Wake Forest Athletics: 2016-17 Year in Review

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2016-17 WAKE FOREST ATHLETICS

YEAR IN REVIEW


VISION DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

CORE VALUES INTEGRITY EXCELLENCE LEADERSHIP COMMITMENT LOYALTY


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CONTENTS 2016-17 YEAR IN REVIEW Letter from Ron Wellman

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Sport Recaps

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A Historic Season for Baseball Support From the Crowd 2016-17: The Best Year Ever?

11 12 14

Honors & Awards

15-18

Most Improved 2016 Hall of Fame Class

18 20

Developing Champions

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Academic Highlights Campus & Community Highlights Leadership & Service Career Development

23 26 28 30

Investing in Champions

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Facilities Deacon Club Highlights Performance Nutrition

33 36 40

WAKE FOREST ATHLETICS SENIOR ADMINISTRATION RON WELLMAN

B A R RY FA I R C L O T H

DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS

SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD, DEVELOPMENT & SALES

B A R B A R A WA L K E R

TODD HAIRSTON

DEPUTY AD/SENIOR WOMAN ADMINISTRATOR

SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD, COMPLIANCE

JA N E C A L D W E L L

B I L L OA K E S

SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD, STUDENT-ATHLETE SERVICES

SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD, STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS

R A N DY C A S S T E V E N S SENIOR ASSOCIATE AD, CFO


A LETTER FROM RON WELLMAN

2016-17 was a Banner Year

W

hat a year for the Deacs! As I look back on the 2016-17 year, I could not be more proud of our accomplishments and optimistic about what our future holds. The many achievements of our teams and student-athletes give us reason to celebrate and should make each and every one of you proud to be Demon Deacons!

THE MANY ACHIEVEMENTS OF OUR TEAMS AND STUDENTATHLETES GIVE US REASON TO CELEBRATE AND SHOULD MAKE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU PROUD TO BE DEMON DEACONS!

Competitively, it was a strong year for a majority of our sports. Our overall record of 182-111-3 is the best we’ve seen in the last decade; eighty percent of our teams finished with a winning record; three teams finished in the top 10 in their respective NCAA tournaments; and six teams achieved top 10 rankings during the regular season. Our football team went to a bowl game for the first time since 2011, won their first bowl game since 2008 and defeated a ranked team in a bowl game for the first time in history. Men’s basketball returned to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in seven years. After a record-setting season, the baseball team earned a spot in its second-ever Super Regional, making Wake Forest one of only three schools in the country to win a FBS bowl game, participate in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament and play in a baseball Super Regional. At the conference level, Demon Deacon teams set an all-time record winning a total of 68 ACC contests. The baseball team set a record with 19 ACC victories and led the nation in both home runs and home runs per game. Men’s tennis became just the fifth team in school history to post an undefeated, untied ACC record and earned their first-ever ACC regular season title. Men’s soccer won its seventh all-time ACC regular season title, and its second-ever ACC Championship title. They followed that up with an incredible run in the NCAA Championship finishing as the national runner-up. It was also a great year for our student-athletes pursuing their dreams of playing professionally. Wake Forest ranked 16th in the nation this year in athletes selected in the NFL, NBA, MLS and MLB drafts. A total of 12 Demon Deacons were selected, eight by MLB teams (a WFU record), two by MLS teams and one each by the NFL and NBA. We certainly wish them the best and are excited to see them representing Wake Forest at the next level. There are many individual achievements to celebrate as well. Our 26 first-team All-ACC selections and 15 first-team All-America picks are the most since 2008-09. Petros Chrysochos won the ITA All-American Singles Championship while his teammates Skander Mansouri and Christian Seraphim became the USTA/ITA National Indoor Intercollegiate Doubles Champions. Ian Harkes

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(men’s soccer) won the MAC Hermann Trophy, given to the top player in college soccer. He was also named ACC Midfielder of the Year while his teammate Jacori Hayes was named the ACC Men’s Soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Nicola Pluta (field hockey) was the ACC Freshman of the Year. Ryan Janvion received the ACC’s Jim Tatum Award given to the league’s top football scholar-athlete. Will Zalatoris was named ACC Player of the Year for men’s golf, and John Collins (men’s basketball) was recognized as the ACC’s Most Improved Player. Head coach Bobby Muuss (men’s soccer) was named ACC Coach of the Year for the second consecutive year. We also added 48 All-ACC Academic selections. This was also another great year when it comes to our facilities. We kicked off the 2016-17 year with newly renovated football practice fields as well as new turf and a resurfaced track at Kentner Stadium. Over at the Wake Forest Tennis Complex, we completed the Southern Family Seating at the Leighton Tennis Courts; our baseball team moved into its impressive new Player Development Center at David F. Couch Ballpark; and new locker rooms in Manchester Athletic Center were unveiled for many of our Olympic sport teams. We also broke ground on the Sutton Sports Performance Center and Shah Basketball Complex, which will be game-changing facilities for our programs. Many thanks to the generous donors who made all of these projects, and more, possible. Your support is having a tremendous impact on the success of our studentathletes and programs. Wake Forest student-athletes and coaches made us all extremely proud throughout the 201617 year, and I thank them for their hard work, dedication, and passion. With their continued progress and the positive impact that we’re continuing to see as a result of our recent facility upgrades, we have a lot to look forward to in the upcoming year. It’s going to be exciting, and I especially look forward to cheering the Deacs on to many victories and championships with you! Go Deacs!

RON

WELLMAN

DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS

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SPORT RECAPS


SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON at the LJVM Coliseum, including a victory over No. 8 Louisville in the home finale. The Demon Deacons were led by John Collins, who earned first-team All-ACC honors and was the league’s Most Improved Player. The All-American was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 19 pick of the 2017 NBA Draft.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

OVERALL: 16-16 | CONFERENCE: 6-10

B aseball team celebrates an 11th inning walkoff sac fly to claim first series win over NC State since 2002

BASEBALL

OVERALL: 43-20 | CONFERENCE: 19-11

The Deacs wrapped up the season with a 43-20 overall record, the best since 2002, and set program records for ACC wins, ACC series wins, All-ACC honorees & home runs.

2017 was a banner year for baseball, as the Demon Deacons hosted and swept the Winston-Salem Regional and finished a game away from the College World Series, falling to eventual national champion Florida in a winner-take-all game at the Gainesville Super Regional. The Deacs wrapped up the season with a 43-20 overall record, the best since 2002. Wake Forest set program records for ACC wins (19), ACC series wins (eight), All-ACC honorees (nine) and home runs (106). The Deacs also set a new team-high with eight student-athletes drafted, including two in the top 50 overall picks and four in the top seven rounds. Wake Forest featured first team All-Americans Stuart Fairchild and Ben Breazeale and second team All-American Gavin Sheets, who led the nation with 84 RBIs. Fairchild was a second-round pick of the Reds, Sheets went in the second round to the White Sox, and Breazeale was picked by the Orioles in the seventh round. Fellow senior Parker Dunshee also went in the seventh round and was taken by the A’s after becoming the program’s all-time strikeout leader with 330 in his career. The Deacs capped off the home schedule at the Winston-Salem Regional, welcoming a pair of capacity crowds as Wake Forest beat UMBC, then West Virginia twice, to advance to the program’s second-ever Super Regional.

Men’s basketball made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

OVERALL: 19-14 | CONFERENCE: 9-9

Men’s basketball made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in seven years, falling to Kansas State in the First Four in Dayton, Ohio. The Demon Deacons went 19-14 overall and 9-9 in the ACC, their best record since 2010. The team set school records with 268 3-pointers and 77.8 percent from the free throw line, as the Deacs averaged 82.8 points per game and ranked in the top 10 nationally in offensive efficiency. Wake Forest posted an 11-3 record

The Wake Forest women’s basketball team appeared in the postseason for the second consecutive season, advancing to the second round of the 2017 WNIT following a win over Bethune-Cookman in the opening round. The victory marked the third consecutive postseason Amber Campbell appearance in which the Demon Deacons won a game. During the regular season, the Deacs defeated No. 15/18 NC State, 89-77, on the road on Feb. 19, marking the first road win over a ranked opponent since they defeated No. 18/22 Florida State on Jan. 10, 2012, as well as the first win in Raleigh for head coach Jen Hoover and her staff. Amber Campbell became the 24th player in program history to join the 1,000-point club when she scored 18 points in a victory over Clemson on Jan. 12. Rising sophomore Alex Sharp became the 13th Deac to be named to the ACC All-Freshman Team. Wake Forest finished the season 16-16 and earned the No. 9 seed in the ACC Tournament, its best seed since 2012.

MEN’S CROSS COUNTRY

13TH AT ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2016 season was the first under the direction of John Hayes, Director of Track & Field and Cross Country. At the ACC Championships, the men’s cross country team, with a completely different line-up than in 2015, finished 13th, improving one spot over last year. The team Angelos Vasileiou also improved seven spots over last year in the NCAA Southeast Regional, taking 16th out of 32 teams. The Demon Deacon men’s team was led by a 42nd-place finish by Harry Warnick.

WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY 8TH AT ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS

The 2016 season was the first under the direction of John Hayes, Director of Track & Field and Cross Country, and Michelle Chewens, Head Women’s Cross Country Coach. During the regular season, the team earned three second-place finishes. At the ACC Championships, the women’s cross country team finished eighth, Mimi Smith moving up four spots over last year, for the team’s best finish since 2012. The team also improved seven spots over last year in the NCAA Southeast Regional, taking fifth out of 32 teams. The top-four finishers on the women’s side for Wake Forest, including Mimi Smith, Ellie Abrahamson, Samantha Halvorsen and Cate Allen, finished within six places of each other, as the Deacs earned 27th, 29th, 31st and 33rd-place finishes in the 6k race, respectively. Smith and Abrahamson were named to the All-ACC Academic Team.

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SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON FIELD HOCKEY

ACC Freshman of the Year Nicola Pluta

OVERALL: 11-8| CONFERENCE: 0-6

MEN’S GOLF

3RD AT ACC CHAMPIONSHIP

The Wake Forest field hockey team finished the 2016 season with an 11-8 record and a first-round win over No. 2 seed Syracuse in the ACC Tournament. Nicola Pluta recorded a standout rookie campaign and was named the ACC Freshman of the Year and earned spots on the All-ACC First Team and the Longstreth/ NFHCA Third Team All-America squad while she, Jule Grashoff and Veerle Bos earned spots on Longstreth/NFHCA All-Region South Teams. Senior Sarah Thornhill was one of 16 athletes across the nation selected to participate in the 2017 U.S. Women’s National Development Squad, a transitional team from the collegiate and U21 level to the senior U.S. Women’s National Team, while senior Emily Conroe was selected to play in the NFHCA Division I Senior Game. On the academic side, six Deacs were named to the All-ACC Academic Team. The field hockey squad was named a National Academic Squad by the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) while eleven Demon Deacons were named to the Zag Field Hockey/NFHCA Division I National Academic Squad, with Jessy Silfer being named a Scholar of Distinction. Silfer was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team later in the year.

Men’s golf ended the season ranked No. 11 in the Golfstat rankings. The Demon Deacons posted three victories on the season (Rod Myers Invitational, General Hackler Championship, Valspar Championship), giving the program 10 team victories over the past three seasons. Wake Forest ACC Player of the Year Will Zalatoris had a top-three finish in seven of 11 events during the 2016-17 season. Will Zalatoris was the 2016-17 ACC Player of the Year, earning first-team All-America honors and being named a finalist for the Jack Nicklaus Award. His stroke average of 70.14 was the third-lowest in school history. Zalatoris was joined on the All-ACC team by Paul McBride and Cameron Young.

WOMEN’S GOLF

FOOTBALL

12TH AT ACC CHAMPIONSHIP

OVERALL: 7-6 | CONFERENCE: 3-5

Year three of the Dave Clawson era lived up to expectations. The Deacons went to a bowl game for the first time since 2011, won their first bowl game since 2008 and defeated a ranked team in a bowl game for the first time in history. The season started with a bang as Wake Forest went 4-0 for the first time in a decade. Wins over Tulane, Duke, Delaware and Indiana gave the Deacons an undefeated September. The Deacons claimed their sixth win and bowl eligibility with a Nov. 5 win over Virginia. Wake Forest landed in the Military Bowl where it was a heavy underdog to No. 23 Temple. The unencumbered offense exploded for 31 first half points en route to a 34-26 win over the nation’s thirdranked defense. Placekicker Mike Weaver and linebacker Marquel Lee each earned first team All-ACC honors, and Lee would later be drafted in the fifth round by the Oakland Raiders. Jessie Bates III earned first team Freshman All-America honors as his five interceptions, two for touchdowns, were the most among any freshman in the country. Senior safety Ryan Janvion earned the ACC’s Jim Tatum Award, given to the league’s top football scholarathlete. Janvion was also a finalist for the William The Deacons won Campbell Trophy, given by the National Football their first bowl game Foundation to the nation’s top scholar-athlete.

Women’s golf ended the season ranked No. 29 in the Golfstat rankings. The Deacs were ranked as high as No. 10 during the season before injuries hampered the spring portion of their schedule. Wake Forest posted a pair of team victories in the fall, at the Lady Tar Heel Invitational and the Landfall Tradition. The Deacs’ 13-under par score at the Cougar Classic set a school 54-hole scoring record. Wake Forest was led by Jennifer Kupcho, who was the NCAA individual runner-up and ended the season ranked No. 2 in the individual national rankings. She won three individual titles and her season scoring average of 70.61 broke the previous school record by over two strokes. She competed in the 2017 U.S. Women’s Open, finishing T-21st at the major championship. She was the second lowest amateur and tied for the fourth best finish by an American player.

since 2008 and defeated a ranked team in a bowl game for the first time in history.

