ATLANTA, Ga. - The ASUN Conference recognized its 2021-22 Spring Winners for Life Team on Wednesday. The team is composed of one student-athlete from each of the 12 member institutions and honors those who display excellence on and off the playing surface. 

2021-22 ASUN Conference Spring Winners for Life Team
Jon Robbins, Bellarmine - Men's Lacrosse
AJ Mendolia, Central Arkansas - Baseball
Niko Leontarakis, Eastern Kentucky - Baseball
Brian Ellis, FGCU - Baseball
Hayleigh Palotti, Jacksonville - Women's Track & Field
Greta Romei, Jacksonville State - Women's Track & Field
Siena Gore, Kennesaw State - Women's Lacrosse
Hannah Quast, Liberty - Women's Lacrosse
Maddux Houghton, Lipscomb - Baseball
Harley Stokes, North Alabama - Softball
Kit Gulihur, North Florida - Women's Tennis
Gabriella Bramante, Steston - Beach Volleyball

Jon Robbins of Bellarmine was named to the 2022 Men's Lacrosse All-Academic Team in early May after he posted a 3.82 GPA while pursuing his Master's in Business Administration. The Plano, Texas native headed into the ASUN Conference's relaunch of Men's Lacrosse as the Preseason ASUN Defensive Player of the Year and ended the campaign as a First Team All-Conference selection. The defender, who helped the Knights to the ASUN Championship, ranks fifth in the nation and first in ASUN in caused turnovers per game (2.59). Robbins is BU's all-time leader in caused miscues (112) and set a new school record for forced turnovers in 2022 with 44. He was selected 28th overall by Archers Lacrosse Club this year in the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) College Draft.

Central Arkansas' AJ Mendolia has a 3.82 GPA in Applied Data Analytics and is on the Dean's List at UCA while starting all 53 games this season for the Bears. He hit .249 with four doubles and a home run while accumulating 16 RBIs. He had a team-high 45 walks (third in the ASUN) while recording 12 multi-hit games and gathering an 18-game reached base streak. The Fort Worth, Texas, native, who was named the Central Arkansas Male Freshman of the Year for the 2020-21 academic year, also had a .414 on-base percentage playing third base. His efforts helped UCA make a successful transition to the ASUN as the team posted an 18-12 mark within league competition.

While carrying a 3.87 GPA in pursuit of a Master's in Excercise Science: Exercise & Wellness, Niko Leontarakis of Eastern Kentucky is involved with EKU in a number of ways. Not only is he a right-handed pitcher on the baseball team that qualified for the ASUN Championship in 2022, but also a SAAC member that has participated in Samaritan's Feet, Ronald McDonald Care Project and Operation Christmas Child. On the field of play, Leontarakis appeared in 19 games and started nine times with a 6-2 record with a 6.88 ERA. He struck out 54 batters over 52.1 innings and tied for fifth in the ASUN in wins. Leontarakis also earned the win against Jacksonville State (May 25) in the ASUN Championship after pitching two scoreless innings in relief, with two hits and three strikeouts.

A decorated performer on the diamond, Brian Ellis of FGCU garnered a Magna Cum Laude distinction after earning his undergraduate degree in Exercise Science (3.79 GPA) last spring and now holds a 3.95 GPA as he pursues a certificate in Health Services Administration. Throughout his career, he has been a member of the President's List, the Dean's List, the AD Honor Roll and the ASUN Honor Roll. Ellis, a 2022 ASUN Conference All-Academic Team selection, was the Eagles' first-ever team captain and has been an All-ASUN honoree the past two seasons (First Team in 2021 and Second Team in 2022). He was again amongst the ASUN top hitters in several categories, including first in runs scored (74), second in doubles (25), second in on-base percentage (.505), third in batting average (.379) and fourth in hits (89).

Jacksonville's Hayleigh Palotti graduated Summa Cum Laude this past spring while earning her bachelor's degree in Psychology and boasting a perfect 4.00 cumulative GPA. While in undergrad, Palotti was a member of SAAC, a peer tutor at the university's writing center, volunteered at Special Olympics and participated in JAX's Chart Day event by helping to remove debris and plant flowers on campus. Palotti was a member of the Women's Cross Country and Track and Field program. She qualified to compete in the 3,000m Steeplechase at the NCAA East Prelims after taking home a second-place finish in the event at the 2022 ASUN Championship. Palotti also holds the Jacksonville 5,000m and 3,000m Steeplechase records. 

Greta Romei earned her Master's in Athletic Training with a perfect 4.00 cumulative GPA while also maintaining memberships in multiple organizations including the National Athletic Training Association, Student Culinary Council, Honor Society-Strength and Honor, SAAC and Kinesiology Club. The Italy native has served as a volunteer at the Read Across America event, Boys and Girls Club, Clothes Closet, Kinesiology Department and Jacksonville Church of Christ. Romei is also a member of the Track and Field program at Jacksonville State as she collected the gold medal in the Javelin at the 2022 ASUN Outdoor Track and Field Championship. She concluded her career with 20 podium finishes and nine gold medals.

