Four Tar Heels Earn ACC Postgraduate Honors

GREENSBORO – Four UNC senior student-athletes were announced Thursday as 2019 Atlantic Coast Conference Weaver-James-Corrigan Postgraduate Scholarship Award recipients, recognizing their outstanding academic and athletic performance during their careers at North Carolina. They are among 52 students recognized this year by the ACC, representing every conference school.

Blaine Boyden (men's tennis), Morgan Goetz (field hockey) and Luke Maye (men's basketball) were selected for postgraduate scholarships. Alex Comsia (men's soccer) was one of nine ACC student-athletes who plan to pursue professional careers in their chosen sports and were named honorary recipients.

Boyden, from Raleigh, is majoring in business administration. A captain of the fifth-ranked men's tennis team, he is a starter in singles and doubles and will graduate from UNC in May.

Comsia, from North Vancouver, B.C., graduated from UNC in December after majoring in business administration. He was recently named the 2018 ACC Scholar-Athlete of the Year for men's soccer.

Goetz, from Cary, N.C., is majoring in biomedical engineering. She started on defense for the 2018 UNC field hockey team, which finished the season undefeated, winning NCAA and ACC titles. A Phi Beta Kappa inductee, she will graduate in May.

Maye, from Huntersville, N.C., is majoring in business administration and also will graduate in May. Last year's Skip Prosser Award winner as the top scholar-athlete in men's basketball, he was named the preseason ACC Player of the Year and is a finalist for the Karl Malone Award (nation's top power forward) and the Naismith Player of the Year Award.

All of the Weaver-James-Corrigan recipients will be honored at the annual Cone Health ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Luncheon presented by ESPN on April 10. The luncheon will be hosted by the Nat Greene Kiwanis Club at the Sheraton Four Seasons Hotel Imperial Ballroom in Greensboro, North Carolina.

The postgraduate scholarships are awarded to selected student-athletes who intend to pursue a graduate degree following completion of their undergraduate requirements. Each recipient will receive $6,000 toward his or her graduate education. Those honored have performed with distinction in both the classroom and their respective sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.

The following student-athletes will be honored as 2019 ACC Postgraduate Scholars:

Name, Institution, Major, Sport
Zach Allen, Boston College, Finance, Football
Asiya Dair, Boston College, Economics, Women's Tennis
Isabelle Kennedy, Boston College, English, Applied Psychology & Human Development, Women's Track and Field
*Alice Hewson, Clemson, Accounting, Women's Golf
Miranda Weslake, Clemson, Business Administration, Women's Soccer
Virginia Elena Carta, Duke, Environmental Science/Policy, Women's Golf
Mitchell Finesilver, Duke, Evolutionary Anthropology, Wrestling
Kayla McCoy, Duke, Cultural Anthropology, Women's Soccer
Brianne Burkert, Florida State, Communications-Public Relations, Women's Volleyball
Dallas Dorosy, Florida State, Social Science, Women's Soccer
Meghan King, Florida State, Family & Child Sciences, Softball
Brad Stewart, Georgia Tech, Mechanical Engineering, Football
Amy Ruiz, Georgia Tech, Electrical Engineering, Women's Track and Field
Jeanine Williams, Georgia Tech, Biochemistry, Women's Track and Field
Holly Hankenson, Louisville, Marketing, Women's Track and Field
Sidney Melton, Louisville, Health and Human Performance, Exercise Science, Softball
Molly Sauer, Louisville, Health and Human Performance, Exercise Science, Women's Volleyball
Jamie Brunworth, Miami, Biology, Women's Soccer
Jaquan Johnson, Miami, Human & Social Development Studies, Football
Roxanne Yu, Miami, Criminology, Women's Swimming and Diving
Blaine Boyden, North Carolina, Business Administration, Men's Tennis
Morgan Goetz, North Carolina, Biomedical and Health Science Engineering, Field Hockey
Luke Maye, North Carolina, Business Administration, Men's Basketball
Anton Ipsen, NC State, Industrial Engineering, Men's Swimming and Diving
Hannah Moore, NC State, Nutrition Science, Women's Swimming and Diving
Sydney Wootten, NC State, Biological Sciences- Human Biology, Women's Soccer
Sabrina Flores, Notre Dame, PreProfessional, Women's Soccer
Allison Miller, Notre Dame, Neuroscience & Behavior, Women's Tennis
Thomas Ueland, Notre Dame, Biological Sciences, Men's Soccer
Kamalani, Akeo, Pitt, Human Resource Management; Marketing, Women's Volleyball
Olivia Gray, Pitt, Rehabilitation Science, Softball
Brian Lovasik, Pitt, Rehabilitation Science, Men's Swimming and Diving
Marcus Cunningham, Syracuse, Biology, Men's Lacrosse
Santita Ebangwese, Syracuse, Bioengineering, Women's Volleyball
Arianna Lee, Syracuse, Computer Engineering, Rowing
Chesdin Harrington, Virginia, American Studies, Baseball
Erika Osherow, Virginia, Kinesiology, Softball
Rachel Politi, Virginia, Biology, Women's Swimming and Diving
*Taylor Emery, Virginia Tech, Creative Writing, Women's Basketball
Ian Ho, Virginia Tech, Mechanical Engineering (Undergrad & Master's), Men's Swimming and Diving
Megan Anderson, Wake Forest, Health and Exercise Science, Field hockey
Juliane Grashoff, Wake Forest, Finance, Field hockey
*Mimi Smith, Wake Forest, Health and Exercise Science, Women's Cross Country / Track & Field
*Thacker Award Winner