NCAA individual runner up Jennifer Kupcho

Football team celebrates its Military Bowl victory over No. 23 Temple

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SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON MEN’S SOCCER

OVERALL: 19-3-3 | CONFERENCE: 5-1-2

The men’s soccer program inched closer to another College Cup title in 2016, finishing as the national runner-up after falling to Stanford in penalty kicks in the championship game. The Demon Deacons won their seventh all-time ACC regular season title, and followed that up with their second-ever ACC Championship title, the squad’s first since 1989. Wake Forest also returned to the NCAA College Cup for the fifth time in program history, and the first since reaching four straight from 2006-09, as the Deacs finished with a 19-3-3 record. Individually, Wake Forest was led by its three senior captains: Ian Harkes, Jacori Hayes and Alec Ferrell. The ACC Midfielder of the Year, Harkes also won the MAC (Missouri Athletic Club) Hermann Trophy, given to the top player in college soccer, and signed a Homegrown contract with D.C. United in the MLS. Hayes was named the Senior CLASS Award winner and ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and was a first-round MLS Draft pick by FC Dallas. Ferrell was also a first team All-American and was selected by Minnesota United FC in the second round of the MLS Draft. Led by back-to-back ACC Coach of the Year honoree Bobby Muuss, Wake Forest also featured third team All-ACC recipients Brad Dunwell and Kevin ACC Midfielder of the Politz and ACC All-Freshman Team pick Ema Twumasi.

MEN’S TENNIS

OVERALL: 30-3 | CONFERENCE: 12-0

The Wake Forest men’s tennis team rose to new heights in 2017, claiming the program’s first-ever ACC regular season title, first-ever No. 1 national ranking and the first-ever No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship. The Deacs then made their deepest run in the NCAA Championship in program history, advancing to the quarterfinals before falling to eventual runner-up, North Carolina. Individually, Petros Chrysochos, Borna Gojo, Skander Mansouri and Christian Seraphim represented Wake Forest in the NCAA Singles and Doubles Championship, with all four earning All-American honors. Chrysochos, Gojo and Mansouri were named All-Americans in singles play while Mansouri and Seraphim teamed up to garner the award in doubles play. All four players ended the season ranked nationally in singles (Chrysochos – 4, Mansouri – 15, Gojo – 27 and Seraphim – 81) and the tandem of Mansouri and Seraphim ended the season as the second-ranked doubles team in the country. The Deacs finished the season 30-3, including a perfect 14-0 home record and a 19-match winning streak in the middle of the season. All American Skander Mansouri

Year Ian Harkes won the MAC Hermann Trophy, given to the top player in college soccer.

The Deacs finished the season 30-3, including a perfect 14-0 home record and a 19-match winning streak. Men’s soccer wins first ACC Championship title since 1989

WOMEN’S SOCCER

OVERALL: 10-8 | CONFERENCE: 2-8

The Wake Forest women’s soccer team finished the season with a 10-8 record, 2-8 in ACC play. Maddie Huster was named ACC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 18 for her efforts in the shutout against Boston College. It was the first weekly honor for a Demon Deacon since the 2014 season. Sarah Teegarden was named to the Preseason All-ACC Squad and finished the season with second team All-ACC honors. She was then recognized as a NSCAA All-Southeast Region Second Team member. Teegarden and Huster were named to the All-ACC Academic Team while the team as a whole earned Sarah Teegarden the NSCAA Team Academic Award for having a team GPA higher than a 3.0. Huster was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Team. Teegarden began her professional career in February, signing with Sweden’s Kopparbergs Goteborg FC.

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Kimmy Guerin

OVERALL: 18-11 | CONFERENCE: 7-7

The Wake Forest women’s tennis team continued its rise up the ACC standings in 2017, finishing the season with an 18-11 overall record and a tie for fifth place in the league standings, the best ACC finish for Wake Forest since 2011. The Deacs were selected to compete in the NCAA Women’s Tennis Championship for the second consecutive season and narrowly fell to Texas in the opening round. Kimmy Guerin capped her Wake Forest career with her second-straight appearance in the NCAA Singles Championship and became the first Wake Forest player in seven years to win 150 career matches in singles and doubles combined. Three individuals, Guerin, Samantha Asch and Luisa Fernandez were recognized as All-ACC Academic while Guerin also garnered All-ACC honors. Guerin and Fernandez were two of Wake Forest’s four recipients of the ACC’s Weaver-JamesCorrigan Postgraduate Scholarship, given to individuals who excelled in both the classroom and sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.

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SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON MEN’S TRACK & FIELD

14TH AT ACC INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS | 13TH AT ACC OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Robert Heppenstall broke the school record and took fourth in the NCAA Outdoor 800m final and finished fifth in the NCAA Indoor 800m final to add two more All-American honors to his name. Heppenstall was named the Athletics Canada Junior Athlete of the Year and earned outdoor ACC Performer of the Week honors after winning his first-ever 1500m event at the Charlotte Invitational. Heppenstall earned first team All-ACC honors after finishing third in the 800m at both the indoor and outdoor conference meets. Charlie Ionata added to the accolades at the ACC Indoor Championships with a second team All-ACC performance in the hammer throw. Along with Heppenstall, three more Demon Deacons earned All-ACC honors at the ACC Outdoor Championships. Ionata (hammer throw) and Elijah Shalaway (javelin) were named to the first team while Kyle Johnson earned second team honors in the hammer throw. Heppenstall and Ionata were named to both the All-ACC Indoor Academic Team and All-ACC Outdoor Academic Team while Shalaway was named to the All-ACC Outdoor Academic Team.

VOLLEYBALL

OVERALL: 9-22 | CONFERENCE: 5-15

The Wake Forest volleyball team finished head coach Bill Ferguson’s first season with a 9-22 record and a 5-15 record in conference play. Caroline Rassenfoss and Caitlyn Della were named to the 2016 All-ACC Freshman Team while Rassenfoss and Kylie Long were named to the All-ACC Academic Team. Three Demon Deacons earned weekly conference honors during the season, the most since 2011. Caroline Rassenfoss was named ACC Freshman of the Week Sept. 26 for her career-high 26-kill match against Virginia. Kylie Long earned ACC Co-Player of the Week honors Oct. 3 for her double-doubles against Louisville and Notre Dame. Caitlyn Della earned the ACC Freshman of the Week honor Oct. 17 after recording 28 kills and only five errors for a .442 attack percentage against Duke and Virginia.

Caroline Wolf and Kylie Long

Robert Heppenstall took fourth in the NCAA Outdoor 800m final

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD

11TH AT ACC INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS | 10TH AT ACC OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS

Ellie Abrahamson earned seventh in the NCAA 3000m steeplechase final, earning her first team All-America honors. She broke the school record in the event earlier in the season and continued to improve. At the ACC Indoor Championships, Alva Hicks earned first team All-ACC honors in the weight throw while Ellie Abrahamson, Kathryn Lazarchick, Amy Collins and Alexandria Ellie Abrahamson finished seventh in the NCAA 3000m steeplechase final Florent combined for five second team All-ACC honors. At the ACC Outdoor Championships, Amy Collins earned first team All-ACC honors in the heptathlon while Ellie Abrahamson earned two first team All-ACC honors in the 3000m steeplechase and the 5000m. Abrahamson, Collins and Lazarchick were named to the All-ACC Indoor Track & Field Academic Team while Abrahamson and Collins were both named to the ACC Outdoor Track & Field Academic Team.

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SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON

A HISTORIC SEASON In the opener, Wake Forest was scoreless headed into the ninth inning of a pitchers’ duel before Ben Breazeale roped a home run to send the game into extra innings where the Gators clinched the game with a walk-off single in the 11th. Wake Forest responded in game two. The Deacs cranked five homers in an 8-6, 11-inning victory, capped off by a two-run moonshot by Breazeale over the video Baseball team celebrates as it clinches its second-ever Super Regional berth board for the walk-off win. After losing two All-Americans following the 2016 Florida took a 3-0 third-inning lead in the season, outside expectations for Wake Forest baseball deciding game three, and that was all the Gators were down. The Demon Deacons received the needed to seal the victory behind a strong pitching 10th-most votes in the ACC preseason poll and were effort. In a weekend which featured more than 10 nowhere to be found in the national rankings. hours of rain delays, Wake Forest fell just short of unseating the eventual national champions on their Those opinions didn’t come close to permeating the home field. Wake Forest clubhouse. “I’m so proud of this group and everything they’ve “These kids want to play in an NCAA Tournament, but they also want to do it at home – in front of their accomplished. Our senior class came in here and fans,” head coach Tom Walter said in September 2016. helped us build this from the ground up. They set the “That’s the next step in our program. We have to be in tone for work ethic, leadership, character, academics, the conversation to host a regional. Last year we got integrity, and everything else they bring to the table to a regional, now we need to be in the conversation day in and day out,” Walter said after the season concluded. “These guys put together an incredible to host.” year, and I’m just really proud of where this program Thirty-nine wins later, the Deacs accomplished exactly is, and I’m proud to be associated with these young that. A consensus top-20 team, Wake Forest was men.” selected to host the Winston-Salem Regional as the The season was certainly a historic one for Wake top seed. Forest. As a team, records broken included ACC wins Hosting a regional for the third time in program (19), ACC series wins (eight), All-ACC honorees (nine) history, the Deacs swept through three games by a and MLB Draft selections (eight). The Deacs broke combined 13 runs. In back-to-back wins over West program records in all three facets of the game, Virginia, Gavin Sheets delivered a walk-off hit off including hitting (106 home runs), pitching (559 the wall in the ninth inning of a 4-3 win, then Stuart strikeouts) and defense (.978 fielding percentage). Fairchild homered twice in the 12-8 victory in the title These factors combined helped Wake Forest post its game. sixth-ever 40-win season, finishing the year 43-20 That victory clinched Wake Forest’s second-ever Super overall. Regional berth, as the Deacs headed to Gainesville, Wake Forest became the first NCAA Division I team to Florida to take on the national seeded Gators in what surpass 100 home runs in a season since 2010, before went down as the most competitive Super Regional the NCAA put in new requirements for BBCOR bats in the country. which reduced exit speeds of balls put in play. The Deacs had the two top home run hitters in the ACC – Two of the three games went to extra innings, none Gavin Sheets (21) and Johnny Aiello (20). Sheets led were decided by more than three runs, and in the end, the Gators outscored the Deacs by a total margin the country with 84 RBIs, a mark which ranks second in program history and the most since 1999. of 11-9 over the three games.

A second team All-American himself, Sheets was joined on the All-America squads by first teamers Fairchild and Breazeale. Fairchild led the team in average (.360), runs (65), hits (94) and stolen bases (21), also totaling 19 doubles, 17 homers and 67 RBIs. The junior didn’t commit an error all season in center field, converting all 165 defensive chances, and was named a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award, recognizing the top amateur player nationally. Breazeale recorded a .333 average, along with 16 doubles, 11 homers and 51 RBIs and threw out more than a third of opposing baserunners. He was a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award, which recognizes the top catcher in the nation. Parker Dunshee also capped off a record-breaking career. He shattered Wake Forest’s all-time strikeout record with 330 and ranks fourth all-time with 28 victories on the mound.

All American Gavin Sheets

Those four were all drafted in the top seven rounds of the MLB Draft, including Fairchild and Sheets as second-round picks. Donnie Sellers, Jonathan Pryor and Connor Johnstone also left in the draft, while closer Griffin Roberts was selected and elected to return to Wake Forest as the Deacs look to reload instead of rebuild. After setting the program record for strikeouts-pernine innings (13.5) and recording eight saves, Roberts is expected to anchor the pitching staff in 2018. He’ll be joined by All-Region honorees Aiello and Jake Mueller, plus the No. 29-ranked recruiting class by Perfect Game, as the Deacs look to build on a historic 2017 season. After all, they’re making a habit of replacing All-Americans.

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SUPPORT FROM THE CROWD A

long with the successes of the 2016-17 year came a tremendous amount of support from the Wake Forest faithful. From increases in season ticket sales to steadily growing, and even some record-setting, crowds, Demon Deacon fans were out in full force throughout the year! Many thanks to our loyal fans who came out to cheer on the Deacs in 2016-17!

Set new attendance record since moving to David F. Couch Ballpark with 3,018 fans ________________________ Increased baseball ticket sales by 704%

BB&T Field saw its

1st sellout in five seasons when the Deacs played Clemson. 12

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Women’s basketball hosted 2nd largest crowd in program history with

5,500+ fans at School Day.

Men’s basketball hosted its 1st sellout

crowd since 2009. ______________________ Men’s basketball season ticket sales have increased 13% since 2014.

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SPORT RECAPS

2016-17 SEASON

2016-17: THE BEST YEAR EVER?

