GEORGIA STATE Department of Athletics 2012-13 Annual Report
Together We Rise
Message from the Director of Athletics CHeryl L. Levick
This is an exciting time to be involved with Georgia State Athletics. We have seen a remarkable growth over the past five years which has led to our full membership in the Sun Belt Conference. Our rise to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level has been swift, but the student-athletes and coaches across all sports have completed the difficult transition with dignity and class. Our teams immediately put the Sun Belt on notice in 2012-13, showing that we are intent on winning championships from the start. Women’s cross country was the first to bring home a Sun Belt title, and the men’s tennis squad followed suit in thrilling fashion to earn a team berth into the NCAA Championships. A total of seven individuals qualified for postseason play, led by our newest sport of sand volleyball and its beautiful, state-of-the-art facility. In their first year, the No. 1 duo of Lane Carico and Katie Madewell reached the national semifinals to become the highest-finishing team or individual in Georgia State history. Carico earned All-America status, joining men’s golf freshman Jonathan Grey (honorable mention) atop the awards list. Grey was part of a celebrated core of young talent that included four freshman All-Americans and three league rookies of the year who will continue to raise the athletic department’s profile in the Sun Belt.
Department of Athletics 2012-13 Annual Report Mark P. Becker
Georgia State University President
Cheryl L. Levick Director of Athletics
Jamie Boggs
Executive Senior Associate A.D./ Chief Operating Officer/ Senior Woman Administrator
Todd Reeser
Executive Senior Associate A.D. Development and Sports Services
Ike Fullard
Senior Associate A.D. External Affairs
John Portland
Senior Associate A.D. Internal Operations
There was also a continued excellence in the classroom as our student-athletes posted the 10th consecutive semester with a cumulative 3.0 GPA or higher. Victor Valente was the Elite 89 Award winner for Division I men’s tennis and earned the prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship, only the second for a GSU student-athlete in any sport. He was joined by Scott Sarratt of the baseball team to give GSU two academic All-Americans for the third straight year. These achievements cannot be accomplished alone. The incredible support that GSU students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends provide every day plays a large role in this department’s development. We thank you for being part of the Georgia State Panther Family, and we invite you to join us as we continue to climb to greater heights in coming years. GO PANTHERS!
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For more information about supporting Georgia State Athletics, contact the Panther Athletic Club at (404) 413-4016. © 2013 Georgia State University
Contents
Message from the Director of Athletics....................... 2 Mission Statement.................................................................. 3 2012-13 Highlights..............................................................4-5 GSU Becomes Full Member of Sun Belt................. 6-7 Academic Honors................................................................... 8 Cross Country........................................................................... 9 Football.......................................................................................10 Court Volleyball......................................................................11 Men’s Soccer...........................................................................12 Women’s Soccer....................................................................13 Women’s Basketball............................................................14 Men’s Basketball....................................................................15 Baseball......................................................................................16 Softball........................................................................................17 Women’s Tennis.....................................................................18 Men’s Tennis............................................................................19 Women’s Golf..........................................................................20 Men’s Golf..................................................................................21 Sand Volleyball.......................................................................22 Track and Field.......................................................................23 Facilities Upgrades...............................................................24 Panther Athletic Club (PAC)/Budget............................25 Leading GSU Forward.................................................26-27
Department of Athletics
Six-Year Strategic Plan 2010-11 through 2015-16
Mission Statement
To shape champions for today and leaders for tomorrow.
VIsion Statement
To be a championship-caliber athletics program recognized nationally for uncompromising academic and athletic excellence.
Core Values
INTEGRITY • Integrity is the single defining characteristic of Georgia State Athletics.
• We follow the spirit and the letter of rules and regulations of our governing bodies.
• We are honest in our dealings with athletes, coaches, opponents and the university community.
EXCELLENCE • We strive for excellence in the classroom and success at every competition.
• We have a passion for continuous quality improvement.
• We expect to win. DETERMINATION AND INNOVATION • We embrace our determined spirit while encouraging innovation and resourcefulness in all that we do.
DIVERSITY AND EQUALITY • We provide a climate of mutual respect and diversity by recognizing each individual’s contribution to the department.
• We foster and empower a culture that provides equal access to athletic opportunities, facilities and student • The GSU Marching Band played at President Barack Obama’s inauguration in January 2013. Four months later it was invited to New York to play in the 2014 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Photography Credits
Paul Abell/Abell Images, Gary Brittain/Dominion Photography, Todd Drexler/Sideline Sports, Tony Gonzales/ Oakland Raiders; Jeff Hurndon; Bill Kallenberg; Donna Kennedy; Perry McIntyre; Jonathan Phillips; Evan Pincus/ New York Giants; Mark Selders; Randy Wilson Photography; Georgia State University Relations.
support services.
