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Ashley Bechtle and Steven Kennelly Selected CAANJ Male and Female Scholar Athlete of the Year

Ashley Bechtle and Steven Kennelly were honored as the Collegeiate Athletic Administrators of New Jersey Scholar-Athletes of the Year at the CAANJ Awards Luncheon on October 8th, 2009.  This is the first time in school history that two award winners came from Ocean County College.

The CAANJ Male and Female Scholar Athlete of the Year Awards are given annually to one male and one female student from New Jersey Colleges in the following divisions: NCAA DI, DII, DIII, and NJCAA.   The criteria consists of a cumulative grade point average of 3.5 or higher, academic achievement, athletic achievement, and campus/civil involvement.

Ashley Bechtle was a standout women’s soccer athlete and student while attending Ocean County College. Her excellence in the classroom earned her Cum Laude honors as well as being named an NJCAA Academic All-American. As a NJ Stars student Ashley was selected to speak in front of Governor Corzine’s NJSTARS commission in defense of the program. She also is a member of our award winning chapter of Phi Theta Kappa.  As an athlete, Ashley was selected to the NJCAA Soccer All-American and All Region Teams in the Fall of 2008. She was also named a member of the Garden State Athletic Conference Team in 2007. During Ashley’s 2 year career she led the team to a 2nd place finish in the Nation in 2008. At the National Championships Ashley was named a member of the All-Tournament team. Ashley graduated in May 2009 with an AA in Liberal Arts and is currently attending Rutgers University in New Brunswick.

Stephen Kennelly in his two years at Ocean County College excelled in the classroom and on the golf course earning Summa Cum Laude honors as well as being named as an NJCAA Distinguished Academic All-American.  On the golf course Stephen led the team to Nationals in 2008 and qualified as an individual in 2009 finishing 35th in the country. Stephen was selected as the #1 golfer in Region XIX finishing that tournament with scores of 71/72 at Cape May National Golf Course. While attending OCC Stephen was also a member of our award winning chapter of Phi Theta Kappa and a NJ Stars student. Stephen graduated from Ocean County College in May 2009 with a BS in Business Administration and 4.0 GPA.  Stephen is now attending Montclair State University.