Top Ten of 2012-13 - #3 - Travis King & Micah Leonard Honored as Greyhound Senior Athlete Award Winners
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College continues its countdown of the top 10 honors and moments of the 2012-13 season today with a look at our No. 3 highlight – Travis King and Micah Leonard being named the 2013 Greyhound Senior Student-Athlete Award winners.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College continues its countdown of the top 10 honors and moments of the 2012-13 season today with a look at our No. 3 highlight – Travis King and Micah Leonard being named the 2013 Greyhound Senior Athlete Award winners.
"When I received the award I felt honored and so proud of what I have accomplished, King explained. "I learned so much from so many amazing people throughout my years at Moravian. The senior athlete award spoke for the people I surrounded myself with, so I cannot take all of the credit at all for that. Being around the right people for four years who were successful, added up and accumulated to my success and achievement."
King competed in all three seasons between football and track & field at Moravian, and he enjoyed an outstanding senior year. On the football field last fall, King was named to the Centennial All-Conference First Team as a defensive back, and he was also honored on the Centennial Conference Fall Academic Honor Roll and the National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society.
King, who played in 37 of 41 possible football games in his career, led the 2012 Greyhound squad with 77 tackles to go with six and a half tackles for loss, one sack, two interceptions including a 45-yard return for a touchdown, six passes defended and four forced fumbles. This fall, King also returned 13 kickoffs for 248 yards and 11 punts for 88 yards. He finished his career with 187 tackles including 117 solo stops to go with 13 and a half tackles for loss, one sack, 21 passes defended with ten interceptions, which ranks tenth in school history, including two returned for touchdowns, six forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. King set the Moravian career records for kickoff returns at 65, and yards at 1,317, and he also returned 37 punts for 323 yards.
"It really is not as hard as people think to be honest," King said about playing two different sports. "Because I love both sports so much, changing seasons felt like changing classes. They great thing about being at Moravian was that I could always see and talk to both teammates whenever I wanted because we still had similar schedules."
When the seasons changed, King took to jumping for the track & field team. During the indoor season, he was the runner-up in the triple jump and on Moravian's second place 4x200-meter relay team to earn Landmark All-Conference honors in both events. He was also named the 2013 Landmark Conference Senior Scholar-Athlete for men's indoor track & field.
At this past spring's outdoor Landmark championship, King helped Moravian win the 4x100-meter relay championship, and he was the runner-up in the triple jump, an event he was trying to win for the fourth straight year. At the York Twilight meet a day after winning the Greyhound Senior Athlete Award, King had a career long in the triple jump of 14.52 meters (47 feet, 7 ¾ inches), the third longest distance in school history.
"It is kind of a surreal feeling," King said of winning eight conference team titles in track & field. "Looking back and realizing that I was a part of a Track & Field dynasty during my four years makes me realize that we accomplished something truly amazing. The countless memories, practices, bus trips, van rides, hours studying film and track meets all added up to a team that will go down in history. We did the little things that our coaching stuff asked of us day in and day oh and over time, it lead to eight consecutive Landmark Conference Championships. When I look back and talk to friends who were on previous teams, we look back and say we were truly a part of something special, and it feels good that we left our mark on Moravian to be remembered forever."
King also qualified and competed at the 2013 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse in the triple jump in May, finishing 12th in the event at 14.32 meters (46 feet, 11 ¾ inches). King is a six-time member of the Landmark Conference Academic Honor Roll and has also made the Landmark All-Academic Team twice.
"My best memory from Moravian was going to the 2013 Division III National Championships at Wisconsin – La Crosse," King finished. "It was the ultimate vacation and reward for four years of hard work encompassed in a week long experience. I met so many amazing people from across the country and also created memories with teammates and coaches that I will have with me for the rest of my life. I wish everyone could see there is a world of people out there just like you who compete at an elite level. That week long experience is something that I hope and wish many other Moravian Athletes get to experience sometime in their lives because it is truly priceless."
Leonard completed her track & field career at Moravian as one of the most accomplished student-athletes in school history. She was a six-time All-American including a runner-up finish in her last meet of 2013 at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships.
"Winning that award was a great surprise," Leonard stated about being named the Greyhound Senior Athlete Award winner. "When I noticed that Coach Dapp was talking about me for the award, the joy I felt almost brought me to tears. I can't express how thankful i am to everyone who helped me get to that point in my career."
Leonard was honored as the Lehigh Valley Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women Outstanding Field Athlete in track & field this spring and was also Moravian's LVAIAW Outstanding Athlete for the school.
During the indoor season, Leonard earned All-America honors for the fifth time in her career as she placed fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 11.86 meters (38 feet, 10 ¾ inches) at the 2013 NCAA Division III Indoor National Championships hosted by North Central (Ill.) College. At the ECAC Championships, Leonard posted a school record distance of 11.95 meters (39 feet, 2 ½ inches) while placing third in the event. Leonard was also named the Landmark Conference Indoor Field Athlete of the Year for the third straight season. She won the triple jump for the fourth straight year, and she captured the long jump for a third consecutive meet while placing second in the high jump.
In late April at the Landmark Conference Outdoor Championships, Leonard helped Moravian win its sixth straight team title, and she was named the Field Athlete of the Year. Leonard won the long jump with a mark of 5.69 meters (18 feet, eight inches), a career best that moved her to tenth place in the nation. Leonard then captured the triple jump for the fourth straight year with a Moravian and Landmark Conference record distance of 12.14 meters (39 feet, ten inches), a distance that moves her to third in the nation, and she was also the runner-up in the high jump.
"It was just an unreal accomplishment for me," Leonard said of winning eight Landmark Conference team titles in her career. "I almost had to pinch myself with the realization that my hard work over the years paid off in a such a big way."
A day after being honored with the Greyhound Senior Athlete Award, Leonard won the triple jump at the York Twilight meet with another school record of 12.34 meters (40 feet, six inches), the first time in her career that Leonard surpassed 40 feet. A week late, Leonard was the runner-up in the event at the ECAC Championships. To finish off her career, Leonard would place second in the triple jump at the NCAA Championships with a career mark of 12.47 meters (40 feet, 11 inches) to earn her sixth All-America honor.
"I loved spending times with the ladies of my jumps team," Leonard finished. "We would always take a lot of silly pictures of each other before conferences. It would help us all relax and have fun. The last few years with them have made my college experience so much richer and I am thankful for their friendship."
Number two on our countdown will be announced on Wednesday, July 31st.
No. 10 - Donnie Noble Sweeps Landmark Conference Track
Athlete of the Year Awards
No. 9 - Women's Volleyball Wins School Record 29 Matches
No. 8 - Women's Basketball Wins Play 4Kay for 5th Straight Year
with over $16,000 Raised
No. 7 - Micah Leonard Sweeps Landmark Conference Field Athlete of
the Year Honors
No. 6 - Women's Track & Field Team Wins 2 More Landmark
Conference Titles
No. 5 - Dillon Farrell Wins Landmark Conference Men's Cross Country
Championship
No. 4 - Men's Cross Country and Track & Field Teams Sweep
Landmark Conference Team Titles for 2nd Straight Year
No. 3 - Travis King & Micah Leonard Honored as Greyhound Senior
Athlete Award Winners
No. 2 - Micah Leonard Finishes as Runner-Up in Triple Jump at NCAA
DIII National Championships
No. 1 - Baseball Wins Landmark Conference Championship
