Emily Monson (SR/Cheney, Kan.) encountered diametrically opposing feelings upon learning she had won Kansas Wesleyan's coveted M. Virginia Bevan Female Student-Athlete of the Year Thursday night.
"It's pretty bittersweet knowing it's the last thing for me with K-Dub," said Monson, who was KWU's all-everything defensive specialist during the 2021 volleyball season. "I was very happy but also kind of sad at the same time."
Receiving the F. Gene Bissell Male Student-Athlete of the Year Award was further affirmation for Jun Murdock (SO/Wichita, Kan.), who transferred to Wesleyan during the summer of 2020 and sat out a year before joining the Coyotes' basketball team and becoming their starting point guard for the 2021-22 season.
"I felt like it was the right decision and that's why I made it," said Murdock, who played his freshman season at Friends before deciding to head north. "I felt like this school would fit me the best and it definitely did. I've built some great relationships with my teammates and I feel like we're a brotherhood."
Monson and Murdock received the marquee awards during the university's eighth annual Yotee Awards that were staged inside Mabee Arena. The event, which drew a large crowd of Coyote student-athletes, was sponsored by the Student-Athlete Advisory Council and featured emcees Marvin Mitchell (FR/De Soto, Texas) and Parker Norton (SO/Salina, Kan.).
The M. Virginia Bevan Female Student Athlete of the Year award is named for M. Virginia (Ginny) Bevan, who was a pioneer in women's athletics. She organized opportunities for young women to compete in intercollegiate athletics before the implementation of Title IX. She made sure that Kansas Wesleyan was at the forefront of the Title IX movement and served as the first coach of women's sports at KWU. She also served as a professor in the Physical Education Department and was a life advisor to many students on the KWU campus.
The Dr. F. Gene Bissell Male Student Athlete of the Year award is named for the late Dr. Franklin Gene Bissell who arrived at Kansas Wesleyan in 1950 as an assistant football coach and assumed the head coaching role in 1952 and remained in that role until retiring from coaching football in 1978. Bissell remained at KWU until fully retiring in 1994. While at KWU, Bissell also coached track and field, served as assistant basketball coach, helped reinstate the baseball program twice, and was a willing advocate for the addition of women's athletics. He also served as Athletic Director and a professor in the Kinesiology department. The field at the former Glenn Martin Stadium was named in his honor in 1994 and the field was rededicated in his name at the opening of the Graves Family Sports Complex in 2015.
Monson was chosen the Kansas Conference's Defender of the Year and was a first-team all-conference selection last fall, both for the second consecutive season. The Coyotes were 21-9 overall and 9-3 in the KCAC.
She transferred to KWU from Pittsburg State after realizing she wanted to continue playing volleyball and her impact was immediate and profound.
"I'm just so thankful I was able to come here," said Monson, a marketing communications and graphic design major. "I didn't think I'd ever have the opportunity to play volleyball again. Just seeing how far I've come from not playing my freshman year to winning this award and finishing out my career this year is amazing. I'm so glad I did it."
Monson said she knows she'll miss KWU next year.
"I'm really thankful for all the opportunities and the relationships I've made while being here," she said. "It's been a great experience."
KWU's basketball fortunes vastly improved the first minute Murdock stepped on the floor. The former Wichita Southeast High School standout earned NAIA Honorable Mention All-America and was a unanimous All-KCAC First Team choice. He averaged 13.7 points, 3.6 assists and 3.5 rebounds and led the Coyotes to their first NAIA National Championship berth and first tournament victory since the 2006-07 season.
Men's Basketball, which finished with a 23-11 overall record (15-9 in the KCAC), also picked up awards for Most Successful Season, Male Newcomer of the Year (Cody Kaplan) and Best Win (Indiana University-South Bend) and Best Win Against Bethany.
"This is definitely a great honor being my first year here," said Murdock, whose brother Jordan is a KWU assistant coach. "I've got to thank my teammates, coaches, family, God – they put me in a position to get this. That's the main thing."
