GEORGETOWN, Texas — Seniors Justin McCormack and Mary Cardone were selected as the 2019-20 male and female Pirate Anchor Award winners.
The Anchor Award is presented annually by the Student Athletic Advisory Committee (SAAC) to the male and female athletes who best display the many traits that embody the spirit and character of the Southwestern University community.
Voted on by the campus community, this award is presented to a male and female student-athlete who exemplifies leadership, bravery, community service, academic achievement as well as being an integral part of an athletic team.
Cardone wraps up one of the most prestigious collegiate careers in Southwestern Pirates history, excelling on the soccer field and tennis courts. She earned 51.1 percent of all votes.
This season, Cardone helped lead the women's soccer team to the first Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC) Championship win in program history, earning All-SCAC honors for a fourth consecutive year, including her third First Team selection. She was also one of three Pirates named to the United Soccer Coaches All-West Region Team.
An All-American in tennis, Cardone also helped guide the women's tennis team to its highest national ranking in program history before the season was cut short, finishing the season ranked No. 33 in NCAA Division III women's singles by the final Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) poll.
Cardone was also named to the United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-Region First Team with a cumulative 3.88 GPA.
McCormack was a four-year player on the men's basketball team and contributor on the men's 2018-19 team that earned the second regular season SCAC title in program history. He won the Anchor Award with 42.2 percent of the vote.
A member of Phi Kappa Alpha, McCormack was a pre-med biology major who excelled in the classroom, earning SCAC Academic Honor Roll honors all four years at Southwestern.
Other finalists included Garrison Van Houten from men's soccer, baseball's Colton Hunter, women's soccer's Mallory Harkins, women's swimming and diving's Teresa Cropper, and women' track and field's Hannah Bruce.