SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Western Carolina track & field / cross country student-athletes Clay Summers and Carter Unger were both awarded Southern Conference Presidential Scholarships as the league announced its postgraduate scholarship winners on Friday.
 
In addition to Summers and Unger, this year's recipients include David Knight Scholarship recipient Alexis Tomlin (Wofford); Dave Hart Scholarship recipient Hamp Sisson (Furman); Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship recipients Drew Singerman (Furman) and Sarah Anschutz (VMI); Dorothy Hicks Scholarship recipient Kayla White (UNC Greensboro); and Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship recipients Jessica Cullins (UNC Greensboro), Zoë Perrin (Samford), and Cooper Long (Chattanooga).
 
The recipients are nominated by their schools and selected by the Southern Conference Graduate Scholar Committee. The scholarships, worth $2,000 each, are awarded to student-athletes about to receive their undergraduate degrees who intend to pursue advanced degrees in graduate or professional school. The student-athletes are evaluated on academics, athletics, and community service.
 
"This is an exciting honor for these two student-athletes," said WCU cross country/track & field head coach Jesse Norman. "This shows the caliber of student-athletes we have been able to bring into the program and how we value success in the classroom and on the track or field. Both Carter and Clay have shown an intense dedication to both their studies and athletic endeavors throughout their careers, and it is awesome to see them rewarded with this honor."
 
Summers was a member of both the WCU cross country and track & field teams. He began his cross country career during the 2019 season and was named a team captain for both the 2020 and 2021 campaigns. A biology major, Summers received the 2019-20 WCU Brinson Honors College Scholarship and posted a 4.0 GPA that same term. The Advance, N.C., native was named to the WCU Chancellor's List from 2019-21 and was a member of the Southern Conference Academic Honor Roll during that same span. Summers has been a tutor on campus, volunteer coach for a local high school cross country team and the Chancellor's Box Assistant at Western Carolina home football games. He was also part of the Christmas Connections Shoebox Packing program along with the Chancellor's Ambassadors. In June, he will begin graduate work at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill studying accounting.
 
"To receive an award that helps me further my education means the world to me," said Summers. "I've always strived to excel in the classroom and look forward to continuing so in my graduate program. To those who I'm close with, I always say that I run things like a family. By becoming involved with the campus and local communities, I was able to extend my love and support to those who invested the same in me. It was their original outreach to me, an outsider, that inspired me to give back. Enough thanks can't be given to Western Carolina and the Southern Conference for believing in my future."
 
Unger began her track & field career as a pole vaulter during the 2018-19 indoor season. As a freshman, the Chapin, S.C., native finished third at the SoCon Outdoor Track & field Championships. Two years later, Unger had her personal-best performance at the same meet when she cleared a height of 3.52 meters as WCU hosted the annual event. She was named to the Academic All-SoCon Team each year of her career.
 
In 2020, Unger earned a Southern Conference Commissioner's Medal. From 2018-20, she volunteered at the Cullowhee Valley School during Thanksgiving lunch and with the Walk to School program. She also contributed to the Christmas Connections of Jackson County during her entire college career. Her volunteer work expanded to Forensic Search and Recovery later in her college years. She was with the group in Richland County, South Carolina, in 2020 and Cherokee County, South Carolina, in 2021. The criminal justice and anthropology major has a 3.84 GPA and is headed to Texas Tech University to begin their anthropology M.A. program this fall.
 
"I am very grateful to be selected for the 2022 Southern Conference presidential scholarship," said Unger. "It is an honor to be recognized for my community volunteer efforts and the academic achievements that I made during my four years at WCU. WCU and the western North Carolina area have offered me a great deal of support and assistance in the past few years. I believe the best way I can repay and serve this community is through volunteering. In addition, I am inspired by the relationships that I have made through WCU and the Sylva community while volunteering. I know the relationships I've made serving this community will last a lifetime. This scholarship allows me to further my education to the graduate level and enables me to continue my training to become a biological anthropologist at a lesser cost. I am immensely thankful to be a recipient."
 
Summers and Unger are the 19^th and 20^th student-athletes overall to earn a Southern Conference postgraduate scholarship. This marks the fifth straight year that WCU student-athletes have earned a postgraduate scholarship and the second straight season for track & field student-athletes to earn the honor as Victoria Solheim was awarded the William V. Moore Postgraduate Scholarship in 2021.
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount track & field and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports) and Twitter (@catamounts, @catamountxctf).
 
Western Carolina recipients of Southern Conference Postgraduate Scholarships
2021-22: Carter Unger (Women's Track & Field) – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
2021-22: Clay Summers (Men's Cross Country/Track & Field) – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
2020-21: Victoria Solheim (Women's Track & Field) – William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
2019-20: Emily Zipay (Women's Soccer) – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
2018-19: Savanah Taranto (Women's Tennis) – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
2017-18: Kassandra Flores (Softball) – Sports Medicine Institute Scholarship presented by Spartanburg Regional Health System
2015-16: Taylor Sigmon (Softball) – Dorothy Hicks Scholarship
2014-15: Makensey Campbell (Women's Basketball) - William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
2014-15: Aleshia Reese (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field) – Southern Conference Presidential Scholarship
2014-15: K.P Hicks (Football) – Mike Wood Scholarship
2013-14: Brittany Gendron (Women's Soccer) – David Knight Scholarship
2013-14: Alex Abraham (Women's Basketball) – Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
2012-13: Samantha Hodge (Women's Soccer) – William V. Moore Scholarship presented by McMillan Pazdan Smith
2009-10: David Gift (Men's Track & Field) - Bob McCloskey Insurance Scholarship
2005-06: Emily Pierce (Women's Soccer) - David Knight Scholarship
2004-05: Rans Brempong (Men's Basketball) – Mike Wood Foundation Scholarship
2003-04: Emre Atsur (Men's Basketball) – Mike Wood Foundation Scholarship
2003-04: Yoneko Allen (Women's Basketball) – Mike Wood Foundation Scholarship
1999-2000: Ramsey Herron (Volleyball) - Dorothy Hicks Scholarship
1995-96: Kristin Allen (Volleyball) – Dorothy Hicks Scholarship
1992-93: Susie Gardner (Women's Cross Country/Track & Field) – Dorothy Hicks Scholarship