The Outstanding Scholar-Athlete award is in reality the most prestigious recognition HPU athletics offers. HPU speaks of its athletes as student-athletes, meaning that the emphasis is on academic endeavors. The purpose of this award is to recognize the student-athlete, male and female, junior or senior, with the highest GPA.
Katie Poerner was honored as the Tami Pattillo Memorial Award winner for the second time and Houston Holmes was recognized as the Paul J. Cunningham Memorial Award winner.
This season, Katie Poerner led the team in at bats, triples and stolen bases (18 for 20). She is the HPU record holder for triples in a season with eight in 2012 and for a career with 15. She is also having her best season in the field with a .935 fielding percentage. In 2012, she was named the ASC West Division Player of the Year and to the ASC 1st Team All-West Division. Last season, she was also on ASC All-Tournament team. Majoring in Mathematics, she is a three-time ASC Academic All-Conference selection. She is also a member of the HPU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. In 2012 and 2013, she was a member of the ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete team.
Houston Holmes is an Exercise and Sport Science major with a 3.88 GPA and should be a repeat Academic All-Conference selection this season. In 2012, Houston was an Honorable Mention All-West Division selection at third base leading the team in doubles with 10. Last year, he was named HPU’s Distinguished Scholar-Athlete for the highest GPA among male junior and senior student-athletes. He was also named to the ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete team for baseball in 2012. This semester, he received Howard Payne’s award for Outstanding Exercise and Sports Science male student
The Tami Pattillo Memorial Award honors the memory and athletic/academic accomplishments of a female athlete who was also a real lady. Tami was exceptional in the classroom and on the basketball court, while battling the diabetes that took her life too soon. She held an abiding love for her Lord, her family, her friends and Howard Payne University. This award is presented to the female athlete who most represents the HPU spirit, as chosen by the University coaching staff.
The Paul J. Cunningham Memorial Award is an effort to perpetuate the memory of a bright, talented young athlete who represented the highest qualities of the student-athlete. In addition to being an outstanding athlete, Paul was a quality student, a leader on and off the field, and a professing Christian. He loved his school, his teammates, and proudly represented Howard Payne University. This award is given to the Howard Payne University male athlete who best represents these qualities as voted on by the university coaching staff.
