Senior Suzanne Eastman added two more awards to her laundry list of accolades Monday night when she received the Agnes B. Kurtz Award and the Kenneth Archibald Prize at the College's Celebration of Athletic Excellence presentation.
Eastman, a first team All-American defender from Brightwaters, N.Y., was one of the driving forces behind the women's soccer team's successful 16-2-2 record this year.
"I am absolutely thrilled with the awards and excited to have represented Dartmouth soccer," Eastman said. "Coming in as a freshman, I never would have thought I deserved or could earn these two great awards."
The Big Green repainted the school records for wins with 16 and shutouts with 12. Dartmouth captured the Ivy League title for the first time in six years and climbed all the way to the quarterfinal round of the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history.
Eastman was selected to the Agnes B. Kurtz Award, given to the female who "best combines proficiency in athletics with dedication to the furthering of women's sports," and the Kenneth Archibald Prize awarded to the senior who has been the best all-around athlete with regard to moral worth and high standing in scholarship.
Along with these awards, she made the GTE/CoSIDA Academic All-America National Team in the women's fall/winter at-large category. She and Kristin Luckenbill '01 are the first in school history to be named first team All-American.
Track and field specialist Greg Johnston '99 shared the Kenneth Archibald Prize with Eastman. The Kirkland, Que. native won the Heptagonal pentathlon for an unprecedented fourth straight year while breaking school records in the decathlon and the 110-meter high hurdles.
"Being chosen from all the great athletes at Dartmouth goes beyond words," Johnston said. "The best thing I can say is that I've given everything to Dartmouth as a student-athlete for the last four years and it's nice to know someone was watching. I'm definitely honored."
He will compete in the decathlon at the NCAA championships in June.
Third baseman Mike Conway '99 captured the Timothy Wright Ellis Award presented by the captains of the College's men's teams, which is presented "to a man showing the extracurricular and scholastic drive, spirit, loyalty and amiability which made Tim such a well-known part of this community."
Conway, captain for the past two years, transferred from the University of San Diego three years ago. Despite playing only three years as a member of the Big Green, the leadoff hitter leaves the College as the all-time leader with a .402 batting average and 41 doubles, and he is second on the all-time hit list with 192.
"I feel very honored to win the Timothy Wright Ellis Award," Conway said. "Being a part of Dartmouth athletics has been a wonderful experience and as a result I have made friendships that will last a lifetime."
Skiers David Viele '98 and Jennifer Collins '99 were awarded for their outstanding performances for one of the nation's top-ranked ski teams. Viele, of Vail, Colo. won the Alfred E. Watson Trophy as the outstanding male athlete of the College, which was voted on by the men's coaches.
"It is a real honor to be singled out of a group of such talented athletes," Viele said. "The first two years I spent at Dartmouth I was not involved in collegiate athletics. The past three years have shown me what a rewarding experience competing for Dartmouth College is."
Viele won the NCAA giant slalom title for the second consecutive year, an unprecedented school record.
"I will truly miss competing in a Dartmouth uniform," he said.
But Viele said he would continue skiing.
"I am not sure who I will be skiing with at this point, but I plan to continue racing," he added.
Collins, of Allegany, N.Y., was awarded the Class of '76 Award as the College's outstanding woman athlete as voted on by the coaches of the women's varsity teams.
"I am very honored to be recognized," Collins said. "There were nine other very deserving athletes nominated, and frankly I didn't believe that I would be recognized because my sport is very low-profile on this campus. Not many students understand the elite, international level that our ski team athletes compete at."
Collins, a three-time All-American, finished second in the women's slalom at the NCAA championship.
The Class of 1948 Scholar-Athlete Award was awarded to two juniors, Conway's teammate and first baseman Aaron Meyer '00 and Lauren Scopaz '00 of the women's field hockey team.
The award goes to one male and one female that have combined outstanding performance in athletics with significant academic achievement.
Slugger Meyer, of Cheshire, Conn., is already the program's all-time home run (29) and RBI (135) leader at the end of his junior year.
"It's truly a great honor to receive this award," Meyer said. "The combination of academic and athletic achievement is something which is very important to me. To be recognized for hard work makes everything even more worthwhile."
Scopaz, of Pelham, N.Y., is a two-time first team All-Ivy selection and leads the Big Green in all-time scoring.
"I feel so honored to win the Class of 1948 Scholar Athlete Award because there are so many talented people at Dartmouth who excel both athletically and academically," Scopaz said. "I don't know how they can choose just one person to receive an award like this because most students here embody the spirit of Dartmouth by hard work and achieving success in everything they do."
Scopaz also praised the other finalists for the award, juniors Janna Merryfield and Erin Myers.
Stephen Clifton '01 won the Charles Quincy Tirrell Prize for his involvement in Kung Fu, given by the physical education department to the student who has made the most progress in his or her first year in the program.
"I was pretty surprised when I found out I won this award," Clifton said. "In Kung Fu it feels like we train as much as a varsity sport, but we don't get any recognition."
