SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of March 14, 2011)
Erin Regan had a standout high school swimming career. The Upper Dublin senior recently finished second in the 100 butterfly at the District One AAA meet and captured a medal for eighth place in an event that she swam to help her team get points – the grueling 500 free. She was part of Upper Dublin’s gold medal 200 medley relay team that shattered the meet record. She also was part of the 400 free relay that finished second to Council Rock North and also broke a meet record. “She’s been an invaluable member of our team at practice, in the locker room and at competitions,” coach Brian Palme said of his senior captain. “She has been an incredible sportsman who promotes fair play and fun. She cares about all of her teammates and puts them ahead of herself. She has been an exceptional leader.”
Regan’s dazzling performance at districts helped lead the Flying Cardinals to a district title. “She was in it for the team and the team success,” Palme said. “She took all the pressure off of herself and put team goals ahead of her personal goals, and I think that’s what allowed her to flourish.” Making Regan’s story even more remarkable is the fact that – as a youngster – she was devoted to soccer but took up swimming to battle asthma. She developed a passion for the sport and outgrew asthma along the way.
Regan is looking to pursue a career in nursing, and although she is still considering West Chester, she has all but decided to attend Mount St. Mary’s, which offers a dual degree program – three years at Mount St. Mary’s and two at Johns Hopkins. She plans to continue her swimming career at the collegiate level.
Regan is president of Upper Dublin’s Environmental Education Club. She is also a British Exchange Ambassador, and on April 12, she will leave with a group of 12 students for two-and-a-half weeks in England.
To read Regan’s complete profile, click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/female-featured-athlete
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of March 14, 2011)
John Michael Staudenmayer is one of those special athletes who lived out his dream when the Plymouth Whitemarsh senior capped a perfect 42-0 senior season on the mats by capturing a PIAA State title in his weight class. In four years of high school wrestling, Staudenmayer has won four Section Three and District One North titles, two Southeast Regional crowns and – this year – a state title. “He wants to be the best at whatever he’s doing,” coach Nate Wachter said. Every day in the wrestling room, Staudenmayer had to contend not only with Wachter, a former National Prep champ and four-time NCAA qualifier at Penn State, but also former PW state champ Justin Giovinco and assistant coach Dominic Sabia. “We were college wrestlers so he gets to wrestle grown men that he’s not going to wrestle in high school, so if he can take us down, he can take anybody down,” Wachter said.
Staudenmayer is also self-driven. “He’s a naturally talented athlete,” Wachter said. “He has that muscle twitch, that explosiveness, but he’s had the right coaching since he was young, and it’s turned him into a good wrestler, but he’s worked his butt off to get there.”
Another goal of Staudenmayer’s was to attend the University of North Carolina on a scholarship. That became a reality as well as he selected UNC from a prestigious list that included Virginia, Bucknell, Lehigh and Princeton.
An excellent student, Staudenmayer carries a 4.23 grade point average (3.67 unweighted) and takes honors engineering and government.
To read Staudenmayer’s complete profile, click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/male-featured-athlete
- Log in to post comments
0
