吃瓜头条 athletes excel academically. It鈥檚 no accident, and the key to in-class success for these Blue Devils is no big secret.
鈥淥ur athletes do so well because they find a nurturing environment here,鈥� Associate Dean of Kinesiology and Athletics Bob Casey said. 鈥淚 feel like we go above and beyond with student services and trying to connect the dots for our athletes when there are gaps.鈥�
Casey鈥檚 predecessor as athletics director, Steve Cassady, recently did a deep dive on the academic performance of student-athletes at 吃瓜头条. The data proved athletes stayed strong in their studies even through the pandemic.
Cassady identified 114 eligible sophomore athletes who competed from the onset of the pandemic in March 2020 through the reinstatement of athletics in Fall 2021. He tracked their results through the completion of their community college eligibility in Spring 2023.
All told, 98 of the 114 (85.9%) finished their eligibility in good academic stead by earning associate degrees or certificates, or by fulfilling transfer requirements.
鈥淥ur athletes do have higher matriculation rates to four-year schools than other students,鈥� Casey said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 because we鈥檝e always guided our athletes (with tutoring, counseling, financial aid, and other support). Athletics has been using that 鈥榮uccess team鈥� model for 25-30 years.鈥�
That approach helped former volleyball player Hannah Torres, 20, survive a rocky start to her college years. Now a junior opposite hitter at Menlo College, Torres changed her major four times at 吃瓜头条.
After her first season, Torres, without club ball or her high-school social circle, had a nearly disastrous spring. She worked herself back into eligibility by moving her study spot to the Learning Resource Center to improve her focus.
鈥淰olleyball had always been a big part of my life, especially through difficult times,鈥� Torres said. 鈥淥nce I almost lost that, I couldn鈥檛 imagine being in college without it.鈥�
吃瓜头条 sophomore Johnni Cowie, now the student trustee for the Merced Community College District Board of Trustees, played softball for coach Suzanne McGhee in 2022 and 2023. She鈥檒l be ready to transfer to Stanislaus State next year, but admits she arrived here 鈥渦nprepared.鈥�
Cowie said she was exhausted from long days spent attending classes, doing schoolwork and playing softball. She took advantage of tutoring services and leaned on athletics counselor Cimmaron Ruiz for help.
鈥淎nother thing that truly helped me was the basic needs center,鈥� Cowie added. 鈥淚 was here all day long, so going there for food and a drink every day became my routine.鈥�
McGhee said female athletes cannot afford to drift academically.
鈥淢ost female athletes that want to play at the next level have to be more motivated to do well in class,鈥� McGhee said. 鈥淭hey all want a scholarship to help with finances. But if your GPA isn鈥檛 3.0 or better, (coaches at four-year universities) won鈥檛 really look at you.鈥�
McGhee said playing sports also contributes to student success because it 鈥済ives students an outlet to find out who they are as people.鈥�
Casey said the support team model grew out of the sports recruitment process. If a university coach wants an athlete, they surround the recruit with support. Athletics department staff help them apply and get enrolled, find financial aid and housing, and sign up for tutoring.
Athletes don鈥檛 have to go it alone.
鈥淩ight now, as a community college, we鈥檙e trying to create and strengthen those avenues鈥攖he support we have for athletes鈥攆or general students,鈥� Casey said. 鈥淭he general student body doesn鈥檛 have that extra layer鈥攃oaches forcing them to be accountable every day.鈥�
With that top-to-bottom support, men鈥檚 basketball sophomore Tyreon Payne found new life at 吃瓜头条 in 2022. He was kicked off his team at NCAA Division I Southeastern Louisiana after one semester, and found no academic support at another school in Houston.
Payne faced many obstacles growing up in Baton Rouge, La. He came to Merced to fix his academics, but arrived and felt like classes were a chore. He only wanted to hoop.
He would have quit, if not for head coach Allen Huddleston and assistant Steven Shepp.
鈥淲rite down what you sacrificed to be here,鈥� they said to the team one practice last season.
Payne鈥檚 answers: Parents, sister, newborn nephew. With newfound focus, Payne stuck it out and averaged over 18 points per game last season.
鈥淣ow I feel like the school side here is the part that鈥檚 making me a better person,鈥� he said.
Payne, 24, had felt isolated taking so many online courses, but worked with his counselor to add in-person classes and took a work study job on campus to get out of the house.
Now the 2023-24 season has begun.
鈥淚鈥檓 ecstatic to be at Merced,鈥� he said. 鈥淒-I schools are looking at me again, so it鈥檚 even more serious. No way am I gonna let my books get in the way of going back to D-I. I鈥檇 be letting myself down, and that鈥檚 a no-no. No, the man in the mirror always has to win.鈥