Castillo Named MASCAC Scholar Athlete

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Lycoming women’s tennis senior Josemar Castillo (Maracaibo, Venezuela/Muncy) earned one of the top athletic and academic combination awards in the conference by being named a Middle Atlantic States Collegiate Athletic Corporation Scholar Athlete.

To be considered for such an honor, a conference athlete must be a senior standing and have participated in a 2005 fall sport.  Eligible athletes must carry at least a 3.2 grade point average, and will also receive recognition for excellent civic and co-curricular involvement.  The award is evenly based on athletic prowess and academic record and is presented to one senior athlete per sport throughout the conference.

Castillo is a two-time All-Freedom Conference selection garnering a First Team nod in 2005 and a Second Team selection in 2003.  She was a member of the Freedom Conference champion Lady Warriors in 2002 playing #3 singles her freshman season.  During her four years in blue and gold, she accumulated a 22-14 singles record and a 19-14 doubles mark.

Also an academic all-star, Castillo has been on the Lycoming College Dean’s List each semester since the fall of 2002.  She was honored with the Ada Remley Memorial Scholarship for academic excellence and service to the College and the community.  She is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi collegiate honor society, vice president of the Gamma Sigma Epsilon chemistry honor society, and treasurer of the Kappa Mu Epsilon mathematics honor society.  In 2004, she was awarded with the Fundamentals of Physics Award given to the student who has achieved the highest overall grade based on a cumulative score from exams, homework, and laboratory work in selected physics courses.

She was named to the Middle Atlantic Conference All-Academic Team in 2003, 2004, and 2005, and was also honored with a 2005 National ITA Scholar Athlete Award (NCAA Division III).

In April 2005, Castillo was honored with the IRUSKA Honor Society Award given for outstanding contributions to campus life in one or more student activities.  She has been a resident advisor for the past three years, a tutor in Spanish, Physics, and Chemistry, and a member of several other campus organizations including the Multicultural Awareness Group, Black Student Union, Chemistry Club (vice president), Association of Mathematically Interested Students, and the Recreation Board.  She has also made several contributions to Operation Christmas Child on campus.

Castillo is a mentor in the Lycoming Peer Athlete Leaders program (PAL).  To be a mentor in the PAL program, a student-athlete must be nominated by his/her head coach and have at least a 3.0 grade point average.  The purpose of the program is to help new freshman student-athletes, and those others pointed out by coaches, cope with the academic and social rigors that accompany the beginning of college life.  Castillo was nominated for this position not only for fitting the academic criteria, but also for her commitment to positive citizenship towards the Lycoming College community.

Castillo is also involved in the Community Alliance for Progressive Positive Action (CAPPA) in Williamsport, Pa., and has been a volunteer at the Little League World Series as an interpreter and an usher.