Top Wayne State athletes recognized at Ameritas Honors Banquet

Wayne, Neb. --- Wayne State student athletes were honored for their accomplishments during the 2022-23 school year Monday evening at the annual Ameritas Honors Banquet held at the Frey Conference Suite in the Kanter Student Center. Seven major awards along with Most Valuable Player Awards were handed out for sports that have completed their season.

Men’s basketball standout Jordan Janssen and national champion track thrower Brooklynn Chipps were named Athletes of the Year while women’s golfer Saffire Sayre and baseball player Carter Thomas were voted Freshmen Athletes of the Year. Women’s basketball player Kassidy Pingel and men’s cross country/track runner Gabe Peitz were selected as the Cunningham Scholar Athletes of the Year with Wildcat senior volleyball player Elly Larson named recipient of the Wildcat Inspiration Award.

Jordan Janssen, a fifth-year forward from Lincoln East HS, was named Male Athlete of the Year after leading WSC to a NSIC South Division title this season averaging 19.9 points and 8.1 rebounds per contest. He was named All-NSIC First Team, NABC All-Central Region First Team and D2CCA All-Central Region Second Team after ranking fourth in the NSIC in rebounds, fifth in scoring, fourth in field goal percentage (.540) and ninth in blocked shots per game (0.9). He ended his career as the all-time leader in scoring (2,104) and rebounding (1,146) at Wayne State.

Brooklynn Chipps, a redshirt senior from Elgin (Clearwater HS), became the first-ever national champion in the weight throw for WSC at this year’s NCAA Indoor Championships in Virginia Beach, Virginia with a new school record throw of 67’ 11”, winning the event by over two feet. Chipps also won the NSIC individual title in the weight throw this winter. In the outdoor season, Chipps has already been voted NSIC Outdoor Field Athlete of the Week and ranks second in the NSIC and fourth in NCAA Division II in the hammer throw with a top mark of 198’ 7”.

Saffire Sayre, a freshman women’s golfer from West Des Moines, Iowa, was named Female Freshman Athlete of the Year after a sensational season on the links. She ranked second on the team in scoring average this season (80.38), which is the third-best single season scoring average in school history. She had three top five and five top 10 finishes and tied the school record single day scoring mark twice with even par rounds of 72 at the SMSU Spring Challenge in Arizona and the second round of the NSIC Championships in Missouri Saturday. Sayre was named to the NSIC All-Tournament Team after tied for fifth with a +17 233 at last weekend’s NSIC Championships.

Carter Thomas, a 6'0'' outfielder from Mason City, Iowa, was voted Male Freshman Athlete of the Year after leading the Wildcats this season in hits (53), runs scored (46), walks (27) and stolen bases (16-19). He ranks sixth in the NSIC in stolen bases, seventh in runs scored and eighth in walks. Thomas has a team-high reached base safely streak of 25 games and has the second-longest hitting streak on the team this season at 15 games.

Kassidy Pingel, a 6'0'' forward from Cherokee, Iowa, was named Cunningham Female Scholar Athlete of the Year after recording a 4.00 grade point average majoring in biology and pre-physician assistant. She was a two-year starter on the women’s basketball team and averaged 10.6 points and 3.3 rebounds per game this season. Pingel earned the NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic With Distinction Award, was voted College Sports Communicators Academic All-District First Team and served on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee the last two seasons.

Gabe Peitz, a cross country and track and field standout, was voted Cunningham Male Scholar Athlete of the Year with a 4.00 grade point average majoring in pre-med and chemistry. Last fall Gabe was named NSIC Elite 18 Award winner as the top scholar athlete at a NSIC championship event. On the track, Peitz finished sixth this winter in the 600-meter run at the NSIC Indoor Track/Field Championships and he has served on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee the last two years.

Elly Larson was voted winner of the Wildcat Inspiration Award. Larson went from being a two-year starter for the volleyball team to having a career-ending knee injury that sidelined her as a senior. Despite the injury she continued to play a leadership role on the team never missing a practice and was instrumental in the team’s success that resulted in a 30-3 record and NSIC regular season title along with hosting the NCAA Central Region Tournament. Larson is also a two-time NSIC All-Academic selection and has served on the Student Athlete Advisory Committee the last two years.