Student Life Achievement Awards | 2021

4 2019–2020 NSU Men’s Basketball Team—Athletics How were the Sharks going to follow up their South Region Championship from the year prior? Well, head coach Jim Crutchfield and company added 23 more wins in 2019–20. In doing so, the team climbed all the way to No. 1 in the national rankings in the month of December for the first time in program history. By year’s end, the team returned to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive season, and in Crutchfield’s short tenure, has completely revamped its reputation. Off the court, the Sharks have continued their relationship with the Boys & Girls Club, as well as Make-A-Wish. In the classroom, they even set program GPA records for the winter semester (3.30) and overall year (3.24). 2019–2020 NSU Women’s Golf Team—Athletics Led by All-Americans Hanna Ahlander, Valentina Albertazzi, and Sofia Garcia Austt, the Nova Southeastern women’s golf team finished the 2019–20 year with a No. 1 next to its name in the national rankings. Despite a gut-wrenching halt to a season filled with endless potential, the Sharks proved to be the very best in Division II, earning victories in four of their seven tournament appearances. The aforementioned trio each ranked among the nation’s top-20 individually, while Albertazzi even went on to become the fifth NSU player in program history to be named the WGCA Freshman of the Year. The Sharks have now won a combined 17 tournaments over the past three seasons. Additionally, head coach Heather Wall’s squad delivered a stellar 3.63 team GPA to conclude the winter semester. 2019–2020 NSU Women’s Swimming Team—Athletics Despite the NCAA DII National Championship meet getting halted just a day and a half in, the Nova Southeastern women’s swim team still made strides during the 2019–20 season, which included a fifth Sunshine State Conference crown, three new program and SSC records, seven individual SSC Champions, 10 All-Americans, six All-SSC awards, and head coach Ben Hewitt’s honor of SSC Women’s Coach of the Year title, his third title in four years. Out of the pool, the women’s swimming team also recorded their program’s highest ever winter semester GPA, 3.68, while also finishing the year with a program-high annual GPA of 3.61. In addition, 13 swimmers earned CSCAA Scholar All-American honors, while 26 were named to the 2020 SSC Spring Commissioner’s Honor Roll. 2019–2020 NSU Women’s Tennis Team—Athletics Before the COVID-19 shutdown, the 2019–20 women’s tennis team was proving one of NCAA Division II’s best teams. In the fall, Natalie Espinal was ITA South Regional runner-up, helping her and partner Sarah Wardenburg produce NSU’s first ITA Cup NCAA DII Championship. Espinal/Wardenburg also claimed the nation’s top doubles ranking for a program-first accomplishment. Additionally, Espinal was #4 nationally in singles and NSU ranked third. Defeating five ranked squads en route to a 13-1 finish, NSU clinched third at the DII Women’s Indoor Championships with victories over #6 Saint Leo and #3 Columbus State—their lone loss was a 4-2 setback to defending National Champion Barry. Espinal and Wardenburg (8-1 doubles) were named Doubles All-Americans, while Espinal (7-2) was the first SSC player also named a Singles All-American, alongside Karolina Snita (11-0). 2021 NOMINEES FOR NSU Athletics Team of the Year