Ottumwa, IA – The Indian Hills Athletic Department hosted its annual Athletic Choice Awards on Monday night, honoring student-athletes, teams, staff members, and more for another successful year of Indian Hills Athletics.
For the first time since its inaugural event in 2019, the ACA's returned to an in-person event at the Tom Arnold Net Center with over 300 attendees featuring student-athletes, faculty and staff, and members of the local community.
2022 ATHLETIC CHOICE AWARDS PHOTO GALLERY
Academic Achievement Award – 2020-21 Baseball (3.49 GPA)
The Academic Achievement Award recognizes the athletic team that achieved the highest team GPA during the previous year.
Heart of Service Award – Pablo Marques (Men's Soccer)
The Heart of Service Award recognizes a team or individual that contributes to the college campus and surrounding communities in the Indian Hills Community College region.
President's Award – Taj Anderson (Men's Basketball)
The President's Award honors an individual that displays sportsmanship regardless of team challenges and individual hardships that the individual may have faced.
Athletic Appreciation Award (1) – Angela Ocker (Indian Hills Academic & Career Advisor)
Athletic Appreciation Award (2) – Scott Jackson (Ottumwa Courier)
The Athletic Appreciation Award honors an employee of Indian Hills Community College or local entity that doesn't work within the Athletic Department on a day-to-day basis, but impacts the department by going above and beyond for IHCC and its student-athletes.
Athletic Partnership of the Year – Dusty Ware (Ware Corporations)
The Athletic Partnership of the Year award recognizes an individual, group of individuals, or business that contributes resources to Indian Hills Community College and the Athletic Department.
Athletic Staff Member of the Year – Mallory Woltering (Administrative Assistant)
The Athletic Staff Member of the Year award honors an Athletic Department staff member that has gone above and beyond to contribute to the Athletic Department and its student-athletes.
Competitive Excellence Award
The Competitive Excellence award recognizes an individual from each athletic team that has contributed to the goals set forth by their team
- Baseball – Ricardo Van Grieken
- Men's Basketball – Braxton Bayless
- Cheer – Hunter Seals
- Women's Cross Country – Monse Guerrero-Chapula
- Men's Cross Country – Isaac Bryant
- Women's Track & Field – Kayla McCray
- Men's Track & Field – Aurel Tchanbi
- Men's Golf – Frank Vucic
- Women's Soccer – Risa Ogasawara
- Men's Soccer – Matteo Scarduzio
- Softball – Gretta Hartz
- Sports Shooting – Josh Meyer
- Volleyball – Precious Daley
- Women's Wrestling – Heaven-Leigh Jackson
- Men's Wrestling – Deron Pulliam
Sport Highlight of the Year – Men's Basketball's Buzzer-Beater vs. Southeastern
The Sport Highlight of the Year recognizes an athletic related highlight during the sport season that was an impressive achievement for that athletic team or individual.
The Warriors knocked off nationally ranked Southeastern in the historic rivalry with a 35-foot buzzer-beater as J'Vonne Hadley corralled a rebound and found Braxton Bayless on the run to hit the improbably shot. The win was a part of the team's 13-game winning streak that led them to the national tournament.
Team of the Year – 2020-21 Baseball
The Team of the Year award is presented to an athletic team that has achieved success in their competition season, in the classroom, and been a positive representation of Indian Hills Community College.
The Warriors made a thrilling run to the 2021 JUCO World Series that included an NJCAA Region XI Championship, an NJCAA District Championship, and a win over both the No. 1 ranked team in the nation and the No. 1 seeded team in the World Series. The Warriors also achieved the highest team GPA and serviced many community events throughout Centerville.
Student-Athlete of the Year – Aliyah Simmons (Women's Track & Field)
The Student-Athlete of the Year award is presented to the student-athlete that has achieved success in their competition season and in the classroom. This individual must have also demonstrated leadership skills and been a positive representation of Indian Hills.
Aliyah Simmons became the first-ever individual national champion for the women's track & field program, winning the NJCAA Indoor Track & Field title in the 800-meter run. Simmons also owns the top 800-meter outdoor time in the NJCAA this year while earning USTFCCCA Midwest Region Female Track Athlete of the Year honors. Simmons has also been named to the ICCAC All-Academic Team and has been an instrumental advocate for mental health on the Indian Hills campus.