The Lake Forest College Athletic Department held its annual Fall Sports Awards Ceremony on Sunday, December 4, at the First Presbyterian Church in Lake Forest. Among the many awards given out were plaques for each sport's Most Valuable and Most Improved Performers.
Senior wide receiver Kevin Davis was the Forester football team's Most Valuable Player and fellow wideout Austin Sobey, a junior, was the squad's Most Improved Player. Davis finished the season ranked fourth in the nation with a school record 1,286 receiving yards. The First Team All-Midwest Conference selection also tied the program record for receptions in a season with 77, including 11 for touchdowns, and added a pair of rushing scores. Sobey caught 55 passes for 752 yards and a team record 13 touchdowns in 2011 after catching just 29 passes for 335 yards and a pair of scores in his first two seasons combined.
Junior libero Tia Rupnik was named the Most Valuable Player of the Forester volleyball team and classmate Courtney Faulstick was selected as the squad's Most Improved Player. Rupnik tied for the Midwest Conference lead with 33 aces on the season and ranked fifth in the league with a team-high 507 digs. She recorded at least 10 digs in 26 of 29 contests on the year. Faulstick joined the team this season and finished third on the squad in aces (25) and blocks (37) and fourth in kills (104).
Sophomore forward Mahir Mameledzija was named the Forester men's soccer team's Most Valuable Player for the second time in as many seasons. Freshman Kyle Kraus was chosen as the team's Most Improved Player. Mameledzija ranked second in the MWC with 13 goals and 32 points and finished among the top 60 in the nation in both categories. His six assists on the year were tied for second on the team and third in the league. Kraus appeared in all but one contest and recorded his first career goal and assist during the weekend of October 29-30.
Junior goalkeeper Bri Schleibinger earned Most Valuable Player honors and freshman Charlotte deTar was named the Most Improved Player of the Forester women's soccer team. Schleibinger started all but one of the team's games and recorded 92 saves and a pair of shutouts on the season. Her .777 save percentage was the third-highest mark in the conference. deTar was one of seven players on the team to appear in every game. She scored her first career goal on September 17 and recorded her first assist a week later.
Sophomore Aimee Fadden was selected as the Forester women's tennis team's Most Valuable Player and junior Kaitlyn Martin was the squad's Most Improved Player. Fadden played at the top spot in both the singles and doubles lineups and was voted Forester Athlete of the Week by the Athletic Department on October 13. Martin was action in 13 of 15 matches after appearing in just three contests last year.
Seniors Amanda Glasgow and Kelsey Small were the Forester cross country team's Most Valuable Runners while sophomore Viktoria Baldacci and freshman T.J. Deary were named the team's Most Improved Runners. Glasgow was Lake Forest's top female runner in seven of eight meets this season and her 6-kilometer time of 24:22 at the MWC Championships ranks 12th in program history. Small was the men's team's top runner four times and finished second on the squad twice. Baldacci finished ahead of Glasgow at the Forester Invitational on September 24 and was second on the team in five other races. Deary worked his way into the top five on the team in a pair of late-season races.