COMMUNITY AND SERVICE • We establish an organizational culture that fosters collaboration and partnership with stakeholders, and promotes responsible and caring citizens with the GSU community and the community at large.
• We foster an environment of service and outreach to our campus, our community and our world.
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2012-13 HIGHLIGHTS SHINING BRIGHT IN THE SUN BELT
Georgia State won its first two Sun Belt Conference titles of any kind by bringing home the women’s cross country crown and men’s tennis championship in 2012-13. The Panthers’ return to the league included four squads that earned toptwo finishes in Sun Belt play.
Victor Valente
Lane Cari co
Abigail Tere-Apisah • Georgia State had seven individual qualifiers reach national championships: Katharine Showalter, Women’s Cross Country; Jonathan Grey, Men’s Golf; Victor Valente, Men’s Tennis; Victor Valente/Lucas Santa Ana, Men’s Tennis; Abigail Tere-Apisah, Women’s Tennis; Abigail Tere-Apisah/Masa Grgan, Women’s Tennis; Lane Carico/Katie Madewell, Sand Volleyball.
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• Katharine Showalter became the first major Sun Belt Conference award winner for Georgia State when she was named Runner of the Year in 2012. WR/KR Albert Wilson was selected as Co-Special Teams Player of the Year in the Panthers’ final season in the Colonial Athletic Association.
Albert Wilson
lter e Showa Katharin
• Trent Miles took over as head coach of the GSU football team on Dec. 3, 2012.
FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICANS R.J. Hunter, Men’s Basketball
i gbueh nuel O a m m E
• Donald Russell and Emmanuel Ogbuehi signed free agent contracts with NFL teams in 2013, bringing the Panthers’ total to four former players battling for roster spots heading into the fall. • Two conference coach-of-the-year award winners (Chris England, cross country and Joerg Barthel, men’s tennis) • Three conference rookie-of-the-year award winners (R.J. Hunter, men’s basketball; Jonathan Grey, men’s golf; Josh Merrigan, baseball) • 30 all-conference awards and eight all-rookie awards • 27 conference player-of-the-week/month awards and 17 rookie-of-the-week awards
Jonathan Grey Men’s Golf
Josh Merrigan Baseball
Matt Rose Baseball
• Seven all-region athletes in four sports (Katharine Showalter, women’s cross country; Jonathan Grey, men’s golf; Callie Alford, softball; Jessica Clifton, softball; Kaitlyn Medlam, softball; Chase Raffield, baseball; Chad Prain, baseball).
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‘TOGETHER WE RISE’ After more than a year’s worth of anticipation, the wait was finally over. At 12:01 a.m. on July 1, 2013, the Georgia State Athletic Department officially became a full member of the Sun Belt Conference and is now set to compete for championships in 14 league-sponsored sports starting this fall. One of three new members in 2013 along with Texas Arlington and Texas State, Georgia State joined the Sun Belt during an historic transition. The Sun Belt Conference unveiled a new logo and brand in May after a nearly yearlong examination of the impact, sustainability and core values associated with the league. “Together We Rise” is the new mantra for the conference and is the foundation and essence of the contemporary logo that will now identify the league. “This has been an exciting yet challenging process, and the hard work of our coaches, studentathletes and staff is finally being rewarded,” Director of Athletics Cheryl L. Levick said. “Transitioning out of the CAA and bridging two conferences over the past year has not been easy for our teams. I want to thank each of the student-athletes and coaches for their dedication and for handling the move with integrity and class.” “Now, we look forward to playing a leadership role in the Sun Belt Conference and to having our teams compete for Sun Belt titles and postseason berths. It really is a tremendous day in Georgia State sports history.”
