NOTE: The action pictures used in the graphic were taken in previous athletic seasons.

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Ten seniors who have excelled in athletics and academics will be honored with the 2020 Garnish Scholar Awards from the University of Rochester's Department of Athletics and Recreation this semester.
  
The awards are presented in memory of Lysle "Spike" Garnish, a former coach and athletic trainer at the University of Rochester from 1930 to 1948. He became a trainer and assistant basketball coach in 1931. He was named an assistant baseball coach in 1932, and an assistant football coach from 1945-48.
 
"These students represent the ideal of the scholar-athlete," said VanderZwaag. "They lead our teams on the field of play while doing outstanding work in the classroom. I am continually inspired by what our students are able to achieve when given the opportunities at a great institution like Rochester."
 
Two of the 2020 Garnish Scholars earned All-America honors last year. Two individuals competed in the NCAA Division III National Championships last year (in the sports of field hockey and men's soccer. A third athlete qualified for the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships but the meet was canceled due to the pandemic.
 
These are the Garnish Scholar-Athletes for 2020:
Ryan Algier (Fairport, NY/Men's Basketball): Honored numerous times for academic achievement and athletic skill following the 2019-20 season… Named First Team All-UAA, First Team NABC All-District, and Third Team NABC All-American… Two-time UAA All-Academic Team… Named to UAA's Scholar-Athlete President's List Team (high GPA and First Team All-UAA honors)… First Team Academic All-District by College Sports Information Directors of America in Spring 2020… Finished among NCAA leaders in blocked shots per game and field goal percentage… Selected by the Department of Athletics & Recreation as the winner of the John Vitone Award for men's sportsmanship… Majoring in Data Science… Served on the Undergraduate Data Science Council and was the business manager for the group's Eboard… Member of the Varsity Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and will serve as group's vice-president for 2020-21… Captain of the St. Sebastian Society, member of the UR Late Night Committee, and an intern for Student Activities.
 
Eileen Bequette (Albany, NY/Women's Track & Field): Three-time NCAA Championships qualifier who earned All-America honors in her sophomore and junior seasons… Specialized in the pentathlon and the heptathlon… Won eight conference titles in a variety of events… Liberty League All-Academic honoree and a national All-Academic selection by the US Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association… Member of Engineers Without Borders and the Varsity Student-Athlete Advisory Committee… Volunteered to tutor refugee students at Carlson Library… Selected as a team captain for the 2020-21 season by her teammates… Majoring in Mechanical Engineering.
 
Kathryn Colone (Manlius, NY/Field Hockey):  Defender who excels in shutting down opponents in the circle and is able to start the Rochester attack from the backfield… majoring in Biomedical Engineering with minors in Philosophy and Mechanical Engineering… team won Liberty League championships in 2017 and 2019… Rochester played in three consecutive NCAA championship tournaments with her in the backfield… she won the team's Meliora Award by unanimous decision. The award is given to the member of the field hockey program who embodies the spirit of Meliora… Took the leadership course taught by men's soccer coach Chris Apple and has used that running team meetings and sharing suggestions for maintaining optimism and cohesion despite the shutdown due to COVID-19… Member of Engineers Without Borders.
 
Hugh Curran (McLean, VA/Men's Soccer): Posted a school-record six consecutive shutouts in 2019… Finished second in UR history for shutouts in a season… Ranked 14^th in NCAA Division III for shutouts… Played every minute in goal in 19 matches (1,765 minutes). Posted a 12-6-1 won-lost-tied record and guided team into the NCAA playoffs (third consecutive year for his class)… Top-100 ranking by the NCAA for goalie minutes played, goals-against average, and save percentage… Elected captain for 2020 season… All-UAA honors in 2019 (Second Team) and two-time UAA All-Academic recognition… Team's representative to the Varsity Student-Athlete Advisory Committee… Political Science research assistant… Accenture LLC Intern… Hogan Lovells LLP Intern.
 
Declan Hickton (Pittsburgh, PA/Golf): Dedicated leader for the golf team since his arrival on campus in 2017… Has participated in every tournament over his first three seasons… In that time, he has five top-10 finishes, two top-five finishes and a tie for medalist honors at the 2019 Kravetz Invitational… Selected as a Scholar All-American by the Golf Coaches Association of America in his junior year… Majoring in Mechanical Engineering… Spent the summer of 2019 as an engineering intern at the Pittsburgh International Airport for Jacobs Engineering (headquartered in Dallas)… In the summer of 2020, he interned for ERC (Engineering Research Consultants) at the NASA Kennedy Space Center. He worked on-site and aided in the development of a new system to safely and efficiently change out the hydraulic arms on the launch transport vehicle.
 
