鈥淚 am pleased that the conference recognizes student-athletes for their focus on fair play and sportsmanship,” explained ODAC Commissioner Brad Bankston.听 “The conference prides itself on positive sportsmanship and encouraging student-athletes to lead by example. 听Each one of the honorees has been selected by the coaches in recognition of their conduct in the arena.听 My hat is off to these student-athletes – thanking them for the example they set for all of us.鈥�

The ODAC has a rich tradition in promoting fair play and good sportsmanship in each sport across the league.听 The character of the conference鈥檚 student-athletes on and off the field is a representation of not only the individuals and teams, but also the institutions they play for.

Eastern Mennonite鈥檚 selections to the ODAC Sportsmanship Teams are listed below:

Baseball –听
Basketball (Men) –听
Basketball (Women) –听
Cross Country (Men) –听
Cross Country (Women) –听
Field Hockey –听
Golf (Men) –听
Golf (Women) –听
Indoor Track & Field (Men) –听
Indoor Track & Field (Women) –听
Outdoor Track & Field听 (Men) –听
Outdoor Track & Field听 (Women) –听
Soccer (Men) –听
Soccer (Women) –听
Softball –听
Volleyball –听

All of EMU鈥檚 ODAC-sponsored sports were represented on the All-Academic Team.听 Men鈥檚 volleyball competes in the Continental Volleyball Conference and is not eligible for the ODAC team.

The ODAC All-Academic Team eclipsed 1,000 student-athletes for the eighth consecutive year and set a new high-water mark for conference honorees for the fifth year in a row.听 With representatives from each of the 17 ODAC institutions (including Catholic University for football only and Greensboro College and Notre Dame of Maryland University for swimming only), 1,558 student-athletes earned recognition on the 2013-14 ODAC All-Academic Team.

Eligibility for the ODAC All-Academic Team is open to any student-athlete that competes in a conference-sponsored sport, regardless of academic class.听 He or she must achieve at least a 3.25 grade point average for the year to be considered for an ODAC All-Academic Award.

For more information, visit the ODAC鈥檚 home on the Internet at听. 听Don鈥檛 forget to become a fan of the ODAC on听听and follow听听on Twitter.

The entire list of Royals named to the ODAC All-Academic Team is listed below.听听

EMU’s ODAC All-Academic Team
Elizabeth Alderfer – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Kayley Argenbright – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Jordan Aylor – Softball
Becky Barrett – Women’s Basketball
Trey Barrett – Men’s Basketball
Tyler Brenneman – Men’s Soccer
Carol Brinkley – Field Hockey
Jonathan Bush – Men’s Soccer, Track & Field
Lauren Campbell – Softball
McKenna Carter – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Hannah Chappell-Dick – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Robert Cook – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Melissa Cox – Field Hockey
Nicolette Cuevas – Softball
Hannah Daley – Field Hockey
Mary Beth Danaher – Field Hockey
Patty Danaher – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Paige DeBell – Field Hockey
Tyler Denlinger – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Jenessa Derstine – Field Hockey
Erica Detweiler – Women’s Soccer
Katie Eckman – Women鈥檚 Cross Country
Mariah Foltz – Softball
Daniel Friesen – Men’s Soccer
Erica Garber – Women鈥檚 Track & Field
Carlos Garcia – Men鈥檚 Track & Field
Abi Gardner – Field Hockey
Jessica Goertzen – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Naomi Good – Women’s Soccer
Joe Hall – Baseball
Rebecca Hardy – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Derek Harnish – Men’s Soccer
Bethany Hench – Field Hockey
Ryan Henschel – Baseball
Brooke Hensley – Softball
Morgan Hill – Women’s Soccer
Jordan Hollinger – Men’s Soccer
David Hooley – Men’s Soccer
Brendan Jeschke – Men’s Soccer, Track & Field
Viktor Kaltenstein – Men’s Soccer
Brianna Kauffman – Field Hockey
Rachel Kennel – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Louise Krall – Field Hockey
Lanae Kreider – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Jacob Landis – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Jordan Leaman – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Parker Leap – Men’s Soccer
Mollie Lehman – Field Hockey
Jake Lind – Men’s Soccer
Lexi Link – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Mariah Martin – Field Hockey
Tim Martin – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Dilmer Martinez – Men鈥檚 Soccer
Mark Mast – Men’s Soccer
Saralyn Mast – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Brad Matthias – Baseball
Brittany McDonaldson – Women’s Golf
Macson McGuigan – Men’s Soccer
Chris Miller – Men鈥檚 Track & Field
Katie Miller – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Austin Mumaw – Men’s Soccer
Jonathan Nisly – Men鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Ian Norris – Baseball
Nora Osei – Women’s Soccer, Women’s Basketball
Jolee Paden – Women鈥檚 Cross Country
Jesse Parker – Men鈥檚 Cross Country
Hannah Patterson – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Dylan Polley – Men’s Soccer
Alicia Poplett – Women’s Soccer
D Probst – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Casey Racer – Softball
Jess Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Steph Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Krista Rittenhouse – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Kyle Salladay – Baseball
Juni Schirch – Women鈥檚 Cross Country, Track & Field
Caleb Schlabach – Men’s Golf
Chanel Shands – Women鈥檚 Basketball
Jacob Shank – Men’s Soccer
Kayla Smeltzer – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Molly Smith – Softball
Nicole Smith – Softball
Ashten Spencer – Women’s Soccer
Mandy Stowers – Field Hockey
Ryan Thomas – Men’s Soccer
Shannan Thompson – Women’s Basketball
John Toney – Men’s Golf
Londen Wheeler – Men鈥檚 Track & Field
Camille Williams – Field Hockey
Alex Wynn – Men鈥檚 Track & Field
Bianca Ygarza – Women’s Basketball
Alena Yoder – Women鈥檚 Volleyball
Andrew Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Chris Yoder – Men鈥檚 Basketball
Michelle Zook – Field Hockey
Marla zumFelde – Women’s Basketball

