NCAA Division II Recognizes Conference Carolinas Gold Award Nominees
INDIANAPOLIS – The NCAA Division II national office announced on Monday that Division II schools and conferences have submitted a total of 231 nominations for the 50th Anniversary Gold Award.
This award, which is part of the division’s yearlong 50th anniversary celebration that launched Aug. 7 and will extend through the 2024 Division II Baseball Championship in June, will recognize two individuals (one individual who identifies as male and one who identifies as female) who have made a positive impact in Division II.
The nominees include current and former student-athletes, coaches, faculty members and administrators from active member schools and conferences who have helped shape Division II over time.
Conference offices will review the nominated individuals and select two conference winners (one individual who identifies as male and one who identifies as female) by Nov. 6. The NCAA Division II Management Council Identity Subcommittee will review the finalists and select the two overall winners, who will be recognized at the 2024 NCAA Convention in Phoenix.
As part of the anniversary celebration, Division II also will provide a commemorative scholarship opportunity for student-athletes from active member schools who exhibit the core values of Division II and have not yet exhausted their athletics eligibility. Two recipients from each conference and two representing the independent institutions will be announced in May during the 2024 NCAA Division II National Championships Festival in Orlando, Florida. Nomination procedures for the scholarship will be announced to the Division II membership in January.
To learn more about Division II’s 50th anniversary celebration, visit ncaa.org/dii50.
The nominees from Conference Carolinas are listed below in institutional alphabetical order.
Belmont Abbey
Venetta Wilson Jagan
Venetta Wilson Jagan is the most decorated player in the 21-year history of the Belmont Abbey women’s soccer program, Jagan entered Belmont Abbey in the fall of 1997 from St. Andrews High School in Charleston, South Carolina and led the Crusaders defense for four seasons. She was a three-time All-American, including first team honors in 1998 and 1999; the first such honor bestowed on a Crusader in program history.
She played in 89 matches in her career, starting in 88 of those, totaling 29 goals, 34 assists and 92 career points. Anchoring the Crusaders’ defense, she led Belmont Abbey to a four-year record of 68-22, two Conference Carolinas Championships and two NCAA Tournament appearances, reaching the Elite Eight in 1999.
Michael Reidy
Dr. Michael Reidy coached the men's tennis team at Belmont Abbey College for 31 years. During his tenure as coach, he led his teams to six conference titles and seven national tournament appearances.
Reidy was named Coach of the Year four times. In 2001, his team reached the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Division II tournament. Reidy also served as the women’s tennis coach in the late 1990s and led the Crusaders to a Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference (CVAC) championship in 1999, the same year he was named CVAC women’s tennis Coach of the Year. Reidy also coached the swim team, headed the intramural department and served as Athletic Director.
In 1988, Reidy was inducted into the Campbell College Athletic Hall of Fame. He was a basketball standout for the Camels from 1960-1964, scoring 1,610 points during his career and serving as the team's captain his final three seasons. Reidy is also a member of the Belmont Sports Hall of Fame (2002) and the Gaston County Sports Hall of Fame (2019).
Converse
Jenn Bell
Jenn Bell is the first Conference Carolinas executive to win the Nike Executive of the Year Award. Bell has also been named to the Advisory Board for the Business of Small College Athletics (BOSCA), named the NACDA Cushman & Wakefield Athletic Director of the Year for NCAA Division II and was named the Third Vice President for the D2 Athletic Directors Association (D2 ADA).
Bell enters her sixth year as the Director of Athletics during the 2023-24 academic year. Under Bell's leadership, Converse Athletics has developed a winning culture – in the classroom, in the sports venue and in the community. Throughout the institution's recent model change, Bell led the department through a successful transition from a single-gender athletics program to a coed program by adding six male sports, esports, and a spirit squad to the list of athletic programs offered at Converse University. With these eight additions, Converse Athletics now offers 21 athletics programs.
Francis Marion
Annamaria Karai Meadows
A 2018 inductee into the Francis Marion University Athletic Hall of Fame, Annamaria Karai Meadows lettered four years on the tennis court between 1998 and 2001, earning All-Peach Belt Conference and All-American (NCAA II) honors all four years. She became only the fourth PBC women’s tennis player to garner All-Conference recognition four times.
