DEFIANCE — Defiance College recently announced the winners of its 2020 Swarm Awards in an online format via Twitter. Also known as the 47th Annual Purple and Gold Club Spring Sports Banquet, the event has been presented by Defiance’s Purple and Gold Club since the 1970s.
This year, because of the current coronavirus pandemic, 2019-20 award recipients were announced through live-tweeting on the athletic department’s official Twitter account: @DC_Athletics.
This year’s winners included a pair of Preble C0unty athletes — Madi Bowman, a 2016 graduate of Eaton, and Nicole Sims, a 2019 graduate of Preble Shawnee.
The banquet – which annually celebrates the accomplishments of DC student-athletes and their teams and recognizes the support of fans – was originally scheduled to be held on campus, as usual.
In all, Defiance recognized several individuals and groups with 16 different awards. Listed below are the awards as they were unveiled in live tweets.
Bowman won the Female Individual Performance of the Year, which is presented to a female student-athlete adjudged to have, in a single play or event, completed the best performance.
Bowman, senior, won for her performance at the women’s indoor track and field at the HCAC Championships on Feb. 22. The event was hosted by Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Bowman was named the HCAC Women’s Indoor Most Valuable Field Athlete after winning titles in the weight throw and shot put. She topped a field of 20 in the weight throw and 19 in the shot put, and scored 20 of DC’s 21 points.
Other nominees included Bowman at the Joe Banks Invite hosted by Ohio Northern University on Feb. 1; Lauren Perry (Northwood, Ohio/Lake), senior, women’s soccer at Andrews University on Sept. 4; Morgan Porter (Defiance, Ohio/Defiance), junior, volleyball versus Mount St. Joseph University on Nov. 2.
Bowman was honored with the Female Purple and Gold Distinguished Athlete Award, which is presented to an outstanding female senior student-athlete based on her contribution to the team, campus and community over the course of her career.
Bowman recorded the team’s top indoor track and field results in the weight throw (school-record 16.85 meters) and shot put (personal-record 11.29m) in 2019-20. She finished first in shattering the college’s weight throw record at Ohio Northern’s Joe Banks Invite and later earned Women’s Indoor Most Valuable Field Athlete honors at the HCAC Championships after ending No. 1 in the weight throw (15.99m) and shot put (PR listed above). Bowman scored 20 of DC’s 21 points at the conference meet and was twice chosen HCAC Field Athlete of the Week. In the weight throw, she was also the champion at the Tiffin Dragon Open and ONU’s Larry Cole Invite while her record toss of 16.85 meters ranked first in the conference, third in the Great Lakes Region and 24th nationally. Bowman also played in all 20 women’s soccer matches in the fall, starting 18 as the goalkeeper. She was a four-year member of the indoor and outdoor track programs and in DC history ranks fourth in the hammer throw (44.82m), eighth in the shot put and 10th in the discus (35.42m). Majoring in exercise science with a 3.67 GPA, Bowman also played soccer for four seasons, making 60 career starts.
Other nominees: Brooke Gostomsky (Covington, Ohio/Covington), softball; Blake Newman (Jackson, Mich./Lumen Christi), women’s soccer/indoor track and field/outdoor track and field.
Sims earned Female Newcomer of the Year, which is presented to a female freshman or first-time transfer who makes a notable impact on the success of her team.
Sims, a freshman, is a member of the women’s basketball team. She competed in 24 games with 17 starts at point guard, leading the squad in total assists (53) and assists per game (2.2). She was second on the team in assist/turnover ratio (1.1), third in minutes per contest (22.8) and third in total minutes (548). In a two-point, triple-overtime victory against Mount St. Joseph, Sims played 44 minutes, scoring a season-high 12 points.
