Rommel and Menz Win 2006 Soladay Awards

SYRACUSE, N.Y.- Seniors Greg Rommel and Sheila Menz are the 2006 recipients of the Soladay Award, the most prestigious honor bestowed upon a student-athlete at Syracuse University. The Soladay Award is presented to one male and one female senior student-athlete for outstanding academic and athletic accomplishments, University/community service and leadership. The award is named for the late Doris Soladay, who served as SU’s Director of Women's Athletics from 1975 to 1982 and then as Associate Director of Athletics from 1982-95.

Rommel, a member of the men’s lacrosse team and a bio medical engineering major at Syracuse, was voted a team captain by his peers for the 2006 season. In 2005, he was a USILA Second-Team All-America selection after scoring 25 goals for the Orange. A member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll each semester he’s attended Syracuse, Rommel is a member of Tau Beta Pi (National Engineering Honor Society) and the Golden Key International Honor Society. He was an ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District Team selection in 2004 and 2005. In addition to his activities at SU, Rommel has been an academic preceptor for bioengineering 305/605, one of the more challenging courses in the bioengineering curriculum. He served as an assistant varsity football coach at Henninger High School for the 2004 and 2005 seasons where he has been the assistant quarterbacks coach and made himself available to mentor the student-athletes off the field.

Menz, a member of the women’s soccer team and is a triple major (newspaper, political science and international relations) at Syracuse, started in 39 games and scored one goal in her career with the Orange. She was voted as the 2004 and 2005 Verhulst Sportswoman of the Year by her teammates. Menz is a Syracuse University Remembrance Scholar, S.I. Newhouse Scholar and SU Founder’s Scholar, in addition to being a member of the Sigma Iota Rho Honor Society. She has donated her time volunteering with projects such as Dollar Day at the Dome, Women in Communication and Success by Six book program. In 2004, Menz was a volunteer with the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG). For the spring semester of 2006 she has been working as an intern in the Office of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton. This past season, Menz served as one of the Orange’s captains and was one of seven players to play in all 20 games.

The 2006 Soladay Award nominees include Terry Wilkin (men’s rowing), Paige Sullivan (field hockey), Tommy Harris (football), Ineke DeSimone (women’s rowing), Mike McCallion (men’s soccer), Alexis Switenko (softball), Rob Persico (men’s swimming & diving), Kelly Wright (women’s swimming & diving), Wei-Ming Leong (tennis) Chris Muldoon (men’s track & field/cross country), Tatiana Warren (women’s track & field/cross country) and Kelly Duan (volleyball.

Wilkin has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll six times, while competing for the men’s rowing team. This season he has been competing as a member of the varsity eight crew. Wilkin is a political science and speech communication major at Syracuse and originates from King of Prussia, Pa.

Sullivan has been a three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star selection and six times has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll as a member of the SU field hockey team. The native of Lebanon, Pa is a fashion design and retailing major at Syracuse.

Harris played four seasons as a member of the SU football team. In 2004 he was named to the BIG EAST Academic All-Star Team and was a member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll three times. The Daytona Beach, Fla. native had 45 total tackles during his senior season, while breaking up one pass. Harris is pursuing a master’s degree in information studies at Syracuse.

DeSimone is a BIG EAST Academic All-Star selection, while competing with the women’s rowing team at SU. She has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and has competed as a member of the varsity eight, JV eight and freshman eight in her career at Syracuse. DeSimone is a native of Rowayton, Conn. and is majoring in health and exercise science at SU.

McCallion was presented with the men’s soccer team’s Frank Schantz Award following the 2005 season. The Schantz Award, given to the individual that demonstrates commitment to the Syracuse program through on-field performance, character and excellence, is one of the most prestigious awards presented by the men’s soccer program.

McCallion, a 2005 team captain, has been a member of the SU Athletic Director’s Honor Roll every semester and is a three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star. He recorded a personal-best four assists in 2005 and ended his career with seven points. McCallion was named the club’s Offensive MVP in 2004.

Alexis Switenko is a five-time member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll and a two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star. She is the Orange’s career leader in home runs (37) and runs batted in (119). Earlier this season, Switenko broke the school’s single-season home run record and leads the BIG EAST 14 homers. Her 14 dingers are tied for ninth nationally. Switenko also leads the conference this year in slugging percentage (.817), total bases (98) and is tied for the league lead in batting average (.392). She is majoring in management at Syracuse.

Persico was a 2005-06 BIG EAST Aeropostale Male Scholar-Athlete Award winner. He has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll four times and was a 2004-05 BIG EAST Academic All-Star selection. Persico, who hails from Fulton, Md., posted a team-best 15 first place finishes this season. He is a communication and rhetorical studies major at Syracuse.

Wright was a 2004-05 BIG EAST Academic All-Star, while competing as a member of the Syracuse diving team. The native of Milwaukee, Wisc. has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll at Syracuse and spent her senior season competing on both the one and three meter boards for the Orange. Wright is a health and exercise science major at Syracuse.

Leong came to Syracuse from Ipoh, Malaysia. She has played four seasons on the SU tennis team and ranks 16^th in school history in career victories with 127. She is 35-9 overall this season, which is her second highest single-season win total in her career. Three times she has been named to the BIG EAST Academic All-Star Team and has been a member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll six times. In 2003-04, she was selected as an ITA Scholar-Athlete. Leong is majoring in finance and accounting at Syracuse.

Muldoon is a three-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star as a member of the SU track & field team. A native of Robesonia, Pa., Muldoon has been named to the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll five times. Muldoon is a distance runner for the Orange track & field team.

Warren has been a member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll seven times, while representing the SU track & field team. The two-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star has competed in the long jump, triple jump and heptathlon for the Orange. A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Warren is majoring in exercise science at Syracuse.

Duan was the recipient of the 2005-06 BIG EAST/Aeropostale Female Scholar-Athlete Award. She was named to the ESPN The Magazine All District First Team in District 1 and has twice been named to the BIG EAST Academic All-Star Team. On the court, Duan was an AVCA All-America Honorable Mention and All-Northeast Region selection. She was also a unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honoree, her second year in a row accomplishing all of those athletic feats. The four-time member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Roll is majoring in finance and accounting.

Syracuse University Athletics

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