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et’s put a wrap on Wake Forest’s 2016-17 athletic year by answering a few questions. A number of folks have suggested that this was Wake Forest’s best year ever in terms of athletic success. In order to answer that, we first have to determine how we want to define success. Did the Deacons win a national championship in 2016-17? No. But they came close on multiple fronts. Wake Forest has eight all-time NCAA Championships starting with baseball in 1955, men’s golf in 1974, 1975 and 1986, field hockey in three consecutive years between 2002-2004, and men’s soccer in 2007. And while the Deacons didn’t win a national title, three teams came close to the promised land. Men’s soccer lost an overtime thriller to Stanford in the national championship game, eventually managing a tie but losing on penalty kicks. Men’s tennis made its deepest foray ever into the NCAA Championship, reaching the Elite Eight before falling to North Carolina. And baseball homered its way into the NCAA Super Regionals before coming up one game shy of the College World Series. Even without the national title, Wake Forest certainly made its presence felt on the national level. Within the ACC the Deacons earned two regular season titles from men’s soccer and men’s tennis. Soccer captured the ACC Championship title as well. To illustrate the national competitiveness of the Atlantic Coast Conference, Wake Forest had as many teams finish in the top 10 in the NCAA Championships (men’s soccer, men’s tennis, baseball) as finish among the top four in the ACC Championships (men’s soccer, men’s tennis, men’s golf). When you roll all of the win-loss records together for the 10 team sports that play head to head events (all sports except track, cross country and golf), Wake Forest posted a 182-111-3 record, a winning percentage of .620. That marked the most wins by Demon Deacon teams since 2008-09 when Wake Forest posted 183 victories. In ACC competition, Wake Forest won 68 events against league foes, the most-ever in a season. The 182 wins were very close to the all-time record of 186 set in 1999-2000. Individually, Wake Forest studentathletes made their impact in national tournaments. Jennifer Kupcho finished second in medal play at the NCAA

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Women’s Golf Championship and the doubles team of Skander Mansouri and Christian Seraphim reached the semifinals of doubles play at the NCAA Men’s Tennis Championship. In tennis, the fall season is controlled by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association and the Deacons mopped up in the national ITA tournament. Petros Chrysochos won the ITA singles title while Mansouri and Seraphim claimed the doubles title.

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o was this past season the most successful in Wake forest history? In many respects, it most certainly was. But if you ask any Demon Deacon, the best is yet to come. Ian Harkes won the MAC (Missouri Athletic Club) Hermann Trophy, given annually to the nation’s top college soccer player. Harkes became just the tenth Demon Deacon to ever be named national player of the year. Harkes was the ACC’s men’s soccer Midfielder of the Year while Will Zalatoris won ACC Player of the Year honors in men’s golf. A total of 26 Deacon student-athletes were named first team All-ACC in 201617. That was the most since 28 Deacons were so honored in 2008-09. And Wake Forest’s 15 first team All-Americans marked the highest total since 15 Deacons earned that recognition in 1998-99. The professional sports leagues looked favorably upon Demon Deacon studentathletes in 2016-17. Wake Forest had a school record 12 players drafted. Marquel Lee was a fifth round pick of the Oakland Raiders in April’s NFL Draft while John

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Collins went in the first round, 19th overall, in June’s NBA Draft. A school record eight Deacons were picked in the MLB Draft and two soccer players were selected by MLS teams. The 12 total drafted players exceeded the previous record of 11 set in 2009. Wake Forest’s 12 total draft choices ranked the Deacons among the top 20 schools in the nation for drafted players in 2016-17. Over the last three seasons, Wake Forest is the only school in the nation to have a first round draft choice by an NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLS and MLB team. Academically, Wake Forest produced the ACC men’s soccer Scholar-Athlete of the Year in Jacori Hayes and Ryan Janvion claimed the Jim Tatum Award, given to the top senior football scholarathlete in the ACC. Janvion went on to become the first Deacon to be a finalist for the coveted Campbell Trophy which is awarded annually to the nation’s top college football scholar-athlete. The Deacons ranked high among its NCAA Division I brethren in a variety of categories across all sports. The Director’s Cup, which measures the overall success of a school’s athletic teams, had Wake Forest in 55th place in 2016-17, the best finish since coming in 37th in 2008-09. In terms of national success, Wake Forest, Florida and Florida State were the only teams nationally to win a bowl game, receive a bid to the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament and play its way into a baseball Super Regional. So, was this past season the most successful in Wake Forest history? In many respects, it most certainly was. But if you ask any Demon Deacon, the best is yet to come.


HONORS & AWARDS


HONORS & AWARDS

2016-17 WAKE FOREST AWARD WINNERS ARNOLD PALMER AWARD

MARGE CRISP AWARD

EDWIN G. WILSON MALE SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

EDWIN G. WILSON FEMALE SCHOLARATHLETE OF THE YEAR

ACC MALE SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

ACC FEMALE SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR

Ian Harkes

Jennifer Kupcho

Jacori Hayes

Jessy Silfer

Jacori Hayes

Ellie Abrahamson

MEN’S SOCCER

WOMEN’S GOLF

ACC

CHAMPIONS

Men’s soccer (regular season & tournament) Men’s tennis (regular season)

NATIONAL

CHAMPIONS

Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis (ITA singles) Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis (ITA doubles) Christian Seraphim, men’s tennis (ITA doubles)

NATIONAL

PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Ian Harkes, men’s soccer (MAC Hermann Trophy)

ALL-AMERICA

FIRST TEAM

Ellie Abrahamson, women’s outdoor track & field Ben Breazeale, baseball Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis Stuart Fairchild, baseball Alec Ferrell, men’s soccer Borna Gojo, men’s tennis Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Robert Heppenstall, men’s indoor/outdoor track & field Jennifer Kupcho, women’s golf Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis (singles & doubles) Christian Seraphim, men’s tennis (doubles) Will Zalatoris, men’s golf

ALL-AMERICA

SECOND TEAM

John Collins, men’s basketball Gavin Sheets, baseball

ALL-AMERICA

THIRD TEAM

Nicola Pluta, field hockey

ALL-AMERICA

FOURTH TEAM Marquel Lee, football

ALL-AMERICA

FRESHMAN

Jessie Bates III, football Dom Maggio, football

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MEN’S SOCCER

FIELD HOCKEY

FIRST TEAM ALL-ACC Ellie Abrahamson, women’s outdoor track & field (steeplechase & 5000m)

Ben Breazeale, baseball Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis Amy Collins, women’s outdoor track & field (heptathlon) John Collins, men’s basketball Stuart Fairchild, baseball Alec Ferrell, men’s soccer Borna Gojo, men’s tennis Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Robert Heppenstall, men’s indoor track & field (800m) Robert Heppenstall, men’s outdoor track & field (800m) Alva Hicks, women’s indoor track & field (weight throw) Charlie Ionata, men’s outdoor track & field (hammer throw) Jennifer Kupcho, women’s golf Marquel Lee, football Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis Paul McBride, men’s golf Nicola Pluta, field hockey Elijah Shalaway, men’s outdoor track & field (javelin) Gavin Sheets, baseball Sierra Sims, women’s golf Mike Weaver, football Cameron Young, men’s golf Will Zalatoris, men’s golf SECOND TEAM ALL-ACC Ellie Abrahamson, women’s indoor track & field (3000m) Johnny Aiello, baseball Jessie Bates III, football Amy Collins, women’s indoor track & field (pentathlon & high jump)

Parker Dunshee, baseball Alexandria Florent, women’s indoor track & field (high jump) Kimmy Guerin, women’s tennis Charlie Ionata, men’s indoor track & field (weight throw) Kyle Johnson, men’s outdoor track & field (hammer throw) Connor Johnstone, baseball Kathryn Lazarchick, women’s indoor track & field (mile) Jake Mueller, baseball Griffin Roberts, baseball Sarah Teegarden, women’s soccer

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MEN’S SOCCER

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD

THIRD TEAM ALL-ACC Brad Dunwell, men’s soccer Duke Ejiofor, football Dom Maggio, football Kevin Politz, men’s soccer Jonathan Pryor, baseball Christian Seraphim, men’s tennis ACC PLAYER OF THE YEAR Ian Harkes, men’s soccer (midfielder) Will Zalatoris, men’s golf ACC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR Nicola Pluta, field hockey ACC COACH OF THE YEAR Bobby Muuss, men’s soccer ACC MOST IMPROVED PLAYER John Collins, men’s basketball ALL-ACC FRESHMAN TEAM Caitlyn Della, volleyball Caroline Rassenfoss, volleyball Alex Sharp, women’s basketball Ema Twumasi, men’s soccer ALL-ACC TOURNAMENT TEAM Jon Bakero, men’s soccer Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Kevin Politz, men’s soccer ACC TOURNAMENT MVP Ian Harkes, men’s soccer ACADEMIC ALL-ACC Ellie Abrahamson, women’s cross country Ellie Abrahamson, women’s indoor track & field Ellie Abrahamson, women’s outdoor track & field Megan Anderson, field hockey Samantha Asch, women’s tennis Eric Bae, men’s golf Veerle Bos, field hockey


HONORS & AWARDS

2016-17 WAKE FOREST AWARD WINNERS Ben Breazeale, baseball Cade Carney, football Amy Collins, women’s indoor track & field Amy Collins, women’s outdoor track & field Parker Dunshee, baseball Brad Dunwell, men’s soccer Luisa Fernandez, women’s tennis Borna Gojo, men’s tennis Jule Grashoff, field hockey Kimmy Guerin, women’s tennis Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Robert Heppenstall, men’s indoor track & field Robert Heppenstall, men’s outdoor track & field Justin Herron, football Maddie Huster, women’s soccer Charlie Ionata, men’s indoor track & field Charlie Ionata, men’s outdoor track & field Ryan Janvion, football Kathryn Lazarchick, women’s indoor track & field Kylie Long, volleyball Dom Maggio, football Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis Jake Mueller, baseball Elisa Penna, women’s basketball Nicola Pluta, field hockey Kevin Politz, men’s soccer Milan Quinn, women’s basketball Caroline Rassenfoss, volleyball Christian Seraphim, men’s tennis Cam Serigne, football Elijah Shalaway, men’s outdoor track & field Alex Sharp, women’s basketball Jessy Silfer, field hockey Sierra Sims, women’s golf Mimi Smith, women’s cross country Bruce Steel, baseball Sarah Teegarden, women’s soccer Sarah Thornhill, field hockey John Wolford, football Cameron Young, men’s golf WEAVER-JAMES-CORRIGAN ACC POSTGRADUATE SCHOLARSHIP Luisa Fernandez, women’s tennis Kimmy Guerin, women’s tennis Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Ryan Janvion, football ACC JIM TATUM AWARD Ryan Janvion, football ACC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer SENIOR CLASS AWARD Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer

NSCAA REGIONAL COACHING STAFF OF THE YEAR Bobby Muuss, Dane Brenner, Steve Armas, Mick Giordano, men’s soccer

COSIDA ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT Maddie Huster, women’s soccer Ryan Janvion, football Josh Okonye, football Jessy Silfer, field hockey

NSCAA COLLEGE TEAM ACADEMIC AWARD Women’s soccer

ACC PLAYER OF THE WEEK Cade Carney, football, Sept. 12 Duke Ejiofor, football, Sept. 12 Jessie Bates III, football, Sept. 26 Caroline Rassenfoss, volleyball, Sept. 26 Alec Ferrell, men’s soccer, Sept. 27 Kylie Long, volleyball, Oct. 3 Marquel Lee, football, Oct. 10 Caitlyn Della, volleyball, Oct. 17 Maddie Huster, women’s soccer, Oct. 18 Alec Ferrell, men’s soccer, Oct. 25 Jessie Bates III, football, Nov. 7 Cameron Glenn, football, Nov. 7 Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis, Jan. 17 John Collins, men’s basketball, Jan. 23 Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis, Feb. 14 John Collins, men’s basketball, Feb. 20 Connor Johnstone, baseball, Feb. 20 Samantha Asch, women’s tennis, Feb. 21 Gavin Sheets, baseball, Feb. 27 Connor Johnstone, baseball, April 3 Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis, April 4 Parker Dunshee, baseball, April 10 Stuart Fairchild, baseball, April 17 Robert Heppenstall, men’s outdoor track & field, April 18 Gavin Sheets, baseball, May 8 Jen Esposito, women’s outdoor track & field, May 9 Elijah Shalaway, men’s outdoor track & field, May 9 Bruce Steel, baseball, May 15 ACC PLAYER OF THE MONTH Jennifer Kupcho, women’s golf, October Will Zalatoris, men’s golf, March Paul McBride, men’s golf, April SKIP PROSSER MAN OF THE YEAR AWARD Danny Manning, men’s basketball NSCAA SCHOLAR-PLAYER OF THE YEAR Ian Harkes, men’s soccer NSCAA SCHOLAR ALL-AMERICAN Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer NSCAA SCHOLAR ALL-SOUTH REGION Kevin Politz, men’s soccer NSCAA ALL-SOUTH REGION Alec Ferrell, men’s soccer Ian Harkes, men’s soccer Jacori Hayes, men’s soccer Sarah Teegarden, women’s soccer (second team)

BEN HOGAN AWARD SEMIFINALIST Will Zalatoris, men’s golf JOHN MACKEY TIGHT END OF THE WEEK Cam Serigne, football, Oct. 11 NATIONAL FOOTBALL FOUNDATION HAMPSHIRE SOCIETY Ryan Janvion, football Ali Lamot, football Josh Okonye, football WILLIAM V. CAMPBELL TROPHY FINALIST Ryan Janvion, football JACK NICKLAUS AWARD FINALIST Will Zalatoris, men’s golf ITA CAROLINA REGION PLAYER TO WATCH Borna Gojo, men’s tennis ITA CAROLINA REGION COACH OF THE YEAR Tony Bresky, men’s tennis GLOBAL GOLF POST ALL-AMATEUR Sierra Brooks, women’s golf Mathilda Cappeliez, women’s golf Will Zalatoris, men’s golf NFHCA NATIONAL ACADEMIC TEAM AWARD Field hockey NFHCA NATIONAL ACADEMIC SQUAD Emily Adamson, field hockey Megan Anderson, field hockey Veerle Bos, field hockey Shannon Eby, field hockey Lindsay Graham, field hockey Jule Grashoff, field hockey Megan Murphy, field hockey Nicola Pluta, field hockey Jessy Silfer, field hockey Sarah Thornhill, field hockey Heather Wiley, field hockey NFHCA SCHOLAR OF DISTINCTION Jessy Silfer, field hockey NFCHA ALL-SOUTH REGION Veerle Bos, field hockey (second team) Jule Grashoff, field hockey (first team) Nicola Pluta, field hockey (first team)

