Graduate Gloria Nantuyla was the only student-athlete named to the field hockey team.
Syracuse Student-Athletes Named 2008 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars Awardees
6/18/2008 2:24:19 PM | General
Syracuse University had 18 student-athletes honored as recipients of the 16th Annual Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars Award on May 29, 2008, in the Diverse: Issues In Higher Education magazine. The Sports Scholars Awards were established to honor undergraduate students of color who have made achieving both academically and athletically a winning combination. Students must have a cumulative GPA of 3.2 or higher on a 4.0 grading scale or its equivalent through the fall 2007 term and a demonstrated record of service to the campus or community.
Of the 117 academic institutions recognized, Syracuse’s total of 18 student-athlete awardees was the third largest, behind St. John’s University (25) and New York University (23).
Men’s Basketball
Junior Arinze Onuaku (Lanham, MD / Episcopal) was named to the third team. Onuaku is majoring in sports management and registers a 3.24 GPA. During the 2007-08 campaign, he was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll three times and ranked second in the BIG EAST and eighth in the nation in field goal percentage at 62.8 percent, which was the fourth-best single season mark in school history. Onuaku also earned a spot on the SU Athletic Directors’ Honor Roll following the fall and spring semesters.
Football
Oliver Fernandez (N. Berwick, ME / Noble) was named to the second team. Fernandez graduated in May 2008 with a 3.26 GPA in civil engineering. He was a 2007 BIG EAST All-Academic Team selection and a member of the Athletic Director’s Honor Rolls since fall 2005.
Dowayne Davis (Bronx, NY / Christopher Columbus) earned a position on the third team. Davis graduated in May 2008 with a 3.27 GPA in information management and technology. As a three-year letterwinner, he finished 10th on Syracuse’s career tackles by a defensive back record list (216). Davis was a member of the BIG EAST All-Academic Team in 2006 and 2007.
Soccer
Junior Kyle Hall (Toronto, Ontario / Don Mills Coll. Inst. / Univ. of Toronto) was selected to the first team. Hall is an economics major and registers a 3.61 GPA. In the 2007 season, he tied for second on the team in goals (4) and was third with nine points (4g, 1a). Hall was a 2006 BIG EAST Academic All-Star.
Men’s Track and Field
Junior Bernard Bush (Tacoma, Wash. / Washington HS) was named to the third team. Bush is majoring in health and exercise science, earning a 3.22 GPA. He placed fourth in the long jump (7.24m) and sixth in the triple jump (14.48m) at the BIG EAST Championship. Bush finished fifth in the IC4A Championships (7.08m). The junior earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Women’s Track and Field
Sophomore Racquel Clarke (Teaneck, N.J. / Teaneck) earned a selection to the first team. Clarke is an internal relations and newspaper major, earning a 3.63 GPA. She finished second in the 400m dash (1:00.90) at the SU Welcome Back and in the 500m run (1:22.26) at the Cornell Open. In 2006, Clarke was named a BIG EAST Academic All-Star.
Graduate student Sheron Mark (Diego Martin, Trinidad and Tobago / Bishop Anstey High) was named to the first team for her redshirt undergraduate senior year. Mark earned her bachelor’s degree in biochemistry in three years and is enrolled in the master’s program for chemical engineering with a 3.63 GPA. She claimed All-BIG EAST honors with a third-place and NCAA Provisional-qualifying leap of 13.04m. Mark finished second in the triple jump (12.80m) and fourth in long jump (5.89m) at the ECAC Championship, and placed sixth in long jump (5.97) at the BIG EAST Championships.
