Athletics News
saints highlights
Baseball
New Basketball Court
Honors Fred Smith
Siena Heights University honored longtime
athletic director and hall of fame basketball
coach Fred Smith during a special ceremony
during halftime of the Nov. 11 men’s basketball
game between Siena Heights and Marygrove
in the SHU Fieldhouse. This fall SHU replaced
its hardwood court with a new one, and
officially named it “Coach Smith Court.”
Smith joined the SHU coaching staff in 1977
as an assistant men’s basketball coach. He was
named athletic director in 1983, and in 1984
was named head coach of the Saints men’s
program. Before retiring as coach, he led one
of the winningest small-school programs in
the country, recording five 30-win seasons,
12 appearances in the NAIA National Tournament and eight Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic
Conference titles. His 1996-97 squad finished
as the NAIA Division II national runner-up.
In March 2006, he was inducted into the NAIA
Hall of Fame. The Adrian native currently
oversees a department that has 10 men’s and
9 women’s intercollegiate programs. Over
the past three years his leadership has been
instrumental in the process of adding new
sports such as football, men’s and women’s
lacrosse and men’s and women’s bowling.
14
Reflections Winter ’12
Outdoor Track & Field
SHU Junior shortstop Cory
Lehman (left, Toledo, Ohio/
Central Catholic) was named
to the All-Wolverine-Hoosier
Athletic Conference First
Team and the WHAC AllAcademic Team. Lehman
led the Saints in several offensive categories
including batting average (.336), runs (26),
doubles (14) and hits (51). Two other Saints,
junior pitcher Brett Kuebler (Toledo, Ohio/
Central Catholic) and junior first baseman Josh
White (Brooklyn, Mich./Columbia Central),
were honorable mention all-conference. Senior
pitcher Steve Strom (Onsted, Mich./Onsted),
senior outfielder Kenny Sutter (Saginaw, Mich.
/Arthur Hill) and Lehman were also named
NAIA Daktronics Scholar Athletes. Sophomore
pitcher Jacob Sperry (Inkster, Mich./Westland
John Glenn) was the team’s Champions of
Character recipient. The Saints finished 8-37
overall, 1-16 in the WHAC.
Men: Senior high jumper
Erving Warren (left, Benton Harbor, Mich./Coloma)
earned NAIA All-American
honors at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships at Indiana
Wesleyan. Warren cleared 6 feet, 8 3/4 inches
and tied for fourth place. Also for the Saints,
David Weeks (Eaton Rapids, Mich./Eaton Rapids)
was 12th in the steeplechase, Ryan Hopson
(Albion, Mich./Albion) 13th in the long jump
and Will Hinton (Sylvania, Ohio/Sylvania Northview) 19th in the discus. The men won the
Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference outdoor
championship. With the win, Siena Heights
swept all three WHAC cross country/track and
field championships for the first time since
1997. Head coach Tim Bauer was named WHAC
Coach of the Year, and as a team, SHU won six
individual events. Jesiah Rodriguez (Erie, Mich./
Mason Consolidated) won the 1,500-meter run,
Roger Chambers (Crestline, Ohio/Crestline the
hammer throw, Ryan Hopson (Albion, Mich./
Albion) the long jump and the triple jump and
Marcus Bridget (Leroy, Mich./Pine River) the
pole vault. Bridget was joined on the WHAC
All-Academic Team by seniors Chance Lauver
(Adrian, Mich./Adrian), Mike Moore (Crestline,
Ohio/Crestline) and Joel Young (Durand, Mich./
Durand) and juniors Kyle Armstrong (Coldwater,
Mich./Coldwater) and Jared Pirckle (Deerfield,
Mich./Deerfield). Warren was the team’s
Champions of Character recipient.
Softball
SHU Junior third baseman
Brittney Rhodes (left,
East China, Mich./Marine
City) was honored for her
performance both on the
field and in the classroom.
Along with her All-WHAC
Honorable Mention honors, she was named
to the WHAC All-Academic Team, and she also
earned NAIA Scholar Athlete status. Others who
received All-WHAC honorable mention honors
were sophomore outfielder Tonya Berta (Ida,
Mich./Ida), junior first baseman Tearra Donovan
(Fowlerville, Mich./Fowlerville), freshman
pitcher Katie O’Hotzke (New Boston, Mich./
New Boston Huron) and Chelsea Slovinski
(Willis, Mich./Lincoln). Slovinski, a senior
second baseman, set the career home run
mark for the Saints. For the season, she led
the team in home runs (11) and RBI (38) while
tying for the team lead in hits (53) and ranking
second in batting average (.323). Senior Tami
Ross (Clawson, Mich./Clawson) was the team’s
Champions of Character recipient. The Saints
finished 14-40 overall, 3-21 in the WHAC.
Women: Senior Lyndsay
Payne (left, Perry, Mich./
Perry) and junior Morgan
Choszczyk (Webberville,
Mich./Webberville)
earned All-WolverineHoosier Athletic Conference
accolades on both the a