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HONORS & AWARDS

2016-17 WAKE FOREST AWARD WINNERS GOLDEN SPIKES AWARD SEMIFINALIST Stuart Fairchild, baseball ABCA/RAWLINGS GOLD GLOVE AWARD Stuart Fairchild, baseball ABCA ALL-ATLANTIC REGION Johnny Aiello, baseball (first team) Ben Breazeale, baseball (first team) Parker Dunshee, baseball (second team) Stuart Fairchild, baseball (first team) Jake Mueller, baseball (second team) Gavin Sheets, baseball (first team) POSTSEASON ALL-STAR GAMES Thomas Brown, football (Tropical Bowl) Emily Conroe, field hockey (NFHCA Division I Senior Game) Marquel Lee, football (East-West Shrine Game) Brad Watson, football (East-West Shrine Game) DAVIS CUP REPRESENTATIVES Petros Chrysochos, men’s tennis (Cyprus) Skander Mansouri, men’s tennis (Tunisia) ATHLETICS CANADA JUNIOR ATHLETE OF THE YEAR Robert Heppenstall, men’s track & field NCAA APR PUBLIC RECOGNITION AWARD Men’s cross country Women’s golf Women’s tennis DRAFT CHOICES Ben Breazeale, MLB, 7th round (Baltimore Orioles) John Collins, NBA, 1st round (Atlanta Hawks) Parker Dunshee, MLB, 7th round (Oakland A’s) Stuart Fairchild, MLB, 2nd round (Cincinnati Reds) Alec Ferrell, MLS, 2nd round (Minnesota United) Jacori Hayes, MLS, 1st round (FC Dallas) Connor Johnstone, MLB, 21st round (Atlanta Braves) Marquel Lee, NFL, 5th round (Oakland Raiders) Jonathan Pryor, MLB, 19th round (Washington Nationals) Griffin Roberts, MLB, 29th round (Minnesota Twins) Donnie Sellers, MLB, 11th round (Toronto Blue Jays) Gavin Sheets, MLB, 2nd round (Chicago White Sox) FREE AGENT SIGNINGS Josh Banks, football, New York Giants Thomas Brown, football, New Orleans Saints Ian Harkes, men’s soccer, DC United (Homegrown) Brad Watson, football, Los Angeles Chargers

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MOST IMPROVED When Danny Manning took over the Wake Forest basketball program in the spring of 2014, he had a vision for the future of the Demon Deacons. It would be a program that would be physically and mentally tough and develop student-athletes to be successful in their next chapter of life, whether that was in the NBA, the business world or in another career path. After two seasons of laying the foundation of the program, year three of the Danny Manning era in Winston-Salem was when fruits of that labor began to show. A 19-14 record, including a 9-9 mark in the historically challenging ACC, gave the Demon Deacons their first NCAA appearance in seven years and was a beacon of even greater success in the future. “I think year three of our program was a good year for us in the sense of getting to the tournament and continuing to move in the right direction,” said Manning. “However, we aren’t satisfied with being a program that just plays in the First Four, we want to be a program that can make a run deep into the tournament.” The Demon Deacons’ 2016-17 campaign featured one of the nation’s top offenses. The team ranked in the top 10 nationally in offensive efficiency, scoring an average of 82.8 points per game and setting school records with 268 3-pointers and a 77.8 average from the free throw line. That offensive efficiency allowed the Deacs to play with any team in the country, evidenced by the team’s upset of No. 8 Louisville in their home finale. The road from that day in 2014 when Manning was hired to the night in 2017 when the fans stormed the Coliseum floor after defeating the Cardinals was filled with hard work. During that time, Manning and his staff recruited players who had the work ethic and desire to take their game to a higher level. Players who might have been underrated in the recruiting world, but that the staff thought would thrive in the development plan they were


HONORS & AWARDS

2016-17 WAKE FOREST AWARD WINNERS implementing. The first success story of his process shined in 2017 with the rise of John Collins. An athletic 6-10 forward from West Palm Beach, Fla., Collins wasn’t ranked in the top 100 in his high school class. His freshman season in 2015-16 showed glimpses of his potential as he came off the bench to average 7.3 points and 3.9 rebounds in 14.4 minutes per game. Given a chance in 2016-17 to be the featured post player for the Demon Deacons, he made the most of the opportunity and became a star. Collins averaged 19.2 points and 9.8 rebounds per game during his sophomore season, posting 17 double-doubles while leading the Demon Deacons back to the NCAA Tournament. His 20.3 scoring average in ACC play led the league. Collins also led the league in field goal percentage in both conference games (63.9%) and overall (62.2%) and his streak of 12 consecutive 20-point games was the longest in ACC play since NC State’s T.J. Warren in 2014 and the longest by a Demon Deacon in over four decades. Collins led the ACC in 20-and-10 games with 10 overall and eight in ACC play. A player who didn’t receive a single vote on the preseason All-ACC, Collins was runner-up for the league’s Player of the Year award, earning first-team All-ACC honors and being named the conference’s Most Improved Player. He went from only one start as a freshman to an AllAmerican as a sophomore.

he put himself in a position to have that type of season. His work both on the court and in our strength and conditioning program allowed him to become a first round pick.” Collins’ stock rose so much during his sophomore season with the Demon Deacons that he declared for the NBA Draft, being selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 19 overall selection. He quickly made his mark as a professional, earning firstteam honors at the NBA’s Las Vegas Summer League in July. Manning knows that the development of players like Collins not only shows potential recruits the product of buying into the system, but also the current Demon Deacons. “I hope all of our guys see what John did and see that big picture,” said Manning. “If you work hard, you will put yourself in a situation to have success. When you are in that moment, you have to be ready to seize that opportunity. All of our guys have shown that development, not just John. I thought Bryant Crawford had a great year in terms of development with what he did for us night-in and night-out. JC’s success overshadowed Bryant, but I thought his improvement from year one to year two was tremendous.” Crawford, who was the first Demon Deacon in over 20 years to have over 500 points and 150 assists in a season with his strong sophomore campaign, will lead the squad into the 2017-18 season. It is an opportunity for other players on the roster to use the same work ethic displayed by Collins last season to take the next step in their development.

“John making first-team All-ACC is something that is important to us because we sell development,” said Manning. “He didn’t come in as a top- “We know the guys are going to work 100 player in his high school class, but hard and compete and hopefully good with his dedication and hard work, things will happen,” said Manning.

C ollins was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the No.19 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft

“We share that message with them daily. We challenge them, implore them and motivate them to get better, both on and off the court. We see the progress with each game and what the outcome will be at the end of the year.” The development plan put in place by Manning for Wake Forest basketball isn’t just helping the current group of Demon Deacons, it is allowing the coaching staff to recruit at a higher level. The on-the-court success is a selling point, along with facility upgrades to the Coliseum and the construction of the Shah Basketball Complex which will benefit studentathletes for years to come. “We feel like the success of last season, both as a team and the development of individuals, will allow us to get into some people’s homes,” said Manning. “We are able reach out to future recruits and show them the development plan we have in place for our program and that it works. It is easy to talk about that plan, but now we have tangible results in terms of young men that have had success and are now playing at the professional level and getting paid. Having those examples makes a difference. They can see the results.”

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2016 HALL OF FAME CLASS F

ive of Wake Forest’s all-time greats, who accounted for three ACC Player of the Year awards and a number of All-America honors, as well as the longtime Faculty Athletics Representative, comprised the 2016 induction class to the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame. Former baseball star Jamie D’Antona, football greats Chris Barclay and Ryan Plackemeier, soccer standout Michael Parkhurst and Provost Emeritus Dr. Ed Wilson were the five newest members of the Hall of Fame. D’Antona, Plackemeier and Wilson were inducted into the Hall of Fame at a ceremony on September 16 and were honored during halftime of Wake Forest’s home football game versus Delaware on September 17. Both Barclay and Parkhurst will be inducted at a future Hall of Fame ceremony when their schedules permit.

Faculty Athletic Representative Pete Brubaker, Jamie D’Antona, Ryan Plackemeier and Director of Athletics Ron Wellman

JAMIE D’ANTONA A baseball star for the Demon Deacons, D’Antona earned ACC Player of the Year honors as a junior in 2003 when he hit .360 with 21 home runs and 82 RBIs. Those numbers also earned him first team All-America honors from both Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. The third baseman from Trumbull, CT led the ACC in home runs in 2003 and in RBIs in both 2001 and 2003. D’Antona broke into the Demon Deacon lineup and finished his rookie year with a .360 average, 17 homers and 77 RBIs. He was the ACC Rookie of the Year, the Collegiate Baseball Freshman of the Year, and a member of the All-ACC Tournament team and the All-Knoxville Regional team. He finished his career with a .352 average, 58 home runs and 242 RBIs. He ranks sixth in ACC history in career home runs and seventh with 242 career RBIs. D’Antona was a second round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2003 MLB Draft and made his debut with the Diamondbacks in 2008.

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RYAN PLACKEMEIER Plackemeier won the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s best punter during his senior season in 2005. A three-time first team All-ACC punter from 2003 through 2005, Plackemeier was a consensus AllAmerican as a senior. In 2005, he led the nation in punting and set the school record with a 47.2 yards per kick average. The Bonsall, CA native led the ACC in punting in 2003 and 2004, becoming just the fifth Demon Deacon to earn three first team All-ACC awards in football. Plackemeier’s 45.26 career punting average is both the school record and the ACC record. A seventh round draft choice of the Seattle Seahawks in 2006, he played three seasons in the NFL and now resides in the Winston-Salem area.


of just three Demon Deacons to earn the award in back-to-back seasons, joining Norm Snead (1959-60) and Brian Piccolo (1963-64).

MICHAEL PARKHURST

DR. ED WILSON Dr. Ed Wilson, known affectionately to many as “Mr. Wake Forest,” has been a fixture on both the old campus and the Reynolda campus since 1943. A native of Leaksville, NC, Wilson enrolled at Wake Forest at age 16 and graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in English in 1943. He went on to serve as an officer in the US Navy during World War II before earning his Ph.D from Harvard in 1952. Dr. Wilson returned to Wake Forest in 1959 as a professor of English and continued in that role while adding additional duties as Provost. A member of Phi Beta Kappa and Omicron Delta Kappa honor societies as an undergraduate, Dr. Wilson would serve as Wake Forest’s NCAA Faculty Representative from 1988 to 2003. A former president of the ACC, Dr. Wilson maintains an office in the Z. Smith Reynolds Library and carries the title of Provost Emeritus.

A three-year soccer letterman from 2002-04, Parkhurst was an All-American in 2004 and a first team All-ACC pick in 2003 and 2004. As a junior in 2004, he was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year as the Deacons contributed 11 shutout victories. As a professional, Parkhurst was the MLS Rookie of the Year in 2005 and the league’s Defender of the Year in 2007. A participant for the U.S. Men’s National Team in the 2008 Olympics, Parkhurst was a member of two CONCACAF Gold Cup squads and has made 25 career appearances for the USMNT. At the professional level, he won the MLS Fair Play Award in 2007 and 2008. The Cranston, RI native is a four-time MLS All-Star and was the ninth overall pick by the New England Revolution in the 2005 MLS Draft. Parkhurst was recognized as the MLS Humanitarian of the Year in 2006 and 2008.

CHRIS BARCLAY Barclay, Wake Forest’s all-time rushing leader, was the Atlantic Coast Conference football Player of the Year in 2005 when he carried the ball 218 times for 1,127 yards. He broke into the Demon Deacon lineup as one of just three true freshmen to see action in 2002. He led the team in rushing in 2003 with 1,192 yards and earned second team All-ACC honors. As a junior in 2004, Barclay had 1,010 yards on 243 carries and was named first team All-ACC. He capped his career in 2005 with another first team All-ACC selection and his recognition as the league’s Player of the Year. For his career, Barclay finished with 4,032 rushing yards and set school records at the time for career points (240), rushing touchdowns (40), all-purpose yards (4,930), 200-yard rushing games (3) and 1,000yard rushing seasons (3). He was the first player in ACC history to lead the league in rushing yards during the regular season in three consecutive seasons and was also the first ACC player with three consecutive 1,000-yard rushing seasons. Named team MVP as both a junior and senior, Barclay is one 2 0 1 6 -17 Y E A R I N R E V I E W // WA K E F O R E S T AT H L E T I C S 2 0 1 6 -17 Y E A R I N R E V I E W // WA K E F O R E S T AT H L E T I C S

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DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS


ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS/STUDENT-ATHLETE SERVICES

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

IN THE CLASSROOM A

key emphasis of “Developing Champions” is the pursuit of excellence in the classroom. Wake Forest student-athletes continued to impress with their academic performance throughout the 2016-17 year, and for 82 deserving student-athletes, representing 21 states and four countries, their years of hard work and dedication paid off as they received their undergraduate or graduate degrees from Wake Forest.