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GSU’s move onto a national stage in all sports officially began on April 9, 2012. At a press conference inside the Georgia Dome, Sun Belt Conference officials joined Georgia State President Mark Becker and Levick at the public announcement of the Panthers’ impending conference move. A feasibility study in the fall of 2011 concluded the Panthers were well positioned to make the jump to the FBS level and that the Sun Belt would be an ideal fit. The rest has been history. The move now allows Georgia State to build on regional rivalries with several schools within driving distance of Atlanta, while also showcasing its talented teams to the country. It is a return home of sorts for Georgia State, which was a founding member of the Sun Belt Conference in 1976. At that time, the league consisted of six universities playing across four men’s sports – basketball, soccer, tennis and golf. Today, the Sun Belt Conference sponsors 18 sports, including 14 that the Panthers will vie for conference titles. On the men’s side, GSU will compete in baseball, basketball, football, golf and tennis, while women’s sports include basketball,
2013 Members
golf, cross country, soccer, softball, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field and court volleyball. GSU has also announced plans to add women’s swimming and diving, another Sun Belt-sponsored sport. The Panthers have already won two Sun Belt Conference titles in the past year. Ten individual sports were accepted into the league for 2012-13, giving the women’s cross country and men’s tennis teams a leg up on collecting hardware. Each squad won the Sun Belt title and helped Georgia State finish ahead of two SBC schools in the 2012-13 Vic Bubas Cup standings (an all sports trophy) despite competing in only half of the league’s sports. Georgia State is coming off a strong year that included seven individual qualifiers for NCAA play, two conference players of the year, three league rookies of the year and two conference coaches of the year. Along the way, Panthers picked up two All-America honors, four freshman All-America accolades, 30 allconference or all-rookie awards and 44 league weekly awards (player or rookie). In the classroom, GSU posted its 10th consecutive semester with a cumulative grade-point average above 3.0 for all teams while picking up two academic AllAmerica honors and five academic all-district awards. Men’s tennis senior Victor Valente was also named the prestigious NCAA Elite 89 award winner, the first in school history.
UALR Arkansas State Georgia State Louisiana-Lafayette Louisiana-Monroe South Alabama Texas Arlington Texas State Troy Western Kentucky
CHAMPIONSHIP SPORTS* Baseball Men’s Basketball Women’s Basketball Women’s Cross Country Football Men’s Golf Women’s Golf Women’s Soccer Softball Men’s Tennis Women’s Tennis Women’s Indoor Track and Field Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Volleyball
*GSU-sponsored sports only. GSU men’s soccer and sand volleyball will compete as NCAA Independents in 2013-14.
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ACADEMIC HONORS • Two Academic All-Americans: Victor Valente, at-large first team (men’s tennis); Scott Sarratt, second team (baseball).
DID YOU KNOW?
Georgia State student-athletes and coaches completed more than 5,000 hours of community service in 2012-13, the third straight year reaching the significant milestone.
• Five academic all-district honorees: Michael Davis, first team (football); Mark Hogan, first team (football); Cody Paulk, first team (women’s basketball); Scott Sarratt, first team (baseball); Victor Valente, first team at-large (men’s tennis). • One NCAA Elite 89 Award selection: Victor Valente (men’s tennis).
ACADEMIC ALL-AMERICANS
• One NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship Award winner: Victor Valente (men’s tennis). • One CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year: Chris Locandro (men’s soccer). • Georgia State student-athletes maintained a combined cumulative grade-point average of at least 3.0 for the 10th consecutive semester.
Scott Sarratt Baseball
• A total of 20 student-athletes were honored as members of the President’s List with a GPA of 4.0 or higher, while 64 were named to the Dean’s List (3.5 GPA or higher) and 151 student-athletes achieved Athletic Director’s Honor Roll status (3.2 GPA or higher). .
Victor Valente Men’s Tennis
ACADEMIC All-DISTRICT HONOREES
Michael Davis Football
Mark Hogan Football
Cody Paulk
Women’s Basketball
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Scott Sarratt Baseball
Victor Valente Men’s Tennis
CROSS COUNTRY
• Women won first Sun Belt Conference title in school history, and also won two regular-season meet titles (GSU Invitational and West Georgia Invitational).
2012 SBC FINISH
MEN: 7th | WOMEN: 1st CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS
• Katharine Showalter earned the individual title at the SBC meet and took all-region honors while claiming a berth in the NCAA Championship. • Chris England was named SBC Coach of the Year while Katharine Showalter was named Runner of the Year.
CHris england Head Coach
• Four All-Sun Belt honors for the women: Katharine Showalter (first team), Hannah Stefanoff (first team), Jennifer Rubel (third team) and Kiamh Kearney (third team). • Men won the GSU Invitational and Jaguar Invite, and finished seventh at the Sun Belt Championship. • One All-Sun Belt honor for the men: Valentin Poncelet (first team). • Earned the USTFCCCA team academic award for 2012.
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FOOTBALL DID YOU KNOW?