“Our overall numbers are down, but I think we’ll actually play more guys,” said Dean.听 “I think 11 or 12 of our guys are going to play minutes, so you could make the argument that we’re deeper.听 And talent-wise it probably is.听 We’re going to run more and shoot a lot more threes.”

EMU’s roster is only 14 deep in 2013-14, after starting with 18 or more in previous years.

Headlining the returners is the lone senior, (Fort Washington, Md./Friendly), an All-ODAC Third Team selection last year.听 The 6-5 wing was second on the team and 11th in the ODAC in scoring as a junior with 13.6 points.听 The stat-stuffer added 3.9 rebounds and team highs of 2.2 assists and 1.7 steals.

(Capitol Heights, Md./Archbishop Carroll) took over a starting role late last season, and the 6-2 junior has become a step quicker and will look for more minutes in the guard court.听 He scored 5.0 points a game last year and quietly shot 48% from long range.听 Junior (Madison, Va./Madison) steps into the starting position down low, as the 6-6 big man was good for 7.2 points and 5.5 rebounds last year.听 He was also tied for second in the ODAC last season with 1.7 blocks per game.

Wing (Alexandria, Va./T.C. Williams) started 13 games last year, and brings back his 6-7 frame along with 6.8 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.2 steals.听 Other returning juniors are 6-2 (Bridgeton, N.J./Salem), 6-6 (Damascus, Md./Damascus) and 6-4 (Prince George, Va./Prince George).

Dean said that group has really stepped up their game this year.

“That junior class is where I’ve seen the most improvement,” he said.听 “Woody is ready to give us some level of production, and all of those guys look like they’ve made some really good improvements.”

The junior class will not only help replace the points lost from last year’s team, but also the intangibles, especially from four-year players Andrew Thorne and Owen Longacre.

“I think other guys were influenced by playing with them, and think I’ve seen that already,” Dean said of losing Thorne and Longacre.听 “Ryan Yates has been more vocal and has stepped into a leadership role.听 And when you’re one of the hardest workers like he is, people are a little more apt to listen to you even if it’s kind of critical.听 But it will be hard to replace those guys.”

Eastern Mennonite also adds two junior transfers, (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield) and (Richmond, Va./Highland Springs).听 The 6-4 Yoder averaged 8.1 points in two years at D-III Messiah College (2009-11) before coming to Harrisonburg last year; however, he tore an ACL in his first practice last fall and missed the season.听 Crump, another 6-4 wing, scored 5.7 points at D-II Virginia Union last year.听 Dean had high praise for both players.

