Schantzenbach field hockey scholarship winner announced
Jacey Wittel of Pocono Mountain East has been named the winner of the Dennis Schantzenbach Scholar-Athlete Award presented by the Lehigh Valley Chapter of Field Hockey Officials.
The award measures and rewards excellence by seniors on and off the field hockey field.
Wittel will attend the University of Iowa and will play field hockey for the Hawkeyes while majoring in computer science. She is 19th in a class of 288 and has a 98.1 GPA out of a possible 100. She is enrolled in numerous advanced placement courses. She is a National Field Hockey Coaches Association academic all-state selection.
On the field, Wittel was a fouryear starter and a team captain in 2020. She was first-team all-EPC Mountain Division, first-team all-state and the MVP of her team. She was selected athlete of the week by Blue Ridge Cable. As a sophomore in 2019, she was on league championship and District 11 qualifying track and field relay teams.
In addition, she is on the USA Field Hockey Rise junior national team, a member of the USA Futures program and plays for the X-Calibury club team. She also travels on mission trips with the Christ Hamilton United Lutheran Church.
The other finalist was Bailey Tietz of Emmaus and other nominees were Emily Baumgardt of Palmerton, Sarah Domin of Freedom, Morgan McEntire of Northampton and Alexis Rushatz of Catasauqua.
Coaching departure
Northern Lehigh athletic director Bryan Geist announced in a news release on Wednesday morning that Ken Shankweiler has resigned as the Bulldogs girls basketball coach after five seasons.
Shankweiler had a record of 36-66. In the abbreviated 202021 season, Northern Lehigh went 4-5 in the regular season and lost to Palisades 53-45 in the District 11 3A quarterfinals.
The Bulldogs also qualified for the 2020 District 11 tournament, losing to Notre Dame in the semifinals.
“We wish Ken Shankweiler the best and thank him for his service as coach at Northern Lehigh,” Geist said.
Shankweiler previously coached at Salisbury and Jim Thorpe.