High-flying Falcons honored by South Euclid
Ball and Wanzo celebrated as NDC standouts

SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio, June 24 -- The Mayor of South Euclid recognized two Notre Dame student-athletes at South Euclid City Hall on Monday evening. Mayor Georgeine Welo honored softball player Anna Ball (Jr/Bellville, OH) and track athlete April Wanzo (Sr/Cleveland, OH) for their accomplishments this past spring. 

The Notre Dame student-athletes represent a historic firsts for the College (Ball becoming the College's first-ever NAIA First Team All-American selection) and the completion of a stellar collegiate career (Wanzo earning seven All-American awards).  Both received framed proclamations in Council chambers after the proclamation was read aloud by Councilman Dr. David B. Miller.

“We’re very proud of both these young women,” said NDC Director of Athletics Sue Hlavacek. “They exemplify what we look for in student-athletes, and they uphold the ideals of the College.”

Ball was honored for her contributions to the NDC Softball program in which she has starred for three seasons.  Her most recent season was capped off by an NAIA First Team All-America award, the first in NDC Women’s sports history.  The All-America nod for the junior third baseman came as recognition for what was one of the most prolific individual seasons in NDC sports history.

The lefty-slugging Ball finished the 2008 season with program-record totals in hits (74), doubles (26), home runs (12), and batting average (.532) among 11 single-season batting records broken. Ball, already Notre Dame's career leader in most batting categories, ranked second in the nation this year with her .532 average. She also ranked in the Top-5 in the nation in slugging percentage (1.007), doubles per game, and hits per game.

The Bellville, Ohio, native was a Second Team All-American as a sophomore a year ago. In May, she was also named Player of the Year in the North Division of the American Mideast Conference for a second straight year. The First Team All-America nod is the first to be awarded to a female student-athlete at Notre Dame, which has had women's sports since 1970. Ball is just the second NDC student-athlete to be tabbed as a First Teamer - senior Jerome Pierce (Toledo, OH) earned a First Team award in Men's Basketball in March (for the 2007-08 season).

"Anna's love for this game is apparent," said Notre Dame Head Coach Amy Kyler. "Her understanding of softball and her hard work has really paid off tremendously in her collegiate career already. We're all happy for her and proud of her.”

For her part, Ball sees her success emanating from the Falcon team and Kyler. "Coach Kyler motivated our team through her belief in our abilities," said Ball. "The many awards that we have all garnered this year are because of our team's and coaching staff's hard work and dedication to the program."

Ball, batting leadoff for the Falcons this past season, reached base a team-high 107 times (not including reached on error). As the season wore on, the NDC third sacker was walked more and more by opposing pitchers - she finished the season with a .611 on-base percentage. (That's believed to be the top mark in the country, although OBP is not an official NAIA statistic.)

Speedster April Wanzo, who graduated in May, earned two All-American awards at the NAIA Outdoor National Championships in May. Wanzo claimed those awards – one in the Women's 400 Meter Dash and one more as the anchor runner of the Notre Dame Women’s 4x400 Meter Relay. The four-year Falcon placed fourth in both events; the NAIA awards. She adds those to a stockpile of five All-America performances earned in previous National Championships, and she leaves College Road with an unprecedented seven such awards in tow.

Wanzo, a Cleveland native, figured in all 11 points scored by the NDC Women’s team at the National Championships, which were held in St. Louis. The NDC Women scored their points on Wanzo’s two fourth-places finishes and on an eighth-place finish in the 4x100 Meter Relay, which again was anchored by the veteran Wanzo.  The NAIA recognizes the Top-6 finishers in each National Championship event as an All-American.  The St. Louis performance was also rife with records, all around. 

Wanzo ran a personal-season-best time of 55.87 in the 400 Meter Dash (she owns the Falcons’ record of 55.63).  The 4x400 Meter Relay posted an NDC-record time of 3:50.53 at nationals.  In addition, the 11 team points scored by the Women’s squad and their place of finish (23rd) are also new Notre Dame bests.  Wanzo’s name also dots the Notre Dame all-time record book for best times in multiple events.  She is the Falcons’ record-holder in five events (outdoor 400, indoor 55, 300, 400, and 500).  She’s also a member of five record relay quartets.

"April is a special athlete," said NDC Head Coach Joe Magill, who has been at the helm of Men’s and Women’s Track & Field since 2006. “What I especially enjoy about April is that as good as she is athletically, she is even better as a person.”

That balance in being a student-athlete and a contributor to a campus community was a common theme in comments made by several Council members during the event.  “We’re pleased to have Notre Dame College as part of our community,” said Council President Moe Romeo.  “And these young women exemplify the quality experience Notre Dame graduates walk away with.”

For additional information, contact Notre Dame Sports Information Director Skip Snow at 216.373.5319 or ssnow@ndc.edu.

Notre Dame College is a co-educational liberal arts institution in South Euclid, Ohio. The Notre Dame Athletics Department sponsors the Falcons' participation in 18 men's and women's sports. The College is affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and the American Mideast Conference (AMC), which is the largest NAIA conference in the nation.

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