During her playing career at Francis Marion, she posted an 82-12 singles record, the most wins in team history, and ranks fifth in doubles victories with a 64-21 mark. She was named the FMU Team MVP in 1998 and 2001. In 1998, she earned Peach Belt Conference Freshman of the Year and ITA Rookie of the Year (South Region) recognition. She was ranked ninth nationally in NCAA Division II singles and No.1 in Division II doubles. She was the Peach Belt Conference No.1 doubles champion, the No.2 singles champion, helped the Patriots to a 14-7 record, equaling the record for wins in a season, and a bid to the NCAA II Tournament. Individually, she
won the singles championship at the NCAA Division II Rolex Southeastern Regional Tournament in Savannah, Georgia, and went on to reach the singles championship match of the NCAA II Rolex National Small College Tennis Championships in Memphis, Tennessee. She was a 2018 inductee into the Peach Belt Conference Hall of Fame.
Oshada Wijemanne
A native of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Oshada Wijemanne was a four-year lettermen, three-time All-American (2009, 2010, 2011), three-time All-Peach Belt Conference for singles (twice first team), two-time All-Peach Belt Conference for doubles, two-time Team MVP and ITA Senior Player of the Year for Southeast Region.
Wijemanne ranked No. 10 nationally in singles in 2011 with an 11-4 mark and seven wins over nationally ranked opponents. He also ranked No. 36 in 2008, No. 9 in 2009, and No. 18 in 2010. He helped the program to a four-year mark of 57-28, including four NCAA Tournament berths (advanced to NCAA Finals Elite Eight in 2008 in Houston). In his career he amassed a 56-14 singles record (sixth most wins in program history, second highest winning percentage) and a 51-23 doubles record (T-7th most wins in program history, seventh highest winning percentage).
Mount Olive
Dr. Brenda Cates
With 41 years of service to the University of Mount Olive and two decades as the Faculty Athletic Representative (FAR), Dr. Brenda Cates has shown undeniable dedication and service to student-athlete excellence. She is a math professor at UMO and currently serves on the NCAA Division II Legislation Committee and NCAA Division II Management Council.
Dr. Cates is the first-ever recipient of the FAR of the Year award for Division II in 2019 and was recognized for her service to the NCAA, Conference Carolinas and the University of Mount Olive. In 2021, she was named the Dr. Dave Pariser Faculty Mentor Award winner by the NCAA Division II Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC). It recognizes faculty members at Division II schools for their dedication to supporting and mentoring student-athletes, as well as their commitment to Division II student-athletes' lifelong learning, competition and well-being. Dr. Cates also has the unique responsibility of serving as scorekeeper at men's and women's basketball home games. She has shown incredible loyalty to the University of Mount Olive and continues to strive to maximize the potential of all student-athletes.
Carl Lancaster
With 32 years of service to the University of Mount Olive baseball program, Carl Lancaster delivered a championship vision and mentality to Mount Olive. He led the Trojans to the 2008 NCAA Division II National Championship, 16 appearances in the NCAA Tournament, 15 Conference Carolinas Tournament titles and earned Conference Carolinas Coach of the Year 12 times and Regional Coach of the Year honors twice.
Lancaster finished with a career record of 1,134-485-2 to boast a .700 winning percentage and was the 2008 Division II National Coach of the Year. He had the pleasure of coaching three National Players of the Year while 40-plus student-athletes went on to play professional baseball.
Following his retirement in 2018, he was inducted into the UMO Athletics Hall of Fame and continues to be a presence on campus by serving on the Hall of Fame committee. Due to the foundation left by Lancaster, Mount Olive continues to feature one of the top baseball programs in the country every year. His legacy will forever be immortalized on the campus of Mount Olive this fall with the opening of the Carl Lancaster Indoor Training Facility, which is a 5,850-square-foot indoor training complex that will help future student-athletes compete at the highest level.
