Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer
FOLLOW THE CAC
  • Alice Lloyd College

    Alice Lloyd College

  • Arkansas Baptist

    Arkansas Baptist

  • Carolina University

    Carolina University

  • Fisher College

    Fisher College

  • Florida College

    Florida College

  • Florida National University

    Florida National University

  • Georgia Gwinnett College

    Georgia Gwinnett College

  • Haskell Indian Nations University

    Haskell Indian Nations University

  • Hesston College

    Hesston College

  • Morris College

    Morris College

  • University of Victoria

    University of Victoria

  • Washington Adventist University

    Washington Adventist University

CAC Announces 2021-22 Award Winners
Posted: Jul 18, 2022

CAC Announces 2021-22 Award Winners

The Continental Athletic Conference has recognized six administrators, coaches and student-athletes for their exemplary performances during the 2021-22 athletic year.

Georgia Gwinnett College had three award winners, followed by Haskell Indian Nations University (Kansas) with two selections and Iowa Wesleyan University with one honoree.

GGC Associate Vice President of Athletics Dr. Darin S. Wilson earned the Athletic Director of the Year award, while Shira Williams was named the Athletic Trainer of the Year and junior softball player Sydney Pelaez was named the A.O. Duer Scholarship Award winner. Dr. Ian Potter is the CAC's Charles Morris Administrator of the Year nominee for the NAIA's national award.

Haskell Indian Nations Head Volleyball Coach Alta Malchoff St. Pierre was the recipient of the Coach of Character award. Junior volleyball player Antonia Chinanna received the LeRoy Walker Character award.

Iowa Wesleyan University's Courtney Carl was named the 2021-22 Sports Information Director of the Year.

Each award winner is now eligible for national NAIA honors in their categories. The national awards will be presented in the fall.

Wilson has led Georgia Gwinnett College's Office of Athletics since 2011 and 2021-22 marked the school's 10th season of intercollegiate athletics. Under his leadership the Grizzlies have captured 16 NAIA national championships, with national titles in men's and women's tennis added this past spring.

Williams, assistant director of sports medicine and performance, is receiving the Athletic Trainer of the Year award for the second consecutive season. She overseas daily operations for GGC's women's soccer and baseball teams while supervising the training staff's student intern program. Williams completed her 10th season at the college in 2021-22.

The A.O. Duer Scholarship Award is presented by Daktronics to a student-athlete excelling in academics, character and citizenship. The NAIA has presented this award annually since 1967 in recognition of the NAIA's former executive secretary. Pelaez was a first-team 2022 Academic All-America selection by the College Sports Information Directors of America. The catcher also received all-CAC honors after batting .405, hitting six home runs and driving in 33 runs while starting all 50 games during the 2022 season. She also was named to the conference's all-tournament team after helping lead GGC to the championship. Off the diamond, Pelaez was an active member of GGC's Student Council and Council for Student-Athletes.

Potter completed his 10th year as GGC's assistant athletic director for internal operations and compliance. He serves as the CAC's compliance eligibility chair and in 2021-22 was the inaugural president for the Athletics Compliance Administrators Association from 2016-19 and past president in 2019-20. Potter also helped create the compliance administrator position within the NAIA. This position had not been officially recognized by the membership. The Administrator of the Year award, recognizing an administrator engaged in all phases of NAIA athletics, was named in honor of Charles Morris, who was past NAIA associate executive director.

Malchoff St. Pierre completed her second season leading the volleyball program at Haskell Indian Nations during the 2021 season. She instills a culture within the program that follows the NAIA's five core values: integrity, sportsmanship, responsibility, servant leadership, and respect for her student-athletes as they embark and progress throughout their collegiate careers as student-athletes and young adults.

Chinanna, a student-athlete at Haskell Indian Nations since 2018, received the LeRoy Walker Character award as a student-athlete with at least a junior academic status who has demonstrated outstanding academic achievement along with campus and community leadership that embraces NAIA's five core character values. She been a Champions of Character ambassador at the college and received the 2021 team's Champions of Character award winner. Chinana earned an associate degree in recreational and fitness management and is now studying for a bachelor's degree in business administration. In 2018, she helped the volleyball team program capture its first conference championship.

Carl helped supervise operations as Iowa Wesleyan host CAC men's and women's basketball (2021) and golf (2022) championship events. Iowa Wesleyan's women's basketball won the CAC title and advanced to the NAIA national tournament. She also helped promote conference postseason appearances by women's soccer and baseball as the college made a successful transition from NCAA Division III competition. Carl promotes Iowa Wesleyan's 16 intercollegiate teams while also serving as the university's associate athletic director for compliance.