CLEVELAND, OH (February 21, 2000) -- Toledo's Tara Overaitis (women's basketball) and Chad
Kamstra (men's basketball) were named the MAC Scholar Athletes of the
Week on Feb. 21, 2000.
Kamstra (Sr., 3.56, accounting, Cincinnati, Ohio) scored 18 points and
had four rebounds in a 66-61 win over Ball State on Wednesday, Feb. 16.
On Saturday, Feb. 19, he scored 20 points and recorded three rebounds
and three assists in an 81-66 win over Western Michigan to keep the
Rockets in a first-place tie with Ball State for the West Division
title. Kamstra shot 15-of-16 from the free-throw line and was 5-of-10
from the three-point stripe during the week.
Overaitis (Sr., 3.57, exercise science, Livonia, Mich.) equalled her
career high in rebounding (11) and was one shy of a career best in
points (18) in the Rockets' critical 86-54 win at Central Michigan. She
shot 7-of-9 from the field and 4-of-4 from three-point range. Toledo
now has a two-game lead in the race for the No. 3 seed and a first-round
bye in the MAC Tournament.
The honor is presented to a MAC male and female student-athlete who has
a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or better and performs well
during that week's competition. The winners are selected by one of the
conference's faculty athletic representatives.
Female Nominees:
Akron: Sierra Cooper (women's basketball, So., 3.393, business
management/marketing, Herndon, Va.) scored a career-high 16 points
against Ball State on Feb. 20 as the Zips extended their win streak to
four. Cooper hit 6-of-9 shots from the floor, 4-of-6 from the
free-throw line. She scored the bucket that gave Akron its first lead
of the game, 45-43, with 11:32 to play. The Zips have won six of their
last seven games.
Central Michigan: Maria Derezinski (women's track & field, So., 3.71,
art, Muskegon, Mich.) won two events at the Jack Scoog Open that CMU
hosted last week. She won the long jump with a leap of 18'7.75" and the
60-meter hurdles in a time of 9.00 seconds.
Kent: Dawn Zerman (women's basketball, Sr., 3.13, marketing, Fremont,
Ohio) recorded 50 points, nine rebounds, 10 assists and nine steals over
two games last week. Kent defeated Miami, 90-50, and Ohio, 89-65.
Zerman scored 24 points in 27 minutes against Miami and earned 21 of her
26 points against Ohio in the second half.
Miami: Hollie Nelsen (women's basketball, Jr., 3.11, health education,
Waupaca, Wis.) averaged 12.0 points and 5.7 rebounds, both of which
ranked second on the team during the week. Nelsen hit 10-of-22
three-pointers, including five in a narrow loss to BGSU, to average 43
percent from beyond the arc. She set season bests for points (17
against BGSU) and rebounds (eight versus Western Michigan). Nelsen
stepped in for an injured Jenny Martin during a key week of MAC
competition for the RedHawks.
Ohio: Lori Moorman (women's basketball, So., 3.48, business,
Pickerington, Ohio) recorded 14 points and six rebounds against Bowling
Green. She posted a career-high five assists and two steals. Against
Kent, Moorman led the team with 17 points and seven rebounds. She has
scored double figures 13 times this season and leads the Bobcats with
four double-doubles.
Western Michigan: Lori Gerhardt (gymnastics, Sr., 3.06, elementary
education, Warren, Mich.) led the Broncos to a victory over Ball State,
the Cardinals' first loss of the season. Gerhardt posted career-bests
in three-of-four events, winning the beam (9.825) and vault (9.800), and
placing third on the bars (9.825). She set a school record when she won
the all-around competition with her score of 39.050. The team set a
school record to win the meet with 194.350 points.
Other Male Nominees:
Central Michigan: Chris Vike (wrestling, Sr., 3.46, social studies,
Stoughton, Wis.) helped CMU secure its second straight MAC
regular-season title by winning an 11-2 major decision over Kent's Zeb
Miller. Going into the final weekend of the regular season, the
Chippewas needed to win the final dual meet to remain undefeated and lay
sole claim to the MAC regular-season title. Vike's match was one of the
last in the dual and his win put the match out of reach for Kent, giving
CMU the win. A 1999 All-American, Vike is now 16-10 on the season, 5-0
against MAC opponents.
