Loyola University • New Orleans • Volume 96 • Issue 14 • December 7, 2018
THE MAROON FOR A GREATER LOYOLA
Cross-country athletes sprint towards scholar awards By RoSha'e Gibson rlgibso@my.loyno.edu @RoRodagreat1
Sneaux fell on the Marquette Horseshoe on Dec. 4, as all of Santa's friends provided a stress-relieving event for Loyola students in the midst of finals and a playground for people of all ages. The Student Government Association's University Programming Board helped make the annual event a success for the 11th year. HANNAH RENTON/The Maroon.
Loyola dashes through the Sneaux
Loyola held its first Sneaux 11 years ago in 2007, and the infamous long lines for the student-designed T-shirt hasn't waned since. Each year, Loyola University celebrates the end of the fall semester and gets into the Christmas spirit by releasing 20 tons of shaved ice onto the Marquette Horseshoe for students and families to enjoy. The event is put on by the University Programming Board, and this year's T-shirts were designed by Mary Ann Florey, mass communication junior. An average of 700 people visit the winter wonderland each year to build tiny snowmen, decorate ornaments and cookies, give Santa their Christmas lists and drink hot chocolate while listening to everyone's favorite Christmas songs.
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As students start making coffee runs in preparation for their final exams, two cross-country athletes can rest easy after being named crosscountry's Southern States Athletic Conference Scholar-Athletes of the Year. Sasha Solanao-McDaniel, sociology sophomore, and Walter Ramsey, environmental studies sophomore, won the academic awards in the men and women's categories. Solano-McDaniel maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA while Ramsey shot for a 3.79 GPA during a season filled with broken personal-records and a bid to compete at the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics' national meet. "It's a great honor for them to be receiving these awards, which honor their academic and athletic performance," Kevin Licht, head coach, said. "We want athletic success combined with academic success to really define our athletes." Both runners were also named to the All-Academic and Champions of Character teams, based off their work on the field and in the classroom. The academic accolade is not new for Solano-McDaniel. Licht said he is impressed with her improvement and the way she has managed to excel off the field. “She has done a great job in her development as a runner,” Licht said. “Academically, she’s just as driven as she is athletic.” Licht mentioned Solano-Mcdaniel’s positive impact on the team and what he expects from her going forward following her latest achievement. “She's a very positive influence,” Licht said. “She will continue to set the bar high both academically and athletically.” As for Ramsey, Licht sees the award as recognition for the long-distance runner's work ethic. "This is a tremendous honor for Walt," he said. "He's worked really hard in the classroom, really hard in cross-country, and his hard work has shown that. He's done a great job at balancing both his academics and athletics. He works very hard athletically, but then he spends the rest of his day on academics, and that shows with his GPA and how high it is." As for the cross country program as a whole, Licht strives to create a culture that places runners at the top on the track and in the classroom. "We are a very motivated group. We have a very competitive group so they want to be successful," he said. "They naturally set a high bar for themselves, and that speaks a lot to the character of the group that we have."