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Bowling Green State University Athletics
Photo by: BGSU Strategic Communications
Chiricosta a Greater Cleveland Sports Awards Finalist
January 15, 2015 | Women's Tennis
Falcon tennis legend one of three nominees for Collegiate Athlete of the Year
Bowling Green State University tennis great Nikki Chiricosta has been named a finalist for a prestigious award. Chiricosta is one of three nominees in the 'Collegiate Athlete of the Year' category for the 15th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.
The finalists for each of the awards categories were announced Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 14) by the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony in Cleveland on Thursday, Jan. 22.
Chiricosta, a native of Avon Lake, Ohio (Avon Lake H.S.), ended her career as the winningest player in BGSU history. Her school-record total of 190 career victories as a Falcon included 96 singles victories, also a program record. She finished her BG career with 94 doubles wins, good for second on that school list.
In her senior season of 2013-14, Chiricosta was named the MAC Player of the Year -- becoming the first-ever Falcon to win that award -- and was named to the all-conference first team as well. Additionally, she was the female recipient of the Falcon Medal of Honor, the highest award given by the BGSU Department of Athletics. BGSU's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) President in 2013-14, she earned Academic All-MAC honors in each of her three seasons of eligibility, and was named an ITA Scholar Athlete in all four seasons. Additionally, Chiricosta was one of just two BGSU student-athletes to receive the MAC Medal of Excellence award.
She capped her career by being named an Academic All-American, as she was selected to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-America® Women's At-Large Second Team. She became just the second student-athlete in BGSU women's tennis history to be named an Academic All-American (the first was her sister, Christine).
On the court, Nikki Chiricosta had a 41-23 record as a senior, leading the Falcons in singles (19), doubles (22) and total wins. In league play, she posted a 6-2 singles mark at the top flight, and went 5-2 in doubles action.
Chiricosta, as mentioned, is one of three finalists for Collegiate Athlete of the Year. Categories for the 15th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards include: Professional, Collegiate, Amateur, and High School Athlete of the Year; Courage Award presented by Cleveland Clinic Sports Health; Lifetime Achievement Award and 2014 Best Moment in Cleveland Sports presented by Horseshoe Casino Cleveland. The event will be hosted by Ohio State legend and Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George on Thursday, Jan. 22, at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel and is the primary annual fundraiser for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission.
An extremely limited amount of tables and tickets for the event, a consistent sell-out, are on sale now at www.clevelandsportsawards.com. The Sports Awards will also feature the annual drawing of the Golden Ticket. The Golden Ticket contest awards one lucky fan with a pair of season tickets to every Indians, Browns and Cavs home game next season. Entries for the Golden Ticket are $100 each with a maximum of 400 entries being sold.
15th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards Finalists
High School Athlete of the Year
Esa Ahmad, Basketball, Shaker Heights High School
Mitch Guadagni, Football, Hudson High School
Brooke Zoltai, Soccer/Softball, Valley Forge High School
Amateur Athlete of the Year
Tianna Bartoletta, USA Track and Field, Euclid
Dartanyon Crockett, USA Paralympic Judo, Cleveland
Kelli Stack, USA Hockey, Brooklyn Heights
Collegiate Athlete of the Year
Kevin Burke, Football, University of Mount Union, Westlake
Nikki Chiricosta, Tennis, Bowling Green State University, Avon Lake
Connor Cook, Football, Michigan State University, Hinckley
Professional Athlete of the Year
Joe Haden, Cleveland Browns
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
Corey Kluber, Cleveland Indians
Longtime Cleveland Indians radio broadcaster Tom Hamilton will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. The award honors someone in the sports industry who has remained dedicated and committed to the Cleveland community throughout the course of their career. Past honorees include Doug Dieken, Bernie Kosar, Joe Tait and Austin Carr.
The Courage Award presented by Cleveland Clinic Sports Health will be presented to Huron High School freshman Nick Lenyo. Lenyo was the starting safety and back-up quarterback for his freshman football team this fall just over a year after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma and having his left distal tibia amputated.
The 2014 Best Moment in Cleveland Sports presented by Horseshoe Casino Cleveland will be announced at the event via a special video presentation.
The Greater Cleveland Sports Awards is Cleveland's top entertainment event of the year. Featuring sports celebrities and personalities, an amazing auction, and Cleveland's top sports performers and moments from 2014, the Sports Awards has become a Northeast Ohio tradition. The event is the primary fundraiser for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. For more information, visit www.clevelandsportsawards.com.
ABOUT THE GREATER CLEVELAND SPORTS COMMISSION
The Greater Cleveland Sports Commission prides itself on being one of the most distinguished Sports Commissions in the country, effectively leveraging sports events and activities to further economic development in Northeast Ohio. The philosophy of the Sports Commission sets it apart from others by operating as an economic and community development organization utilizing sports as a vehicle to forward other community agendas. The organization takes the unique approach of becoming a management and financial partner in each event with the goal of producing events that are more successful in Cleveland than other cities in which they have been held. Since 2000, the Sports Commission has been responsible for attracting over 160 sporting events contributing to more than $410 million in economic activity. For more information, visit www.clevelandsports.org.
