DePaul University Athletics
DePaul Athletics Honors Comeback Class of 2019
6/14/2019 4:02:00 PM | ATHLETICS
Seniors brought home 17 BIG EAST titles and 47 major awards in memorable four-year run
CHICAGO - DePaul Blue Demon graduating student-athletes gathered at the annual graduation luncheon hosted by Director of Athletics Jean Lenti Ponsetto Friday in the Sullivan Athletic Center as a kickoff to DePaul University's Commencement Weekend.
The Blue Demons were resplendent in their bright red graduation stoles. They are the seventh class of DePaul student-athletes to participate in the university's graduation ceremony wearing the sharp-looking red sash with the university insignia on one side and the athletic department insignia on the other.
They will also hold the distinction of being an inspirational class as women's basketball, women's tennis and softball all staged dramatic comebacks to capture a BIG EAST tournament title.
Chanté Stonewall's three-point play with five seconds left sparked DePaul to a 74-73 victory over Marquette in a Wintrust Arena nationally televised title showdown that Blue Demons trailed most of the night. Stonewall was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Women's tennis was tied 3-3 with No. 1 seed Xavier in the BIG EAST Tennis Championships and Alina Kuzmenkova was down 3-0 in the final set. The poised sophomore bounced back for a 6-3 win in Cayce, S.C.
The softball team was down and nearly out, falling behind Villanova 9-3 with two innings left in the BIG EAST Softball tournament championship game. That's when the most resounding rally of the season took place as the Blue Demons scored eight runs in the top of the sixth on their way to an 11-10 triumph at the Ballpark at Rosemont.
This illustrious class of seniors capped off a terrific four-year run by leading DePaul teams to 17 BIG EAST Conference titles and 47 major conference awards. The class of 2019 also made 25 NCAA postseason appearances.
Four seniors at the luncheon were always at their best on and off the playing surface. Excelling between the lines and in the classroom, women's basketball standout Martè Grays was a repeat selection to the Athletic Director's Association national Scholar-Athlete Team which also honored men's Max Strus of men's basketball. Grays was a WBCA honorable mention All-American and Strus was named to the NABC and Google Cloud CoSIDA All-District teams. Kyle Decker of men's track and field was honored as the BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete and also won a BIG EAST Postgraduate Leadership Award. Morgan Greenwood was the BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete for softball.
In her speech to the graduating seniors on Friday, Ponsetto pointed out that they helped DePaul win 30 percent of the BIG EAST Conference athletics awards and 40 percent of the academic accolades competing against the nine other athletics programs in the league.
This past season, women's track matched its program best finishing second at both the BIG EAST Track and Field Indoor and Outdoor Championships.
Senior Jade Nolan was the Most Outstanding Field Performer and High Point Performer at both the indoor and outdoor meets. Men's track standout Brendan van Voorhis was the Most Outstanding Track Performer and High Point Performer at the BIG EAST outdoor meet.
Women's track qualified Nolan (triple jump), senior Alexia Brooks (100-meter hurdles), Jade Gates (hammer throw), senior Caroline Mueller (high jump) and Kiersten Walker (400m) and men's track sent Henry Larkin (400m) to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Preliminary Championships.
Men's tennis advanced to the BIG EAST Championship semifinals for the fourth consecutive year and Vito Tonejc was named the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year.
Women's tennis won to its fourth BIG EAST Championship title in the last six years overcoming a series of injuries throughout the season. Marija Jovicic was honored as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Coach Doug Bruno's Blue Demons made their 17th consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, led the nation in three-point field goal attempts and were No. 3 in the country in three-point field goals and three-pointers per game. They won their fourth BIG EAST tournament title in the last six years and finished No. 24 in the final Associated Press national poll and No. 25 in the coaches poll.
Softball celebrated a three-peat BIG EAST tournament title as the program made its 21st appearance in the NCAA tournament. Natalie Halvorson was named Most Outstanding Player while Maranda Gutierrez won the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Award for the conference season.
Men's golf defied the experts matching a program-best finish of second in the BIG EAST Championship after being seeded No. 6. Senior Charlie Spencer-White's individual runner-up finish also matched a program best.
Men's soccer, women's soccer and women's tennis also surpassed the expectations of BIG EAST coaches.
These outstanding student-athletes took photos in their caps and gowns while officially joining DePaul's Athletic Alumni D-Club. Ponsetto expressed her thanks for their dedication and sacrifice the last four years and for bringing such honor and distinction to the university.
DePaul officially began its commencement activities at 4 p.m. Friday with a Baccalaureate Mass at St. Vincent de Paul Church.
Here is the 2019 commencement schedule:
Saturday
The Chicago Theatre
175 N. State St.
3 p.m. (doors open at 2 p.m.)
College of Law
Wintrust Arena
200 E. Cermak Rd.
8 a.m. (doors open at 7 a.m.)
College of Computing and Digital Media
The Theatre School
1 p.m. (doors open at noon)
College of Communication
College of Education
6 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
College of Science and Health
School of Music
Sunday
Wintrust Arena
200 E. Cermak Rd.
8 a.m. (doors open at 7 a.m.)
