IU Southeast names inaugural Champions Dinner honorees

11th July 2013

NEW ALBANY, IN, (July 11, 2013) – Indiana University Southeast is proud to announce the inaugural honorees for the IU Southeast Champions Dinner.

IU Southeast student-athletes Cameron Mitchell, Heather Wheat, and Jacob Holtz will be recognized Aug. 24 at the first-ever Champions Dinner at IU Southeast.

The Champions Dinner is designed to honor student-athletes and raise funding for IU Southeast athletic scholarships. Awards will be given to the Male and Female Athlete of the Year, and the inaugural event will also honor IU Southeast’s first athletic director, Jim Morris, by introducing the Jim Morris Champions of Character Award, given to a student-athlete who exemplifies strong moral character and sportsmanship. 

Cameron Mitchell, Men’s Basketball, Male Athlete of the Year
Mitchell, a native of Cincinnati, helped lead the Grenadiers to their first NAIA Final Four appearance in school history during the 2012-13 season. He was an NAIA second team All-America selection, the 2013 KIAC Men’s Basketball Player of the Year and KIAC All-Conference selection.

He led the team in points per game at 16.8, rebounds per game with 6.1 and steals per game with 2.1. He ranked No. 15 in NAIA Division II in total steals with 74 and No. 23 in total scoring with 587 points.

Mitchell was instrumental during the Grenadiers’ Final Four run. He led IU Southeast with 31 points vs. No. 6 seed St. Xavier in the second round of the tournament and led the Grenadiers with 18 points in the national semifinal loss to Cardinal Stritch.

Mitchell is majoring in general studies with a minor in recreation. He hopes to get a Master’s degree in physical education and play professional basketball overseas.

Heather Wheat, Women’s Basketball, Female Athlete of the Year
Wheat is a native of Louisville where she attended Butler High School. She finished the 2013-14 season ranked No. 7 in NAIA Division II in points per game at 19.5, No. 10 in total assists with 149, and No. 11 in total scoring with 585 points. Wheat was named to her second-straight KIAC all-conference team in 2013. 

To date, she ranks No. 26 in career points, No. 7 in total assists, No.16 in career steals in IU Southeast history.

Wheat was named an NAIA All-America honorable mention selection and a member of the KIAC All-Conference first team during the 2013-14 season.

She is majoring in pre-secondary education.

Jacob Holtz, Baseball, Jim Morris Champions of Character Award
Holtz is from Evansville, Ind. and is majoring in psychology and biochemistry. He spent a portion of summer 2012 in Ghana where he helped lead a study on post-traumatic stress disorder in Ghanian population compared to the U.S. population. He also has been a consistent member of the IU Southeast Athletic Director’s Honor Roll with a GPA of 3.0 or higher. 

Holtz missed the 2013 season due to an injury but was a steady presence for the Grenadier pitching staff throughout the season. He provided valuable leadership for the rest of the staff and spent much of his time helping prepare the field for play.

“Jacob is the epitome of what a Grenadier student-athlete should be,” IU Southeast Athletic Director Joe Glover said. “He is an exceptional student athlete and a leader of the pitching staff. He puts his team above himself and consistently serves as a good role model for all IU Southeast student-athletes.”

Holtz’s career record stands at 12-4 with a 2.75 ERA.

Ticket info
The Champions Dinner will be held Saturday, Aug. 24, 2013 at IU Southeast. A limited number of tickets will be available to the public. Individual tickets cost $50 and will be available for sale in the IU Southeast Athletic Office located inside the Activities Building at 4201 Grant Line Road, New Albany, IN  47150. For questions about ticket sales, please call (812) 941-2432 or send an e-mail to athletics@ius.edu 

Proceeds from the Champions Dinner will support IU Southeast athletic scholarships.

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