(portions of this release courtesy Greater Cleveland Sports Commission)
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The finalists for each of the awards categories were announced Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 14) by the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. The winners will be announced at the awards ceremony in Cleveland on Thursday, Jan. 22.
Chiricosta, a native of Avon Lake, Ohio (Avon Lake H.S.), ended her career as the winningest player in BGSU history. Her school-record total of 190 career victories as a Falcon included 96 singles victories, also a program record. She finished her BG career with 94 doubles wins, good for second on that school list.
In her senior season of 2013-14, Chiricosta was named the MAC Player of the Year -- becoming the first-ever Falcon to win that award -- and was named to the all-conference first team as well. Additionally, she was the female recipient of the Falcon Medal of Honor, the highest award given by the BGSU Department of Athletics. BGSU's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) President in 2013-14, she earned Academic All-MAC honors in each of her three seasons of eligibility, and was named an ITA Scholar Athlete in all four seasons. Additionally, Chiricosta was one of just two BGSU student-athletes to receive the MAC Medal of Excellence award.She capped her career by being named an Academic All-American, as she was selected to the 2014 Capital One Academic All-America® Women's At-Large Second Team. She became just the second student-athlete in BGSU women's tennis history to be named an Academic All-American (the first was her sister, Christine).
On the court, Nikki Chiricosta had a 41-23 record as a senior, leading the Falcons in singles (19), doubles (22) and total wins. In league play, she posted a 6-2 singles mark at the top flight, and went 5-2 in doubles action.
Chiricosta, as mentioned, is one of three finalists for Collegiate Athlete of the Year. Categories for the 15th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards include: Professional, Collegiate, Amateur, and High School Athlete of the Year; Courage Award presented by Cleveland Clinic Sports Health; Lifetime Achievement Award and 2014 Best Moment in Cleveland Sports presented by Horseshoe Casino Cleveland. The event will be hosted by Ohio State legend and Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George on Thursday, Jan. 22, at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel and is the primary annual fundraiser for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission.
An extremely limited amount of tables and tickets for the event, a consistent sell-out, are on sale now at www.clevelandsportsawards.com. The Sports Awards will also feature the annual drawing of the Golden Ticket. The Golden Ticket contest awards one lucky fan with a pair of season tickets to every Indians, Browns and Cavs home game next season. Entries for the Golden Ticket are $100 each with a maximum of 400 entries being sold.
15th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards Finalists
High School Athlete of the Year
Esa Ahmad, Basketball, Shaker Heights High School
Mitch Guadagni, Football, Hudson High School
Brooke Zoltai, Soccer/Softball, Valley Forge High School
Amateur Athlete of the Year
Tianna Bartoletta, USA Track and Field, Euclid
Dartanyon Crockett, USA Paralympic Judo, Cleveland
Kelli Stack, USA Hockey, Brooklyn Heights
Collegiate Athlete of the Year
Kevin Burke, Football, University of Mount Union, Westlake
Nikki Chiricosta, Tennis, Bowling Green State University, Avon Lake
Connor Cook, Football, Michigan State University, Hinckley
Professional Athlete of the Year
Joe Haden, Cleveland Browns
Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers
Corey Kluber, Cleveland Indians
Longtime Cleveland Indians radio broadcaster Tom Hamilton will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award. The award honors someone in the sports industry who has remained dedicated and committed to the Cleveland community throughout the course of their career. Past honorees include Doug Dieken, Bernie Kosar, Joe Tait and Austin Carr.
The Courage Award presented by Cleveland Clinic Sports Health will be presented to Huron High School freshman Nick Lenyo. Lenyo was the starting safety and back-up quarterback for his freshman football team this fall just over a year after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma and having his left distal tibia amputated.
The 2014 Best Moment in Cleveland Sports presented by Horseshoe Casino Cleveland will be announced at the event via a special video presentation.
The Greater Cleveland Sports Awards is Cleveland's top entertainment event of the year. Featuring sports celebrities and personalities, an amazing auction, and Cleveland's top sports performers and moments from 2014, the Sports Awards has become a Northeast Ohio tradition. The event is the primary fundraiser for the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission. For more information, visit www.clevelandsportsawards.com.
ABOUT THE GREATER CLEVELAND SPORTS COMMISSION
The Greater Cleveland Sports Commission prides itself on being one of the most distinguished Sports Commissions in the country, effectively leveraging sports events and activities to further economic development in Northeast Ohio. The philosophy of the Sports Commission sets it apart from others by operating as an economic and community development organization utilizing sports as a vehicle to forward other community agendas. The organization takes the unique approach of becoming a management and financial partner in each event with the goal of producing events that are more successful in Cleveland than other cities in which they have been held. Since 2000, the Sports Commission has been responsible for attracting over 160 sporting events contributing to more than $410 million in economic activity. For more information, visit www.clevelandsports.org.
(portions of this release courtesy Greater Cleveland Sports Commission)
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