EMORY, Va. - The Emory & Henry College Department of Athletics presents three significant awards each academic year to honor the dedication and excellence of student-athletes and supporters – the Porterfield Memorial Award, Hall Memorial Award and Fanelli Award.
The Porterfield Award, named for former athletic director T.L. "Pidney" Porterfield '28, honors a male athlete and is presented to an outstanding senior that has distinguished himself in athletic leadership during his undergraduate career. The award recognizes individual athletic accomplishments only when characterized by character, leadership, sportsmanship, and contributions to the college community. The recipient embodies in his conduct, both in athletics and in leadership as a student, those qualities which represent Emory & Henry at its finest. This year's award is Caleb Wallace (Mocksville, N.C.) from the baseball team.
Wallace was a four-year starter and was the team captain during his senior season. A career .308 hitter, Wallace also found great success in the classroom – graduating magna cum laude with a double major in mathematics and economics. He also served as a tutor in the Quantitative Learning Center and is a three-year member of the ODAC All-Academic Team. He will be pursuing a graduate degree in economics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte this fall.
"Caleb is one of the most well-rounded baseball players I have had the pleasure to coach. He was a great leader and well-respected among his teammates. He would always do what was asked of him to better the baseball team," said Trey McCall, head baseball coach.
The Hall Award, named in memory of George A. Hall, the father of retired coach Eleanor Hall Hutton, recognizes an outstanding senior female athlete who possesses qualities of skill, leadership, and character. The recipient will have excelled in one or more sports and will exemplify the qualities which represent Emory & Henry at its finest. This year's recipient is Sydney McKinney (Big Stone Gap, Va.) from women's basketball.
McKinney served as a team captain, leading by example on and off the court. She was named All-ODAC First Team, All-South Region Third Team, ODAC Women's Basketball Player of the Week twice (Nov. 25, Feb. 17) and recorded the program's second-ever triple-double (16 pts., 14 reb., 11 ast.) at Eastern Mennonite University (Feb 15). Her academic success has earned her Dean's List for multiple semesters. She spent her senior season taking master's level classes to obtain her graduate degree in education through Emory & Henry's five-year program.
"Sydney's hard work, dependability and responsibility would make her a great asset to any program. I can delegate to her or leave her in charge of things on campus, during community service events, and with the team, knowing that she will do it right and with her best effort. The impression she makes around campus and during community activities is lasting," said Jaclyn Dickens, head women's basketball coach.
The Fanelli Award was created by in 1998 to recognize and show appreciation for outstanding contributions and extraordinary support of women's athletics. It is named for its first recipient, Donna Fanelli, who, while not an alumna of the College, has been a generous supporter of Emory & Henry Athletics for many years. The recipient, who shall not be a member of the department of athletics, has made a significant impact by their support of E&H Women's Athletics. This year's recipient is Dave Brinegar, operations manager of Sodexo at Emory & Henry.
During visits to the Emory & Henry dining hall, you can count on friendly encounters and seeing smiling faces from the Sodexo staff every day. Behind it all, and leading the way is the Sodexo manager, Dave Brinegar. With the student-athletes and coaches, Brinegar is continually checking in, asking how a practice is going, congratulating after a win, and offering condolences after a loss. He keeps up with each team's season and speaks to our student-athletes and coaches by name - showing that he genuinely cares.
"If we need a meal for the road or a meal outside of normal cafeteria hours or need an event catered, then Dave and the Sodexo team will make sure our student-athletes get what they need. Dave, along with Sam Walker, the Sodexo general manager, truly goes above and beyond to help us any way they can. When his busy schedule allows, Dave will put on his boots and cowboy hat and head over to the King Center or field to watch our teams play and cheer us on," said Tommy Forrester, head softball coach.
The Emory & Henry College Department of Athletics recognized the accomplishments of these individuals at the Seventh Annual Blue & Golden Globes virtual award ceremony hosted on the College's social media pages in May.
"Congratulations to Caleb, Sydney and Dave. They each represent the Blue Collar, Gold Standard efforts that are the hallmark of Emory & Henry Athletics. Each of them has a passion and a servant's heart that represent the values that we cherish as an institution," said Anne Crutchfield, director of athletics.
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