INDIANAPOLIS, May 18, 2020 – University of Missouri-St. Louis senior
Derrick Freeman of the baseball team and senior
Emma Thorngren of the women's golf team have been named as the Tritons' James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Award winners for the 2019-20 year. The award is named after the former Bellarmine director of athletics and multi-sport coach who is considered one of the pioneers of the GLVC.
The duo were two of 32 student-athletes, one male and one female from each of the league's 16 schools, formally recognized after learning of their honors during their respective All-Conference process this past year.
Freeman was named UMSL's male honoree for the second straight year. He graduates after five seasons with the Tritons program, having played in 146 career games. During his career, Freeman recorded 135 hits, including 25 doubles, 10 triples and 12 home runs, while scoring 112 runs and driving in 86.
Thorngren, a three-time All-American, finished the year ranked seventh in NCAA Division II Golfstat Player Rankings. She posted a single-season program record 72.84 scoring average, winning three tournaments and finishing no lower than eighth in seven events with five top-five finishes. She is the program's career scoring average leader at 75.46.
Each institution – through the head coach – names one award honoree at the end of their respective sports season who distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. The student-athlete must also be in good academic standing and have demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting. With their sport recognition, the honorees became eligible for the overall James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Award, where each institution selects one male and one female student-athlete from its season-long list of honorees to be named as James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Individual Award winners.
In addition to Freeman and Thorngren, UMSL's other honorees during the year included: Max Wootten (men's soccer), Kenny Berry (men's basketball), Guillem Masjuan Roca (men's swimming), Ben-Hur Kasprzak (men's tennis), Chris Ferris (men's golf), Breanna Colombo (women's soccer), Madsy Richards (volleyball), Kiara Stewart (women's basketball), Zara Konstapel (women's swimming), Hannah Burth (women's tennis) and Morgan Hill (softball).
Furthermore, during the initial nomination process, each institution's coach ranks the top-three teams within the sport that best displayed good sportsmanship throughout the season. The team with the highest point total is then named that sport's James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Team Award winner. At the conclusion of the academic year, the institution that accumulated the highest point total across all sports is named the James R. Spalding Sportsmanship Overall Award winner. As a result of the cancellation of the spring season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, eight spring sports team winners were not determined and therefore no overall team winner was declared for the 2019-20 season.
The GLVC renamed its annual sportsmanship award in 2016 after Spalding for his longtime service at Bellarmine. Spalding was first a basketball student-athlete at Bellarmine, who later returned to serve his alma mater as a coach and later the AD. During his tenure as AD, Spalding played a prominent role in both the formation of the GLVC and the sponsorship expansion of women's athletics within the league. He died in 2012 at the age of 79 following a lengthy illness.
2019-20 GLVC JAMES R. SPALDING INDIVIDUAL SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS
| School |
Male Winner |
Female Winner |
| Bellarmine |
Chris Gambert, Baseball |
Sabrina Fussenegger, Softball |
| Drury |
Peter Kuster, Wrestling |
Erica Dahlgren, Swimming & Diving |
| Illinois Springfield |
Emmons King, Cross Country |
Rachel Cobert, Volleyball |
| Indianapolis |
Brody Conner, Wrestling |
Pilar Echeverria, Golf |
| Lewis |
Ryan Schefske, Baseball |
Carly Graverson, Basketball |
| Lindenwood |
Austin Stofer, Wrestling |
Aly Smith, Lacrosse |
| Maryville |
Iwan Webster, Soccer |
Casey Berberich, Track & Field |
| McKendree |
Nick Foster, Wrestling |
Calypso (Callie) Pohlman, Basketball |
| Missouri S&T |
Alex Staples, Track & Field |
Abby Klein, Softball |
| Missouri-St. Louis |
Derrick Freeman, Baseball |
Emma Thorngren, Golf |
| Quincy |
Andrew Rund, Football |
Dami Adeyinka, Basketball |
| Rockhurst |
Joe Specht, Baseball |
Colleen Pikus, Soccer |
| Southern Indiana |
Nathan Hall, Track & Field |
Morgan Sherwood, Basketball |
| Southwest Baptist |
Quinn Nelson, Basketball |
Meleah Ridenour, Track & Field |
| Truman |
Quinn Miller, Cross Country |
Meghan Gasper, Volleyball |
| William Jewell |
Ryan Hoffman, Track & Field |
Maddie Wingert, Volleyball |
2019-20 GLVC JAMES R. SPALDING TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNERS
| Men's Cross Country: Missouri S&T |
Women's Cross Country: Illinois Springfield |
| Football: William Jewell |
Volleyball: Truman State |
| Men's Soccer: William Jewell |
Women's Soccer: Bellarmine |
| Men's Swimming: McKendree |
Women's Swimming: McKendree |
| Men's Basketball: Southwest Baptist |
Women's Basketball: Quincy |
| Men's Indoor Track & Field: Lewis |
Women's Indoor Track & Field: Southwest Baptist |
| Wrestling: Bellarmine |
Women's Bowling: Maryville |
| Men's Golf: Maryville |
Women's Golf: Missouri S&T |
| Men's Lacrosse: No award presented |
Women's Lacrosse: No award presented |
| Men's Tennis: No award presented |
Women's Tennis: No award presented |
| Baseball: No award presented |
Softball: No award presented |
| Men's Outdoor Track & Field: No award presented |
Women's Outdoor Track & Field: No award presented |
