“Fisher is an avid scholar; she is a lover of knowledge. Her work habits and care put towards the tiniest academic minutiae made her an example for her peers. This development did not come at once. Instead, it came through vigorous attention to her studies. As she delved further away from gen eds and into […]
“Fisher is an avid scholar; she is a lover of knowledge. Her work habits and care put towards the tiniest academic minutiae made her an example for her peers. This development did not come at once. Instead, it came through vigorous attention to her studies. As she delved further away from gen eds and into the realm of vocational studies, her paradigm towards future schooling changed. She began to see graduate school and overall academic achievement a necessary step towards her own personal development. When smoke cleared here at Wartburg, she carried a 3.95 GPA, along with the second-most All-American certificates in Wartburg history.”About Duane SchroederFisher, of Ackley, is a national champion and 14-time All-American in cross country and track and field. She won 20 A-R-C championship titles during her storied career for the Knights. She holds three Wartburg program records in her name.
The American Rivers Conference Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year award is named in honor of the late Johanna Olson, a former cross country and track and field student-athlete at Luther College who was the inaugural recipient of the award. Olson battled brain cancer for over 15 years before her fight ended on January 3, 2013 at age 33. She was originally diagnosed with a brain tumor as a college freshman in 1997 but went on to win the 2000 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship three years to the day after her initial brain surgery. In addition to the national title in cross country, she won three Conference Individual Championships and three Conference Most Valuable Runner awards (1999, 2000, 2001). In track and field, she was the 2001 Conference Most Valuable Performer, earning All-America honors in the 3,000- and 5,000-meter runs. Olson was also a member of the 2001 distance medley relay team that captured the indoor national title. She was named the United States Track Coaches Association (USTCA) regional and national Athlete of the Year in both cross country and track and field in 2000-01. In 1991, Olson was presented the Honda Awards Inspirational Athlete of the Year after returning from radiation treatments to compete at the national level.About Johanna OlsonChris Winter, Wartburg College head football coach, commented:About Scholar-Athlete of the Year AwardsThe 2023-24 Scholar-Athletes of the Year will be announced on Jan. 8, 2025, at www.rollrivers.com at noon.The finalists for the Johanna Olson A-R-C Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year are former Wartburg College track and field and cross country student-athlete Aubrie Fisher, along with former Coe College softball student-athlete Heather Bockenstedt and former Nebraska Wesleyan University track and field student-athlete Bella Hogue.In leadership and community service roles, Fisher served as a meet volunteer for Wartburg’s high school meets. She was a Tri-by-Knight Triathlon volunteer for three years, was involved with Wartburg’s Unified Sports Day in 2020, and Wartburg’s MLK Day of Service where she helped make tie blankets that were donated to a place in need.The Duane Schroeder A-R-C Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year finalists are former Wartburg College football student-athlete Owen Grover, along with former Coe College men’s basketball student-athlete Cael Schmitt and former Simpson College track and field student-athlete Max Cleveland.In leadership and community service roles, Grover was a Unified Sports Day Leader and volunteered at the Waverly Health Center Emergency Department. He was a rehab volunteer at the Craig Hospital for brain and spinal cord injuries. Grover was a lead volunteer for Wartburg’s TriByKnight and was a morale captain for Wartburg Dance Marathon. He was actively involved with Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) at Wartburg and was part of the Executive Team for Catholic Knights.In the classroom, Grover carried a 3.9867 cumulative grade point average while majoring in biology and having minors in chemistry and leadership. During his career, he earned College Sport Communicators (CSC) Academic Team Member of the Year after being named a football Academic All-American. He dived into research about the effects of creatine supplementation on mTBI and the effects of in-season and off-season athletics participation on body composition.CEDAR RAPIDS – The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) has announced that the three female finalists and three male finalists for the 2023-24 Johanna Olson and Duane Schroeder Scholar-Athlete of the Year Awards each include a Wartburg student.The American Rivers Conference Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award is named in honor of the late Duane Schroeder, former sports information director (SID) at Wartburg College. Schroeder served as Wartburg’s SID for 43 years until his retirement in 2000. Upon his retirement from his sports information duties, he was named SID Emeritus and served as Wartburg’s News Director until 2001. During much of his four decades at Wartburg, Schroeder served as the Conference’s information director and secretary/treasurer.Ryan Chapman, Wartburg College head cross country and assistant track and field coach commented:“Grover is a responsible, dependable, self-motivated person. I could always rely on him to do the right thing. He is the type of person who is early for everything and comes prepared every day to get better. I never questioned his readiness at any point in his career. I could count on Grover to give great effort and bring positive energy to the team on a consistent basis. He served as an excellent example to other student-athletes on our team and was a tremendous representative of Wartburg football during his time on campus.”In the classroom, she was a double major in psychology and sociology and carried a 3.9333 cumulative grade point average. She is a five-time United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic American while also being named to the College Sport Communicators (CSC) First-Team All-Academic in 2023. She additionally was a member of Alpha Chi.Owen Grover, Wartburg CollegeGrover, of Dyersville, led the Knights football team to back-to-back national semifinal appearances. He was the Cliff Harris Award Winner and a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy. Grover was named D3football.com National Defensive Player of the Year and a D3football.com, Associated Press, and American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) All-American. He holds the Wartburg school record with 364 career total tackles.The American Rivers Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Year awards were first presented in December 2001 for the 2000-01 academic year. To be eligible for nomination, a student-athlete shall have graduated or exhausted their athletic eligibility during the academic year for which the award is given. The nominee must have demonstrated a high level of accomplishment and achievement in a varsity sport, have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.5 (on a 4.0 scale), and show evidence of scholarly achievements, community service involvement and leadership. Both awards were named originally for former Wartburg College and Conference sports information director Duane Schroeder in May 2002. The women’s award was renamed in 2013 for former Luther College student-athlete Johanna Olson — the inaugural winner of the women’s award — who lost a courageous battle with cancer in January 2013.Aubrie Fisher, Wartburg CollegeThe finalists were narrowed down by the Scholar-Athlete Recommendation Committee, comprised of three Faculty Athletic Representatives and three Athletic Communication Directors. The Male and Female Scholar-Athletes of the Year will now go before the full group of faculty athletic representatives for review and vote.
