Football and Gymnastics Earn Top Honors at The Bennys - Oregon State University Athletics

Corvallis -- Oregon State University’s football and gymnastics teams took the top honors at the Tenth Annual The Bennys Awards ceremony Tuesday evening at the LaSells Stewart Center. The Bennys is an end-of-the-year celebration commemorating the achievements of student-athletes at OSU.

The football team, under the direction of Mike Riley, posted a 9-4 record in 2007 culminating with the program’s fourth consecutive bowl victory – 21-14 over Maryland in the Emerald Bowl. The Beavers finished third in the Pac-10 Conference for the second consecutive year and ended the regular season with a 38-31 double overtime victory over Oregon at Autzen Stadium.

Tanya Chaplin’s gymnastics team was honored with a Benny for a record-setting eighth time. The Beavers won the NCAA West Regional for the first time since 1992 and advanced to the NCAA Championships for the third straight year.

Football’s Yvenson Bernard took home the hardware as the Male Athlete of the Year. The Boca Raton, Fla., native was one of the team captains in 2007. Bernard concluded his career as the sixth all-time leading rusher in Pac-10 history with 3,862 yards and was named the Offensive Most Valuable Player of the Emerald Bowl.

Swimming’s Saori Haruguchi captured the Female Athlete of the Year honor for the second straight year. Haruguchi, from Fukuoka, Japan, earned All-American honors for the third consecutive season after becoming OSU’s first-ever champion in the sport, capturing the 200-meter butterfly. She will represent Japan at this summer’s Olympic Games. Haruguchi also captured the Female Performance of the Year honor.

Freshmen receiver James Rodgers and relief pitcher Kevin Rhoderick shared the Male Newcomer of the Year award. Rodgers scored four touchdowns over the last three games of the season, including the game winner in double overtime at Oregon. Rhoderick led the conference for saves during the regular season with 12 and was a candidate for the national relief pitcher of the year award.

Jen Kesler from the gymnastics team was awarded the Female Newcomer of the Year. The Kenmore, Wash., native earned an NCAA West Regional title and All-American honors in the uneven bars.

Riley captured his first Male Sports Coach of the Year and Chaplin won the Female Sports Coach of the Year for a record fifth time.

The Male Performance of the Year was presented to the football team’s defense in its goal-line stand against No. 2 California in Berkeley.

The Robert Byers Spirit Award was presented to men’s rower Will Gustafson. Gustafson is a member of the Oregon National Guard and returned to campus after a tour of duty in Iraq. He has also earned numerous honors for his achievements academically.

Bennys were also presented to All-Americans and Pac-10 Conference champions – Roy Schuening (football), Yuki Lamb (gymnastics), Jami Lanz (gymnastics), Jen Kesler (gymnastics), Saori Haruguchi (swimming), Tasha Smith (gymnastics), Kyle Bressler (wrestling) and Travis Gardner (wrestling).

Scholar Athletes were also recognized with Bennys – James Fulmer (rowing), Justin Wagner (rowing), Keegan Fitzgerald (gymnastics), Kristin Murray (volleyball), Brett Gardner (soccer), Yuki Lamb (gymnastics), Whitney Goodell (soccer), Lauren Denfeld (track/cross country), Julie McCauley (swimming), Claire Hanway (rowing), Jessica Sadusky (soccer), Jeff Halleck (rowing), Jessi Gebhardt (golf), Kaylie Towne (rowing), Felicia Castaneda (swimming), Erin Postma (rowing), Mia Longfellow (softball), Holly Simmons (rowing), Dena Lougee (swimming), Clayton Moe (golf), Andy Hall (wrestling), Rebecca Franceschi (rowing) and Andy Darkins (football).

The Glenn Klein Community Service Benny was presented to gymnast D’Anna Piro and men’s rower Justin Wagner.

Longtime donors Al and Pat Reser were presented the Martin Chaves Lifetime Achievement Award.