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After one of the most successful overall athletics seasons in school history, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has named its annual Athlete of the Year award winners, which were all first-team All-American selections in their respective sports.

UW-Stevens Point has had six teams earn top four national finishes and two others finish in the top 10 during 2003-04 and currently ranks second in the United States Sports Academy Director�s Cup, which measures the top overall athletics program in Division III.

Senior Scott Krause, who was a first-team All-American quarterback by three different publications and the WIAC Player of the Year, was the male team sport Athlete of the Year and junior Amanda Nechuta, who was the WIAC women�s basketball Player of the Year and set the school�s single-season scoring record, was the female team sport Athlete of the Year.

Senior Yan White, who reached the national championship match in wrestling for the third straight year, was the male individual sport Athlete of the Year and junior Leah Herlache, who placed second in the 1500-meter run at the NCAA Division III indoor track and field championships, was the female individual sport Athlete of the Year.

Krause, a Waunakee native, captained the Division III All-Star team in the Aztec Bowl after leading the Pointers to an 8-2 record and a single-season school scoring record. He set a single-season school record by completing 66.1 percent of passes and led Division III with 37 touchdown passes during regular season. Krause ranked second in nation in passing efficiency and fifth in total offense, while earning national offensive Player of the Week honors twice.

Nechuta, a Mosinee native, was the second player in school history to earn Kodak first-team All-American honors while leading the Pointers to their first conference title since 1987 and their second Division III final four berth in three years. She led the conference in scoring for second straight year, shattering the school single-season scoring record with 617 points (old record was 499 points). Nechuta was named first-team All-Conference for the second straight year and was also named to the WIAC All-Defensive team.

White, an Antigo native, was the Division III runner-up at 197 pounds for the second straight year after winning the national title in 2002 to become the second wrestler in school history to reach three straight national title matches. He won his third straight WIAC championship and finished with 20-3 overall record, suffering all three losses to the national champion wrestler. White finished with a 103-17 career record to rank seventh in school history for career victories. He was also the school�s male individual sport Athlete of the Year in 2002.

Herlache, a Green Bay East High School graduate, ran on the third place distance medley relay team at indoor nationals in addition to her runner-up finish in the 1500-meter run. She was the conference runner-up in the 1500-meter run and 3000-meter run. Herlache missed the first half of cross country season due to illness, but led team at national meet with 37th place finish. She helped both the cross country and indoor track teams to their highest finishes ever at third place.

Also, four athletes were selected as the UW-Stevens Point freshman Athletes of the Year. Football player Cody Childs was the male team sport selection and track athlete Mitch Ellis was the male individual sport honoree. Hockey player Amy Statz was the female team sport winner and track athlete Marie Burrows won the female individual sport award.

Childs, an Arlington native who attended Poynette High School, was the football team�s leading receiver with 61 catches for 639 yards and seven touchdowns. He ranked third in the conference in receiving and fourth in scoring. Ellis, a Three Lakes native, placed second in the high jump at the WIAC indoor championships with an NCAA provisional qualifying mark, but was injured and did not compete at nationals or in the outdoor season.

Statz, a Wisconsin Rapids native, led the hockey team to a national runner-up finish and was named to the all-tournament team. She was an honorable mention All-Conference performer and ranked fifth in the country with 1,368 minutes played. Burrows, a Menomonee Falls native, was a member of the third place distance medley relay team at indoor nationals. Individually, she placed second at the WIAC championships in both the 200-meter dash and 400-meter dash, qualifying for nationals in the 400 meters.