DENVER - Utah Valley soccer student-athlete Lexi Robison and CSU Bakersfield track & field student-athlete Karnell Grimes have been named the 2014-15 Western Athletic Conference Stan Bates Award winners. Named in honor of former WAC Commissioner Stan Bates, the annual award is given to the WAC's top male and female scholar-athletes and recognizes the recipients' athletic, academic and community accomplishments. The awards include a $3,000 postgraduate scholarship.
Robison, from Orem, Utah, earned a bachelor's degree in exercise science and outdoor recreation in April and graduated magna cum laude with a 3.83 cumulative grade-point average. She was twice named Academic All-WAC and was named to the Great West All-Academic Team in 2012-13. Robison was on the Dean's List all four years.
The 2014 WAC Defensive Player of the Year and first team All-WAC selection, Robison led Utah Valley to a school-record 13 wins in 2014 and anchored the Wolverine defense to a school-record nine shutouts. A three-time team captain, she helped UVU to a goals allowed average of just 0.86 last year.
Robison played in 80 matches for UVU, making a school-record 75 starts. She registered seven goals, eight assists, 22 points, 115 shots and 48 shots on goal during her time at UVU. She was the 2014 team MVP and received Utah Valley's 2014-15 Outstanding Female Athlete of the Year award.
In addition to her stellar academics, Robison has volunteered at the Boys & Girls Club, Edgemont Elementary School, Special Olympics and Stonehedge Rehabilitation Center. She also went on a humanitarian trip to Nigeria with Bridges to America and assisted with several soccer clinics with RSL Women, Provo City Youth Soccer, Orem Youth Soccer and Utah's Head Start Program.
Robison is currently serving as an assistant coach for the women's soccer team at Utah Valley.
"Lexi has consistently shown her ability to manage time and prioritize so that she is able to accomplish academic, team and personal goals," Utah Valley Head Women's Soccer Coach Brent Anderson said. "She loves to learn and is constantly immersed in the pursuit of knowledge. She has a blue collar work ethic and leads by example. Lexi organizes and inspires others to accomplish and achieve positive result on the field, in the classroom and in our community."
Grimes, from Rosamond, Calif., earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry in June, graduating with honors with a 3.57 cumulative GPA. A two-time Academic All-WAC honoree, he also earned Great West Conference Academic honors in 2011-12. Grimes recently earned U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic honors, the first such individual honor for the CSUB program, and was the 2014 recipient of the CSUB Outstanding Biochemistry Student Award.
Athletically, Grimes, who started his career with the CSUB baseball team, won the a javelin throw at the 2015 WAC Championships, taking home CSUB's first gold medal in the javelin at the Division I level. He qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary Meet, where he finished 42nd. Grimes won the javelin event at the Bulldog invitational with a throw of 204-05, which ranks fourth on CSUB's all-time list, and earned a spot in CSUB's Golden Circle Hall of Fame.
A member of the CSUB Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, Grimes has served as a counselor and group leader at Bass Lake Children's Camp, organized the MLK Day Community Clean Up and the Rosewood Retirement Senior Olympics, participated in the Back to School Backpack Handout and the toy giveaway at the Ronald McDonald House.
"Karnell is an ideal team leader and enthusiastically encourages his teammates and holds others accountable on the track, in the weight room and in the classroom," CSU Bakersfield Director of Track and Field/Cross Country Marcia Mansur-Wentworth said. "He is the first one to offer up a handshake, high five or hug to one of his teammates. Karnell is passionate not just about athletics but spreading the message of education to others."