ROCHESTER, N.Y. –The Empire 8 Conference is proud to announce the inaugural Spring 2022 Torchbearer Award winners for academic and athletic excellence. Eight different student-athletes from four institutions earned the prestigious award during the spring season. With these eight student-athletes is our very own Ryan Fecco of the Men's Golf Team. Read below for more information on this prestigious award out of the Empire 8 Conference.
The Empire 8 Torchbearer is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative grade-point average (GPA) participating in the championship game for each E8 sport. To be eligible for the Empire 8 Torchbearer Award, a student-athlete must be a sophomore, junior, or senior and in at least their second season of competition with their current team. Graduate students are not eligible.
For sports where an individual is awarded all-conference honors at the conference championship, such as men's and women's cross country, the individual with the highest cumulative GPA amongst the first and second place finishing teams will receive the award. For sports that compete in a conference tournament, the student-athlete with the highest GPA from the championship finals contest will receive the honor. For football, the student-athlete with the highest GPA from the first or second place team in the conference standings is honored.
The torch has served as the Empire 8's primary symbol since the league's inception in 1999. A torchbearer is "a person who carries a torch at the head of a group of people; someone who leads a campaign, movement and who leads or inspires others in working toward a valued goal. The Empire 8 Torchbearer award captures the essence of Empire 8's mission of "Tomorrow's Leaders Compete Here Today" and commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes, which is the league's hallmark. Below you will find the complete list of Empire 8 Torchbearer award winners.
2022 Spring Empire 8 Torchbearer Award Winners
Baseball – Noah Barber, Utica, Sr., Criminal Intelligence Analysis, 3.97 GPA
Men's Golf – Ryan Fecco, SUNY Oswego, Sr., Accounting, 3.91 GPA
Men's Lacrosse – Jacob Slowinski, St. John Fisher, So., Finance, 3.98 GPA
Women's Lacrosse – Lauren Swartz, St. John Fisher, Jr., Biology, 4.00 GPA
Softball – Claire Boegel, St. John Fisher, Jr., Sustainability, 3.96 GPA
Men's Tennis – Isiah McMurray, Nazareth, So., Biology, 3.94 GPA
Men's Outdoor Track and Field – Michael McNeil, Utica, So., Physical Therapy, 4.00 GPA
Women's Outdoor Track and Field – Brenna Johnson, Nazareth, Sr., Physical Therapy, 4.00 GPA
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