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Hill, Merriam Senior CLASS Award Finalists
October 26, 2015 04:09 PM | General
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Amanda Hill of the No. 2/3-ranked West Virginia University women’s soccer team and Jamie Merriam of the WVU men’s soccer team are one of 10 finalists for their respective 2015 Senior CLASS Awards, the organization announced today.
WVU is one of four schools to have a men’s and women’s finalist.
This is the second straight year WVU has had a women’s and men’s finalist. Andy Bevin and Kate Schwindel were named to the 2014 Senior CLASS Award Men’s and Women’s Second Teams.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.
Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winners. Fans are encouraged to vote on the Senior CLASS Award website through Nov. 23. Fan votes will be combined with media and Division I head coaches’ votes to determine the winner. Fans can vote once a day on each device.
The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2015 NCAA Men’s and Women’s College Cup championships in December.
A native of Washington, Pennsylvania, Hill is a two-time team captain has started all 82 career matches at defensive center midfield.
“This is an incredible honor,” said Hill. “I am truly proud to be able to represent this University and my team and to show what being a Mountaineer is all about, both on and off the field.”
Hill is pursing degrees in exercise physiology and animal and nutritional science at WVU, while also minoring in sport and exercise psychology. A two-time Academic All-Big 12 Soccer First Team honoree, she boasts a 3.97 grade point average and previously was named to the 2013 CoSIDA All-District Second Team and the 2012 Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team. Hill also has been named to the President’s and Dean’s Lists, as well as the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll and the Garrett Ford Academic Honor Roll.
Hill has accumulated more than 750 hours of community service during her WVU career. She has served as a dog walker for the Washington (Pa.) Area Humane Society, volunteered at Cheat Lake Animal Hospital and the Avian Conservation Center of Appalachia, assisted with WVU women’s soccer camps and the annual 4v4 breast cancer tournament, and served as a volunteer handler for Hearts of Gold Service Dog Organization.
On the field, Hill has helped WVU win four straight Big 12 Conference regular-season titles and back-to-back Big 12 Soccer Championship titles, as well as qualify for three consecutive NCAA Tournaments. WVU (15-1-1, 6-0-1) has reached its highest program national ranking this season and ranks No. 1 nationally with 13 shutouts, one short of the program single-season record.
Hill, a 2013 All-Big 12 Second Team honoree, has tallied a career-high nine points this season on three goals and three assists. Most recently, she tallied two goals in the Mountaineers’ 6-0 victory over Kansas on Oct. 16. She also tallied the team’s game-winner in 1-0 victory over No. 5/7 Penn State on Sept. 5.
A Gaithersburg, Maryland, native, Merriam is capping an impressive career with a great senior season. He is tied for the team lead with six goals and 14 points. He leads the team with 38 shots and 17 shots on-goal. Merriam’s three game-winning goals leads the team and also is No. 1 in the Mid-American Conference and No. 29 in the nation. He is fifth in the league with six goals and 0.40 goals per game, sixth in both shots (2.53) and shots on goal (1.13) per game and eighth with 9.93 points per game and 14 total points.
“It’s a huge honor to be named a finalist,” Merriam said. “I’m honored to be among this year’s finalist because of what the past finalists and winners have done. I’m happy my hard work in school and soccer as a whole is showing off.”
In his career, Merriam has played in 67 career games with 51 starts. He has logged 19 goals, 16 assists and 54 points, and six goals have been game-winners. Merriam’s 16 career assists is tied for ninth in program history. His 62 career shots on-goal is third in team history, while his 145 shots is ninth.
A biometric systems major, Merriam was named to the NSCAA Scholar All-East Region Second Team, the Academic All-MAC Team and the Academic All-Big 12 At-Large First Team as a junior in 2014. He also earned All-Mid-American Conference First Team accolades to cap an impressive junior season.
Merriam has been an active member of the community throughout his collegiate career. He has participated in numerous community service projects and spread a positive message to many people in the community.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School®, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 men’s candidates and 30 women’s candidates announced in September.
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