Nico Gercke of Barry Voted 2014-15 Duane Hopkins SSC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year

06.12.15

MELBOURNE, Fla. - Barry men’s soccer player Nico Gercke has been selected as the 2014-15 Duane Hopkins Sunshine State Conference Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year. His honor marks the sixth time a Buccaneer athlete has been named the Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year since the award was created in 1995-96.

Gercke was chosen from a pool of nominees in a vote conducted among the conference’s Athletic Directors, Senior Woman Administrators, Athletic Communication Directors, and Faculty Athletic Representatives from each of the nine member institutions. Criteria considered in selecting the winner were: first, scholarly excellence; second, athletic performance; and third, involvement within the school and community.

With a 4.00 grade-point average in business administration, Gercke was named to the Capital One / CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team in 2014 along with the SSC Fall Commissioner's Honor Roll.

The Wahrenholz, Germany native was named a National Soccer Coaches Association of America Scholar All-American in 2014, Barry’s 2015 Professor Neill Miller Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, and made the Barry University President’s List all four semesters as a Buccaneer.

On the field, Gercke’s eight goals in 2014 led the team. His biggest offensive output came in the last home game of his career when he scored four goals against Florida Southern, which is tied for second most in program history. His offensive production secured him a spot on the All-SSC second team along with the All-South Region first team.

Throughout his two years at Barry University, Gercke has volunteered his time for various organizations throughout the Miami Shores area. Along with organizing and running multiple youth soccer camps, Gercke has also worked with the Buc Walking Challenge, Miami Shores Community Fest, H.A.N.D.Y Holiday Party, and the Sinai Plaza Nursing and Rehab Center.

Gercke joins golfer Daniel Stapff (2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12) and tennis athletes Patrick Rittenauer (2006-07) and Thomas Hipp (2004-05) as Barry athletes to win the award. This is the sixth time a soccer athlete has been voted male scholar-athlete of the year, the first since Lynn’s Lee Porter took home the award in 2008-09.

About Duane Hopkins
Duane Hopkins served as Florida Southern’s NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative from 1999 until his retirement from the FSC faculty in 2007. He was a key figure in organizing the faculty representatives among the Sunshine State Conference schools and served for four years as that group’s chairman. He also was an original advisor to the SSC Student-Athlete Advisory Committee when it was first organized. In addition to his responsibilities as faculty athletics representative, Hopkins also served on the NCAA Division II Legislation Committee for six years. In 2007 he became the first faculty athletics representative elected to the SSC Hall of Fame. Now retired, Hopkins remains one of FSC’s most devoted followers.