Winners Giving Back
Successful sports teams and communities are built on character, collaboration, and commitment. When it comes to athletics at UW-Stevens Point, the Pointers have taken their success as one of the country's top athletics programs into the community to make an impact and give back.
Not only did the Pointers claim the All-Sports and Men's Award in the 2010-11 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) All-Sports Award standings, UWSP earned the Jostens Trophy for the National Association of Division III Athletics Administrators, given to scholar-athletes within the NCAA Division III for overall community service.
"The community is so supportive of all of our athletics teams, so it is nice to have a chance to give back to them and show our appreciation," said baseball player Jordan Rennicke.
Last year alone, UWSP teams logged more than 1,000 hours of community service such as building houses, and reading to children, coaching youth sports teams.
"This award is a fitting tribute to a program that has earned a national reputation not only for athletic excellence, but for the many ways our Pointers student-athletes give back to our community," said Chancellor Bernie Patterson.
When the city of Stevens Point was struck with serious flooding in September, the athletics department was there. Forty-five wrestlers, baseball players, and staff filled and tied sand bags and helped load dump trucks to assist the city.
"Thanks to the unselfish generosity of the athletics department and its student-athletes, we were prepared for the worst and saw the best in this community," said Stevens Point Mayor Andrew Halverson. "Stevens Point would not be the type of community it is without the huge cooperation between UWSP and the city."
UWSP Athletics is the epitome of Division III, encouraging student-athletes to take advantage of the many opportunities, both within and beyond athletics, so that they may develop their full potential as students, athletes, and citizens.
"Earning the Jostens Trophy shows that UWSP student-athletes are here for the right reasons," Rennicke added. "Pointers are servant minded and enjoy giving back because we have been given so much by our incredibly supportive community."
Community service is a priority for UWSP students as a whole, a whole with more than 1,900 students volunteering locally and on service trips last year.