MacKenzie DiTullio Is Clarion Area Softball’s 2018 Allen Peterson Academic Achievement Award Winner (06/01/18)

on 1 June, 2018 at 10:09

(By Clarion Area Head Coach Dan Shofestall)

MacKenzie DiTullio was recently named and awarded the 2018 Allen Peterson Academic Achievement Award. MacKenzie is the seventh recipient of the Peterson Award and joins the list of prestigious winners.

The award was set up by and established in 2012 by former coach and long-time Clarion Softball contributor Allen Peterson. Each year Alan awards a check of $500 to the winner who meets the criteria of the award to help with their post-secondary education.

2018 Allen Peterson Award winner MacKenzie DiTullio and Coach Dan Shofestall fist bumping at third base

Concerning the Peterson Award: We feel our players contribute to the team in many different ways both on the field and off the field. We take great pride in not only what our players do on the practice field or games, but also by the hard work and performance they put in the class room. Excellence in academics reflects on not only the player receiving the award, but on our entire Clarion Softball Program and the Clarion Area School which we all proudly represent.

Most certainly, we feel that MacKenzie is a worthy winner of the Peterson Award, a great representative of our Team and players and what we all aspire to see our Student Athletes to be on the field and in the class room. I’m very proud of MacKenzie and want to congratulate her on winning the Peterson Award. I’ve had the honor to coach MacKenzie for four years now and have seen her grow and mature in so many ways. We wish her well as she continues her education at St. Francis University.

When asked about her thoughts on winning the award MacKenzie had the following to say. “I’d like to thank Allen, my coaches and my Teammates for always pushing me to achieve greatness on and off the softball field. The Softball Program at Clarion has proven that it takes hard work and effort from each individual in both their academics and athletics. The past four years of putting on that jersey have been incredible and memorable.”

I want to also thank Allen and his family for sponsorship of this award and what I truly believe it means. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Playing competitive sports and excelling in the class room are two things that will always serve our Student Athletes well and provide them with a strong foundation and guideline for success for the rest of their lives. That’s what I love about the Peterson Award. It represents and rewards the lessons our Student Athletes learn on the field and in the classroom and melds them together as one.

MacKenzie’s name will be added with the previous winners names on the Allen Peterson Academic Achievement Award plaque which we proudly display in our trophy case.

CLARION AREA SOFTBALL – ALLEN PETERSON ATHLETIC ACHIVEMENT AWARD WINNERS

2012-Courtney Donaldson

2013-Maddie Thornton

2014-Olivia Bartley

2015-Stephanie Kahle

2016-Johnna Rapp

2017-Cora Zerfoss

2018-MacKenzie DiTullio

(Thanks to Coach Shofestall for this article and Clarion Area Softball for the photo. CONGRATULATIONS AND ALL THE BEST MACKENZIE!!!!)