With spring sports at a close, the North Coast Athletic Conference recently honored numerous Yeomen and Yeowomen for their exemplary play.

In women’s tennis, junior Ariel Lewis received her third consecutive All-NCAC First Team selection. Lewis, who notched her 100th career win midway through the season, was also one of 32 players selected to play in the NCAA Singles Championships in her home state of California. When asked about her All-NCAC selection, Lewis said, “I’m honored to have received recognition by the conference. During the season I just play my matches; winning individual awards or honors isn’t really the point so much as helping the team is. Still, it’s rewarding to see that you are respected by the other coaches and players in the conference for your performance and hard work. It’s a confirmation of why I devote so much of my life to my sport, and it encourages me to continue pushing towards that next level.” Two of Lewis’s teammates, junior Finley Gates and sophomore Preeya Shah, also merited NCAC honorable mentions for their stellar play on the court this spring.

Two freshmen on the men’s tennis squad also received recognition. First-year Logan Chun, hailing from Hawaii, placed on the all-NCAC second team, while Charlie Marks earned honorable mention accolades.

After a highly successful season, Oberlin track and field placed 18 athletes on all-NCAC teams. Headlining the award winners was senior Joanna Johnson, who was named NCAC Outdoor Distance Runner of the Year after setting a school record en route to a decisive first place finish in the 5K at the Outdoor Championships with a time of 17:09.33. With Nationals looming, Johnson commented, “I’ve had a very successful season and am pleased with the results of Conference. I look forward to competing at Nationals in a couple of weeks.” Joining Johnson were seniors Laura Vernon and Amanda Miller, juniors Melissa Elie, Sam Dudzinski and Christine Moore, sophomores Sybil Levine, Jasmine Owens and Marissa Clardy, and first-years Sophia Brancazio and Molly Martorella. The third-place Yeomen squad had six of their members receive NCAC commendation. Senior Josh Gallagher and juniors Alex Guo and Shawn Chrapczynski each received honors for three different events, while sophomore Terrance Embry and juniors Peter Morris and Stephen Williams also raked in conference prestige.

The conference honored three excellent seniors from Oberlin’s baseball squad. Senior pitcher Phil Brua headlines the trio, placing on the all-NCAC second team, while his teammates and fellow seniors Max Phinney and Ben Puterbaugh were honorable mentions. Brua is the Oberlin all-time leader in saves and appearances with 11 and 65, respectively. He also is second all-time in wins with 15. Phinney led the Yeomen in several hitting categories on the year with a .357 batting average, .470 slugging percentage, and 28 RBIs. Puterbaugh leaves as Oberlin’s all-time leader in hits, with 181, at-bats, with 518, and total bases, with 241.

The NCAC put junior outfielder Katie Baldonieri on its honorable mention team for her outstanding play this year. She paced the Yeowomen with 20 RBIs this year, while also placing second on the team in hits, doubles, slugging, and total bases.

The Yeowomen lacrosse team had three sophomore honorees. Grace Amber earned All-NCAC second team and led the Yeowomen effort with 35 goals. Molly Bloom, who was second on the team in goals with 31 and tied for the team lead in assists with six, received all-NCAC Honorable Mention for the second year running. Illyssa Meyer joined Bloom with Honorable Mention status, netting 29 goals this year while tying Bloom for the team-high in assists with six.

With many of Oberlin’s recognized athletes returning next year, the future of Oberlin sports looks promising. Be sure to fill the stands next year and watch these success stories unfold before your eyes.