IRVINE,
Calif. – Junior Ritchie Gonzalez and sophomore
Samantha Galarza were named Big West Sportsmanship Award
Recipients, it was announced by the league
Thursday.
Each school’s
Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) voted for a male and
female representative who best displayed Sportsmanship during the
2013 calendar year. Sportsmanship, as defined by the SAAC
Council, is “conduct or practice of fairness, courtesy, and
honor while participating in sports; the ethos carried not only in
victory but also in the face of defeat.”
This is the first
year of a modified Sportsmanship Award, which now recognizes
individuals as opposed to teams under the old
format.
Ritchie
Gonzalez
In
2013, Cal State Fullerton midfielder Ritchie Gonzalez, a business
administration major, appeared in seven games scoring one goal,
recording an assist, and three points before suffering an injury
that ended his season. The San Bernardino, Calif., native played in
19 games as junior, while making 12 starts.
Samantha
Galarza
In
2014, Samantha Galarza has started 18 games totaling 15 hits, two
home runs and six runs scored with 10 RBIs. Galarza has a .316
on-base percentage to go along with a .278 batting average while
collecting 22 total bases. The communications major has been
named a Dean’s Scholar, a President’s Scholar and has
earned Dean’s List honors every semester at Cal State
Fullerton. Galarza received the CSF Big West Sportsmanship Award in
2013 and is currently a Titan SAAC
Representative.