UNC Pembroke
Dee Major Hardy
Dee Major Hardy is the most decorated female student-athlete in the 80-year history of the UNCP Athletics department. Her volleyball jersey is retired at UNCP and she has served as an educator and a basketball coach at E.E. Smith High School for the last 38 seasons. The basketball court at E.E. Smith is named in her honor and she is a member of the UNCP Athletics Hall of Fame. She was also inducted into the Fayetteville Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.
Hardy earned the prestigious Toby Webb Outstanding Coach Award from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association. The award is presented to someone who has coached for a minimum of 10 years and has made major contributions to the success of high school athletics at the school, in the community and beyond.
Dan Kenney
Dan Kenney led the men's basketball program at UNC Pembroke to a 124-78 (.614) clip from 1985-92. The Braves posted a pair of 20-plus win seasons across the seven-year stretch, including a then-school record 27-5 clip during a magical 1990-91 season.
He took over the reins as athletics director for the Braves in 1998, a role he would serve for 14 seasons, and the Braves experienced a "Golden Era" of athletic competition under Kenney's watch - one that saw the addition of both football and women's golf to the varsity stable for the 2006 and 2007 seasons, respectively. UNCP's athletic teams qualified for the NCAA postseason on 21 occasions during Kenney's tenure, while being represented 50 times by individual qualifiers. He is a 2023 inductee to the UNCP Athletics Hall of Fame.
Young Harris
Mackenzie Johnson
Mackenzie Johnson, a 6-1 forward from Chattanooga Tennessee, left her mark on Young Harris College and the women’s basketball program. Johnson played a total of 2,561 minutes as a Mountain Lion while posting 1,045 career points and averaging 11.2 points per game. Johnson especially played a pivotal role her senior year, helping the Mountain Lions to a spot in the Peach Belt Conference Tournament final.
Johnson was named PBC Women's Basketball Player of the Year and was a two-time All-PBC performer. She was also named to three All-America teams during her last season. Johnson, who is the program's first All-American, was named to the first team by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association, to the second team by the World Exposure Report and to the honorable mention team by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association. Johnson, who was named to the D2CCA All-Southeast Region first team and the region's Player of the Year was ranked third in NCAA Division II statistics with 21 double doubles, fourth in rebounds per game (13.2) and 39th in scoring (18.1). She is ranked No. 1 in the YHC record books in career rebounds (840) and No. 2 in scoring (1,045). In recognition of her outstanding play for the 2022-23 season, Johnson’s jersey is currently displayed in the Ring of Honor at the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Johnson also made a significant impact on campus as a student. Johnson was a member of SAAC as a Mountain Lion and served as the President her senior year. She was named the 2022-23 Young Harris College Homecoming Queen which is voted on by the entire campus.
IIija Ilic
IIija IIic, a 6-2 forward from Belgrade, Serbia, made a significant impact on Young Harris College and the men’s soccer program. He played soccer for the Mountain Lions from 2011-2014.
IIic was a part of the program when Young Harris transitioned from a Junior College to NCAA DII in 2012-13. IIic played 72 matches for a total of 5,620 minutes in his YHC career. He posted a career 64 goals and 32 assists for 160 points as a Mountain Lion. IIic was named the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year his junior season in 2013-14. In his third season with YHC, IIic totaled 44 points which was the highest season total of any PBC player since 2005.
In his extraordinary 13-14 season, the Serbia native accumulated many awards. He was named the PBC Elite 15 presented by GradesFirst, named to the Capital One NCAA Division II Academic All-District III Men’s Soccer First Team, selected to the Capital One Academic All-America Division II Men’s Soccer First Team, chosen to the PBC All-Academic Men’s Soccer Team and named to the NSCAA College Division Men’s Soccer Scholar All-America Second Team. IIic was also selected to the NSCAA College Division Men’s Soccer Scholar All-South Region First Team, named to the NSCAA NCAA Division II All-America Second Team, earned the Life in the Balance Award at the 2014 Young Harris College Athletic Banquet, as well as Male Athlete of the Year and was named to the PBC Presidential Honor Roll as a Gold Scholar.