The Gustavus Adolphus College Athletics Department has announced the 2009-10 Female and Male Athletes of the Year and they are Melissa Mackley, a hockey player from Burnsville, Minnesota and David Martinson, a hockey player from St. Louis Park, Minnesota. Mackley and Martinson, who are the tenth 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 9 in Alumni Hall on the Gustavus campus.
Mackley was a four-year regular at forward on the Gustavus women’s hockey team and a First Team All-America honoree in both 2009 and 2010. She completed her career ranked ninth all-time in career scoring at Gustavus with 33 goals and 69 assists for 102 points. Mackley played in all 114 games the Gusties played during her career, which ranks second all-time and her 69 career assists rank fourth all-time. In the 2009-10 season, Mackley scored a career-high 30 points (12 goals and 18 assists) and was captain of a Gustavus squad that finished fourth at the NCAA Championships, compiling a record of 22-6-2 overall. A Phi Beta Kappa honoree, Mackley, who majored in biology, graduated with a 3.96 grade point average. She was a a 2009 CoSIDA Academic All-America honoree and was also selected to receive an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. She plans to pursue a medical degree at the University of Minnesota.
Martinson, the 2010 American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) Division III Player of the Year, was a three-year standout for the Gustavus men’s hockey team. During the 2009-10 season, Martinson helped the Gusties claim their first regular season title since 1993 with a league mark of 12-2-2 and led the nation in goal scoring with 29 goals in 29 games. The two-time First Team All-America selection, led the MIAC in scoring with 23 goals and 13 assists for 36 points and he was named the MIAC Player of the Year. Martinson compiled 76 goals and 55 assists for 131 points in 85 career contests. His 0.89 career goals per game average ranks third all-time at Gustavus and his 1.54 career points per game ranks fourth all-time at Gustavus. In the classroom, Martinson compiled a cumulative grade point average 3.75 with a major in accounting. He was a 2009 CoSIDA Academic All-America honoree and was chosen to receive an NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship.
Mackley and Martinson were selected from a group of 20 candidates (9 men and 11 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 11 finalists for the Gustavus Female Athlete of the Year included: Taylor Drenttel of Eagan, Minn. (sophomore, golf), Kali Griggs of Burnsville, Minn. (senior, golf), Carrie Gundersen of Minnetonka, Minn. (senior, swimming), Janey Helland of Mapleton, Minn. (junior, track and field), Lindsey Hjelm of Minnetonka, Minn. (first year, hockey), Sierra Krebsbach of North Oaks, Minn. (senior, tennis), Kaelene Lundstrum of Bird Island, Minn. (senior, track and field), Melissa Mackley of Burnsville, Minn. (senior, hockey), Carley Mosher of Great Falls, Mont. (first year, swimming), Bri Radtke of Winsted, Minn. (senior, basketball), and Katie Schenfeld of Indianola, Iowa (junior, golf).
The nine finalists for Gustavus Male Athlete of the Year included: Mark Adams of Waukee, Iowa (sophomore, soccer), Brian Anderson of Bloomington, Minn. (senior, track and field), Jens Brabbit of Winona, Minn. (junior, nordic skiing), Skylar Davis of Palatine, Ill. (senior, swimming), Kendrick Hall of Minneapolis, Minn. (freshman, football), Max Hanson of Montrose, Minn. (senior, track and field), David Martinson of St. Louis Park, Minn. (senior, hockey), Ryan McPartland of LeSueur, Minn. (senior, basketball), and Tony Palma of Lino Lakes, Minn. (senior, football).