Kent: Demetric Shaw (men's basketball, So., 3.70, chemistry, Fort
Worth, Texas) picked up seven points, nine rebounds and a career-high
six assists in an 83-54 victory over Akron on Saturday, Feb. 19. Shaw
had two points, three rebounds and three assists in a 71-61 loss to
Bowling Green on Wednesday, Feb. 16.
Ohio: Dan Bednar (wrestling, Jr., 3.50, chemical engineering, Broadview
Heights, Ohio) was two-for-two over the weekend with a 7-1 decision over
Kent's Zeb Miller and a 5-3 overtime victory over West Virginia's Martis
Harding. Bednar finished the regular season 21-6 overall, 4-1 in the
MAC. He ranks second in the league in his weight class.
Previous Winners Female
Week 1 (Sept. 7) Ashlie Case, Akron (volleyball)
Week 2 (Sept. 13) Jennifer Mitchell, CMU (volleyball)
Kerri Schoultz, BSU (field hockey)
Week 3 (Sept. 20) Kim Branam, Akron (volleyball)
Week 4 (Sept. 27) Jocelyn Teall, BSU (field hockey)
Week 5 (Oct. 5) Alissia Thompson, MIA (volleyball)
Week 6 (Oct. 11) Sally Northcroft, BSU (field hockey)
Week 7 (Oct. 19) Heather Fueger, Ohio (women's golf)
Week 8 (Oct. 25) Courtney Seyferth, Miami (field hockey)
Week 9 (Nov. 2) Sally Northcroft, BSU (field hockey)
Week 10 (Nov. 9) Carrie Patterson, Kent (volleyball)
Week 11 (Nov. 15) Katie Mullen, Ohio (volleyball)
Week 12 (Nov. 23) Tennille Hileski, CMU (volleyball)
Week 13 (Nov. 29) Emily Sallee, BSU (volleyball)
Week 14 (Dec. 6) Emily Bresser, Ohio (swimming)
Week 15 (Dec. 13) Erinn Hitch, BSU (swimming)
Week 16 (Jan. 10) Tara Perrier, Buffalo (basketball)
Week 17 (Jan. 19) Laura Szczepanski, BSU (gymnastics)
Week 18 (Jan. 24) Jamie Stewart, Miami (basketball)
Week 19 (Jan. 31) Angie Farmer, BGSU (basketball)
Week 20 (Feb. 8) Laura Szczepanksi, BSU (gymnastics)
Week 21 (Feb. 15) Erica Glover, Akron (basketball)
Week 22 (Feb. 21) Tara Overaitis, Toledo (basketball)
Previous Winners Male
Week 1 (Sept. 7) Chad Pennington, Marshall (football)
Week 2 (Sept. 13) Blake McDowell, EMU (cross country)
Week 3 (Sept. 20) Jason Strasser, BGSU (football)
Week 4 (Sept. 27) Tim Lester, WMU (football)
Week 5 (Oct. 5) Tim Rice, Toledo (men's golf)
Week 6 (Oct. 11) Ty Fowler, BGSU (men's soccer)
Week 7 (Oct. 19) Scott Niles, WMU (football)
Week 8 (Oct. 25) Zac Derr, Akron (football)
Week 9 (Nov. 2) Jon Eaton, Akron (football)
Week 10 (Nov. 9) Brian Billips, Ohio (swimming & diving)
Week 11 (Nov. 15) Karoly Bozan, Kent (cross country)
Week 12 (Nov. 23) Andy Brumbergs, Miami (football)
Week 13 (Nov. 29) Mike Ensminger, Miami (basketball)
Week 14 (Dec. 6) Demetric Shaw, Kent (basketball)
Week 15 (Dec. 13) Dan Hickey, Buffalo (swimming)
Week 16 (Jan. 10) Brian Baughman, Kent (wrestling)
Week 17 (Jan. 19) Jason Grunkemeyer, Miami (basketball)
Week 18 (Jan. 24) T.J. Lux, NIU (basketball)
Week 19 (Jan. 31) Dale Cowper, WMU (track & field)
Week 20 (Feb. 8) Brian Billips, Ohio (swimming & diving)
Week 21 (Feb. 15) David Webber, CMU (basketball)
Week 22 (Feb. 21) Chad Kamstra, Toledo (basketball)