ACC ACCOLADES •M ore than half (51%) of all student-athletes made the ACC Honor Roll. The Honor Roll is comprised of student-athletes who participated in a varsity-level sport and registered a grade point average of 3.0 or better for the full academic year.

• Jacori Hayes (men’s soccer) was recognized as Wake Forest’s ACC Male ScholarAthlete of the Year. • Ellie Abrahamson (women’s track & field) was recognized as Wake Forest’s ACC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year. • L uisa Fernandez and Kimmy Guerin of the women’s

tennis team, Jacori Hayes of the men’s soccer team and Ryan Janvion of the football team were honored by the Atlantic Coast Conference as 2017 Weaver-James-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship recipients. The Demon Deacons were among 54 student-athletes recognized by the conference for their excellence on the field as well as in the classroom. Each recipient receives $5,000 toward his

Luisa Fernandez, Ryan Janvion and Kimmy Guerin

94%

Hunter Roberts

Graduation Success Rate

or her graduate education on behalf of the ACC. WAKE FOREST ACCOLADES • D ean’s Cup honors for 2016-17 went to the field hockey and men’s cross country/track & field teams. The Dean’s Cup recognizes the team with the highest GPA for the year.

country), Lindsay Graham (field hockey), Maddie Huster (women’s soccer), Gabrielle Merritt (women’s cross country), Kevin Politz (men’s soccer), Alex Sharp (women’s basketball) and Jessy Silfer (field hockey). • Six Wake Forest student-athletes earned a perfect 4.0 GPA during the spring semester: Caitlin Clarke (volleyball), Mitchell Earley (men’s track & field), Maddie Huster (women’s soccer), Robert Jacowleff (men’s track & field), Jessy Silfer (field hockey) and Field hockey earned Dean’s Cup honors for 2016-17 Trent VanHorn (men’s basketball). • Wake Forest University held its annual commencement ceremonies on Monday, May 15 with 82 Wake Forest student-athletes receiving their undergraduate or graduate degrees. Wake Forest University President Dr. of graduating Men’s cross country/track & field earned Dean’s Nathan O. Hatch addressed Cup honors for 2016-17 student-athletes the graduates during the earned a cumulative ceremony, along with this year’s commencement • The Edwin G. Wilson Scholar-Athlete GPA of 3.0 or speaker, Pulitzer PrizeAwards, which are awarded annually to the better. winning author and presidential most outstanding Wake Forest male and female historian Jon Meacham. junior or senior student-athletes based on academic excellence, were presented to Jessy Silfer (field hockey) and Jacori Hayes (men’s soccer). • Ten Wake Forest studentathletes earned a perfect 4.0 GPA during the fall semester: Amy Collins (women’s track & field), Kaitlin Derry (women’s cross country), Luisa Fernandez (women’s tennis), Sebastian Fischbach (men’s cross John McCarren

62 %

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ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS/STUDENT-ATHLETE SERVICES

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS ATHLETES IN MEDICINE Athletes in Medicine (A.I.M.) is a program that began in the spring of 2015 in response to student-athletes who needed support in their endeavor to pursue a career in a medical or health-related field while also balancing the time demands of being a collegiate athlete at Wake Forest. The group met each month throughout the 2016-17 year and provided assistance such as advising support, educational sessions and mentoring to studentathletes interested in health-related careers.

Members of the Class of 2017 celebrate at a graduation reception at the Haddock House

• T he day before graduation, Wake Forest Athletics hosted a reception at the Haddock House honoring all of the graduating student-athletes. NCAA ACCOLADES • E ight teams posted perfect Academic Performance Rate (APR) scores of 1,000: men’s cross country, men’s golf, men’s tennis, women’s basketball, women’s field hockey, women’s golf, women’s tennis, and women’s track & field • Women’s golf, women’s tennis and men’s cross country each earned an APR Public Recognition Award for having an APR that ranked in the top 10% of their sport nationally. This is the ninth consecutive APR Public Recognition Award for the women’s golf team.

INTERNATIONAL NIGHT

omen’s golf earns ninth consecutive APR Public W Recognition Award

• Seven teams earned perfect Graduation Success Rate (GSR) scores of 100: men’s soccer, men’s tennis, women’s basketball, field hockey, women’s golf, women’s tennis and volleyball.

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In the fall, Wake Forest’s international student-athletes gathered at the home of Director of Athletics Ron Wellman for the first annual International Student-Athlete Dinner. Thirty-five student-athletes representing 20 different countries were in attendance. It was a wonderful evening that provided an opportunity to learn about other cultures and celebrate a diverse group of student-athletes who have traveled from far and wide to compete for the Demon Deacons.


ACADEMIC HIGHLIGHTS/STUDENT-ATHLETE SERVICES

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

ed - Sel mitt fle m o

Deacon Leader

C petitive - Po s om

ss

aracter h C -

SPORTS LEADER DEVELOPMENT SYSTEM

Attitude C ve iti

“This is the best, most useful experience I have had since being at Wake Forest.”

- a Wake Forest rising senior captain

In 2016-17 the athletic department launched its own leadership development program in collaboration with the School of Business Center for Leadership and Character. The Sports Leader Development System (SLDS) is a comprehensive program designed to identify, train and develop student-athlete leaders from their arrival on campus, through their senior year and beyond graduation. Prior to launching the program, meetings were held with coaches, studentathletes and athletic administrators to assess the department’s leadership needs and begin to design our own unique program that would provide the most benefits to our student-athletes while also integrating with the vision and mission of Wake Forest University. With the “Deacon Leader” at the core of the program, five key attributes that embody what it means to be a “Deacon Leader” were identified: Character, Competitive, Positive Attitude, Committed, and Selfless. Following a successful pilot program, the SLDS is currently being refined and plans are being made for wide-scale implementation which will continue over the next few years. The impact of the program is already being felt by studentathletes, coaches and administrators alike, and the outlook for the coming year is even more encouraging.

GUEST COACH PROGRAM The Wake Forest Athletics Guest Coach program acknowledges Wake Forest faculty and staff by inviting them to various sporting events throughout the year and celebrating their dedication to educating our student-athletes. Each Wake Forest team hosted at least one Guest Coach event throughout the 2016-17 year.

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CAMPUS & COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

ON CAMPUS T

hroughout the 2016-17 academic year Wake Forest student-athletes from every team volunteered thousands of hours on campus and in the local community. Wake Forest student-athletes make it a priority to not only get involved with the campus community but also become leaders on campus. Student-athletes participated in a wide range of campus-wide service initiatives, including Freshman MoveIn Day, Eat with the Deacs, Project Pumpkin, Hit the Bricks, D.E.S.K., and many more. Wake Forest Athletics is proud of our student-athletes’ commitment to serving others while balancing a rigorous schedule of academics and athletics. Members of the women’s soccer team support Hit the Bricks

Move-in Day

MOVE-IN DAY As incoming students arrived on campus prior to the 2016-17 year, they received a warm and spirited welcome as Wake Forest student-athletes and staff helped them move into their dorms. From unloading cars to carrying their belongings upstairs and into their new rooms, the student-athletes and staff were eager to help the newest Demon Deacons get settled in and start the year off right.

student-athletes and coaches came out to support the event and run a few laps to raise awareness and to honor our former student-athlete and Wake Forest football great, Brian Piccolo. Football helped kick off the event as senior Ryan Janvion spoke to the crowd about the amazing work Wake Forest students have done in the past and gave encouraging words to make this year even better. As the event went on, 14 of our athletic teams came to encourage participants and run laps with them. Track & field and field hockey jumped in to run laps for the campus teams that had been going all day. The event lasted for eight hours and concluded with a final remembrance walk in honor of those who had lost the battle to cancer.

D.E.S.K. Discovering Education through Student Knowledge (D.E.S.K.) is another annual campus-wide community service project that began in 2000. The goal of D.E.S.K. is to provide desks and school supplies for children in

PROJECT PUMPKIN Project Pumpkin is a campus-wide service event that’s been held every year since 1988. It is intended to bring together the campus and Winston-Salem communities. Each year more than 1,000 children fill the Quad while students and faculty provide trick-ortreating, carnival games and other fun activities for the

HIT THE BRICKS Hit the Bricks was started in 2003 as a campus-wide philanthropy to raise money for the Brian Piccolo Cancer Research Fund. Each year teams of students, faculty, staff and alumni gather on Hearn Plaza and take turns running/walking laps around the Quad to show their solidarity as Wake Nation in the fight against cancer. Throughout the day, participants, volunteers and passersby enjoy fun activities, live music, special guest speakers and food and gifts from our generous sponsors. This year many Wake Forest

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kids. Last fall, Student-Athlete Development set up in front of Reynolda Hall with a basketball hoop, freeze dance, hula hoops and other fun games. Hundreds of kids passed by to play with the student-athletes while also showing off their great costumes and trick-ortreating for Halloween candy.

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Members of women’s basketball team take part in D.E.S.K.

the Winston-Salem community who are in need of a place to study and learn in their homes. Each year, teams of Wake Forest student volunteers sign up to paint desks for elementary school children. This year, the desks were donated to children Project Pumpkin from Old Town Elementary School. Six of our athletic teams painted a desk with their designated child from Old Town Elementary School.


CAMPUS & COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHTS

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

IN THE COMMUNITY W

ake Forest student-athletes are also very active in the local community. They can be found volunteering their time with a variety of organizations throughout Winston-Salem including H.O.P.E., Habitat for Humanity, Santa’s Helper, local schools and many more.

SPREADING HOLIDAY CHEER Each December, Wake Forest student-athletes, coaches and staff come together over the course of two days to wrap and deliver thousands of gifts to local children as part of the Santa’s Helper program. The 31st annual Santa’s Helper event saw a record number of volunteers participate in both wrapping and delivering gifts with nearly 200 volunteers, a majority of whom were student-athletes. The program, which was started in 1986 by Wake Forest football player Chip Rives now serves over 1,000 families in the Winston-Salem community and has helped provide holiday presents to children in Winston-Salem every year since its inception.

100 % of teams

participated in community service

ACC GAME CHANGERS Members of the Wake Forest track & field/cross country and women’s tennis teams were recognized as Atlantic Coast Conference Game Changers for the 2016-17 academic year. The ACC’s Game Changers initiative was introduced in 2015 to recognize and highlight specific ACC teams’ involvement with their local communities. This year, Wake Forest student-athletes developed an extensive partnership with H.O.P.E. (Help Our People Eat). H.O.P.E. brings together resources from the interfaith community and provides healthy meals for youth 18 years and younger in Forsyth County where studies have shown close to 40,000 children are potentially at risk due to hunger and malnutrition. “ACC student-athletes are leaders in their communities, and Wake Forest’s ongoing work with H.O.P.E. is commendable,” said ACC Commissioner John Swofford. “The dedication and commitment demonstrated by the student-athletes, coaches and staff of the women’s tennis, cross country and track & field programs is creating meaningful change within their community.”

Ryan Janvion spreads holiday cheer dressed as Santa for the 31st annual Santa’s Helper

SKIP PROSSER LITERACY PROGRAM Named for the late men’s basketball coach Skip Prosser the Skip Prosser Literacy Program encourages fourth graders in the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County school system to be successful through reading. Each school had the opportunity to schedule a visit from a Wake Forest student-athlete to kick off the program in the fall. This year, 23 schools participated in the program with 1,026 children reading at least 5 books to qualify for a prize. More than 400 of those children earned the highest rank of “Deacon Champion” by reading at least 25 books during the program. Students were recognized during halftime of a men’s basketball game.

for children in this community. Fernandez even took the lead in translating the organization’s entire mobile application to Spanish so the Hispanic community could be informed as to when food stops were taking place. “Escaping cyclic poverty is never easy, but knowing there are people that care and support you can make it possible,” Fernandez said. “Of course, the benefits gained on our end as student-athletes are also numerous. On their first delivery days, our student-athletes felt sad as they saw the impoverished neighborhoods. It gave them a perspective of the conditions some people live in just minutes away from our beautiful Wake Forest campus. I noticed how quickly student-athletes became motivated to brighten those children’s lives on a weekly or monthly basis after they had served once.”

Wake Forest student-athletes were an integral part of the weekly food truck operation as they not only helped load the truck, but also delivered meals and took time out to interact and play with the children. “It is no coincidence that Help Our People Eat stands for H.O.P.E.,” said Wake Forest senior tennis player Luisa Fernandez. “This amazing organization not only provides thousands of meals for children and families in the underserved low-income areas of Winston-Salem, but it gives those people interaction with members of the community who want to help, including our Wake Forest student-athletes. I think this truly instills a hope, especially in the children, for a better future.” Wake Forest has partnered with H.O.P.E. since January 2014 when the food truck started making rounds. Last year, the Demon Deacon track & field/cross country and women’s tennis teams adopted H.O.P.E. as their charity of choice in hopes of truly changing the game

Luisa Fernandez, Kyle Johnson and Jordan Banks with the ACC Game Changers award.

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LEADERSHIP & SERVICE

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

STUDENT-ATHLETE ADVISORY COMMITTEE T

he Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is the athletic department’s primary student-athlete leadership organization. SAAC is a 34-member (2-3 representatives per athletic team) group that meets monthly to discuss issues relevant to the quality of the experience of Wake Forest student-athletes. SAAC also offers input on the rules, regulations and policies that affect student-athletes’ lives on NCAA member institution campuses. The mission of SAAC is to serve as a liaison between the student body, faculty, athletic department and student-athletes. SAAC seeks to enhance the student-athlete experience by providing opportunities while fostering a positive student-athlete image as representatives of the University, the ACC and the NCAA.

