CLEVELAND - Each year, Delta State University takes time to honor its 350 student-athletes and Tuesday night at Walter Sillers Coliseum the Department of Athletics recognized over 125 Statesmen and Lady Statesmen for their accomplishments on the field and in the classroom.  Seniors Brittany Eikner and Eric Spencer took home the top prize - the prestigious Charles S. Kerg Senior Student-Athlete of the Year. 

"It's always an honor to get to recognize the hard work our student-athletes put into their careers here at Delta State and our Athletic Awards Banquet gives us a chance to showcase their talents and accomplishments every year," Jeremy McClain, DSU director of athletics stated.  "This year's Kerg Award winners have impeccable credentials on the field and in their studies.  Our coaches and staff hit a home run with Brittany Eikner and Eric Spencer."

Brittany Eikner, a 5-foot-6 Grenada native, has lettered all four years for the Lady Statesmen Softball team and the last two years for coach Doug Pinkerton and Lady Statesmen Cross Country.  The three-time All-Gulf South Conference selection has been a force for DSU on the diamond, starting all four years at short, while ranking in the top 10 in four major offensive categories. 

For Lady Statesmen Cross Country, Eikner ran in every race the past two seasons, including a a career best 22nd place finish at the DSU Invitational with a time of 25:11.35 helping the Lady Statesmen to the event title.  Her career best time came at the Gulf South Conference Championships with a 23:15.14.  

Her efforts in the classroom are even more impressive, as Eikner carries a 4.0 GPA in mathematics education with a minor in french.  She has made the President's List every semester at DSU, while being named a National Fastpitch Coaches Association Academic All-American.  She is also a three-time CoSIDA Academic All-Region selection, four-time All-GSC Academic Team pick and four-time All-GSC Academic Honor Roll recipient. 

Eikner is also a member Kappa Delta Sorority, Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society, Omicron Delta Kappa National Honor Society, Kappa Mu Epsilon Mathematics Honor Society, Member of Mathematical Association of American, and a three-time recipient of the Most Valuable Student-Athlete Award for Lady Statesmen Softball.  

Eric Spencer, a 6-foot-4 Marion, Ark. native, has made the most of his three years at Delta State University.  A three-year letterman for coach Jason Conner and the Statesmen basketball team, Spencer closed his career this season with 928 career points, while leading the Statesmen to a combined 54-29 record. 

Spencer came to Delta State from the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith.  In his career as a Statesmen, he played in 81 games with 25 starts, scoring 928 career points in just three seasons for an 11.5 points per game average.  He ranks eighth in career three-pointers made and ninth in career threes attempted in school history.  He was named to the All-Gulf South Conference Second Team as a junior. 

Spencer's exploits in the classroom are also quite notable.  He is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-South Region selection and a two-time All-Gulf South Conference Academic Team pick - one of only four in men's basketball history. 

The three-time Academic All-GSC Honor Roll recipient carries a 3.92 GPA in biology/chemistry.  He is a member of five honor societies at DSU for his academic work and he was recently accepted into physical therapy school at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. Over 400 applied and only 30 were accepted into the 2011 class.

Established by former head coach and Athletic Director Horace McCool, the Charles S. Kerg Award was named after the former Sports Editor at the Delta Democrat Times. At a time when very few media outlets paid attention to Delta State athletics, Charles Kerg followed Delta State religiously, always making sure that Statesmen and Lady Statesmen student-athletes and their programs received the coverage they deserved.

When the award was established, Coach McCool's intent was to see that the award went to the all-around student-athlete - who not only excelled on the field, but in the classroom and in the community.

One of the most influential supporters in the history of the DSU athletic program, Charles Kerg's dedication serves to this day as not only an inspiration, but a model for how dedicated we can be to both our program and the community as a whole.