Renae Lapins (Calgary, Alberta, Canada/Volleyball):  majoring in Biomedical Engineering with a minor in psychology… Member of the Society of Women's Engineers… Served as the setter in her first year when she led the team in two statistical categories (assists and service aces) and was selected as the team's Top Newcomer… She was named to the Team Leadership Council and has held that position every year since… An early season injury in her sophomore year curtailed her playing time. She attended every practice and every match and helped the team to improve by virtue of factors she noticed… Returned to the setter position as a junior… Last summer, she was a technical assistant in the PEAK Lab at the UR Medical Center, testing the effects of insomnia on cancer patients. She returned home post-quarantine and earned a position in a Biotech Lab at the University of Calgary…. She has volunteered at the Alberta Children's Hospital Rehabilitation ward.
 
Tessa Ludwick (Chardon, OH/Women's Basketball): Strong season as a junior, operating as the point guard… Ranked fourth in the UAA in assists per game… Led in assists and steals… Contributed 9.6 ppg. and 3.2 rebounds per game… Scored a career high 26 points and eight rebounds in victory over Chicago, two days after seven points, two steals, three assists in W vs. Washington University. First homecourt sweep of WU/UC in four years – and it came during weekend celebration of Rochester's 50^th season of women's basketball… Played 22 games as a first-year on Rochester's Elite 8 team, then played in 23 games (eight starts) as sophomore in 2018-19… Only player to start all 25 games a year ago… Elected as team captain for 2020-21 season… Chemical Engineering major… Member of Varsity Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, assisting in blood drives and raising money for breast cancer awareness…. Partakes in team's annual wheelchair basketball games supporting Rochester Wheels.
 
Mary Panepento (Walworth, NY/Women's Lacrosse): Three-year starter for the women's lacrosse team who has achieved a great deal, both on the field and in the classrooms and laboratories… Athletically, she is a midfielder who organizes the team attack while being able to drift back into the defense to disrupt the opposition and re-claim the ball… Considered one of the premier midfielders in the Liberty League for her work ethic and skill… Named to the Liberty League All-Academic Team as a sophomore and a junior… Majoring in Microbiology with a minor in Psychology as a Social Science Pre-Medicine… Selected as a Suzanne J. O'Brien Book Award winner as a sophomore and a Provost's Circle Scholar as a junior… Member of the Kearns Center Scholar Program… Head Workshop Leader for BIO 110 and BIO 250L Lab… Works at Rochester General Hospital as a Patient Care Technician… Also worked at Strong Memorial Hospital's Emergency Department. She served as an Emergency Department Research Association Intern from August 2019-December 2019.
 
Alexis Pope (Ewing, NJ/Softball): Majoring in Biochemistry with a minor in Chemistry… During her career, she has played every position in Rochester's infield… As a first baseman in her first year, she had a spectacular .996 fielding percentage… She moved to the middle infield in her sophomore year, accumulating 85 assists…Spent time at third base in sophomore and junior (abbreviated) seasons. Consistently among LL leaders in sacrifice hits, assists, and double plays… TA for BIO 198 (Genetics) Lab, plus served as an undergraduate tutor for the Center for Excellence and Teaching for five classes plus a study group leader for organic chemistry… Volunteer at the Wilmot Cancer Center with Friends of Strong… Chairperson of the College Diabetes Network.
 
Jon Turk (Ramsey, NJ/Baseball): Produced two of the biggest victories by a Rochester pitcher in a span of less than two weeks at the end of the 2019 season. In the Liberty League Championship Tournament hosted by Rochester, he shut down RIT in an elimination game that put Rochester into the championship round against Clarkson University. He gave up one run and five hits with five strikeouts… In the first round of the NCAA playoffs, he threw seven dominant innings in a 2-1 victory over #20 College of Wooster (at Wooster) to propel Rochester to its inaugural NCAA tournament victory…. Second Team All-Liberty League honors in 2019 (2.54 ERA, 7-2 record in 14 appearances)… Earned an opening day victory in 2020 before the season was halted abruptly (6.1 IP, four hits, no walks, six strikeouts in 4-0 win at Pomona Pitzer)… Named to Liberty League All-Academic Team in sophomore and junior seasons… Majoring in Applied Math with a minor in Statistics and a Certificate in Actuarial Sciences… TA for Intro to Statistics for two semesters sophomore year… Belongs to the Actuarial Club and the Society of Undergraduate Mathematics Students… Interned in Health & Benefits at Aon.