Top student-athletes recognized

 Six students were presented with medals yesterday at the TSL Plaza for winning the TSL Foundation/NMASA Student Athletes of the Month awards.

Four of the awardees are from tennis, while the two others were part of the CNMI Baseball Team that won the gold medal in the 2011 Pacific Games in New Caledonia.

Tennis’ Tammy Ackerman went home with two medals for winning the monthly plums in May and August, while her teammate, Mikayla Lopez, also claimed two awards for making it to the April and June winners list.

Bringing home two medals too was Rafael Jones, who was selected in April and May, while fellow netter, Christian Miller received his medal for August.

In baseball, Ian Rogolifoi and Vince Cepeda were awarded the September medals. Joshua Jones was also on the September list, but failed to make it to the awards ceremony, along with athletics’ Rachel Abrams (September), football’s Jehn Joyner (July), and spearfishing’s David Lizama (June).

Besides the medals, the student awardees also received gift certificates from Modern Stationary and Shirley’s Coffee Shop. TSL Foundation manager Ed Arriola handed the awards with NMASA president Michael White present to witness the ceremony.

“Congratulations to all the winners and keep up the good work,” White said after the presentation.

Ackerman, who has won the Female Student Athlete of the Month three times this year, getting the same recognition in February, was chosen in May for ruling the DFS Tennis Championships and won anew in August for her outstanding performance in the 2011 Pacific Oceania Junior Championships in Fiji.

Lopez took the April and June awards for topping the U15 divisions in two local tournaments and making it to the Top 4 of the 2011 North Pacific Qualifying Tournament in Guam.

Jones had back-to-back monthly plums after winning in the PIC and DFS tournaments, while Miller notched the August award after a runner-up finish in the POCJ.

Rogolifoi, Cepeda, and Joshua Jones were chosen as September winners for helping the CNMI beat Guam, 8-4, in the gold medal game in the Pacific Games last month.

Yesterday’s awardees are now eligible to win the 2011 TSL/NMASA Male and Female Student Athletes of the Year, which will be announced next year. Other candidates for the coveted award were past winners Marion McKenzie (January), Lukas Kang (February), and Juan Maratita (March) in the male and female’s Thea Minor (January and March).

NMASA is calling on awardees who have yet to receive their medals to coordinate with their respective sports association.