The Gustavus Adolphus College Athletics Department has announced the 2007-08 Female and Male Student Athletes of the Year and they are Lisa Brown, a track and field athlete from Lake Crystal, Minnesota and Andy Bryan, a tennis player from Edina, Minnesota. Brown and Bryan, who are the eighth annual recipients of the Gustavus Athlete of the Year awards, will be honored at the Gustavus Athletics Hall of Fame Banquet, which will take place on Saturday, October 25 in Alumni Hall on the Gustavus campus.
Lisa Brown became the first athlete in Gustavus history to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials in track and field when she recorded a throw of 174 feet, 5 inches in the javelin to win the 2008 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Title. This was the Lake Crystal, Minn. native’s second national javelin title, as she won the event in 2006 and finished as runner-up in 2007. At the 2008 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Outdoor Track and Field Championship, Brown set a school and MIAC record when she won her third straight MIAC javelin title with a throw of 158 feet, 5 inches. She was awarded the MIAC Outstanding Performance of the Meet for her winning effort in the javelin. Brown finished seventh in the javelin at the Drake Relays and was the only non-Division I competitor to finish in the top 10.
Andy Bryan posted a #1 singles record of 29-5 and a #1 doubles record of 31-7 on his way to being named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Division III Senior Player of the Year. The Edina, Minn. native helped lead a team that finished the season 29-6 overall, made its ninth consecutive NCAA quarterfinal appearance and captured its 20th consecutive MIAC title with a record of 9-0. Bryan was selected as the MIAC Arthur Ashe Award winner and was a finalist for College Sporting News MIAC Senior Student-Athlete of the Year. A two-time Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) All-America selection and two-time College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-America honoree, Bryan won the ITA Midwest Regional Singles and Doubles titles in October and finished second in singles and fourth in doubles at the ITA Small College Championships. He was ranked second in singles and fourth in doubles in Division III for the majority of the 2008 season. In May, Bryan and his doubles partner, Charlie Paukert, finished second in doubles at the NCAA Championships. An honor student, who will attend medical school at the University of Minnesota in the fall, Bryan was selected to receive a prestigious NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
Brown and Bryan were selected from a group of 18 candidates (8 men and 10 women). To be a candidate for the Gustavus Athlete of the Year, an individual must have been selected one of nine Athlete’s of the Month during the school year or put on the ballot by their head coach as a result of being selected their team’s Most Valuable Player. The winners are selected by a vote of the 15 Gustavus Head Coaches.
The 10 finalists for the Gustavus Female Athlete of the Year included: Lisa Brown of Lake Crystal, Minn. (junior, outdoor track and field), Rachael Click of Rochester, Minn. (junior, softball), Laura Edlund of Forest Lake, Minn. (senior, cross country, Nordic skiing, outdoor track and field), Anika Erickson of Milaca, Minn. (first year, swimming), Carrie Gundersen of Minnetonka, Minn. (sophomore, swimming), Kaelene Lundstrum of Bird Island, Minn. (sophomore, indoor and outdoor track and field), Rachel Roberg of Rice Lake, Wis. (senior, golf), Stefanie Ubl of Blaine, Minn. (senior, ice hockey), Jess Vadnais of Hudson, Wis. (senior, basketball), and Jenni White of Cedar Rapids, Iowa (senior, tennis).
The eight finalists for Gustavus Male Athlete of the Year included: Chad Arlt of St. Michael, Minn. (junior, football), Andy Bryan of Edina, Minn. (senior, tennis), Mike Butterworth of Katy, Texas (senior, soccer), Chris deLaubenfels of Mount Vernon, Iowa (senior, cross country and indoor and outdoor track and field), Drew Hood of Mankato, Minn. (indoor and outdoor track and field), David Martinson of St. Louis Park, Minn. (sophomore, ice hockey), Matt Stewart of Burnsville, Minn. (junior, swimming), and Trevor Wittwer of Redwood Falls, Minn. (senior, basketball).