PRESIDENT

Tanner Owen MEN’S GOLF

VICE PRESIDENT

SECRETARY

Jordan Banks

Luisa Fernandez

WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD

BASEBALL Parker Dunshee Chris Farish Bobby Hearn Chris Schafer MEN’S BASKETBALL Trent VanHorn Keyshawn Woods WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Jill Brunori Milan Quinn CHEER/DANCE Morgan Childress Katelyn King FIELD HOCKEY Karlee Spirit Heather Wiley FOOTBALL Ryan Janvion Cam Serigne John Wolford Dezmond Wortham MEN’S GOLF Tanner Owen WOMEN’S GOLF Vinh-Hop Ngo Anna Wears

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WOMEN’S TENNIS

MEN’S SOCCER Brad Dunwell Hayden Partain Sam Raben WOMEN’S SOCCER Claudia Day Sarah Teegarden Caroline Wootten MEN’S TENNIS Petros Chrysochos Skander Mansouri WOMEN’S TENNIS Luisa Fernandez Courtney Meredith MEN’S TRACK/CROSS COUNTRY Simon Holden Kyle Johnson WOMEN’S TRACK/CROSS COUNTRY Jordan Banks Beatrice Boylan Alex Florent VOLLEYBALL Rachel Burau Hanna Lee

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DEACS SPEAK OUT - STUDENT-ATHLETE FORUM In October 2016, Student-Athlete Development and SAAC hosted an open forum for all student-athletes, coaches and staff to speak openly about social issues. After a troubling fall in professional sports media with professional athletes kneeling for the national anthem and devastating shootings around the U.S., the groups decided that an open forum would allow our student-athletes to speak openly about their feelings and also find their support system on campus. There were over 100 attendees gathered in McCreary Field House for the event. This event helped spark a larger conversation and SAAC worked to engage the Office of Diversity and Inclusion to attend their monthly meeting to understand what additional resources are available on campus. JUST BEAT IT - CPR TRAINING This year SAAC took the lead and started its own initiative called “Just Beat It.” On April 3, 2017 over 200 participants campus-wide participated in training for compression-only CPR and the Heimlich maneuver. The idea stemmed from an incident in which a Duke University professor went into cardiac arrest in their campus library. If EMS students had not been around, he may not have survived. Wake Forest has had similar examples of people who have survived cardiac arrests due to the help of individuals who were CPR certified, but has also witnessed tragic loss for some who were not near help. This instructional class was facilitated in conjunction with the American Heart Association and campus EMS, and is now becoming an ACC-wide initiative. Wake Forest is the second school to host this event. All participants received a certificate for completing the class. DEACS DONATE Another of SAAC’s new initiatives this year was Deacs Donate which was started by junior Vice President Jordan Banks. Using the unused food dollars from fellow student-athletes, Banks, along with other members of SAAC, collected more than 1,000 items of food from the campus P.O.D. Market. The items were then donated to Help Our People Eat (H.O.P.E.) of WinstonSalem.


LEADERSHIP & SERVICE

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

TOP SIX FOR SERVICE T

he ACC Top Six for Service is awarded to each conference school annually. The recipients for this award are selected based on their involvement in campus, community and leadership initiatives. These deserving recipients have represented our athletic department admirably by volunteering with countless organizations both on and off-campus including their teams’ charities of choice, local elementary schools, animal shelters, youth clinics and more. Whether they are carrying on Wake Forest’s tradition of “Pro Humanitate” by serving at Santa’s Helper, or spearheading unique projects, these student-athletes have gone above and beyond to positively influence the community and to motivate their teammates to do the same.

CAROLINE WOOTTEN Caroline, a senior on the women’s soccer team and three-time recipient of the ACC Top Six for Service award, exceeded expectations once again this year. As a two-year member of SAAC and Atlantic Coast Conference SAAC, she led her team by example every day. A master of time management, Caroline found time to devote to her studies as a psychology major while also volunteering her time and energy towards her team, school and community. Whether she was participating in speaking engagements, board meetings or even her servant leadership with Athletes-in-Action (campus ministry), Caroline’s positive attitude and commitment to supporting Wake Forest Athletics was evident. Caroline was extremely active both on and off-campus; she positively impacted others through countless events such as Freshman Move-In Day, Hit the Bricks, Project Pumpkin, Campus Kitchen, Eat with the Deacs, Read Across America Day, and D.E.S.K. Caroline tutored children at Ibraham Elementary School and frequently delivered healthy meals to underprivileged children through Help Our People Eat (H.O.P.E.) on Sundays. CLAUDIA DAY Claudia, a junior on the women’s soccer team, logged many service hours throughout the past year. Prior to the start of the school year, Claudia dedicated much of her time volunteering as a counselor at a faith-based soccer camp in Charlotte, N.C. After returning to Wake Forest for her junior year, she continued that momentum by volunteering at events such as Project Pumpkin, D.E.S.K. and Hit the Bricks. Claudia also made an impact on the local community, volunteering with Habitat for Humanity and Ronald McDonald House. SHANNON EBY Shannon, a senior on the field hockey team, was one of Wake Forest Athletics’ most dedicated volunteers last year, taking advantage of every service opportunity she could find. She participated in all of Wake Forest’s major service events including Project Pumpkin, Hit the Bricks, and Santa’s Helper. Shannon was a fixture at Eat with the Deacs events, hosting kids from local elementary schools at Wake Forest sporting events. Additionally, Shannon took the time to volunteer at local shelters preparing and serving lunch to the homeless. She also spent time coaching field hockey youth clinics and played a key role in raising money for melanoma research in memory of former field hockey player Maria Whitehead who passed away from the disease.

MEGHAN MURPHY Meghan, a senior on the field hockey team and two-time recipient of the ACC Top Six for Service award, logged countless hours of community service throughout her four years at Wake Forest. She involved herself in outreach events both on and off-campus, displaying a passion for helping kids. Meghan spent time volunteering with Reindeer Romp, an organization helping those with Down syndrome and served regularly in childcare at her Winston-Salem-based church. She also served as a field hockey coach for youth clinics through the Weed Whackers program. Meghan regularly attended Eat with the Deacs events and also volunteered her time at H.O.P.E., Hit the Bricks and Project Pumpkin. MITCHELL DYER Mitch, a sophomore on the men’s cross country and track & field teams, logged more service hours than any other male student-athlete at Wake Forest over the course of the 2016-17 year. Mitch invested his time wisely in his team’s charity of choice, H.O.P.E. (Help Our People Eat) and played an integral role in helping his team win the 2017 ACC Game Changers Award, devoting more than 20 hours to serving hungry children in the community. Additionally, Mitch took part in Eat with the Deacs, Project Pumpkin and Hit the Bricks. KYLE JOHNSON Throughout his Wake Forest career, Kyle, a senior on the men’s track & field team, did a great job of balancing athletics with a rigorous academic work load, life-skills and career development and community service. He not only demonstrated a clear commitment to the University’s Pro Humanitate mission, but he also emerged as a strong leader, serving on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Kyle devoted much of his time to H.O.P.E., his team’s charity of choice, and was recently highlighted for the ACC Game Changers Award. He also assisted with two voter registration drives and helped clean up local cemeteries on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Kyle also took every available opportunity to speak to younger children about the importance of staying active and getting a good education.

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CAREER DEVELOPMENT

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS

LIFE AFTER THE GAME S

tudent-Athlete Development works hand-in-hand with the Office of Personal and Career Development (OPCD), which is committed to contributing to every student’s preparation for life after college in competitive professional environments. We want our Demon Deacon student-athletes to be successful academically, athletically, personally and professionally.

Student-athletes are encouraged to start developing their career path as early as freshman year and build upon it throughout their time at Wake Forest. Throughout the 2016-17 academic year, Student-Athlete Development, in conjunction with the OPCD and Allegacy Federal Credit Union, offered a variety of opportunities for student-athletes to enhance their skills, explore career options and connect with potential employers.

OPCD PARTNERSHIP

recommendations for each class (Fr., So., Jr., Sr.) and were not intended to overwhelm the studentathletes or coaches. The freshman plan offered advice on getting started; the sophomore plan focused on the “exploratory” phase; the junior plan emphasized getting hands-on experience, and the senior plan focused on applying for jobs and building their networks.

S tudent-Athlete Development continued its strong partnership with the Office of Personal and Career Development. Career coach and athletic department liaison Patrick Sullivan designated three hours weekly to meet with student-athletes career appointments about their CAREER TREKS resumes, jobs, Career treks are a great way for students to internships, etc. job applications explore industries, careers and companies Additionally, the in a small, intimate setting. Treks are not OPCD supported only beneficial to students who are exposed our annual Career job interviews to multiple industry and career experiences in Development & a short period of time, but also to employers who Networking Night event, Lunch ‘N Learns, hosted are able to identify potential candidates from the trek individual team workshops and offered a menu participants. Given the athletic department’s ongoing of services with which to assist our staff. Weekly pursuit to develop the “whole student-athlete,” it meetings between Student-Athlete Development seemed a perfect idea to integrate the career trek and the OPCD were conducted with the intent to model with one of our team’s scheduled away create new initiatives that will inspire personal and competitions. The women’s tennis team’s trip to Yale professional growth for our student-athletes in their and Princeton proved to be optimal for the inaugural “life after the game.” trek given its proximity to New York City. While the career trek model is nothing new and is frequently 4-YEAR CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLAN

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Student-Athlete Development partnered with the Women’s tennis visits Fox Sports during their career trek in NYC Office of Personal and Career Development to create a 4-year career development plan that is used to aid student-athletes in taking proper steps towards their personal and professional development. At the 2017 graduates were the start of the 2016-17 academic year, coaches were asked to undergo a to encourage each of their teams to accomplish tasks on the outlined plans. The plans included

1st class

4-year career plan.

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used by the OPCD, the model needed to be adapted to meet the unique needs of student-athletes and to accommodate their busy competition schedules. This trek proved to be a huge success in that it gave the young women on the tennis team invaluable networking opportunities and access to highly sought-after organizations while also showcasing the outstanding qualities that Wake Forest studentathletes possess to the employers and professionals with whom they met. In conceptualizing the athletic department’s firstever career trek, Assistant AD for Student-Athlete Development Ashley Wechter collaborated with the nationally recognized OPCD and the Deacon Club to develop the format of the trek. “We began by collecting all of the majors, minors, and future career goals from our women’s tennis players,” explained Wechter. “From there, we started soliciting alumni who were willing to take a few hours to network with our driven and highly motivated studentathletes. Finally, we met with the women’s tennis team to prepare them for their trip. This included a small group session on updating their resumes, discussing appropriate clothing and proposing ‘homework’ to do


CAREER DEVELOPMENT

DEVELOPING CHAMPIONS on the front end.” The women’s tennis team’s career trek had several goals including exposing the student-athletes to the many different and special places a Wake Forest degree can lead, educating them on the importance of both pursuing internship opportunities and reaching out to request informational interviews and pushing them to learn how to “work the room” by engaging in conversations with professionals that they had just met. “The incredibly valuable and memorable part of our trip to the Northeast was our career trek in New York City,” said head women’s tennis coach Jeff Wyshner. “We had the opportunity to meet with nine incredible Wake Forest alumni as we visited both Rent the Runway and Fox Broadcasting. Particular thanks go to AJ Nicholas (’06, volleyball) and Dan Callahan (’07, football) for hosting us at those two locations respectively.” Not only did the career trek achieve its intended goals, its impact far exceeded Wyshner’s expectations. “The Wake Forest alumni with whom we met were so welcoming and encouraging of the next generation of Wake Forest grads. Plus, from one alumnus to the next, their stories of the efforts they made as students and then in the early parts of their careers were just incredibly inspiring to the players! The student-athletes’ futures really do depend on their own passion, commitment and abilities, and the career trek showed them that they can achieve amazing things and lead amazing lives after Wake Forest, but they need to be committed to getting themselves there!”

CAREER NIGHT On February 1, 2017, Student-Athlete Development hosted the fourth annual Student-Athlete Career Development and Networking Night, sponsored by Allegacy Federal Credit Union, at the Coliseum. The night began with dinner and etiquette tips for the student-athletes, followed by a keynote address by Freddie Scott II from “Unlock the Champion.” A former national champion, NFL player and current NFL transition coach, Scott spoke to the crowd about the unique platform they have as student-athletes and how to best prepare for the next chapter of their lives. Following Scott’s speech, the student-athletes were given a 30-second elevator pitch by 28 different employers and five graduate schools. They were then dismissed to the concourse to network with employers, get their LinkedIn pictures taken and attend “mini career sessions” that were provided by Baseball teammates Chris Farish, Parker Dunshee and Career Night at the Coliseum Jonathan Pryor attend Career Night the Office of Personal and Career Development and Allegacy Federal Credit Union. Mini sessions included: “Carry Yourself Confidently,” “What Recruiters Are Looking For,” “Finance 101,” “Resume Reviews” and more. Over the course of the evening, a total of 267 resumes were collected from our student-athletes! Thanks to our title sponsor Allegacy Federal Credit Union and to the Office of Personal and Career Development for their partnership in hosting the event.

