PEORIA, IL - The 2016 Charles Orsborn Award will be selected from a quintet of finalists and announced during the Bradley Athletic Department's annual All About The B Awards event Monday evening at Renaissance Coliseum.
The annual end-of-year awards program will begin with a 6 p.m. reception and the 6:30 p.m. awards program and will honor all of the Bradley Athletics graduating seniors, as well as the top performing student-athletes in athletics, academics and community service. In addition to the Orsborn Award, other presentations will include the Orville Nothdurft Lifetime Achievement Award, the Carl Grose Service Award, the Megan C. Fong Inspiration Award and the men's and women's versions of the Coach Joe Stowell Award, as well as the recognition of candidates for the Bradley Varsity Club Most Outstanding Athlete Awards.
The Charles Orsborn Award is the highest honor Bradley University bestows upon a graduating senior student-athlete and recognizes the ability of the winner to combine athletic and academic success with community service. The five finalists for the 2016 Charles Orsborn Award are men's golfer Lyle Burns (Mahomet, IL/Seymour H.S.), women's cross country and track runners Caitlin and Kristen Busch (Waterloo, IL/Freeburg H.S.), softball player Kendall Duffy (Naperville, IL/Benet Academy) and women's golfer Danielle Lemek (Doniphan, NE/Doniphan-Trumbull H.S.).
Lyle Burns, Men's Golf, Mahomet, IL (Seymour H.S.), Management & Leadership (3.82 GPA)
A second-year transfer from Parkland Community College, Burns earned All-Missouri Valley Conference honors by finishing sixth in the 2016 MVC Men's Golf Championship this week and he ends his career with Bradley's all-time best career stroke average (73.79). While posting the second-best season scoring average in program history as a senior, Burns won three consecutive tournaments this spring and finished his career with 13 career individual top 10 finishes.
Majoring in management and leadership with a 3.82 cumulative grade point average, Burns was a first-team Missouri Valley Conference Men's Golf Scholar-Athlete in 2015 and he is expected to be a repeat scholar-athlete first-teamer in 2016. A five-time MVC Men's Golfer of the Week for his play on the course, Burns also was selected the MVC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Week Oct. 27, 2015. He earned a spot on the Missouri Valley Conference Honor Roll in 2015 and the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of his first three semesters on The Hilltop.
Among his numerous community service activities, Burns has worked with the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Peoria, Sterling Middle School's Campus Color Days, the Megan Fong Blood Drive and the Peoria Festival of Trees.
Caitlin Busch, Women's Cross Country/Track, Waterloo, IL (Freeburg H.S.), Health Science (3.77)
Caitlin Busch is a four-time Missouri Valley Conference champion, winning the 2014 and 2015 individual titles at the MVC Women's Cross Country Championships, as well as the 2016 MVC Indoor 3,000 meters title and the 2015 MVC Indoor 5,000 meter crown. Her time of 9:47.60 at the 2015 MVC Indoor Track Championships is the school record. A seven-time All-MVC performer in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track, she also earned cross country NCAA All-Midwest Region accolades in 2014 and qualified for the 2015 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in the 10,000 meters.
A health science major with a 3.77 cumulative GPA, Caitlin Busch is a seven-time MVC Scholar-Athlete honoree in cross country (2014 and 2015), indoor track (two events) and outdoor track (three events). She received the MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award in 2014 and 2015 and is a four-time recipient of the MVC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Week. She also has earned recognition on the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of her first seven semesters.
Kristen Busch, Women's Cross Country/Track, Waterloo, IL (Freeburg H.S.), Health Science (3.66)
Kristen Busch also is a four-time Missouri Valley Conference champion, winning the 2014 MVC Indoor title in the 5,000 meters, the 2015 MVC Outdoor championship in the 5,000 meters and the outdoor 10,000 meters crown in both 2014 and 2015. A 12-time All-MVC honoree in cross country and track, Kristen Busch earned honorable mention All-America recognition in the 10,000 meters for her performance at the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She earned cross country NCAA All-Midwest Region honors in 2013 and 2015 and she has qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships in three events.
A health science major with a 3.66 cumulative GPA, Kristen Busch is a nine-time Valley Scholar-Athlete in cross country (2014 and 2015), indoor track (four events) and outdoor track (three events). She received the MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award in 2014 and 2015 and is a four-time recipient of the MVC Female Scholar-Athlete of the Week. She also has earned recognition on the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of the last six semesters.
The catalysts of the Bradley women's cross country team's back-to-back Missouri Valley Conference championships in 2014 and 2015, both sisters are active participants with Bradley University's Service on Saturday program, including assistance with local Easter events for children and cleaning projects in local parks, as well as Washington tornado cleanup efforts. Both sisters serve as Bradley University tutors. Caitlin Busch was Bradley's 2015 Varsity Club Female Most Outstanding Athlete, after Kristen Busch claimed the award in 2014.
Kendall Duffy, Softball, Naperville, IL (Benet Academy), Sports Communication (3.71)
A second-team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection in 2014, Duffy hit a go-ahead grand slam in the MVC Softball Championship title game, powering the Braves to an 8-7 victory for their second league title and entry into the NCAA Softball Regionals. She is a four-year starter on the softball team and has earned the squad's 4D Award - Desire, Dedication, Determination, Discipline - each of the last two years.
Majoring in sports communication with a 3.71 cumulative GPA, Duffy is a three-time National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-American Scholar-Athlete (2013-14-15). She received the MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award in 2014 and 2015 and has qualified for the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of her first seven semesters on The Hilltop.
The recipient of the MVC Leadership & Service Award for Spring 2014, Duffy serves as the softball team's community service representative and has directed the program's involvement in eight different service activities. Most recently, she helped coordinate the Bradley Softball team's involvement in the Go4TheGoal foundation fundraising efforts in the fight against pediatric childhood cancer.
Danielle Lemek, Women's Golf, Doniphan, NE (Doniphan-Trumbull H.S.), Marketing Professional Selling (3.35)
Lemek is the most-accomplished women's golfer in Bradley and Missouri Valley Conference history. Boasting the league's career scoring average record (74.37), she was named The Valley's Golfer of the Year each of the last three seasons, beginning in 2014 when she won was the MVC Women's Golf Championship medalist. The owner of 10 individual college tournament titles, Lemek was selected the MVC Women's Golfer of the Week a record 19 times during her four-year Bradley career. She was selected Bradley University's Varsity Club Female Most Outstanding Athlete in 2013.
Majoring in marketing professional selling, Lemek sports a 3.35 cumulative grade point average. She has twice earned first-team Missouri Valley Conference Scholar-Athlete accolades and is expected to become a 3-time award winner when the 2016 squad is announced. She received the MVC Commissioner's Academic Excellence Award in 2014 and has qualified for the Bradley Athletic Director's Honor Roll in each of the last six semesters.
A member of the Bradley University Braves Council student-athlete advisory board, Lemek has volunteered at Pleasant Valley Elementary School each of the last two years and she spearheaded a teddy bear drive for children at OSF Saint Francis Medical Center this past winter.
