Tusculum's Ricker and Newberry's Hamilton Receive South Atlantic Conference BMI Postgraduate Scholarships
ROCK HILL, S.C. (TheSAC.com) – Tusculum University's Jerry Ricker and Newberry College's Katharina Hamilton have been awarded the South Atlantic Conference's Bob McCloskey Insurance (BMI) Postgraduate Scholarships, the Conference announced on Friday (June 5).
"The SAC is extremely appreciative of the continued support from Bob McCloskey Insurance in providing these postgraduate scholarships," said Commissioner Patrick Britz. "Jerry and Katharina have demonstrated tremendous dedication to excellence both in competition and in the classroom throughout their collegiate careers. The Conference is proud to recognize their accomplishments and leadership, and we look forward to seeing all they achieve in their postgraduate studies and future careers."
"We are honored to be able to help support the student-athletes of the South Atlantic Conference," Peter Ginnegar, Senior Vice President of BMI stated. "We know that the cost of higher education can be difficult to manage, but we hope these scholarships will allow these deserving student-athletes the opportunity to complete their degrees."
Ricker, a senior from Kingsport, Tenn., was a member of the Tusculum cross country and track and field teams. A sport science major with a coaching minor, Ricker owns a 3.56 cumulative GPA and has served in numerous leadership roles throughout his collegiate career, including Resident Assistant, Cross Country Team Captain, Orientation Leader, Summer Bridge Peer Mentor, and Student Government Association Senior Class Representative.
Ricker has also worked extensively in mentoring and student support roles as a tutor and mentor with TRIO Student Support Services while assisting first-generation and at-risk college students. He has served as an Upward Bound Program staff member, substitute teacher, and afterschool tutor while earning recognition as the recipient of the James E. Ward Future Professional Award. He was also named Junior Homecoming Prince, Senior Homecoming King, and earned the Tusculum School Spirit Award in addition to multiple SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll selections.
On the course, Ricker recorded a top-10 finish at the 2022 Walters State Invitational and earned an 11th-place finish at the 2023 Walters State Invitational. He plans to pursue a Master of Arts in Teaching at Tusculum University while continuing to serve as a graduate assistant with the cross country program.
Hamilton, a senior softball student-athlete from Grand Ridge, Fla., graduated from Newberry College with a perfect 4.0 GPA while majoring in exercise science and minoring in psychology. She served as the softball team's SAAC representative and was inducted into the Bachman Honor Society and Chi Alpha Sigma National College Athlete Honor Society while earning Dean's List honors all three years at Newberry.
Hamilton gained extensive hands-on experience in physical therapy and sports medicine through internships at Newberry Physical Therapy & Sport Medicine Clinic, Adaptive Pediatric Therapy, and Tallahassee Orthopedic Center. During her internship experiences, she worked alongside physical therapists and physician assistants while assisting with patient exercises, rehabilitation techniques, and sports medicine treatments.
In the community, Hamilton volunteered with numerous service initiatives including Walk Like a Wolf, Trunk or Treat at Newberry Hospital, Morgan's Message Game Day, Newberry Oktoberfest, HOSA events, and Screaming Eagles programs that support children with special needs. She plans to pursue a Doctorate of Physical Therapy at Youngstown State University with the goal of working in sports physical therapy.
The BMI postgraduate scholarships are awarded to SAC student-athletes who excel academically and athletically and have completed their final year of intercollegiate athletics competition. Both Ricker and Hamilton will receive a one-time, non-renewable scholarship of $3,000 toward graduate school.