Chris Sullivan, Madi McCoy Earn MAC Medal Of Excellence Award

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- BGSU's Chris Sullivan and Madi McCoy were among 24 Mid-American Conference (MAC) student-athletes selected as Medal of Excellence Award winners for the 2020-21 academic year. The Medal of Excellence is presented annually to one male and one female student-athlete from the graduating class of each of the 12 Conference member institutions.

"The individuals selected for the Medal of Excellence have distinguished themselves academically, athletically, and through demonstrated service and leadership," said MAC Commissioner, Jon A. Steinbrecher. "These men and women have earned this award by putting in long hours of dedication, perseverance and hard work. I congratulate those selected and thank them for their contributions to their institution and the Conference."

Sullivan, a native of Naperville, Ill. (North), led the men's soccer Falcons in goals, assists and points for the second-straight season. A team tri-captain, he scored 13 points on four goals and five assists, and was directly involved in the scoring of nine of BGSU's 13 goals this spring. Sullivan was named to the All-MAC First Team and the All-Region Second Team. He was the USC National Player of the Week on Feb. 23, the first Falcon to earn that honor in program history, and was named MAC Player of the Week twice.

Sullivan helped lead the 2020(-21) Falcons to the MAC regular-season title and a berth in the NCAA Championships. BGSU won the MAC's regular-season championship outright for the first time since 1996 and just the second time since the MAC began sponsoring the sport in '93. The Falcons advanced to the NCAA Championships for the first time since 1997.

McCoy, a native of Washington, Ill. (Washington), hit a team-leading .380 for the softball Falcons, en route to All-MAC First-Team and All-Region Second-Team honors. The shortstop also paced the Brown and Orange in doubles (15), homers (11), runs batted in (43), total bases (110), on-base percentage (.423) and slugging pct. (.696). She set a school record for hits in a game, going 5-for-5 (with two homers and two doubles) in a win at Northern Illinois, and she became the first player in school history with three multiple-homer games in a season.

McCoy batted .423 in MAC games this spring, the highest average by a BGSU player since 2006. With a career slugging percentage of .617, she holds the school record in that category. McCoy added her name to eight BG single-season records lists in 2021, and was just three RBI shy of that school record. Despite playing the equivalent of roughly two seasons in a BGSU uniform, McCoy is ranked on five career charts including slugging pct. She tied the school record with four multi-HR games in her BG career.

McCoy is the second BGSU softball student-athlete to earn the MAC Medal of Excellence in the eight years since the award was instituted. She joins Aspen Searle, who captured the award in 2018. Sullivan is the third men's soccer standout to win the award in those eight years, joining his brother, Joe Sullivan (2017), and Ryan James (2016) on that list.

To be honored with the Medal of Excellence Award, student-athletes had to participate on the varsity level in a Conference-sponsored sport and shown evidence of academic success with a minimum 3.50 accumulative grade-point average, exhibited athletics excellence, leadership and service. Selection of the recipients was made by each MAC institution. The complete list of 2020 honorees, as well as the all-time list of BGSU winners, follows...

BGSU'S MEDAL OF EXCELLENCE WINNERS
2021 - Chris Sullivan (men's soccer), Madi McCoy (softball)
2020 - Gabe Skrobot (football), Talisa Lemke (swim/dive)
2019 - Noah Schaub (men's cross country), Kallie Seimet (volleyball)
2018 - Kohl Taberner (men's cross country), Aspen Searle (softball)
2017 - Joe Sullivan (men's soccer); Madeline Garda (volleyball)
2016 - Ryan James (men's soccer); Alyssa Nocella (gymnastics)
2015 - Christian Piazza (football); Deborah Hoekstra (women's basketball)
2014 - Cody Apthorpe (baseball); Nikki Chiricosta (tennis)

2020 Medal of Excellence Award Winners
Akron:
Loren Christian Jackson, Men's Basketball, Chicago, Ill. (Victory Rock Prep)
Taylor Sharrits, Volleyball, Concord, Ohio (Lake Catholic)

Ball State:
Chris Adams, Tennis, Port Huron, Mich. (Port Huron Northern)
Ivy McKee, Track and Field, Columbus, Ohio (Gahanna Lincoln)

Bowling Green:
Chris Sullivan, Men's Soccer, Naperville, Ill. (North)
Madi McCoy, Softball, Washington, Ill. (Washington)

Buffalo:
Jack Klenk, Football, Pittsford, N.Y. (Pittsford Sutherland)
Hanna Hall, Women's Basketball, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada (Lincoln Prep)

Central Michigan:
Bernhard Raimann, Football, Steinbrunn, Austria (Delton-Kellogg)
Brianna Hart, Lacrosse, South Bend, Ind. (Saint Joseph)

Eastern Michigan:
Michael Monahan, Baseball, Saline, Mich. (Saline)
Graysen Simmons, Track and Field, Huber Heights, Ohio (Wayne)

Kent State:
Ben Carew, Baseball, Appleton, Wis. (Kimberly)
Kennadie Goth, Softball, Shelby, Ohio (Shelby)

Miami:
Sean Torpy, Cross Country/Track and Field, Orland Park, Ill. (Carl Sandburg)
Abigail Huser, Volleyball, Westfield, Ind. (Westfield)

Northern Illinois:
Mason Kauffman, Wrestling, Stratford, Wis. (Stratford)
Zoie Schroeder, Gymnastics, Champlin, Minn. (Champlin Park)

Ohio:
Ben Vander Plas, Men's Basketball, Ripon, Wis. (Ripon)
Ashleigh Kitrell, Track and Field, Oakland, Neb. (Oakland Craig Senior)

Toledo:
Chris Meyers, Baseball, Miamisburg, Ohio (Miamisburg)
Emma Sampson, Swimming & Diving, Mount Sterling, Ohio (Madison-Plains)

Western Michigan:
Jannik Opitz, Tennis, Hildesheim, Germany (Josephinum Hildesheim)
Rachel Bontrager, Volleyball, Valparaiso, Ind. (Valparaiso)

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