Sophomore Melissa Romero (Wilmington, Del. / Padua) was selected to the first team. Romero is enrolled in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications with a 3.8 GPA. She finished third in the high jump at the Binghamton Triangular (1.56m) and Syracuse Invite (1.55m). Romero earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Senior Keisha Townsend (San Jose, Calif. / Ann Arbor Pioneer) was named to the first team. Townsend is majoring in marketing management, earning a 3.58 GPA. She finished first in the 55m hurdles at the SU Welcome Back (8.47) and second at the Syracuse Invite (8.35). Townsend earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Junior Kayla Carter (Racine, Wisc. / Prairie School) was selected to the second team. Carter is a bioengineering major and tallies a 3.48 GPA. She placed third in the 60m hurdles (9.44) and fourth in the triple jump (11.30m) with a BIG EAST-qualifying mark at the Cornell Open. Carter earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Junior Emily Goncalves (West Hartford, Conn. / Kingswood-Oxford HS) was named to the third team. Goncalves is majoring in biology with a 3.34 GPA. She placed fifth in the 3,000m at the Binghamton Triangular (11:23:17). Goncalves earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Junior Lori Robinson (Kennesaw, Ga. / Wheeler HS) was selected to the third team. Robinson is majoring in sport management, earning a 3.25 GPA. She placed first in the 500m run at the SU Welcome Back (1:22.26) and third at the Binghamton Triangular (1:17.86). Robinson earned Athletic Director’s Honor Roll distinction for the fall 2007 semester.
Junior Nana Sang-Bender (Syracuse, N.Y. / Onondaga HS) was selected as an honorable mention. Sang-Bender is majoring in international relations with a 3.242 GPA. At the Upstate Challenge, she placed first in the 800m run (2:16.17), qualifying for the BIG EAST Championship, and sixth in the 1,000m (2:59.40). Sang-Bender was named a Syracuse University Remembrance Scholar for the 2008-09 academic year.
Women’s Volleyball
Cheryl Cobbina (Toronto, Ontario / Francis-Libermann CHS) was named to the second team. Cobbina graduated in May 2008 with a 3.45 GPA in english and textual studies and english education. She was selected to the All-BIG EAST Second Team, named the BIG EAST Player of the Week, the ECAC Player of the Week, and set the program’s five-game single-match record with 70 attacks against Wisconsin Milwaukee. Cobbina dominates Syracuse’s record books, owning the all-time top ranking with 9.73 total attacks per game, ranks fourth all-time with 3,780 total attacks, and fifth with 1,391 kills and 3.42 kills per game.
Women’s Crew
Sophomore Brittany Jock (Akwesanse, N.Y. / Massena Central High School) was selected to the crew team. Jock is enrolled in the College of Arts and Sciences, tallying a 3.26 GPA. She rowed in three consecutive Varsity 4 boats, placing second in the Cornell and Yale contest, third against Penn and Northeastern and first at the Charles River Challenge. In 2006-07, Jock was named a BIG EAST Academic All-Star.
Sophomore Lydia Wong (San Francisco, Calif. / Mercy HS) also earned a selection to the crew team. Wong is enrolled in the L.C. Smith College of Engineering and Computer Science with a 3.35 GPA. She placed first in the Open 8 boat at the Head of Ohio, second in the Varsity 4 boat against Cornell and Yale, and third in the Varsity 4 boat at the Charles River Challenge. In 2006-07, Wong was named a BIG EAST Academic All-Star.
Field Hockey
Gloria Nantuyla (Nairobi, Kenya / Brookline H.S./Hillcrest Secondary School (Kenya)) earns her second Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Award; her first being awarded in 2006. Nantuyla is the only student-athlete named to the field hockey team. She graduated in May 2008 with a 3.58 GPA in public relations. In 2007, Nantuyla was selected to the NFHCA Division I All-Region Mideast Team and the BIG EAST Conference Second team, and was a BIG EAST Weekly Offensive Player of the Week.
Women’s Swimming
Junior Catrina Roth (Aurora, Ill. / Batavia Senior HS) was selected to the swimming team. Roth is a public relations major and tallies a 3.45 GPA. She set the school record in the 100 Back (56.50) and 200 Back (2:01.66). Roth was also a member of the 200 (1:44.22) and 400 (3:51.07) Medley Relay teams that set school records. She is a BIG EAST Academic All-Star.
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