Theo Agn ew
After Trent Miles was hired on Dec. 3, four of his assistants from Indiana State drove through the night to start immediately recruiting for GSU. There were a total of 32 recruiting dates from his hire until National Signing Day, and Miles’ staff was able to sign 27 players.
2012
Record: 1-10 (1-7 CAA)
• Coaching legend Bill Curry retired following the season after being the architect of the Panthers’ program since its inception in 2009. • Trent Miles was introduced as head coach on Dec. 3 after engineering a dramatic turnaround at Indiana State. • One Colonial Athletic Association Co-Special Teams Player of the Year: WR Albert Wilson. • Three All-CAA honors: WR Albert Wilson (first team), P Matt Hubbard (second team) and RB Donald Russell (third team). • Two academic all-district selections: C Michael Davis and LB Mark Hogan. The honors marked the third and fourth academic all-district picks for the Panthers in two years. • Sixteen Panthers were named to the CAA AllAcademic Football Team. • Two NFL free agent signees after the season: RB Donald Russell and TE Emmanuel Ogbuehi, giving GSU four players in the NFL ranks.
Matt Hubbard
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• Christo Bilukidi made history in 2012 as he became the first Panther to play in an NFL game. He was a sixth-round selection in the NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders.
COURT VOLLEYBALL 2012
Record: 4-20 (2-10 CAA)
Tami Audia
Head Coach
• Eight of 13 players on roster were freshmen. • One CAA All-Rookie team: Eliza Zachary, who led the conference in blocks. • Emily Averbeck ranked among the top 40 nationally in digs. • Team led the conference in blocks.
Dede Bohannon
Andrea Ezell
Eliza Zachary
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MEN’S SOCCER Chris Locandro
2012
Record: 6-12 (2-8 CAA)
Brett Surrency Head Coach
• Three All-CAA honors: Chris Locandro (third team), Jamal Keene (third team) and William Mellors-Blair (third team). • Chris Locandro honored as the CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year, GSU’s second consecutive winner. • Alex Vivanco was twice named conference Player of the Week. • Played one of the nation’s most difficult non-conference schedules including games at No. 1 Maryland and at No. 25 Duke, in addition to a league match vs. No. 5 Old Dominion.
Alex Vivanco
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WOMEN’S SOCCER 2012
Record: 4-11-2 (1-8-1 CAA)
Derek Leader Head Coach
• Young team endured a rebuilding season under first-year head coach Derek Leader. • Finished year undefeated against in-state opponents with victories against Georgia Southern, Mercer and Kennesaw State. • One All-CAA honoree: Whitney Ravan (third team).
Whitney Ravan
Alyssia Feronti
Jordan Young
Lyndsey Gaffney
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WOMEN’S BASKETBALL 2012-13
Record: 13-16 (5-13 CAA)
Sharon Baldwin-Tener Head Coach
• One CAA All-Defensive Team: Cody Paulk. • Cody Paulk finished as Georgia State’s career leader in blocked shots with 210, fifth in CAA history and set the GSU season record with 77 in 2012-13 to rank No. 14 in nation. • Ashley Watson set the school record for free throw percentage in a season at 87.5 percent. • With a season still to play, Kendra Long broke the Georgia State record for career 3-point field goals with 165. • Paulk also earned academic honors with her selection to the Capital One Academic All-District first team for the second straight year and to the CAA All-Academic team.
Kendra Lon g
olan Kayla N
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MEN’S BASKETBALL DID YOU KNOW?
Head coach Ron Hunter was honored with the Community Spirit Award at the 2013 Atlanta Sports Award Banquet for all of his outreach and community service work.
2012-13
Record: 15-16 (10-8 CAA)
RON HUNTER Head Coach
• Finished the regular season with 15-16 record, just missing GSU’s second straight winning season. • Double-digit wins in CAA for second straight year (10-8 record). Fifth-place finish was GSU’s best ever in CAA. • Unanimous choice for CAA Rookie of the Year: R.J. Hunter. • One All-CAA First Team and CAA AllRookie Team: R.J. Hunter. • One freshman All-American: R.J. Hunter. • One CAA All-Defensive Team: James Vincent. • Hunter posted an eye-popping, 38-point performance against Old Dominion, when he hit a CAA-record 10 3-pointers.
Devonta White
R.J. Hunter
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BASEBALL 2013
record: 35-21 (14-13 CAA)
Scott Sarra tt
Greg Frady Head Coach
• Posted third-highest victory total in school history. Only the 2009 NCAA Tournament team and the 2011 squad won more games.