“We would have won 18 or 20 games last year if Chris wouldn’t have gotten injured, he’s that good of a shooter,” explained Dean.听 “But he does more than just that, he can jump, he can run and he’s very competitive.听 And Marcel is on par with Andrew Thorne athletically.听 He instantly becomes one of the best athletes in our league.听 If he gets a handle on what Drew brought competitively he’ll be better than him.”

Although there are no sophomores on the team this year, a recruiting class of five talented freshmen expects to see playing time as well: 6-1 (Columbiana, Ohio/Salem), 6-2 (Bristow, Va./Patriot), 6-4 (Charlottesville, Va./Albemarle), 6-4 (Frederick, Md./Tuscarora), and 6-3 (Upper Marlboro, Md./Dr. Henry A. Wise Jr.).

“I think all of the freshmen are going to play,” explained Dean.听 “Kwa and EJ are at positions of need, so that will increase their minutes.听 But all of those guys are physically and mentally ready to make some contributions now.”

The Runnin Royals lost five of the nine men in their regular rotation last year, and replacing all the minutes, points and rebounds will take some time to figure out in 2013-14.

“I think it’s going to have to be a collective effort from a bunch of different guys,” Dean explained.听 “I don’t think we have one guy who will night in and night out be our leading scorer.听 But any of starting five, and even our sixth man, could be a leading scorer on any given night.听 We’ll be hard to scout because on any given night any of those guys could really hurt you.听 By spreading things out we can overcome that loss.”

The Runnin Royals open their season on the road, playing at a tip-off tournament hosted by Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Va., this Saturday and Sunday.听 Their first game is against Staten Island, and it will be the first of nine contests against a team which qualified for the NCAA National Tournament last spring.

While Dean knows that his schedule will be a big challenge for a team still getting used to each other, he also knows it could work as a positive.

“It can work for you or against you,” he said.听 “If it kills your confidence to lose to really good teams, then it hurts, but if you can be competitive and steal a couple of wins your guys could look around and say, ‘we could play with anybody.’听 I make sure the guys understand the level of competition they are playing against.听 I’ll expect to go in and win.听 And a lot of times a middle of the pack ODAC is a really good team.听 Hopefully that helps us.”

As usual, the Old Dominion Athletic Conference expects to be one of the toughest, most-balanced leagues in the nation.听 But with only seven of the 18 All-ODAC honorees from last year returning around the conference, 2013-14 has potential to produce a lot of upheaval.

“I think that’s one of the advantages of playing the hard schedule that we’re playing, because we’ll be more ready for the ODAC season,” said Dean.听 “It could come down to a possession here and a possession there.听 And a game here and a game there could be the difference between finishing 3rd or 4th or 11th or 12th.”

Dean knows his way around the ODAC, as this year he will coach his 11th season, equaling him with his predecessor, Tom Baker, as the longest-tenured Eastern Mennonite men’s basketball coaches.听 As the holder of four of the ten .500-or-better seasons in program history, Dean also has the most wins in men’s history with a career record of 134-129.

He has one regular season ODAC title, as well as the program’s only national tournament appearance.听 He hopes this year’s team can peak at the right time to make their own mark.

“I just hope that whatever our ceiling is, about the first of February we’re reaching it,” said Dean.听 “If that’s the case, then I don’t think anything is off the table.听 You don’t want to be ridiculously optimistic, and so I don’t think we’re ready at this moment to be the regular season champs.听 But I think by mid-February we could be ready to be the ODAC Tournament champs.”

The Runnin Royals finished with a record of 15-12 including 7-9 for eighth in the ODAC.听 EMU won at Washington and Lee in the first round of the ODAC Tournament before falling to top-seeded Virginia Wesleyan in the quarterfinals.

After opening this year at the tip-off tourney at Mary Washington, and a non-conference game at Elizabethtown on Nov. 20, the men have their home opener against ODAC opponent Lynchburg on Saturday, Nov. 23.

