Graduating athletes honored

Rod Rutherford, Jaron Brown and Wendy Hatlestad may be on the way out the door, but not… Rod Rutherford, Jaron Brown and Wendy Hatlestad may be on the way out the door, but not before Pitt could give them a well-earned goodbye.

At the 2004 Senior Awards banquet on Monday, all three received the Panther Award, given to graduating senior student-athletes who have promoted Pitt athletics through outstanding athletic achievement.

Swimmers Eric Limkemann and Carolyne Savini were awarded the Blue-Gold Award, which is given to the school’s top graduating student-athlete based on academic scholarship, athletic achievement, leadership and citizenship.

All five athletes will have their names engraved in the Varsity Walk, which leads from the Cathedral of Learning to Heinz Chapel.

Lousaka Polite also took home an award Monday night. Polite was presented with the David Sandberg Champion Award, which is awarded for dedication to academic and athletic excellence, unyielding spirit and passionate commitment to the improvement of Pitt and the Pittsburgh communities.

Polite is the second recipient of the award, which is named after Sandberg, who was a former wrestler and assistant coach at Pitt before his death on Jan. 29, 2003.

Rutherford and Polite helped lead the football team to an eight-win season and Pitt’s fourth consecutive bowl game, while Hatlestad was an important member of the volleyball team, which won its first Big East Championship since 1994 in 2003.

Limkemann helped the men’s swimming and diving team to its eighth consecutive Big East title, while Savini was a member of the women’s 200-yard medley relay team, which captured a Big East title.

The Blue-Gold and Panther Awards have been presented to Pitt athletes since 1949-50.

Eight athletes were also named seniors of distinction — Randy Gertenbach and Adam Weber (men’s swimming and diving), Julius Page (men’s basketball), Elizabeth Bayne (women’s track), Diandra O’Connor and Alyse Zeffiro (gymnastics), and Kris Wilson and Lousaka Polite (football).