Chase Raffield
• Ranked in the top five in the NCAA in batting average and runs per game. • One Capital One Academic All-America second team selection (Scott Sarratt), Georgia State’s first Academic All-American in baseball. • Two Louisville Slugger Freshman All-Americans by Collegiate Baseball (Josh Merrigan and Matt Rose); one NCBWA Freshman All-American (Merrigan). • One first-team All-CAA (Chad Prain), three second-team All-CAA (Merrigan, Caden Bailey and Chase Raffield). • Three CAA All-Rookie team members (Merrigan, Rose and Joey Roach). • Two ABCA All-Atlantic Region team selections: Raffield (first team) and Prain (second team). • Earned first win over Georgia since 2001.
DID YOU KNOW? The baseball program has had five 30win seasons in the past six years under head coach Greg Frady, after reaching the plateau just two times before that stretch. Josh Merrigan
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SOFTBALL
Jessica Clifton
• Posted eighth straight winning season, including three straight years of 35 or more wins. • Finished in the top three of the conference for the eighth consecutive year.
2013
Record: 36-19 (13-8 CAA)
• Three NFCA All-Region honorees for the first time in school history: pitcher Kaitlyn Medlam, catcher Callie Alford and outfielder Jessica Clifton. Roger Kincaid Head Coach
• Four Panthers were named to the All-CAA team; two others were tabbed CAA All-Freshman. • Six Panthers earned CAA weekly awards, including four Player-of-the-Week honors and two Rookie-ofthe-Week awards. • Senior Paige Nowacki tied the school record with her 32nd career home run. • Knocked off a nationally-ranked SEC foe on the road for the second straight year by winning at No. 23 Georgia, GSU’s first win over the Bulldogs since 2000.
Kaitlyn Medlam
y Katie Worle
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WOMEN’S TENNIS 2013
SBC FINISH: 2nd
Miha Lisac
Head Coach
• Advanced to the finals of the Sun Belt Conference Championships before finishing as runnerup, just missing out on a berth into the NCAA Championships.
• Tere-Apisah was ranked among the nation’s Top 50 singles players all season and finished at No. 49 in the ITA National Singles Rankings. Tere-Apisah and Grgan finished at No. 39 in doubles.
• Top singles player and returning All-American Abigail Tere-Apisah earned selection to the NCAA Singles Championship for the second straight year.
• Tere-Apisah earned all-conference honors in singles and doubles, and Grgan was selected for doubles.
• The doubles team of Abigail Tere-Apisah and Masa Grgan was selected for the NCAA Doubles Championship.
• Team posted a record of 8-11 in dual matches while facing the most difficult schedule in program history.
Abigail Tere-Apisah
Masa Grga n
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MEN’S TENNIS • Enjoyed one of the most successful seasons in school history, winning the Sun Belt Conference title to earn a berth in the NCAA tournament.
2013
• No. 1 singles player Victor Valente reached the NCAA Singles Championship, and Valente and partner Lucas Santa Ana were chosen for the NCAA Doubles Championship.
SBC FINISH: 1st CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS
Joerg Barthel Head Coach
• Valente and Santa Ana made history by earning Georgia State’s first victory in NCAA by upsetting the No. 9-ranked team from Kentucky. • Three All-Sun Belt Conference honors: Victor Valente, Lucas Santa Ana and Robert Schulze. • First-year head coach Joerg Barthel was named Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year. • Valente was named to the Capital One Academic All-America At-Large first team, becoming just the third first-team Academic All-American in school history. He also became GSU’s first recipient of the NCAA Elite 89 Award and the school’s second NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship winner. • Valente finished his career with a school-record 79 singles victory.
Victor Valente
Lucas Santa Ana
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WOMEN’S GOLF 2013
SUN BELT FINISH: 7th
Cathy Mant Head Coach
• Posted four top-10 showings, including a thirdplace finish at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate and a runner-up finish at the UNCW Seahawk Classic. • One All-Sun Belt Conference second team member: Maria Palacios. • Two WGCA All-American Scholars: Laura Sanchez and Melissa Siviter.
chez Laura San
• Laura Sanchez recorded top-10 finishes in two events, placing fourth at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate and then sixth at the UNCW Seahawk Classic. Maria Palacios
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MEN’S GOLF • Finished as conference runner-up at first Sun Belt Conference Championship.
2013
• Jonathan Grey was selected as an individual competitor for the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional.
