TAMPA—The Sun Conference announced its nominees for five NAIA National Awards Day honors as voted by league membership.
 
The nominees for the A.O. Duer Award as voted on by the conference’s Champions of Characters liaisons are Milena Isturiz and Cole Stassi of Keiser. Also selected by the Champions of Character liaisons were Maria Rodriguez of Florida Memorial as the Leroy Walker Award and Paul Kurtz of Southeastern as the Coach of Character nominee.
 
“We are thrilled to recognize each of our Sun Conference award winners,” said Sun Conference Commissioner Dustin Wilke. “We had an exceptional pool of nominees once again this year and the individuals selected personify the level of individual character that represents a core value of our league.”
 
Isturiz holds a 4.0 grade point average as a criminal justice major and is also a member of the Argentina Women’s Lacrosse National Team, participating in the 2022 World Lacrosse Women’s World Championship where she was among the top midfielders in the tournament with 17 ground balls. She has 19 goals and five assists in 17 games for the Seahawks and was fourth on the team in ground balls with 31. 
 
“What I cherish most about Milena is her constant encouragement of her teammates and her natural leadership abilities,” said Keiser women’s lacrosse head coach Lauren Chizmar. “She always recognizes when one of her teammates is struggling and focuses her energy on keeping her teammates positive.”
 
Stassi graduated Magna Cum Laude with a 3.75 grade point average in Sports Medicine and Fitness Technology. The All-American lacrosse player from Holbrook, N.Y. is the program’s all-time leader in points with 170 and set the Seahawks’ record for assists in a game with seven, helping Keiser to its first national championship.
 
“While Cole has broken and set program records and led us to a national championship, his greatest attributes are his character and work ethic,” said Patrick Johnston, head men’s lacrosse coach at Keiser. “He leads by example in everything that he does in the classroom, weightroom, film, practice, and games. He is one of the hardest working and most respected individuals I have ever known.”    
 
Rodriguez carries a 3.8 grade point average in psychology at Florida Memorial where she is a two-time All-Sun Conference selection in volleyball, served as a team captain, and is part of the Association of Student-Athletes. The team leader in blocks also serves as a facilitator intern for South Florida CARES mentoring, a non-profit organization focused on providing opportunities for youth with socio-emotional support.
 
“Maria stays level-headed throughout the season facing adversity straight on,” said coach Jazmine Washington. “Maria has a contagious and positive energy that can make anyone smile. She’s the first to offer you help and the last to stay around to make sure things run smoothly.”
 
Kurtz was selected as the Coach of Character nominee for the second year in a row after guiding the Fire men’s cross country team to The Sun Conference title for the second time in three years and was named the conference’s Coach of the Year on the men’s side for the second time. Kurtz impacts the character of his team by building intentional relationships with athletes, being a positive role model and presenting everyday scenarios to go through and evaluate responses, empowering individuals, teamwork, service projects, and a team Bible study. To Kurtz, who started the SEU cross country program in 2012, the relationships are the most important. “When they know I care, they demonstrate caring to others, when I push them, they expect more from themselves, when I listen to them, they may listen to others before they speak,” said Kurtz.
 
“During my relationship with Coach Kurtz, I have experienced a leader who went beyond the standard of just being a coach,” said former Fire runner Stephen Pena. “He was a father figure for me and the rest of the team. During one of the hardest seasons in my life, Coach Kurtz showed up and worked with me to get better.”
 
Dr. Jan Bell of St. Thomas was selected as the FAR of the Year by a vote of her peers. Bell has been teaching sports administration courses at St. Thomas for close to 40 years. Bell serves as the Director of the Sports Administration Programs and is the Graduate Internship Coordinator and has annually recruited graduate students to serve with her as operations staff for the PBEO Job Fair at the Baseball Winter Meetings.
 
Additionally, Kris Swogger (Athletic Director of the Year), Paul Dodson (Sports Information Director of the Year), and Dr. Kari Brody (Athletic Trainer of the Year) of Keiser will be put forward for national awards as previously announced after votes by their peers.
 
The national winners will be announced on September 15^th.