Murdock said sticking together paid dividends for the Coyotes during the 2021-22 season.
"We gelled together well and we were more of a family this year," he said. "We'd get on each other but nobody would get mad so that was a big deal and helped us come together as a family."
Murdock said there's more to look forward to in 2022-23.
"(The NAIA Tournament) is always going to be the goal," he said. "We want to go even further next year; we want to get to the national championship."
Several other awards were given out as part of the ceremony. All awards were selected by members of SAAC from nominations received from members of the athletic staff.
Female Freshman of the Year: Angel Roman (FR/Jacksonville, Fla.), Flag Football
Male Freshman of the Year: Kalil Murphy (FR/Hollywood, Fla.), Track and Field
Female Newcomer of the Year: Malia Mack (JR/Joplin, Mo.), Women's Volleyball
Male Newcomer of the Year: Cory Kaplan (SO/Merritt Island, Fla.), Men's Basketball
Best Comeback Win: Flag Football vs Saint Mary, rallying from 20-0 deficit to win 21-20 in windy and cold conditions on the road in Leavenworth
Best Win Over Bethany: Men's Basketball. February 12, 80-73 win in Lindsborg
Best Win Overall: Men's Basketball vs IU South Bend in NAIA Opening Round
Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Hannah Hart (SO/Ventura, Calif.), Women's Golf
Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Landon Berquist (SO/Lawrence, Kan.), Men's Golf
Team GPA Leader: Women's Cross Country
Assistant Coach of the Year: Kate Madsen, Women's Volleyball
Head Coach of the Year: Anthony Monson, Men's Basketball
Female Lone Coyote Award: Stephanie Martinez (SR/Horizon City, Texas), Women's Track and Cross Country
Randy Bemiss Male Lone Coyote Award: Daniel Harkin (FR/Manhattan, Kan.), Men's Tennis
Most Successful Season: Men's Basketball
Teams that achieved better than a 3.0 team GPA were also recognized as part of the ceremony. A total of 19 teams were recognized for the achievement.
The Lone Coyote Award honors excellence by a student-athlete in an individual sport. The men's award is named for former KWU Golf Coach Randy Bemiss.
Team MVP for each team were announced, based on nomination by coaches:
Zofia Selwesiuk (SR/Wroclaw, Poland), Women's Tennis
Bryce Ware (FR/Amarillo, Texas), Men's Tennis
Drevon Macon (JR/Los Angeles, Calif.), Football
Hannah Hart, Women's Golf
Trevor Watson (SO/Coffeyville, Kan.), Men's Golf
Brianna Hernandez-Silva (JR/Las Vegas, Nev.), Flag Football
Carmen Angulo (SR/Long Beach, Calif.), Softball
Peyton Dyer (JR/Upland, Calif.), Esports
Haydn Brown (SR/Gardnerville, Nev.), Baseball
Stephanie Martinez, Women's Cross Country
Tabetha Deines (SR/Salina, Kan.), Women's Track and Field
Daniel Harkin, Men's Cross County
Eugene Dixon (SR/Plymouth, Minn.), Men's Track and Field
Yarielle Galindo, Women's Soccer
Alfonso Lopez (JR/Fontana, Calif.), Men's Soccer
Kelcey Hinz (SR/Whitewater, Kan.), Women's Basketball
Jun Murdock, Men's Basketball
Linda Himes (JR/Texarkana, Ark.), Women's Bowling
Taylor Miller (SO/McPherson, Kan.), Men's Bowling
Elizabeth Hardacre (JR/Kensington, Kan.), Women's Volleyball
Viet Nguyen (FR/Wichita, Kan.), Men's Volleyball
Kelcie Bailey (SO/Fort Scott, Kan.), Dance
Ashley Hawthorne (FR/Henderson, Nev.), Cheer
Dan O'Connell, KWU's longtime and widely respected head trainer, was recognized at the end of the event with the Athletic Trainer Appreciation Award. O'Connell is leaving KWU next month for a new job in Lawrence.