SUN BELT FINISH: 2nd
• Freshman All-America selection (Grey), one of only five in the nation • Grey was also selected as PING All-Region by the Golf Coaches Association of America (GCAA) and named Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year,
Joe inman
Head Coach
• Two named to All-Sun Belt team: Grey and Davin White.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Grey had three tournament titles and one runnerup finish and ranked among the top 15 individuals in the nation in both the GolfStat and Golfweek rankings.
Freshman Jonathan Grey had the second-best finish by a Panther at the NCAA Regional in program history, missing the national meet by one stroke.
• Grey was named Sun Belt Golfer of the Month for October and again for March. • Team posted four top-five finishes, including a secondplace showing at Georgia State’s own AutoTrader.com Collegiate Classic at Berkeley Hills.
Jona Jonathan GreyGrey than
Davin White
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SAND VOLLEYBALL Cody Paulk
2013
Record: 8-9
Tami Audia
Head Coach
• Top duo of Lane Carico and Katie Madewell advanced to semifinals of AVCA National Pairs Championship, the highest national finish for any student-athletes in Georgia State history. • One AVCA All-America team member (Lane Carico), the 22nd All-American in GSU history. • Carico and Madewell finished with a record of 338, including 14-2 in team dual matches. • First event in the new on-campus Sand Volleyball Complex included a 3-2 win before a capacity crowd. • Program also hosted the inaugural Georgia State Sand Invitational in front of more than 900 fans over the two days.
Lane Carico
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dewell Katie Ma d n a o c ri Lane Ca
TRACK & FIELD 2013 SBC FINISH WOMEN Indoor: 7th Women Outdoor: 7th
CHris england Head Coach
• Competed in the Sun Belt Conference Track & Field Championships for the first time. Women placed seventh at the Indoor Championships (31 points) and seventh at the Outdoor Championships (57 points). • The 4x100-meter relay team of Tatiana Colbert, Talia Colbert, Gabby Brooks and Wande Brewer captured Georgia State’s first individual conference title in track and field by winning in a season-best time. That same quartet also had a runner-up finish in the 4x400 relay. • Senior Katharine Showalter was twice named the Sun Belt Track Athlete of the Week during the indoor season and scored 15 points for GSU at the SBC meet.
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FACILITY UPGRADES Georgia State’s continued rise in stature in Atlanta as well as nationally can be traced to its remarkable growth in recent years through both campus infrastructure and broadening influence. The Athletic Department has extended that model to its home courts and fields as it prepared for the move into the Sun Belt Conference.
As facilities continue to improve, it allows GSU coaches to recruit the best student-athletes and help them develop into champions. The extended level of commitment also enhances the gameday experience for students, alumni and fans.
In 2012-13, Georgia State built an impressive new facility for the emerging sport of sand volleyball while also completing upgrades for both football and baseball.
The sand volleyball courts made a successful debut in 2013. The facility has permanent seating for 350 fans, and saw more than 900 fans in attendance for the initial match. The courts are lighted for night play and offer a unique sports experience in the heart of the city. The football practice facility also had a number of upgrades including taking on the coaching staff, which moved to the faciltiy full-time in early 2013. The baseball complex added a new entrance plaza while upgrades in the dugouts and playing surface provide a better experience for student-athletes and fans alike.
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FINANCIAL SUPPORT PANTHER ATHLETIC CLUB
The Panther Athletic Club (PAC) is the official fundraising organization for Georgia State University Athletics and provides outstanding academic and athletic opportunities for our student-athletes. Through the support of its membership, the PAC allows GSU to recruit, educate and train the best and brightest athletes.
GSU ATHLETICS FISCAL DEVELOPMENT FY05 to FY13 $3,500,000
$3,000,000
$2,500,000
$2,000,000
PAC Restricted
The PAC creates meaningful relationships with fans passionate about Panther Athletics. Members join with the athletic department because they are invested in the growth of our programs and understand the vision of seeing our teams rise to the top not only on the conference level but also the national stage. Being committed to seeing the process through to the finish line and playing a part in creating a championship program is a key component for our most ardent supporters. With the backing of the PAC, Georgia State studentathletes are offered the training, discipline and motivation they need to succeed not just as athletes, but also as leaders. They embody the dedication, teamwork and innovation that will distinguish true champions in every endeavor, whether on the competition field, in the classroom or in society. Panther Athletic Club donors allow GSU to offer an excellent experience to more than 350 exceptional student-athletes each year.
