Team of the Year: Hockey
Despite losing many talented players such as goaltender Paul Marshall heading into the 2010-11 season, a powerful front line and solid defense led Ohio to another successful season.
Forwards Michael Schultz and Tyler Pilmore led the team with a combined 43 goals and 78 assists while freshman Brett Agnew added with 38 points.
Ohio finished with a 29-7-2 record and claimed its second Central States Collegiate Hockey League tournament championship in three years.
After being swept by Lindenwood just three weeks prior, the Bobcats blanked the Lions 4-0 in the CSCHL tournament championship game.
Ohio advanced to the American Collegiate Hockey Association Division I National Tournament as the third seed. The Bobcats lost in the national semifinals to eventual champion Davenport.
“Expectations are always high. Every team is different and has their own story,” coach Dan Morris said. “This group of guys motivated each other to achieve not only on the ice but in the classroom as well. They really cared about each other. That’s one thing that made them so special.”
Special enough to earn The Post’s Team of the Year award, that is.
— Rob Ogden
ro137807@ohiou.edu
Male Athlete of the Year: Marcellis Williamson. Defensive tackle, Football
The athlete of the year award typically goes to a student-athlete who excels on the field, and many past winners garnered top Mid-American Conference honors.
Marcellis Williamson, though a starter for the Bobcats, thrived in a role that gained little on-field notice. His job was to plug the middle of the defensive line so the players around him could make big plays and gain recognition.
When Williamson suddenly died April 27 from a blood clot in his lung, the Bobcat community quickly found out the former defensive tackle’s impact went far beyond a football game. Friends and teammates flocked to Twitter and Williamson’s Facebook page with kind words and memories.
Immediately after Williamson’s death, his family and Ohio Athletics created a memorial fund to help pay for the funeral. More than $8,000 has since been donated to it. The Ohio cheerleaders even held a fundraising car wash despite cold and rainy weather.
The affection and support shown by the university community shows Williamson made a greater impact in his friends’ lives than even the best athlete could make in competition.
And for that, The Post honors Marcellis Williamson as the first-ever posthumous selection for its Male Athlete of the Year.
— Vince Nairn
vn379506@ohiou.edu
Co-Female Athletes of the year:
Annie Beecham, Distance, Track & Field
How good was Annie Beecham this year? She is the only Ohio athlete whose season still isn’t over.
Beecham shattered her own personal record and set a MAC record in the 10,000-meter at the NCAA East Regional to earn a trip to the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, beginning June 8.
In her final year, Beecham made All-MAC first team for the outdoor season and also made All-MAC second team in the indoor season. She set school indoor records for the 3,000-meter run and the 5,000-meter run.
Emily Wethington, Pitcher, Softball
What can be said about Emily Wethington that already hasn’t been said? The senior pitcher from New Palistine, Ind. finished the season with 21 wins, 166 strikeouts and seven home runs while leading the Bobcats to a berth in the MAC Tournament Championship. Along the way, she rewrote the Ohio softball record book.
Wethington wrapped up her career as Ohio’s all-time leader in wins (54), strikeouts (558), home runs (27) and slugging percentage (.546). In her final season she was named to the All-MAC First Team and the All-MAC Tournament Team and was twice named MAC East Pitcher of the Week.
— Bart Logan
bl245106@ohiou.edu
Coach of the Year: Joel Greenlee, Wrestling
Leading Ohio to a share of the Mid-American Conference title has earned 14th-year wrestling coach Joel Greenlee honors as The Post’s Coach of the Year.
Ohio went 10-6 this season, including 4-1 in MAC play. The team tied Central Michigan (8-8, 4-1 MAC) and Kent State (14-6, 4-1) for the MAC regular season title.
In addition to the title, Greenlee sent four wrestlers to the MAC tournament finals, where Ohio finished fourth as a team. Three of the wrestlers who qualified for the finals, Nick Purdue (174-pound weight class), Erik Schuth (184) and Jeremy Johnson (285) all advanced to the 2011 NCAA Division I Wrestling Championship.
Purdue made it to the second day of competition before falling to Dorian Henderson of Missouri.
Greenlee also coached Jeremy Johnson, who not only was named MAC Freshman of the Year but also Third-Team All-Rookie by Amateur Wrestling News.
— Olivia Arbogast
oa191109@ohiou.edu
Freshman of the Year: Mattie Liston, Goalkeeper, Soccer
Before she had taken a class in Athens, Ohio’s Mattie Liston was taking opponents to school.
Liston, a freshman from Lakewood, Ohio, opened her collegiate career with a 2-0 shutout victory on the road against Pittsburgh. By the end of the year, she had racked up six shutouts and allowed one or fewer goals in 13 of the Bobcats’ 19 games. She also became the team’s first freshman to play ever minute in net since 1998.
She allowed only 21 goals on the season, tying a team record for the fewest goals allowed in a season. Her save percentage of .814 was the fourth-best single-season figure in team history.
Liston’s six shutouts already put her fourth all-time on Ohio’s shutout list.
— Michael Stainbrook
ms229908@ohiou.edu
@ThePostSports
