Norfolk Reporter

 Nick Sampeck (Blanco, Texas) has been named a finalist for the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Man of the Year.

Sampeck was one of five finalists, joining Couper Gunn of Colby-Sawyer College men's soccer, Kevin Vanderhorst of Lasell University men's basketball, Matthew Ferrera of Regis College men's volleyball and men's outdoor track & field and Troy Hendricks of Saint Joseph's College of Maine men's cross country and men's indoor/outdoor track & field.

The winner will be announced on July 26 and selected with the same parameters as the NCAA's Woman of the Year Program, which is centered on academic achievement, athletics excellence, service & leadership, and a personal statement.

For full GNAC release click HERE

Dean basketball student-athlete Jordan Lynch-Rexroth (Harrisburg, Pa.) was named a GNAC Co-Man of the Year in the Bulldogs' first year as a member of the GNAC.

Sampeck graduated from Dean with a pristine 3.915 GPA as a double major in Marketing and Sport Management. He averaged 8.6 points and 2.9 rebounds during his 2021-22 senior season, the Bulldogs' first full campaign in the GNAC due to COVID-19. Off the court, the two-year team captain was a Bulldogs SAAC member, an Esports Club member, a tutor, and assisted the School of Business with various tasks from 2018-22. Sampeck was also awarded with the Trustees' Prize for General Excellence Bachelor's Degree Program, which is the most prestigious honor the College awards to graduating students for exemplary scholarship and demonstrating loyalty and outstanding contributions to Dean.

 

Personal Statement: "From my very first step on the Dean campus, I was given the ability to not only be a student-athlete, but the ability to garner resources the college provides to impact both on campus and as I move beyond graduation. My coaches, as well as my professors, always stressed the importance of connections and I believe I took that advice to heart. Starting my fifth semester at Dean, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, I began working for one of my professors as an intern at MacGyver Marketing. This not only allowed me to further my knowledge in theory and in practice but allowed me to be a resource of knowledge for fellow classmates interested in Marketing. That year was particularly tough balancing online school, an online internship, and pushing myself athletically for when we could return to play. I worked this internship for the entirety of my junior year and the summer going into my senior year. I decided to move into another internship role my senior year as a property assistant for Learfield College – Providence Sports Venues (Providence MBB/MIH – Providence Bruins). I worked this internship while leading my team through a season during the pandemic and maintaining a 3.9 GPA. One of our courses allowed us to work with a local business in Franklin, Mass. to provide real solutions.

Through my leadership roles on campus and my internship experience, I believe we were able to genuinely help a local company with meaningful input for an executive plan moving forward. A culmination of these experiences as well as others that I partook in around campus resulted in my receiving of the most prestigious honor the college awards – 'Dean College - Trustees' Prize for General Excellence Bachelor's Degree Program.'

All these experiences have shaped me and empowered me in more ways than I can fit in 500 words. So, summed up these were the biggest lessons I learned through my tenure at Dean College:

1.) Embrace Failure. It took Edison 1,000 failures before he invented the light bulb, we are not defined by our failures but how we rise from them. They are lessons thrown at you by life to show you how not to do something and point you in the right direction. 2.) 'People don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it' – Simon Sinek British-American author and inspirational speaker.

Be authentic and have purpose to what you do, like failure, things won't always go your way. You need a strong reason and why as to what you are doing. Once this is achieved, people will follow, and it will keep you pushing even when things are grim. Lastly, I learned the importance of community, friendship, and love. Coming into Dean I had a narrow and singular mindset, but we aren't alone, we need each other through our journey in life. We are at our strongest when we are vulnerable enough to ask for help and companionship."

Original source can be found here