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
School for New Learning
1 p.m. (doors open at noon)
Kellstadt Graduate School of Business
6 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
Driehaus College of Business
(undergraduate students only)
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The Blue Demons were resplendent in their bright red graduation stoles. They are the seventh class of DePaul student-athletes to participate in the university's graduation ceremony wearing the sharp-looking red sash with the university insignia on one side and the athletic department insignia on the other.
They will also hold the distinction of being an inspirational class as women's basketball, women's tennis and softball all staged dramatic comebacks to capture a BIG EAST tournament title.
Chanté Stonewall's three-point play with five seconds left sparked DePaul to a 74-73 victory over Marquette in a Wintrust Arena nationally televised title showdown that Blue Demons trailed most of the night. Stonewall was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Women's tennis was tied 3-3 with No. 1 seed Xavier in the BIG EAST Tennis Championships and Alina Kuzmenkova was down 3-0 in the final set. The poised sophomore bounced back for a 6-3 win in Cayce, S.C.
The softball team was down and nearly out, falling behind Villanova 9-3 with two innings left in the BIG EAST Softball tournament championship game. That's when the most resounding rally of the season took place as the Blue Demons scored eight runs in the top of the sixth on their way to an 11-10 triumph at the Ballpark at Rosemont.
This illustrious class of seniors capped off a terrific four-year run by leading DePaul teams to 17 BIG EAST Conference titles and 47 major conference awards. The class of 2019 also made 25 NCAA postseason appearances.
Four seniors at the luncheon were always at their best on and off the playing surface. Excelling between the lines and in the classroom, women's basketball standout Martè Grays was a repeat selection to the Athletic Director's Association national Scholar-Athlete Team which also honored men's Max Strus of men's basketball. Grays was a WBCA honorable mention All-American and Strus was named to the NABC and Google Cloud CoSIDA All-District teams. Kyle Decker of men's track and field was honored as the BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete and also won a BIG EAST Postgraduate Leadership Award. Morgan Greenwood was the BIG EAST Institutional Scholar-Athlete for softball.
In her speech to the graduating seniors on Friday, Ponsetto pointed out that they helped DePaul win 30 percent of the BIG EAST Conference athletics awards and 40 percent of the academic accolades competing against the nine other athletics programs in the league.
This past season, women's track matched its program best finishing second at both the BIG EAST Track and Field Indoor and Outdoor Championships.
Senior Jade Nolan was the Most Outstanding Field Performer and High Point Performer at both the indoor and outdoor meets. Men's track standout Brendan van Voorhis was the Most Outstanding Track Performer and High Point Performer at the BIG EAST outdoor meet.
Women's track qualified Nolan (triple jump), senior Alexia Brooks (100-meter hurdles), Jade Gates (hammer throw), senior Caroline Mueller (high jump) and Kiersten Walker (400m) and men's track sent Henry Larkin (400m) to the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Preliminary Championships.
Men's tennis advanced to the BIG EAST Championship semifinals for the fourth consecutive year and Vito Tonejc was named the BIG EAST Freshman of the Year.
Women's tennis won to its fourth BIG EAST Championship title in the last six years overcoming a series of injuries throughout the season. Marija Jovicic was honored as the tournament's Most Outstanding Player.
Coach Doug Bruno's Blue Demons made their 17th consecutive appearance in the NCAA tournament, led the nation in three-point field goal attempts and were No. 3 in the country in three-point field goals and three-pointers per game. They won their fourth BIG EAST tournament title in the last six years and finished No. 24 in the final Associated Press national poll and No. 25 in the coaches poll.
Softball celebrated a three-peat BIG EAST tournament title as the program made its 21st appearance in the NCAA tournament. Natalie Halvorson was named Most Outstanding Player while Maranda Gutierrez won the BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year Award for the conference season.
Men's golf defied the experts matching a program-best finish of second in the BIG EAST Championship after being seeded No. 6. Senior Charlie Spencer-White's individual runner-up finish also matched a program best.
Men's soccer, women's soccer and women's tennis also surpassed the expectations of BIG EAST coaches.
These outstanding student-athletes took photos in their caps and gowns while officially joining DePaul's Athletic Alumni D-Club. Ponsetto expressed her thanks for their dedication and sacrifice the last four years and for bringing such honor and distinction to the university.
DePaul officially began its commencement activities at 4 p.m. Friday with a Baccalaureate Mass at St. Vincent de Paul Church.
Here is the 2019 commencement schedule:
Saturday
The Chicago Theatre
175 N. State St.
3 p.m. (doors open at 2 p.m.)
College of Law
Wintrust Arena
200 E. Cermak Rd.
8 a.m. (doors open at 7 a.m.)
College of Computing and Digital Media
The Theatre School
1 p.m. (doors open at noon)
College of Communication
College of Education
6 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
College of Science and Health
School of Music
Sunday
Wintrust Arena
200 E. Cermak Rd.
8 a.m. (doors open at 7 a.m.)
College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
School for New Learning
1 p.m. (doors open at noon)
Kellstadt Graduate School of Business
6 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
Driehaus College of Business
(undergraduate students only)
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