Simpson Athletics hosts inaugural All-Sports Banquet
INDIANOLA, Iowa – The Simpson College Athletic Department hosted its inaugural All-Sports Banquet on Wednesday night inside Cowles Fieldhouse.
Softball senior Olivia Allen and baseball senior Kolton Arnold were the recipients of the department's Sarah Crosby and John Wesley Awards of Excellence, which are awarded to the male and female athletes who best represent Simpson's core values of discovery, access, citizenship, belonging, justice and integrity.
Women's soccer and women's golf earned the department's two team awards. The women's soccer team claimed the Whalen Community Service Award for leading the department in community service hours, while the women's golf team earned the Academic Excellence trophy for boasting the highest team grade point average in the 2021 spring and fall semesters.
A longtime fixture and champion for women's intercollegiate athletics at Simpson, Barb Overton was named the first Athletics Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champion. Overton, whose impact on Simpson dates back to 1965, has been on the Storm volleyball staff for the last 23 years, was the first varsity softball coach in Simpson history, and also spent time coaching golf and tennis.
Director of Athletics Marty Bell announced the honor will be known as the Barb Overton Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Champion moving forward.
Midway through the ceremony, each head coach selected one student athlete to receive the Golden Thunder Award for their program. Athletes were chosen for a number of reasons including being the unsung hero of the team, having an excellent academic career, serving as a positive role model on campus, overcoming adversity, displaying great improvement, etc. A full list of recipients is below.
The department also revealed nominations for a number of its annual ESPY awards, including male and female newcomers of the year as well as male and female athletes of the year. Award winners will be announced in the summer following the completion of spring sports.
Sarah Crosby Award of Excellence
Olivia Allen
John Wesley Award of Excellence
Kolton Arnold
Athletics Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Champion
Barb Overton
Whalen Community Service Award
Women's Soccer
2021 Academic Excellence Award
Women's Golf
Golden Thunder Recipients
Baseball - Luke Willis
Men's Basketball - Lincoln Swanson
Women's Basketball - Essance Porter
Cheer - Sadie Cahalan
Men's Cross Country - Ryan Courtney
Women's Cross Country - Sophie Hall
Dance - Sydney Alt
Football - Spencer Finch
Men's Golf - Lucas Hemphill
Women's Golf - Averi Peck
Shooting sports - Matt Wilkinson
Men's Soccer - Logan Rentfrew
Women's Soccer - Tatum Tremain
Softball - Brooke Fonley
Swimming & Diving - Katie Oosterhuis
Men's Tennis - Ethan Humble
Women's Tennis - Anna Wanek
Men's Track & Field - Carter Berkey
Women's Track & Field - Audrey Arnold
Women's Volleyball - Ellie Gray
Men's Wrestling - Jakob Slavin