Siena Gore goes down as not only one of the best Women's Lacrosse players at Kennesaw State or the ASUN, but one of the best to ever play the sport. The 2022 ASUN Player of the Year and Scholar-Athlete of the Year became the first student-athlete to receive four All-Conference First Team selections and register 100 points in a season scoring 80 goals and adding 20 assists, leading the Owls to their first winning season and a program-best 11 wins. For her efforts on the field, Gore earned IWLCA All-South Region Second Team honors and 2022 Inside Lacrosse All-America Honorable Mention. The Alpharetta, Ga., native ranks in the top 10 nationally in five categories including third in goals per game, fourth in total goals (313), fifth in draw controls per game (8.61) and points per game (4.8) and 10th in total points (360). Off the field, Gore earned her Master's Degree in Systems Engineering while also volunteering her time as an assistant coach at Saint John Neumann as both a lacrosse and basketball coach, the Horizon Softball League and United Sports. Gore also volunteered on mission trips to Costa Rica and Panama.

A two-time ASUN All-Conference member, Liberty's Hannah Quast led the nation's top defense this season causing 33 turnovers while the Flames averaged 13.53 caused turnovers per game. Quast also recorded 43 ground balls, scored twice and won one draw control. The Mullica Hill, N.J., native earned her master's degree in Human Services this past season while also completing community service hours for a multitude of projects including Hop on Pop, Clean Out for a Cause, Dollar Makes a Difference and the Lynchburg Food Pantry, among other events. Quast appeared in 75 games during her career for Liberty Lacrosse, she ranks as high as seventh in career-caused turnovers (76), 13th in ground balls (108) and 15th in goals scored (62).

Lipscomb's Maddux Houghton earned a 4.00 GPA in Sports Management and a Graduate Certificate in Business Leadership while also notching spots on the Provost's List and ASUN Honor Roll. The two-time selection to the ASUN All-Academic Team has volunteered his time as a coach for ABLEYouth and Achilles Nashville, along with Northside Neighborhood House, a greeter at Rock Bridge Community Church, a Miracle League volunteer coach and more. Houghton holds the Bisons' record for games played (225) and games started (224) and was named to the 2022 ASUN All-Tournament Team. He owns a .284 career batting average with 36 career doubles, 16 career home runs, 10 career triples, 118 career RBIs and a .413 career slugging percentage.

Harley Stokes completed her career for the North Alabama Lions going down in the record books as the best home run hitter in program history with 54 career bombs. Stokes earned All-Conference Second Team honors during the 2022 season where she led the league with 19 home runs, ranked second with 56 RBIs and third with a .705 slugging percentage. Graduating with a Master's degree in Sports & Recreation Management, Stokes hit .306 on the season with 14 multi-hit and 13 multi-RBI games. Off the field, the Demopolis, Ala., native spent her time volunteering around her community in events such as Civic Day, Baptist Campus Ministries Adopt a Child for Christmas, Canned Food Drives, School Supply Drives and the Florence Animal Shelter.

North Florida's Kit Gulihur graduated Summa Cum Laude with a Psychology degree earning her the NCAA Elite 90 award after becoming the first ASUN Women's Tennis student-athlete to receive an automatic invitation to the NCAA Championship in Singles while also teaming up with Ana Paula Melilo to become the league's first Doubles Pair to play in the NCAA Championship this season. Gulihur earned ASUN Player of the Year, Scholar-Athlete of the Year and Doubles Pair of the Year awards posting a 23-4 overall Singles record and a 22-7 Doubles record. The Camp Pendleton, Calif., native capped her career ranked No. 60 individually and No. 42 in Doubles in the ITA rankings becoming the first  CoSIDA Academic All-District 4 First Team honoree in UNF program history. Gulihur was a two-time All-Conference First Team selection and earned back-to-back Scholar-Athlete of the Year nods. Off the court, Gulihur volunteered her time at CAMP Osprey with Taylor Leadership Institute mentoring underprivileged kids through the sport of tennis, speaking with middle school students about the importance of education and pursuing their dreams through sport, and volunteering at Chets Creek Elementary school and providing tennis clinics at Queens Harbor.

Gabriella Bramante recorded a 3.958 cumulative GPA as a Marketing major at Stetson. She helped organize multiple events on campus including the "MeStrong" fundraising event and the annual Hattemy Award Ceremony. Along with being a member of SAAC, Bramante works for the center for community engagement and volunteered at the Right to Sight Event. The Apex, N.C. native helped the Hatters Beach Volleyball team earn the program's sixth ASUN title this past season while playing on courts two and three.

The Winners for Life team honors a campus citizen that is respected as one who shares and/or demonstrates the ASUN Core Values: Education, Honesty, Student-Athlete Experience, Fairness, Health, Ambition, Respect, Diversity, Inclusion, Leadership, Responsibility, and Sportsmanship. To be eligible for the award, the student-athlete must have competed in the current academic year in an ASUN-sponsored sport and be in good academic standing at his/her university. ASUN Conference, Atlanta, Ga. - the only DI conference headquartered in the ATL, our footprint's primary media, sports, business, transportation and cultural hub
The ASUN, a Division I conference member of the NCAA, boasts a membership of institutions that share visionary leadership, bold ambition and creative innovation. As a nimble adaptive conference, unafraid to blaze a national pathway for better service to our student-athletes, teams, and institutions, the ASUN has a proud history of firsts, national academic and athletic achievements and a conference culture that walks the walk with its four ASUN Beams. Students First! Rise. Connect. Impact. #ASUNBuilt by Bellarmine (Louisville), Central Arkansas (Conway), Eastern Kentucky (Richmond), FGCU (Fort Myers), Jacksonville (Fla.), Jacksonville State (Jacksonville, Ala.), Kennesaw State (Ga.), Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.), Lipscomb (Nashville), North Alabama (Florence), North Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.), and Stetson (DeLand, Fla.). Austin Peay, based in Clarksville, Tenn., and Queens, based in Charlotte, N.C., are both set to join the league in the 2022-23 academic year.