INDIANAPOLIS – The Great Midwest Athletic Conference was proud to introduce Walsh University senior student-athlete Andra Lehotay (Magnolia, OH/Sandy Valley HS) as the recipient of the 2019-20 Female Collegiate Achievement Award on Wednesday afternoon.
 
Lehotay, an accomplished cross country and track and field student-athlete, was officially selected among a pool of strong applicants following a vote among the Great Midwest member institutions.
 
The conference award is traditionally presented at the Spring Awards Banquet along with the Presidents’ Cup, an award the University of Findlay retained for the second straight following the conclusion of fall and winter conference championships in 2019-20.
 
Lehotay demonstrated athletic and academic excellence while making an additional impact in the community. Since Walsh joined the Great Midwest as a full member starting in 2017-18, she has undoubtedly made a lasting impact in both of her respective sports. The Cavaliers also finished runner-up in the Presidents’ Cup point totals this year.
 
Lehotay has compiled a laundry list of achievements throughout her career and has been named the Great Midwest Indoor Track Athlete of the Meet and Year twice. She would have competed in both the 800-meter run and the distance medley relay at indoor track nationals in 2020.
 
At the national championship level, she has recorded eight different indoor/outdoor NCAA All- American medals and earned All-Midwest Region by the USTFCCCA and All-Great Midwest status 10 times between the two sports.
 
In cross country, she was a member of three consecutive nationally-qualifying Walsh teams all while the Cavaliers were part of the Great Midwest. In both 2017 and 2018 the Cavaliers finished 12th before earning top-10 placement this year for the first time in program history.
 
Lehotay has been actively involved in a number of different organizations, both on campus and off campus, directly related to her career aspirations. She is a member of multiple political groups and was the vice president of the Walsh Pre-Law Club. Her academic excellence also merited USTFCCCA Academic All-American honors eight different times.
 
"As a University and track & cross country program, we are extremely proud of Andra's recent G-MAC Award,” said Walsh head coach Rob Mizicko. “Andra has worked extremely hard over the last four years in the classroom, on the track, and in her service learning experiences. She has accomplished so much in her time at Walsh! We wish her the best as she moves onto law school at Northeastern University in Boston this fall.”
 
Lehotay graduated from Walsh this spring with a triple major in Government & Foreign Affairs, International Relations and History. She also minored in Philosophy and compiled a cumulative GPA of 3.99.
 
She will be pursuing her graduate degree in Law through a full tuition scholarship at Northeastern University in Boston.
 
Other finalists on the ballot for the 2019-20 award included Findlay’s Hanna Cederholm (swimming and diving), Hillsdale’s Arena Lewis (cross country/track and field), Kentucky Wesleyan’s Lexie Mullen (softball), Ohio Dominican’s Taylor Farmer (softball), Tiffin’s Jenna Huffman (volleyball) and Ursuline’s Sarah Mitchell (soccer).
 
About the Great Midwest Collegiate Achievement Award
The Great Midwest Athletic Conference annually selects (1) male and (1) female outgoing senior student-athlete to be honored with the Collegiate Achievement Award. This award shall be based upon an individual’s academic excellence, athletic achievements, character, leadership and engagement within the community and conference. The 2019-20 academic year represents the sixth annual presentation of the award and is the highest honor a Great Midwest student-athlete can receive.