Overall
$1,500,000
$1,000,000
$500,000
$0 FY05
FY06
FY07
FY08
FY09
FY10
FY11
FY12
FY13
Participation in the PAC has grown to unprecedented levels. Annual unrestricted giving has jumped from $29,000 in 2009 when the first football feasibility study was completed to nearly $450,000 in fiscal year 2013. Add in restricted giving (major gifts) that jumpstarted the football program in 2010 and 2011, and each of the past four years has seen historic levels of support. That dedication by our fans has helped offset the escalating costs such as scholarships, recruiting and travel, and provides funding for continuing to build the Panthers into national contenders in all sports.
ATHLETICs Budget
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LEADING GSU FORWARD Since beginning his tenure as Georgia State University’s seventh president in January 2009, President Mark P. Becker has provided a vision for the future of Georgia State University and led the institution into a period of marked growth and advancement. Reflecting his vision of the urban public research university for the 21st Mark Becker GSU PResident century, the university adopted a dynamic 10-year strategic plan that has Georgia State well on its way to becoming one of the nation’s premier urban research universities. As a first generation college student who began his educational career at a community college, Becker is personally and professionally committed to ensuring that students of all economic backgrounds succeed and are given opportunities to compete on a level playing field. Under his leadership, Georgia State’s graduation rate has already increased by 10 percent, and the university is becoming a national model for undergraduate education. It leads the nation in eliminating disparities in graduation rates based on race or ethnicity, and, as one of the most diverse universities in America, is first in the nation among non-profit institutions in graduating African-American students. By promoting the achievements of the university, making it more visible locally and nationally, and demonstrating the value of a Georgia State degree, the university under Becker’s leadership has set a series of university records for enrollment, graduation rates and total graduates. Becker has also placed high priority on ensuring financial support for students, and as a result need- and merit-based scholarship funds distributed by the university have tripled since his arrival. Becker’s passion for student success has been matched by his commitment to increasing multidisciplinary research and economic development as facilitated by the creation of new research centers, the Second Century Initiative—an ambitious program to hire one-hundred senior faculty members to serve in interdisciplinary research clusters, and an enhanced emphasis on the translation of faculty research into products and companies. This commitment has brought the university to new heights of research accomplishment, as reflected, for example, in new university records for sponsored research funding and federal research funding. Being globally connected and engaged is another important component of Becker’s vision for the modern research university. Seeking to position Georgia State faculty and students to thrive in an increasingly complex and global landscape, Becker has worked with faculty leaders and international partners to enhance Georgia State’s global profile. In 2010 the university partnered with Beijing Language and Culture University to establish a Confucius Institute with an emphasis on business and commerce. In 2012 the institute was named a “2012 Confucius Institute of the Year.” Becker is particularly committed to developing strong partnerships with universities in rapidly growing economies.
As a result, the university is working to strengthen relationships with counterparts in Brazil, China, South Africa, South Korea and Turkey. These partners are the basis for the development of new student and faculty exchanges, study abroad programs, research collaborations, executive training initiatives, government and private sector networks, and dual-degree programs. Becker has aggressively advanced the campus’ physical development and revitalization of downtown Atlanta. This has included major additions to campus housing and dining, research and academic facilities, as well as intramural and athletics facilities. In 2010 the university added football to its athletics program, and in 2013 added sand volleyball and moved to the Sun Belt Conference to advance into the Division I – FBS level of NCAA competition. Throughout his career Becker has served on boards and committees of civic, government and professional bodies. He serves, for example, on the boards of the Coalition of Urban Serving Universities, World Affairs Council of Atlanta, Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Georgia Aquarium, Georgia Research Alliance, Woodruff Arts Center, and the Atlanta Committee for Progress. He also serves on the executive committees of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education (Chair) and Central Atlanta Progress. Trained as a statistician, Becker has had a distinguished career in biostatistics and public health sciences. For most of his professorial career he was a member of the faculty in the Department of Biostatistics at the University of Michigan, where he also held appointments in the Institute for Social Research, and the Department of Statistics. He was made a Fellow of the American Statistical Association, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Becker has been principal investigator on research grants from the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. He has published extensively in leading journals, and his doctoral students have gone on to successful careers in leading higher education institutions and with multinational companies. Becker served on multiple editorial boards, was co-editor of Sociological Methodology, and was a guest editor for Sociological Methods and Research and for the Journal of the American Statistical Association. Prior to his appointment as president of Georgia State, Becker was executive vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of South Carolina and dean of the School of Public Health and assistant vice president of Public Health Preparedness and Emergency Response at the University of Minnesota. From 1989 to 2000, Becker was a professor in the University of Michigan’s School of Public Health, where he also was associate dean for academic affairs. He has held academic appointments at the University of Washington, the University of Florida and Cornell University. Becker attended Harford (Md.) Community College, earned his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Towson State University in 1980 and his Ph.D. degree in statistics from the Pennsylvania State University in 1985. Becker grew up in Havre de Grace, Md., near Baltimore. He and his wife, Laura Voisinet, have two adult children, Matthew and Julia.
