Brianna Schmitz was named Emporia State's ninth Ken B. Jones Award winner during the MIAA Awards Celebration presented by Husch Blackwell. The award is the seventh for a Hornet female student athlete and the fourth time an Emporia State track & field woman has won the title.
Schmitz won the MIAA Championship in the outdoor heptathlon with 5,003 points. It is the second highest point total in Emporia State history. She was named Second-Team All-American after placing ninth in the heptathlon at the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships. She earned All-American honors for the Hornets during the indoor season by finishing fourth in the pentathlon at this year's NCAA Indoor Championships with 3,820 points. She became the first Emporia State woman to earn All-American honors in the pentathlon and gave the Hornets a 32nd place finish in the overall team standings. She set a school record with 3,837 points at the MIAA Indoor Championships, breaking a 21 year old record in the event.
The Hiawatha, Kan. native graduated with a 3.96 GPA in physical education and has a 4.00 in her master's level program in health, physical education and recreation this year. She is an MIAA Scholar-Athlete and member of the MIAA Academic Honor Roll and the ESU Athletic Director's Honor Roll. She has earned USTFCCCA All-Academic Individual honors as well as being a D2 ADA Academic Achievement Award winner. She is a candidate for CoSIDA Academic honors this year.
Schmitz has volunteered with Laps for Landon, a program to raise funds and awareness for Cystic Fibrosis Research along with Food for Students, a program that packs weekend lunches for Emporia Elementary school students on the free or reduced lunch program. She has helped with the Train Like A Track Star program, an activity work shop for adults through the KU Alzheimer's Disease Center to help prevent cognitive decline. She has assisted with the Teddy Bear Clinic at the Flint Hills Mall, a program to help alleviate kids fear of going to the doctor, and helped with the Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention Walk and it's silent auction. She took part in the Move Emporia Run/Walk to promote physical activity in the city of Emporia and helped coordinate the Walnut Elementary School Running Club, a before school club for grade school kids to promote physical activity.