All of EMU鈥檚 ODAC-sponsored sports were represented on the All-Academic Team.听 Men鈥檚 volleyball competes in the Continental Volleyball Conference and is not eligible for the ODAC team.

The ODAC All-Academic Team eclipsed 1,000 student-athletes for the seventh consecutive year and set a new high-water mark for conference honorees for the fourth year in a row.听 With representatives from each of the 17 ODAC institutions (including Catholic University for football only and Greensboro College and Notre Dame of Maryland University for swimming only), 1,459 student-athletes earned recognition on the 2012-13 ODAC All-Academic Team.

Eligibility for the ODAC All-Academic Team is open to any student-athlete that competes in a conference-sponsored sport, regardless of academic class.听 He or she must achieve at least a 3.25 grade point average for the year to be considered for an ODAC All-Academic Award.

The entire list of Royals named to the ODAC All-Academic Team is listed below.

Nels Akerson – Cross Country, Track & Field
Elizabeth Alderfer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Sonja Anderson – Field Hockey
Kayley Argenbright – Women’s Basketball
Trey Barrett – Men’s Basketball
Ruthie Beck 鈥� Softball
Jennifer Blankenship – Women’s Basketball
Jessica Blanks – Field Hockey
Carol Brinkley – Field Hockey
Jonathan Bush – Men’s Soccer, Track & Field
Hannah Chappell-Dick – Cross Country, Track & Field
Hannah Clemmer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Melissa Cox – Field Hockey
Nicolette Cuevas 鈥� Softball
Mary Beth Danaher – Field Hockey
Patty Danaher – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jenessa Derstine – Field Hockey
Alli Eanes – Cross Country, Track & Field
Katie Eckman – Cross Country
Ryan Eshleman – Men’s Soccer
Jonathan Estrada 鈥� Baseball
Daniel Friesen – Men’s Soccer
Chantelle Garber – Field Hockey
Jessica Goertzen – Women’s Volleyball
Naomi Good – Women’s Soccer
Patrick Graber – Cross Country, Track & Field
Derek Harnish – Men’s Soccer
Bethany Hench – Field Hockey
Ryan Henschel 鈥� Baseball
Brooke Hensley 鈥� Softball
Jordan Hollinger – Men’s Soccer
David Hooley – Men’s Soccer
Holly Jensen – Women’s Soccer
Brianna Kauffman – Field Hockey
Janna Kaufman – Women’s Soccer
Rachel Kennel – Women’s Volleyball
Lanae Kreider – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jonathan Leaman – Men’s Golf
Parker Leap – Men’s Soccer
Mattie Lehman – Women’s Volleyball
Mollie Lehman – Field Hockey
Rachel Lehman – Women’s Volleyball
Lexi Link – Women’s Volleyball
Owen Longacre – Men’s Basketball
Karla Martin – Women’s Volleyball
Katie Martin – Women’s Volleyball
Phillip Martin – Track & Field
Ian Mast – Men’s Soccer
Mark Mast – Men’s Soccer
Saralyn Mast – Cross Country, Track & Field
Brittany McDonaldson – Women’s Golf
Thomas Millary – Cross Country
Katie Miller – Women’s Volleyball
Michelle Miller – Women’s Volleyball
Kaitlyn Morris 鈥� Softball
Austin Mumaw – Men’s Soccer
Joel Murray – Men’s Golf
Dan Nafziger – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jolee Paden – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jesse Parker – Cross Country, Track & Field
Hannah Patterson – Track & Field
Alicia Poplett – Women’s Soccer
Jess Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Steph Rheinheimer – Women’s Basketball
Sara Ritchie – Women’s Volleyball
Krista Rittenhouse – Cross Country, Track & Field
Adriana Santiago – Field Hockey
Meghan Schaefer – Cross Country
Juni Schirch – Cross Country, Track & Field
Jacob Shank – Men’s Soccer
Aaron Sloan – Track & Field
Kayla Smeltzer – Women’s Volleyball
Aaron Springer – Cross Country, Track & Field
Andre Swartzentruber – Men’s Golf
John Toney – Men’s Golf
Alena Yoder – Women’s Volleyball
Andrew Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Kegan Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Tyler Yoder – Men’s Soccer
Michelle Zook – Field Hockey