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A highly respected administrator with over two decades of experience guiding programs to the highest level of NCAA play, Cheryl L. Levick has successfully combined athletic and educational opportunities for students since the start of her career in collegiate athletics. As CHeryl L. Levick Georgia State’s Director of Director of Athletics Athletics, Levick has helped boost the Panthers’ visibility on the national stage in multiple sports while adhering to the athletic department’s mission statement of shaping champions for today and leaders for tomorrow. The transformation of the Panther Athletics Department has been remarkable under Levick. Each program has been enhanced or in the case of football, built from scratch – the program had one player, two helmets and seven coaches when she arrived in 2009. Now it is set to compete at the FBS level in just its fourth season. To make that jump in schedule and talent, Levick hired Trent Miles away from his alma mater in December 2012 after he constructed an impressive – if not totally improbable – turnaround at Indiana State. Miles was not the first high-level coaching hire Levick successfully maneuvered for the Panthers as she also plucked Ron Hunter out of the state of Indiana in 2011. He quickly revitalized Georgia State basketball with its first postseason berth in a decade in his first year, and now has Panther fans eagerly awaiting the 2013-14 campaign. The significant imprint Levick has created at GSU can be seen across the entire athletic department. She has put Georgia State in position to compete for league titles right off the bat as it fully moves into the Sun Belt Conference in 2013-14. Last year, GSU squads won two SBC team crowns to put the conference on notice that the Panthers are not just moving up, but are ready to win from the start. Levick’s tenure in sport-crazy Atlanta has been marked by significant upgrades in facilities and fundraising. Annual giving to the Panther Athletic Club (PAC) has steadily increased by more than tenfold, and the three largest gifts in the history of GSU athletics have been secured. Construction projects have included the GSU Football Practice Complex, new facilities for strength and conditioning and sports medicine, and upgrades to every venue used by the Panthers. Arguably the most impressive project to date is the state-of-the-art facility for sand volleyball, the Panthers’ most recent sport addition. It was finished in time for the inaugural season in 2013, and is part of the ambitious Athletics Master Facilities Plan that Levick developed to address needs for every sport. Continuous success has been seen in the classroom as GSU student-athletes have recorded a cumulative grade-point average above 3.0 for 10 consecutive semesters while completing more than 5,000 hours of community service annually.
Levick has been a significant proponent of providing opportunities for women in college sports. She started the Women, Sports and Power Luncheon to raise money for women’s sports by female donors, an event that has been successful at each of her previous stops as athletic director. The event helped raise $50,000 for GSU women’s teams in 2013. In 2011, Levick was named a “Game Changer” among women in sports business by the SportsBusiness Journal, and in 1998 and 1999, she was named one of the nation’s Top 25 Female Sports Executives by the SportsBusiness Journal. The National Association of Collegiate Women Athletic Administrators (NACWAA) named her Division I Athletic Administrator of the Year in 2001. Levick came to Georgia State from Maryland, where she served as chief of staff/executive senior associate athletic director while overseeing the management of 27 sports. That came after serving three years (200407) as director of athletics at Saint Louis, where she led the Billikens’ transition to the Atlantic 10 and was the lead fundraiser for an $80 million on-campus arena and practice complex. In four years (2000-04) as director of athletics and recreation at Santa Clara, Levick oversaw a major renovation of the school’s basketball arena and saw the women’s soccer team capture the 2001 national title. Levick spent 12 years at Stanford as senior associate athletic director and senior woman administrator. She was the primary administrator for 33 varsity programs that won 44 national championships and helped Stanford to six straight Sears Cup titles. She also served as assistant commissioner of the Pac-10 Conference, assistant director of communications and women’s programs at the NCAA, women’s gymnastics coach and associate athletic director at Slippery Rock, and assistant gymnastics coach and synchronized swim coach at Indiana. Levick began her career at Pattonville Senior High School in St. Louis, Mo., coaching gymnastics and women’s track. Levick is a 1974 graduate of Missouri, and holds a master’s degree in athletic administration from Indiana. She has two daughters: Heather and husband Michael Klass with grandson Brady, born in July 2013; and Melissa and husband Jason Lake.
2012-13 AnNUAL REPORT
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