Honorary Postgraduate Scholarship Nominees
Name, Institution, Major, Sport
Christian Wilkins, Clemson, Communication/Athletic Leadership, Football
James Clark, Georgia Tech, Business Administration/Finance concentration, Men's Golf
Lindsay Morrow, NC State, Nutrition Sciences, Women's Swimming and Diving
Olivia Cason, Louisville, Finance, Women's Golf
Demetrius Jackson, Miami, Liberal Studies and Political Science, Football
Alex Comsia, North Carolina, Business Administration, Men's Soccer
Drue Tranquill, Notre Dame, Mechanical Engineering, Football
Jaila Tolbert, Virginia Tech, International Studies/ Business, Women's Volleyball
Petros Chrysochos, Wake Forest, Communication, Men's Tennis

About the Weaver-James-Corrigan Award
The Weaver-James-Corrigan Award is named in honor of the late Jim Weaver and Bob James, as well as Gene Corrigan, the first three ACC commissioners. The league's first commissioner, James H. Weaver, served the conference from 1954-70 after a stint as the Director of Athletics at Wake Forest University. His early leadership and uncompromising integrity are largely responsible for the excellent reputation enjoyed by the ACC today.

Robert C. James, a former University of Maryland football player, was named commissioner in 1971 and served in that capacity for 16 years. During his tenure, the league continued to grow in stature and became recognized as a national leader in athletics and academics, winning 23 national championships and maintaining standards of excellence in the classroom.

Eugene F. Corrigan assumed his role as the third full-time commissioner on September 1, 1987 and served until August of 1997. During Corrigan's tenure, ACC schools captured 30 NCAA championships and two national football titles.

Prior to 1994, the Weaver-James postgraduate scholarships were awarded as separate honors, including the Jim Weaver Award, the Marie James Award and the Bob James Award.

About the Thacker Award
The Thacker Award, which originated in 2005, is awarded in honor of the late Jim and Pat Thacker of Charlotte, North Carolina. Jim Thacker was the primary play-by-play announcer for the ACC's first television network. Recipients of the award must demonstrate outstanding performance both in athletic competition and in the classroom and intend to further their education through postgraduate studies at an ACC institution. Clemson's Alice Hewson, Virginia Tech's Taylor Emery, and Wake Forest's Mimi Smith are this year's Thacker Award winners.

Players Mentioned

Blaine Boyden

Alex Comsia

Morgan Goetz

Luke Maye

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