Steffi Graf recipient of OWU’s top honor
Steffi Graf capped her academic and athletic career at Ohio Wesleyan University by being named the school’s top scholar-athlete for 2007-08.
A graduating senior basketball and volleyball standout from Poland High, Graf won the Presidential Award at the fourth annual Dale J. Bruce Scholar-Athlete Awards Dinner held April 20 in the Benes Rooms of the Hamilton-Williams Campus Center on the Ohio Wesleyan campus in Delaware.
The award is presented by the OWU athletics department to the top athlete and person, and is based on athletic ability and achievement, academic excellence, character, leadership, activities and inspiration.
Graf demonstrated that she was among the best athletes in the North Coast Athletic Conference.
She made the All-NCAC first team in basketball this season, after being an honorable mention as a junior.
She also made the All-NCAC volleyball second team as a senior after being a first-team pick as a junior.
Outstanding student, too; ESPN Academic selection
Graf also was an outstanding student and was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV women’s basketball second team in February.
An English major, she had a 3.82 cumulative grade point average.
The ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District teams are selected by members of the College Sports Information Directors of America, with District IV consisting of schools in Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee and Alabama.
Graf also was an Academic All-District first-team selection in volleyball last fall.
In basketball as a wing for coach Nan Carney-DeBord, Graf led OWU (18-8, 12-4 NCAC) in scoring with (292 points , 11.2 average) and steals with (53, 2.04 average) in 26 games.
She made 94-of-244 shots from the field for 38.5 percent, including 45-for-134 (33.6) from 3-point range, and 59-for-75 (78.7) at the free throw line.
Graf ranked fourth in the NCAC in steals and 12th in scoring. She also was eighth-best in 3-point goals (45 or 1.73 per game).
In volleyball for coach Cynthia Holliday, Graf played 106 games and led the team in kills (376 or 3.55 a game) and points (436.5, 4.12), and was No. 2 in digs (664 , 6.26 ).
She ranked No. 4 in the NCAC in kills and No. 5 in points and digs.
Scored seven points in 30 seconds of game
In one of Graf’s top basketball performances last season in a Feb. 16 game against Allegheny at home in Branch Rickey Arena, she scored seven points in less than 30 seconds to give OWU the lead, and finished with 20 points as the Bishops won.
In another outstanding achievement, Graf was named NCAC player of the week Dec. 30, 2007, after helping OWU to two wins and the championship of the South Padre Island (Texas) Shootout.
Graf had 15 points, nine assists, four steals and four rebounds in the tournament, and was named the event’s Most Valuable Player.
Graf is living and working in Columbus this summer, and is enrolled at Pace University in New York City to begin work on her master’s degree in professional editing this coming school year.
She will study in the distance learning program and will not relocate to New York City.
XJohn Kovach writes about college athletics for The Vindicator. Write to him at kovach@vindy.com.