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INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS


FACILITIES

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS

INVESTING IN OUR FACILITIES T

hanks to the generosity of so many loyal donors, Wake Forest Athletics has experienced the largest capital buildout in Athletic Department history. With $112 million in capital projects completed or under construction in just the last two years, Wake Forest Athletics is experiencing an unprecedented facility transformation. These new facilities—benefiting each one of our 18 varsity sports—are critical to recruiting and developing top talent in the pursuit of championships. However, there is still a lot of progress to be made in the coming years in order to complete the remaining projects and solidify a bright future for Wake Forest Athletics.

PROJECTS COMPLETED IN 2016-17

DAVID F. COUCH BALLPARK - PHASE 1

COST: $9.7 MILLION | COMPLETED: FEBRUARY 2017 | FEATURES:

• • • • •

New clubhouse with locker rooms, team lounge and nutrition area New home dugout Bullpen State-of-the-art pitching lab Expanded training room with hydrotherapy and rehab area

DOC MARTIN PRACTICE FIELDS

COST: $3.5 MILLION | COMPLETED: AUGUST 2016 | FEATURES:

• • • • •

Full-length synthetic field Grass half field Three filming platforms Improved lighting New sound system

OLYMPIC SPORT LOCKER ROOMS

COST: $2.8 MILLION | COMPLETED: APRIL 2017 | FEATURES:

• • •

Locker room for men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s track and field/cross country and field hockey Team spaces include players’ lounges, lockers and showers New lobby/reception area at Manchester Athletic Center entrance

KENTNER STADIUM UPGRADES

COST: $2.3 MILLION | COMPLETED: AUGUST 2016 | FEATURES:

• • • •

New turf field Resurfaced track Renovated and enclosed press box New sound system

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FACILITIES

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS PROJECTS COMPLETED IN 2016-17

SOUTHERN FAMILY SEATING AT LEIGHTON COURTS COST: $1.7 MILLION | COMPLETED: AUGUST 2016 | FEATURES:

• •

DAVID “SARGE” TINGA EQUIPMENT ROOM COST: $1.3 MILLION | COMPLETED: JULY 2016 | FEATURES:

Permanent seating for 870+ Bricked spectator plaza .

• • •

Larger, more functional equipment space Movable shelving units Room for equipment for 12 sports plus overflow space for four additional sports

FUTURE FACILITY PRIORITIES Wake Forest student-athletes are challenged every day to perform at the highest level and compete for championships in a conference that gets more competitive with each passing year. In order to best equip our student-athletes for success, we must give them the tools, techniques and resources to achieve peak performance, and that includes facilities that provide the best environment for their athletic development. As a result, transformational new facilities— including Sutton Sports Performance Center, McCreary Field House and Shah Basketball Complex—became a reality through the generosity of so many. Now we have the opportunity to impact our programs even further with additional new facilities and renovations, including: PRUITT FOOTBALL CENTER RENOVATION - $5 MILLION • More than 14,000 square feet • Expanded locker room with new graphics, lockers and finishes to provide more adequate space • New player lounge including a nutrition area, movie theater, gaming area and relaxation zone • Full renovation of the Bill Faircloth Foyer including an upgraded trophy and memorabilia area to properly showcase the history of Wake Forest football • Upgraded and expanded football training room • Expanded footprint of the football equipment room, increasing both storage and efficiency DAVID F. COUCH BALLPARK PHASE 2 - $6.5 MILLION • Construction of a 100’ x 100’ indoor practice facility with a customized netting system that can be utilized to create areas for both batting practice and infield practice • Completion of the second floor of the Player Development Center which will include coaches’ offices, video room, team auditorium, and a heritage area

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MILLER CENTER BASKETBALL LOCKER ROOM RENOVATION - $1 MILLION • • • •

Creation of a “swag wall” at the main entrance, which will display all current gear Complete remodel of the equipment room, including the installation of “space savers” Full remodel of the women’s locker room to include new lockers, furniture, TVs and more Full remodel of the men’s locker room to increase the lounge space by one-third and include new furniture, TVs, an enhanced kitchen area and more

COLISEUM TRANSFORMATION - COST TBD •

Entrance transformation

New club areas and premium seating

Renovated locker rooms and team spaces


FACILITIES

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS PROJECTS UNDER CONSTRUCTION IN 2016-17

SUTTON SPORTS PERFORMANCE CENTER

COST: $36.5 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: JANUARY 2019 | FEATURES: • State-of-the-art strength and conditioning areas • Football offices • Basketball offices • Dedicated nutrition space

SPORTS MEDICINE/HYDROTHERAPY

COST: $5.4 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: DEC. 2017 FEATURES: • Increased square footage • Five hydrotherapy pools (increase of 2 pools) • Expanded exam room space • Three-times the physical therapy space

COLISEUM PHASE 1

SHAH BASKETBALL COMPLEX

COST: $9.0 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: JANUARY 2019 | FEATURES: • Regulation-length basketball court • State-of-the-art strength and conditioning area • Film room and player lounge

COST: $4 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: OCT. 2017 FEATURES: • Center-hung video board • LED ribbon boards • Corner stat boards • Scorer’s table board • New outdoor marquees

VOLLEYBALL RENOVATIONS

COST: $1.5 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: APRIL 2018 FEATURES: • Renovated competition gym • Locker room • Team lounge and video room • Satellite training room and hydrotherapy area

SOCCER PRACTICE COMPLEX

COST: $3 MILLION | EST. COMPLETION: AUG. 2017 FEATURES: • Two new natural grass fields with upgraded drainage and irrigation system • Upgraded practice field lighting and sound system • New fence along Polo Road • Four new kicking walls

SOCCER VIDEO BOARD

COST: $800K | EST. COMPLETION: AUG. 2017 FEATURES: • State-of-the-art viewing experience featuring stats, instant replay and more

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DEACON CLUB HIGHLIGHTS

$46.4M

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS

INVESTING IN THE DEACS

in new commitments, an

A

nother record-breaking year of fundraising—with an astounding total of $46,443,120 in new commitments, an 84% increase over last year—has fueled the largest capital buildout in Athletic Department history. This buildout has been a catalyst for success at Wake Forest Athletics by transforming our ability to recruit, train and develop elite student-athletes in the pursuit of championships.

84% increase over last year.

This monumental year was led by some of Wake Forest Athletics’ most visionary donors—including Bob McCreary, Ben Sutton and Mit Shah—and resulted in ground being broken on the final phase of the Sports Performance Complex. The $70,000,000 complex, comprised of the Sutton Sports Performance Center, McCreary Field House, Shah Basketball Complex and Doc Martin Practice Fields, is the largest capital project in the history of Wake Forest Athletics. Total cash received for all categories totaled $32,022,006, a 66% increase over last year. In addition, the Wake Will Lead campaign continued to see unprecedented results, bringing the total raised to $213,403,627 on an original goal of $95,000,000.

CAPITAL FUNDRAISING

I n total, over $17,165,232 in gifts and more than $27,295,803 in new pledges were received in support of capital projects during the 2016-17 fiscal year. This was led by the efforts Rendering of Sutton Sports Performance Center and Shah Basketball Complex of several significant gifts including 31 new commitments of $100,000 and above, seven new commitments of $1,000,000 and above and one new commitment of $15,000,000.

SPECIAL PROGRAMS ATHLETIC NUTRITION FUND The new Wake Forest Performance Nutrition staff—made possible by $700,000 raised by members of the Parents’ Athletic Council—provides our student-athletes with a progressive nutrition program using the latest evidence-based protocols, tools and information. In collaboration with the Sports Medicine and Strength and Conditioning departments, the Performance Nutrition team works closely with our coaches and student-athletes to promote nutrition as an essential component of performance, as well as overall wellbeing. SPORTS PSYCHOLOGIST FUND $300,000 was raised for the new Sports Psychologist Fund, which will assist our student-athletes in achieving their goals and enhancing their performance.

In total, $140,794,354 raised over the course of the Wake Will Lead campaign has contributed to what some might describe as a “building boom” on campus. Significant capital milestones this year included the completion of several projects including the first phase of David F. Couch Ballpark, the Doc Martin Practice Fields, renovations to the Olympic sport locker rooms, upgrades to Kentner Stadium, the Southern Family Seating at Leighton Tennis Courts and renovations to the David “Sarge” Tinga Equipment Room. In addition, ground was broken on renovations to sports medicine/ NEWLY ESTABLISHED ENDOWED FUNDS hydrotherapy, the Coliseum video board, the Soccer Hughlene and Amy Burton Athletic Scholarship Practice Complex and the Varsity Gym for volleyball, Established by Dr. Hughlene A. Burton (’81) of Charlotte, NC as well as the new Sutton Sports Performance Peter and Martha Jennings Golf Scholarship Center and Shah Basketball Complex. Established by Peter (JD ’85, P ’10, P ’13, P ’14) and Martha (P

ENDOWMENT

The endowment focus of the Wake Will Lead campaign is an investment in the future of Wake Forest Athletics. A minimum pledge of $100,000 is required to establish an endowed fund, and once the value of the fund reaches $100,000, the scholarship is awarded to a Wake Forest studentathlete. In total, four new endowed funds were established during the 2016-17 fiscal year. With nine previously committed endowments reaching the required threshold, a total of nine new scholarships will be awarded in the fall of 2017. To date, $12,012,268 has been raised for endowment during the Wake Will Lead campaign.

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Hibbits and Currie Endowed Scholarship Established by the late John and Virginia Hibbits (GP ’96, GP ’97) of Orangeburg, SC

’10, P ’13, P ’14) Jennings of Winston-Salem, NC

The Deborah and Gary Lambert Family Athletic Scholarship Established by Gary (’77, P ’13) and Deborah (’78, P ’13) Lambert of Pinehurst, NC

Christine L. Myatt Scholarship Fund for Women’s Golf Established by Christine Myatt (’79, JD ’82) of Greensboro, NC

Zeno Martin Tennis Scholarship Established by the late Zeno Martin (’60) of Advance, NC

Mary Simmons Women’s Golf Scholarship Established by Mrs. Mary Simmons (’58) of Wilmington, NC PREVIOUSLY ESTABLISHED ENDOWED FUNDS TO BE AWARDED IN 2017-18 Samantha Asch Family Women’s Tennis Scholarship Established by Will Asch and Gina Del Giudice-Asch (P ’18) of Princeton, NJ Daniel H. Booth Athletic Scholarship Established by Daniel Booth (’72) of Chapel Hill, NC Fraser Family Athletic Scholarship Established by Chris and Karen Fraser (P ’15) of Fort Worth, TX

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Clifford Irving Neal Track and Field Throws Scholarship Established by Michael Eskind (’03) of Mountain View, CA and Larry Van Sant, Jr (’02) of Washington, D.C. Cory Parr Men’s Tennis Scholarship Established by Cory Parr (’09) of Winston-Salem, NC Dr. and Mrs. R. Byron Moore Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Scholarship Established by Byron (’61, P ’83, P ’92) and Judy (P ’83, P ’92) Moore of Kure Beach, NC


DEACON CLUB HIGHLIGHTS

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS ANNUAL FUND The 2016-17 year established a new precedent for the Deacon Club Annual Fund, shattering previous records for most donors, most new members and total dollars raised. Thanks to the generous support of many Deacon Club members, a record $7,342,981 was raised for the Annual Fund, an increase of more than $1,000,000 over last year. Giving rates among former student-athletes increased from 12% to 17%, as over 200 new donors came from former student-athletes. Over 1,500 donors increased their giving above what they had contributed in the previous year. The additional dollars generated through the Annual Fund have allowed Wake Forest Athletics to invest in new programming around nutrition, recruiting and student-athlete services.

FORMER STUDENT-ATHLETES PAY IT FORWARD In April 2017 the Deacon Club launched its first-ever Former Student-Athlete Giving Challenge. This initiative stemmed from the idea of wanting to further engage student-athlete alumni, all while creating a fun competition for them, as well as the coaches, to partake in. Through this challenge, each sport competed in three separate categories, each of which was worth $10,000 towards the winning team’s 2017-18 budget. The categories consisted of highest participation rate, highest increase in participation rate and highest increase in dollars raised. As soon as the Former Student-Athlete Challenge kicked off, the competitive nature of the athletic alumni and coaches came out in full force, which made the challenge even more exciting. After much movement and numerous lead changes among the sports, women’s soccer swept all three challenges. By winning each of the three categories, $30,000 was added to the 2017-18 women’s soccer budget, which will have a huge impact on the program. Head women’s soccer coach, Tony da Luz, shared, “We look forward to using these funds to upgrade our travel on a critical road trip to Michigan this fall, as well as upgrade our video capability and equipment.”

$1.4 MM 17%

increase in contributions from former student-athletes

33%

increase in # of former student-athlete donors

total donated by former student-athletes

Knowing how big of a role the women’s soccer alumni played in the victory, Coach da Luz also expressed his gratitude, stating, “It warms my heart to know that our alums care enough about the program to give back. They are a perfect example of our ‘Deacs4Life’ motto. All I can say is thank you to each and every one of them, and we can’t wait for next year’s competition.” Through this campaign, 924 former student-athletes made a gift, which is a 33% increase over last year.

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DEACON CLUB HIGHLIGHTS

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS MEMBER ENGAGEMENT In addition to fundraising, another primary objective of the Deacon Club is to further engage members with Wake Forest Athletics. The 2016-17 year brought with it a variety of opportunities for Deacon Club members to become more involved with our program and get to know our student-athletes, coaches and staff. The Deacon Club held just over 63 events in an effort to engage both donors and prospective donors, many of which were referred by current members through our referral program. These events consisted of both large and small groups, which enabled the Deacon Club staff to bring the vision of the Wake Forest Athletic Department to different areas of the country.

