Adam Stevens, a former member of the Mount Vernon Nazarene College men's basketball team from 1996-2000, is one of six college athletes who have been chosen as recipients of the fourteenth annual Woody Hayes National Scholar-Athlete Awards.
The University Sertoma Club selects an outstanding man and woman from each of the collegiate divisions every year and recognizes them for their excellence in academics, athletics, and community service. The award serves as a living memorial to former Ohio State University football coach Woody Hayes. The previous winners have a combined grade point average of 3.81 with more than 700 titles ranging from All-Conference to All-American in 13 different sports and more than a thousand community organizations across the country have been beneficiaries of them.
Stevens, a 6-foot-6 forward from Mount Vernon, Ohio, helped the Cougars compile a 104-29 overall record during his career. He also led the team to three NAIA Division II national tournaments, one conference title, and two conference tournament titles.
Stevens, who was a two-time NAIA Division II All-American and the American Mideast Conference Player of the Year in 1999-2000, scored 1,995 career points and grabbed a school-record 1,112 rebounds. He posted 44 career double-doubles and the only triple-double in the program's history. He also started in all 133 games during his career - another school record.
Following his senior season, Stevens was selected as the National Christian College Athletic Association's Pete Maravich Memorial Award winner. The award is the highest honor the organization bestows for accomplishments on the court, in the classroom, and in the community.
In the classroom, Stevens, a Philosophy major, posted a 3.569 grade point average. He was selected as an NAIA and NCCAA All-America Scholar-Athlete as a senior, and he was a two-time GTE Academic All-District Second Team selection.
Stevens was also active on both the MVNC campus and in the community. As a senior, he served as the school's student chaplain and was also a member of the Student Government Association. He taught Sunday School at Lakeholm Church of the Nazarene, and he was active in Fellowship of Christian Athletes. He traveled with Athletes in Action to Poland and Sweden during the summer of 1998, and he helped to organize and run youth basketball clinics in Toronto during the summer of 1999.
The other five winners are: Keiko Price, a women's swimmer from the University of California, Los Angeles; Kyle Vanden Bosch, a defensive end from the University of Nebraska; Jayne Even, a women's basketball forward from North Dakota State University; Joseph Conduah, a member of the football and track teams at Heidelberg College; and Tammy Venema, a women's soccer player from Wilmington College.
The 2001 Woody Hayes National Scholar-Athlete awards will be presented at a banquet on Friday, January 19, at the Villa Milano Banquet Center in Columbus, Ohio.
