Kent Weiser, director of intercollege athletics, introduced the 2017-18 Earl W. Sauder Athletic Scholars at a luncheon recently at the Sauder Alumni Center. Thirty-five student-athletes from all 15 intercollegiate sports offered at Emporia State were honored.
“I had the honor of knowing Earl Sauder for many years,” said Weiser. “Something I always ask myself is ‘would I be able to introduce this young person to Earl Sauder and would he be proud of them?’”
Even after the passing of Earl Sauder in 2006, the Sauder family has continued to build on his legacy by enhancing the scholarship with gifts of their own. In 2013, Earl Sauder’s son Steve Sauder and his wife Bobbi Sauder gave a significant gift that doubled the annual output of the Earl W. Sauder Athletic Scholarship.
“I know that Earl would be very proud that these student-athletes are Hornets on and off the field,” said Weiser. “The endowed gift by Earl Sauder and the follow-up gift by Steve Sauder and the Sauder family has made an extreme impact on the athletics department and on our ability to recruit top-notch athletes.”
Steve Sauder is the president of Emporia’s Radio Stations, Inc., (KVOE AM & FM and KFFX-FM) and also a founder and chairman of the Board of Managers of ValuNet, Emporia’s fiber-optic broadband network that makes it one of only two gigabit communities in Kansas.
“One day, my dad and I were talking and I told him that if he gave a substantial gift to Emporia State Athletics, it would be transformative. When he established the scholarship program, he made sure that all 15 sports were included. We’re really proud of the Earl W. Sauder Athletic Scholars.”
Below is a list of the 2017-18 Earl W. Sauder Athletic Scholars and their sports:
- Addie Lackey, Women’s Basketball
- Ashlynn Summar, Soccer
- Brandon Hall, Men’s Basketball
- Braxton Marstall, Football
- Brianna Schmitz, Track & Cross Country
- Caitlin VanVleck, Softball
- Danielle Sprinkle, Softball
- Donovan Walker, Football
- Duncan Fort, Men’s Basketball
- Elizabeth Blevins, Track & Cross Country
- Jazmin Williams, Track & Cross Country
- Jessica Wayne, Women’s Basketball
- Justin Brown, Football
- Kaden Shaffer, Baseball
- Kaley Clark, Tennis
- Kyrstie Miller, Women’s Basketball
- Landon Nault, Football
- Leah Mettam, Soccer
- Louis Dailey, Football
- Marcus Houghton, Football
- Maria Walden, Soccer
- Mason Brown, Baseball
- Maxwell Simpson, Baseball
- Mikenzie Garvin, Softball
- Morris Williams, Football
- Patrick Cameron, Tennis
- Sarah Durham, Tennis
- Seth Holman, Baseball
- Sloan Baker, Baseball
- Tatum Graves, Volleyball
- Taylor Sangorski, Baseball
- Taysean Goodwin, Track & Cross Country
- Thomas LaRoche, Track & Cross Country
- Wyatt Sander, Track & Cross Country
- Yuchen Du, Volleyball