TicketsCINCINNATI -- University of Cincinnati student-athletes Claire Curtsinger (cross country, track and field) and Harrison Sims (men's golf) were named Jean Stephens Memorial Award honorees for this school year. The duo, in addition to the other nominees, were honored at Sunday's men's basketball game.
ABOUT THE JEAN STEPHENS AWARD
In 1999, UC Athletics lost one of its most loyal and dedicated staff members, Jean Stephens. Two years later, to recognize and promote the qualities Stephens exemplified in her 15 years of service, the Jean Stephens Memorial Award was instituted to recognize a female and male student-athlete for their high integrity, high ethical standards, respect for all persons and commitment to both UC Athletics and the University of Cincinnati.
The complete list of all-time honorees can be found here.
CLAIRE CURTSINGER, JUNIOR, CROSS COUNTRY AND TRACK & FIELD
Curtsinger came to Cincinnati as a walk-on and became a school record holder and highest finishing Bearcat in program history at the NCAA Regional Championships last fall. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA and is starting her second co-op rotation this spring. Her coach, Sarah Anderson, also pointed to that regional event for Curtsinger overcoming illness and poor weather conditions to run a 20-second personal best over 6,000 meters.
Sims has been his team's SAAC representative the past two years and, despite not making the travel roster yet in his time with the ascending program, has been referred to as the most beloved player on the team for his attitude on the life and golf balance.
Yu-Wei Chiang: Women's Golf
Callie Flanagan: Tennis
Hunter Gubeno: Men's Swimming and Diving
Jillian Hayes: Women's Basketball
Jed Helker: Men's Cross Country
Maddy Hensler: Women's Swimming and Diving
Juliette Laracuente-Huebner: Women's Track and Field
Maddie Swingle: Women's Soccer
Gia Williams: Volleyball
Megan Young: Lacrosse
ABOUT THE JEAN STEPHENS AWARD
In 1999, UC Athletics lost one of its most loyal and dedicated staff members, Jean Stephens. Two years later, to recognize and promote the qualities Stephens exemplified in her 15 years of service, the Jean Stephens Memorial Award was instituted to recognize a female and male student-athlete for their high integrity, high ethical standards, respect for all persons and commitment to both UC Athletics and the University of Cincinnati.
The complete list of all-time honorees can be found here.
CLAIRE CURTSINGER, JUNIOR, CROSS COUNTRY AND TRACK & FIELD
Curtsinger came to Cincinnati as a walk-on and became a school record holder and highest finishing Bearcat in program history at the NCAA Regional Championships last fall. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA and is starting her second co-op rotation this spring. Her coach, Sarah Anderson, also pointed to that regional event for Curtsinger overcoming illness and poor weather conditions to run a 20-second personal best over 6,000 meters.
- From her nomination:
- "As one of the juniors on our team, Claire has fallen into a leadership role. By doing so, she has done a great job reaching out to her teammates making sure they are prepared for traveling, racing, and competing. She has resonated with my younger athletes which has been special to see. Claire had a rough freshman year, so seeing her pour into the young ones is really uplifting. She's a living example of trusting the process and putting in work, and it gives the younger athletes hope and motivation that even though they are not seeing results now, they are working towards something bigger and better down the line."
Sims has been his team's SAAC representative the past two years and, despite not making the travel roster yet in his time with the ascending program, has been referred to as the most beloved player on the team for his attitude on the life and golf balance.
- From his nomination:
- "One of the things that makes college golf unique compared to other college sports is that your starting lineup is your only lineup. There are no subs and you don't travel with any players other than your starting five. This is tough because it makes it difficult for your young players that don't travel to receive the benefits of coaching and organization while the team is competing away from home. Some teams elect the path of a volunteer assistant to coach the players at home, but for us Harrison as been the leader we turn to going back to his freshman year. He regularly organizes practices, workouts, and even qualifiers when us coaches are on the road. It is an extremely selfless act for many reasons, but most of all because he could just focus on himself and improving his own standing within the lineup. That's not Harrison though, his joy and motivation has always been based around team success.
Yu-Wei Chiang: Women's Golf
Callie Flanagan: Tennis
Hunter Gubeno: Men's Swimming and Diving
Jillian Hayes: Women's Basketball
Jed Helker: Men's Cross Country
Maddy Hensler: Women's Swimming and Diving
Juliette Laracuente-Huebner: Women's Track and Field
Maddie Swingle: Women's Soccer
Gia Williams: Volleyball
Megan Young: Lacrosse