April 27, 2022

Eight student-athletes earning graduate degrees will be among those honored

CINCINNATI – Sixty-six University of Cincinnati student-athletes will be recognized among a record 7,080 graduates during four ceremonies as part of UC’s spring commencement on Friday and Saturday at Fifth Third Arena.

The ceremonies will begin at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Friday and 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Saturday.

The Bearcats’ graduating class includes eight student-athletes earning graduate degrees, including three women’s tennis players and three men’s track performers.

Those earning master’s degrees are:

Sam Martin (men’s basketball), Arame Niang (women’s basketball), Ioana Guna (tennis), Emma Miceli (tennis), Maria Santilli (tennis), Daniel Jones (men’s track and field), Sam Meece (men’s track and field) and Siro Piña Cardona (men’s track and field).

This weekend’s graduation represents the latest example of the Cincinnati Athletic Department’s continued commitment to Next Level Success both on and off the field.

Just last fall, UC student-athletes collectively posted a 3.387 GPA with 78 percent earning spots on the Honor Roll, while four Bearcats grabbed Academic All-America accolades. 

SPRING 2022 CEREMONY DETAILS

Doctoral Hooding and Master’s Recognition Ceremony

• Friday, April 29, 2022
• Doors open at 7:30am
• Ceremony begins at 9:00am

Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony 1

• Friday, April 29, 2022
• Doors open at 12:30pm
• Ceremony begins at 2:00pm
• Degrees conferred from the following colleges:
  • College of Allied Health Sciences
  • College of Engineering and Applied Science
  • College of Medicine
  • College of Nursing

Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony 2

• Saturday, April 30, 2022
• Doors open at 7:30am
• Ceremony begins at 9:00am
• Degrees conferred from the following colleges:
  • Carl H. Lindner College of Business
  • College-Conservatory of Music
  • College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services
  • UC Clermont College

Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony 3

• Saturday, April 30, 2022
• Doors open at 12:30pm
• Ceremony begins at 2:00pm
• Degrees conferred from the following colleges:
  • College of Arts and Sciences
  • College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning
  • UC Blue Ash College
  • University of Cincinnati

SPRING 2022 ATHLETICS GRADUATES

BASEBALL (4)
Beau Keathley • Interdisciplinary Studies

Griffin Merritt • Biological Sciences

Jackson Murphy • Real Estate

Nicholas Murray • Operations Management
 
MEN’S BASKETBALL (2)
David DeJulius • Interdisciplinary Studies

Sam Martin • Business Analytics (Master’s)
 
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (3)
Zenzele Apesemaka-Vital • Psychology

Nesma Khalifa • Interdisciplinary Studies

Arame Niang • MBA 
 
FOOTBALL (8)
Chase Brown • Criminal Justice

Wyatt Fischer • Finance

Nate Lawler • Chemistry

Charles McClelland • Sport Administration

Ryan Royer • Mechanical Engineering

Ty Van Fossen • Interdisciplinary Studies

Taj Ward • Health Education

Collin Woodside • Criminal Justice
 
MEN’S GOLF (1)
Jack Kunkel • Interdisciplinary Studies

WOMEN’S GOLF (4)
Erin Evans • Communication

Katie Hallinan • Biology – Biomedical

Vanessa Manrique • Chemical Engineering

Natalie Sompolvorachai • English
 
LACROSSE (4)
Kate Carney • Nursing

Kylie Nause • Speech Language Hearing Sciences

Anna Platou • Psychology

Gianna Pope • Psychology
 
WOMEN’S SOCCER (5)
Vanessa DiNardo • Interdisciplinary Studies

Camryn Hartman • Nutrition & Dietetics

Annie Metzger • Medical Sciences

Taylor Nuncio • Interdisciplinary Studies

Allison Pestaina • Psychology  
 
MEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING (2)
Zane Freeman • Interdisciplinary Studies

Dominic Polling • Interdisciplinary Studies

WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING (7)
Maddie Hannan • Accounting 

Victoria Hunt • Mechanical Engineering

Ashley Mennenga • Health Sciences – Exercise & Movement Science

Victoria Miyamoto • Neuroscience – Neurobiology

Sydney St. Rose-Finear • Environmental Studies

Camryn Streid • Speech Language Hearing Sciences

Matea Sumajstorcic • Interdisciplinary Studies

TENNIS (3)
Ioana Guna • Information Systems (Master’s)

Emma Miceli • Accounting (Master’s)

Maria Santilli • Accounting (Master’s)

MEN’S TRACK & FIELD (7)
Toni Baños • Journalism

Christopher Borzor • Interdisciplinary Studies

Jeremy Hayton • Health Education & Promotion

Daniel Jones • Public Administration (Master’s)

Sam Meece • Marketing (Master’s)

Siro Piña Cardona • Education Studies (Master’s)

Jacob Rieman • Mechanical Engineering

 
WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD (11)
Victoria Abunaw • Psychology

Faith Banks • Organizations Leadership

Caisja Chandler • Sport Administration

Hannah Jackson • Accounting

Lauren Kemper • Civil Engineering

Ellie Leather • Interdisciplinary Studies

Carmen Licht • Business Analytics

Leah Maschino • Nutrition & Dietetics

Alyssa Matheny • Health Promotion & Education

Samantha Mikula • Nutrition & Dietetics

Katie Straus • Environmental Studies

 
VOLLEYBALL (4)
Hannah Bollinger • Biology

Armania Heckenmueller • English

Maria Mallon • Sport Administration

Dimitra Tziarli • Psychology

ABOUT CINCINNATI ATHLETICS

The University of Cincinnati Department of Athletics competes at the highest level of intercollegiate athletics with the vision to reach Next Level Success for all 18 varsity teams and more than 500 student-athletes. The Bearcats have a proud athletics history, winning eight national championships and 117 conference titles. The Cincinnati men’s basketball team is among the 15 winningest programs all-time, while the football team became the first American Athletic Conference program to compete in the College Football Playoff in 2021. Olympic gold medalist volleyball player Jordan Thompson, NBA Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson and Major League Baseball legend Sandy Koufax are among the several luminaries who have competed as Bearcats.

UC student-athletes collectively posted a 3.387 overall GPA in the fall of 2021 with 78 percent earning spots on the Honor Roll.

Under the leadership of Director of Athletics John Cunningham, and supported by more than 150 full-time staff members, UC Athletics’ mission is to connect our community, enhance our university and impact the lives of student-athletes as they prepare to change the world on and off the field.

For more information visit gobearcats.com.

ABOUT THE SPRING CLASS OF 2022

UC will confer 7,188 degrees to 7,080 graduates, based on preliminary applications. (Some grads have earned multiple degrees.) UC will present 541 associate degrees; 4,600 bachelor’s degrees; 1,477 master’s degrees; 270 doctoral degrees and 300 professional degrees.

UC also will recognize a record 1,201 first-generation college graduates. About 17% of this year’s class are the first in their families to graduate from college. Another 14% transferred from another university. UC also celebrates a record number of online degrees awarded at 894.

Graduates hail from 83 countries across six continents. The spring class features students from all 50 states. But 71% of UC’s 2022 graduates are from Ohio. The class represents 78 of Ohio’s 88 counties.

FOLLOW THE BEARCATS
For all the latest information on Cincinnati Athletics, please visit GoBEARCATS.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Cincinnati Athletics on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

–GoBEARCATS.com–

COURTESY UC SPORTS COMMUNICATIONS