STUDENT-ATHLETES EXPRESS GRATITUDE AT ANNUAL THANK-A-THON

T he Deacon Club hosted its annual Thank-A-Thon in November 2016, where student-athletes had the opportunity to show their appreciation to more than 4,500 donors. The Thank-A-Thon took place on three separate nights throughout the month. During this time, over 130 student-athletes from 14 different teams gathered to thank Deacon Club supporters for all that they do for Wake Forest Athletics. Throughout the three nights, more than 3,800 calls were made and nearly 700 cards were hand-signed by the student-athletes in attendance. Rhona Sherrill, Deacon Club donor and Board of Directors member, shared, “The annual Thank-A-Thon is one of my favorite events put on by the Deacon Club. As donors, we are investing in Wake Forest student-athletes and teams, and having the opportunity to have a conversation with someone who your donation is directly impacting is truly special. Getting to hear how thankful these studentathletes are and how much the opportunity to study and compete at Wake Forest means to them is a great reminder of why I continue to give.”

DEACON CLUB HOSTS FIFTH ANNUAL STEWARDSHIP BRUNCH TO HONOR SCHOLARSHIP DONORS Over 300 donors, coaches and student-athletes gathered together on January 28, 2017 for the Deacon Club’s fifth annual Stewardship Brunch which celebrates athletic scholarship donors and all of the support they provide to Wake Forest student-athletes. The event pays tribute to the many donors who help fund scholarships for over 350 Wake Forest student-athletes, including members of the John Hicks Society (those who have established an endowed scholarship) as well as Locker Room Club members and Moricle Society members whose annual contributions are equivalent to a half scholarship or a full scholarship, respectively. For the first time at this event, the annual Deacon Club Member of the Year Award

was presented. The 2016 recipient was longtime Deacon Club member and 1983 graduate of Wake Forest, J.J. Smith. J.J. and his wife, Kaye (’84), have been instrumental to the success of the Wake Will campaign. In J.J. Smith receives the 2016 Deacon Club Member of the Year Award addition to serving as the CEO and President of Valley Proteins Inc., J.J. is also a member of the Football Executive Committee and Business School Board of Visitors. Highlighting the event each year are the inspirational speakers which allow attendees to hear a variety of perspectives on the impact of their generosity. The first speaker was former Wake Forest student-athlete, James Riley (’05). During his time as a Deac, Riley majored in communication and was a member of the men’s soccer team, where he served as a defender and midfielder. After graduating from Wake Forest, Riley went on to play 11 seasons in the MLS with multiple teams. During this time, he was a part of nine championship games where his team came out victorious on six of those occasions, leading to one MLS Cup and five US Open Cups. Riley announced his retirement as an active player in June of 2016 and now serves as the Director of Player Relations for MLS. Recounting his love for Wake Forest, Riley stated, “It’s a very distinct honor to be here. Wake Forest is a very, very special place for me.” He went on to introduce a video that included the narration of a letter that depicted his time at Wake Forest, which he wrote to the soccer team during his senior year. Watching the video and hearing the words he wrote brought out raw emotion in Riley as he reminisced about the fond memories of his time at Wake Forest. Riley went on to discuss how this university affected him and how thankful he is for the opportunity he was given. “When I came to Wake Forest I was informed, inspired and deeply impacted by this institution,” he said. “My time here would not have come to fruition without the fantastic contributions from our Deacon Club members. I would like to applaud you all for your efforts, your dedication, your transformational hearts, your life giving nature and making sure all of these student-athletes have the opportunity to attend one of the best universities this country has ever seen.”

Dr. Caryl Guth with Ariel Stephenson (women’s basketball) and Jennifer Kupcho (women’s golf)

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After completing his own remarks, Riley went on to moderate a panel discussion about the student-athlete experience at Wake Forest. Panelists included women’s golfer, Sierra Sims (’17); former football and basketball player, Bill Robinson (’87, P ’17); football player, Wendell Dunn


DEACON CLUB HIGHLIGHTS

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS Robinson continued, “I felt I never made my mark at Wake Forest on the football field or basketball court, and the Deacon To the Deacon Club members, I Club gave me the opportunity to make want to say thank you on behalf my mark on athletics in a very different way. My ability to help others achieve of all student-athletes. We are so their dreams and get a great degree gives thankful for our opportunities, me a lot of pride.” and we thank you so much for Wendell Dunn, redshirt junior member of the football team and recipient of the Dr. your commitment to us. R.H. Patterson Athletic Endowment Fund -Sierra Sims (’17) expressed his genuine appreciation for all Deacon Club members. “It’s an honor to be here with all of you “It’s been so great to watch him change and grow, and I just want to say thank you for supporting our both athletically and academically. Most importantly, Former men’s soccer player James Riley (‘05) grind,” said Dunn. “We wouldn’t be able to do what however, it’s been such a pleasure to watch him we do without you. If I could, I would shake every become such an outstanding young man.” (’17); and scholarship donor and Deacon Club Board one of your hands.” of Directors member, Rhona Sherrill. The final speaker was Wake Forest alumnus and He continued stating, “We go out there and compete trustee Mit Shah (’91) who donated an additional Senior and 2017 captain of the women’s golf team, because of you. Some people look at it as money, but $5 million towards the Shah Basketball Complex Sierra Sims, who was the recipient of the Joseph M. it’s way deeper than that. As Deacon Club members, earlier this year. During his time at Wake Forest, Shah Bryan, Sr. Scholarship and the Rex H. Carter Women’s you are supporting so much.” majored in economics, competed as a walk-on for Golf Scholarship Fund, conveyed her gratitude to all the men’s tennis team and also worked part-time at of the donors in attendance. Rhona Sherrill, along with her husband Mike (’77), Graylyn, where he was able learn various aspects of “Having an athletic scholarship has meant the world started the Sherrill Family Athletic Scholarship in the hotel industry. 2010. Sherrill delivered a strong message directed at to me and I’ve had such a great experience here,” After graduating from Wake Forest, Shah founded she said. “To the Deacon Club members, I want to say those considering creating their own endowment. “I would tell you to do it now while you can enjoy Noble Investment Group, where he continues to thank you on behalf of all student-athletes. We are it and build the relationships with these young serve as the CEO. In addition, he is the Chairman of so thankful for our opportunities and we thank you people,” she said. “It is truly a gift that keeps on the Board of La Quinta Holdings Inc. and is also a so much for your commitment to us.” giving.” part-owner of the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks. Bill Robinson reflected on his motivation for giving Sherrill concluded the panel discussion by sharing Shah thanked his fellow donors, as well as the back to the Deacon Club stating, “Although I never an inside look into her relationship with her current student-athletes, coaches and educators, and shared made it to be a scholarship athlete, I still benefitted scholarship athlete, Phil Haynes (’18). “I’m thankful his love for Wake Forest and why he chooses to give from the support of Deacon Club members and I to be a part of his Wake Forest journey,” said Sherrill. back. really appreciated that.” “What happens here at Wake Forest is truly unique Rhona Sherrill, Wendell Dunn, Sierra Sims and Bill Robinson participate in a panel discussion and special. You arrive on this campus, you go through this journey and it changes your life,” he said. “My passion for Wake Forest remains very deep and has led me to get involved and engaged. I’m happy to help in any small way to impact others’ lives the way mine was.” In his closing remarks, Ron Wellman also expressed thanks to all of the donors. “This is an incredible group of people. You are giving these studentathletes the opportunity to chase their dreams, earn a degree from the very best institution in America, and they are going to be strong contributors to our society. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts for everything you do for our program.”

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PERFORMANCE NUTRITION

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS

PERFORMANCE NUTRITION: FUELING THE DEACS The link between healthy eating and performance is no component in performance, as well as overall wellbeing.” secret. Proper nutrition is critical, not only for optimal athletic performance in Since January, Ruley competition, but also has not only been for enhancing recovery ur approach will be a food-first (whole foods) model evaluating each team’s efforts. Since 2014 current nutrition when the NCAA lifted focused on eliciting the most out of our available programs – looking restrictions on how for ways to enhance much and how often resources to guide and support student-athletes. The their efforts while also Division I schools can streamlining and finding feed student-athletes, Performance Nutrition team works closely with athletes cost efficiencies – but collegiate athletic she also spends much of programs across the and coaches to promote nutrition as an essential her time counseling and country have begun educating individuals to reevaluate their component in performance, as well as overall wellbeing. and teams on nutrition approach to nutrition strategies, reviewing and make significant and recommending investments in the fueling of student-athletes. Wake nutritional supplements, working with vendors to create Forest Athletics recognized the need to do the same, and menus for team meals, assisting coaches with meal thanks to the establishment of the Nutrition Fund and planning when teams are on the road, creating and fundraising efforts led by the Deacon Club’s Parents’ overseeing fueling stations in several athletic facilities, Athletic Council, the department made great strides and developing plans for the future nutrition center, this year in its efforts to ensure that student-athletes are which will be located in the Sutton Sports Performance fueling themselves in a manner that prepares them to Center. Ruley is also working hard to develop a small perform at their best.

O

The driving force behind the nutritional efforts is Kate Ruley, Director of Sports Nutrition, who joined the athletic department staff full-time in January. Ruley was no stranger to working with Wake Forest student-athletes, having worked closely with many of them over the past 14 years in her role as a sports dietician for the University, yet her impact was felt immediately. Working in collaboration with the Sports Medicine and Sports Performance staff, Ruley’s vision for Performance Nutrition at Wake Forest is starting to take shape. “We are striving to be a progressive, strategic program utilizing the latest evidence-based protocols, tools and information to develop world-class athletes,” said Ruley. “Our approach will be a food-first (whole foods) model focused on eliciting the most out of our available resources to guide and support student-athletes. The Performance Nutrition team works closely with athletes and coaches to promote nutrition as an essential

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M en’s basketball players get a cooking lesson from Deacon Dining’s Chef Jordan team of interns and volunteers who assist her with dayto-day tasks such as preparing sandwiches and snacks on game day and restocking the fueling stations. “It’s exciting to see the emphasis being placed on Performance Nutrition within the athletic department,” Ruley explained. “There is a lot to accomplish, but we are


PERFORMANCE NUTRITION

INVESTING IN CHAMPIONS

Nutrition area in the new baseball Player Development Center

making great progress, and this is definitely an area in which there is so much opportunity to provide countless benefits to our athletes and teams.”

“We are thrilled to have Kate on our staff fulltime,” said Director of Athletics Ron Wellman. “Proper nourishment of our student-athletes is a high priority and is crucial to the successful pursuit of our vision of ‘Developing Champions,’ and we are already beginning to see the fruits of Kate’s efforts. Her expertise and ability to equip our teams with healthy nutritional strategies are undoubtedly having a positive impact on our program both competitively, and from a recruiting standpoint as well. “ The Wake Forest baseball team has been one of the beneficiaries of the department’s focus on Performance Nutrition this season. When the new Baseball Player Development Center at David F. Couch Ballpark opened in February, the nutrition area was an immediate hit. With Ruley’s guidance and expertise, the kitchen was stocked with a variety of foods ranging from healthy grab-and-go items that athletes could turn to for a pre- or post-workout energy boost, to ingredients for smoothies, to a chocolate milk machine that could aid in recovery. Ruley and her team of interns and volunteers could also often be found in the nutrition area on game day making peanut butter & banana sandwiches and turkey roll-ups and preparing snacks for the dugout to help keep the team fueled and performing at their best during games that often last more than three hours. “With the addition of the nutrition area, our team’s ability to be properly equipped to make the necessary gains in strength and conditioning has improved dramatically, and it has also helped us on game days,” explained senior captain Parker Dunshee. “The schedule of a college athlete sometimes means guys are coming straight from class to the field or straight to tutoring after practice, so the nutrition area allows us to be properly fueled before and after practice and eliminates missing meals. Thanks

to the availability of quality and sufficient nutrition, we are able to maximize our efforts in practice and workouts and keep our energy up during games.” Head baseball coach Tom Walter recognizes the significant impact the nutrition area and Ruley’s efforts have on his team. “The ACC is the number one baseball conference in the nation, and the difference in talent from one program to the next can be negligible. The teams that win are the teams that find a competitive advantage off the field. Kate Ruley and the Performance Nutrition program provide a significant competitive advantage that sets us apart from the rest,” Walter explained. In time, that competitive advantage will be evident throughout every Wake Forest athletic program. When construction of the Sutton Sports Performance Center is complete, it will feature a nutrition area that will serve as the central hub for fueling and educating student-athletes. It will ensure that all Wake Forest student-athletes have convenient access to nutritious snacks and the resources necessary to develop sound nutritional strategies and make healthy choices. “Performance Nutrition at Wake Forest will be an integral component of the Sports Performance Team, which was established in January within WFU Athletics,” explained Ruley. “Working collaboratively with Sports Medicine, Strength and Conditioning, coaching staffs, and administration, the Sports Performance Team will ensure our athletes have the foundational nutrition elements to prepare for and recover from training and competition. We will bring the best of science and nutrition practice together to optimize the performance of our athletic teams, as well as care for overall studentathlete wellbeing.” “I want to express my gratitude to the members of the Parents’ Athletic Council who acknowledged the need for investment in this area and were instrumental in bringing our vision for Performance Nutrition to life,” said Ruley. “Their commitment to ‘Developing Champions’ and the generosity of those who continue to support the Nutrition Fund is overwhelming, and I, along with the entire Sports Performance Team, am committed to making sure that that their support continues to have a tremendous positive impact on the success of our student-athletes and athletic programs.”

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