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Cougars to Honor Three Basketball Seniors on Saturday
written by Dave Parsons, Sports Information Director
MOUNT VERNON, Ohio (2-17-2012) - The Mount
Vernon Nazarene University men's basketball
team will honor its three seniors on
Saturday prior to the Cougars' season finale
against the University of Saint Francis
(Ind.) that will tip off at 3 p.m. in the
Physical Education Center.
Josh Weikart, Danil Zakhlebnyy, and
Robbie Taylor have helped to lead MVNU to a
61-60 record over the past four years. The
Cougars reached the 20-win mark once and
earned a spot in the NAIA Division II
National Tournament in 2009.
Weikart,
a post from Columbiana, Ohio, has been a
three-year member of the program and has
seen action in 27 career varsity games. The
former Columbiana High School product has
recorded 32 career points and 33 career
rebounds. This season, Weikart has played in
23 games with one start and is averaging 1.3
points and 1.3 rebounds.
"At the
beginning of the school year, Josh was a
student in my class and by October he was a
member of our basketball team," said MVNU
coach Matt Moore. "We needed someone to step
in and fill a void and Josh willingly took
on the challenge. I am forever grateful for
his diligence and what he has given to our
program. I appreciate all our talks about
both basketball and life this season. He
will be missed."
Zakhlebnyy, a
forward from Almaty, Kazakhstan, has played
in 52 games the past two seasons since
transferring to MVNU. The former Olympic
Prep standout has averaged 10.7 points and
4.6 rebounds during his Cougar career as he
has compiled 554 points, 240 rebounds, and
66 3-pointers made in just two seasons. This
year, he is one of just three players to
have played in all 29 games and he is
averaging 10.8 points and 4.7 rebounds to go
with 10 blocked shots, 22 steals, and 27
assists.
"I have met few people in my
life that have been as dependable as Danil
has been," said Moore. "The Lord has a sense
of humor in how He brings people into your
life to help shape your paradigm and Danil
has definitely shaped all of ours. He has
the unique balance of being the ultimate
competitor while understanding God's grace
and love for his life, and that is always
something I will treasure about Danil. Thank
you for giving yourself to the program and
for all the hours you have spent investing
in a vision we had together two years ago."
Taylor, a guard from Gahanna, Ohio, has
played in 118 games over the past four years
for the Cougars. The former Gahanna Lincoln
High School star ranks 19th in school
history with 1,356 points, eighth with 190
steals, and sixth with 311 free throws made.
He has also tallied 187 3-pointers made, 322
assists, and 280 rebounds. This season,
Taylor leads MVNU in scoring (15.8 ppg),
assists (100), and steals (55), and has also
recorded 93 rebounds and 53 3-pointers made.
Among his honors, he was twice named to the
American Mideast Conference Second Team.
"It is hard to see Robbie go," said
Moore. "I have seen his transition from a
young adult to a man take place and though
there were some bumps along the way he has
become an outstanding person and player
because of his perseverance and willingness
to be coached. There have been players from
MVNU who have scored more points or won more
games, but I don't believe there is a player
who was more valuable to his team than
Robbie has been for ours this season. He is
leaving behind a legacy of what it means to
be a Cougar."
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