Six Bellevue University athletes were highlighted and recognized for their outstanding accomplishments on the field/court and in the classroom at the 48th Annual Bellevue University Athletics Banquet held at the Beardmore Events Center Wednesday evening in Bellevue.
Volleyball outside hitter All-American Eve Fountain and freshman All-American Madison Nelson (cross country/distance track) were named the school's co-Female Athletes of the Year. All-American defender Andy Wilkinson (Men's Soccer) and baseball standout Elijah Johnson garnered co-Male Athlete of the Year accolades.
All-conference golfer Tylah Saifoloi was recognized as the Female Academic Athlete of the Year. Defender Tibor Stanković (Men's Soccer) was honored as the Male Academic Athlete of the Year.
Eve Fountain
Volleyball All-American Eve Fountain earned a reputation as one of the top outside hitters in the nation during the 2021 campaign. In her second season in a Bruin uniform, Eve was named a first-team NAIA All-American as well as first-team AVCA all-North Central Region and a first-team all-NSAA selection. She twice earned NSAA Attacker and Defender of the Week honors in 2021.
She led the Bruins and the conference with 438 kills and was third with a .263 attack percentage. A six-rotation player, Fountain finished second on the team with 439 digs and fourth with 27 service aces She led the team with an impressive 20 double-doubles on the season. Fountain had 27 matches with double-figure kill totals.
Fountain helped lead the Bruins to their first appearance in the quarterfinals of the NAIA National Tournament since the 2000 season. BU finished the season ranked No. 9 in the nation with a 26-8 overall record and an 11-3 mark in the NSAA.
With three years of eligibility remaining, Fountain has already amassed 783 career kills, 735 digs, 80 blocks, and 55 service aces.
Madison Nelson
Bruin freshman Madison Nelson added the crowning achievement to her record-setting freshman year with an All-American finish at the NAIA Half Marathon Championship, finishing seventh in the event. In addition to her All-American performance at the NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Nelson won the 2021 NSAA Cross Country title last fall, qualifying for the NAIA Cross Country National Championships.
At the NSAA Indoor Track Championships, Nelson won the 3,000 meters, while setting a meet record with a time of 10:52.34. She also recorded a runner-up finish in the 5,000 meters at the NSAA Indoor Championships.
Nelson added two more NSAA titles in the NSAA Outdoor Track Championships, claiming the titles in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meter runs.
Andy Wilkinson
Senior defender Andy Wilkinson served as team captain for the Bruins for the third-straight season while earning honorable mention NAIA All-American honors as well as first-team all-Continental Athletic Conference accolades while helping BU qualify for the NAIA National Tournament for the third time in the last four years.
Wilkinson was named the CAC Tournament MVP after helping BU to its second-straight CAC Tournament Title, anchoring a defense that did not concede a goal and allowed just six shots on goal in two games of the tournament.
On the season, Wilkinson captained a defensive unit that posted a 0.78 goals-against average, while matching a program record with 10 clean sheets, allowing less than three shots on goal per game.
Wilkinson finished his career as Bellevue's all-time leader with 101 games played, all starts.
Elijah Johnson
Elijah Johnson earned the North Star Pitcher of the Year recognition after turning in one of the most dominating regular seasons in conference history which featured him taking home NSAA Pitcher of the Week honors a program- and conference-record six times. While emerging as BU's ace, he recorded an 11-2 record with a 1.96 ERA and a nation-leading 153 strikeouts across 101 innings of work.
His 14.06 strikeouts per nine innings rank second all-time in BU history, and his strikeout total of 153 rank second in school history.
Johnson helped guide the Bruins to a 49-13 overall record and a 25-2 conference mark. He helped BU win both the NSAA regular season and tournament titles, achieve a No. 6 national ranking, and make the program's 15th appearance in the NAIA World Series.
Tylah Saifoloi
Women's golf team member Tylah Saifoloi has demonstrated dedication and excellence in the classroom and on the course throughout her Bruin career. The junior from Penrith, New South Wales, Australia, has compiled an impressive 3.988 GPA in Health and Human Performance.
She is a three-time honoree as a North Star Athletic Association Scholar-Athlete in addition to also being a two-time first-team all-NSAA selection. Tylah is also a three-time Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) Scholar-Athlete and last week she competed with her teammates at the 2022 NAIA Women's Golf National Championships in Oklahoma City.
Tibor Stanković
Men's soccer standout Tibor Stanković has excelled in the classroom throughout his BU career. The junior from Osijeck, Croatia has amassed an impressive 3.958 GPA in Psychology. He is a two-time Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athlete as well as a two-time conference Scholar-Athlete honoree.
According to head coach Mark Heath-Preston, "Tibor's effort and work ethic are second to none on the field, and this definitely transfers over to his success in the classroom."
