CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Longwood senior right-handed pitcher
Zach Potojecki was selected by the Big South Conference as a recipient of the annual Bob McCloskey Insurance Big South Conference Graduate Fellowship, granting the Danville, Va., native $2,000 toward his postgraduate studies.
A business administration major who will receive his bachelor's degree from Longwood later this month, Potojecki becomes the fifth Lancer to earn a Big South Graduate Fellowship since Longwood joined the conference six years ago. He joins former women's soccer players Olivia Colella (2016) and Taylor Cave (2015), men's basketball player Stephen Shockley (2013) and field hockey player Amy Lewis (2013) on that list, giving Longwood more recipients of the yearly prize than any other Big South school since 2013.
Potojecki has been a four-year contributor on the diamond and in the classroom for Longwood baseball during his career. He boasts a 3.52 grade point average, is a three-time Longwood Scholar Athlete Award winner, and is a member of the Big South Presidential Honor Roll. In the fall of 2017, he was named to Longwood's President's List for accumulating a 4.0 GPA during the semester. He also held a post on the Lancer Student Investment Fund as a junior and senior and was honored with membership in Beta Gamma Sigma for graduating within the top 10 percent of the 2018 business class at Longwood.
Additionally, Potojecki has appeared in 41 games with 20 starts over the past four seasons, striking out 118 batters in 112.2 innings and collecting one save. This season Potojecki has made 10 appearances with five starts and has collected 19 strikeouts in 16.0 innings. His 2018 performance followed a breakout year in 2017 in which Potojecki named a member of the Big South All-Academic team, finished third in the conference with 82 strikeouts and ranked 17th in the nation with 11.71 strikeouts per nine innings.
The Big South Conference Graduate Fellowship Program was established by the league in the Fall of 2005 as a means of recognizing the academic excellence of Big South Conference student-athletes who intend to pursue postgraduate studies after graduating from a Big South institution. The conference presents the $2,000 prize to two student-athletes each year, which this year went to Potojecki and High Point women's soccer player Paige Romback.
Potojecki intends to pursue his Master's in Business Administration and will apply to Longwood's program in the College of Business & Economics among others in pursuit of his MBA. He will officially receive the award at the Big South's annual Spring Awards Dinner and Hall of Fame Banquet on Thursday, May 31 in Hilton Head, S.C.
"Bob McCloskey Insurance is once again honored to be able to continue our tradition as a proud Corporate Partner of the Big South by bestowing these scholarships to these fine student-athletes who clearly are outstanding ambassadors for the Big South," said Rob McCloskey. "We wish them both much success in the future."
Along with his academic and athletic pursuits, Potojecki has also found time to volunteer in community initiatives during his time at Longwood, working in God's Storehouse for three years, participating in the Farmville Area Community Emergency Services (F.A.C.E.S.) fall of 2017, and volunteering with The Woodlands Assisted Living community each of the past three seasons.
Nominations for the Graduate Fellowship are made by the Faculty Athletics Representative or the Chief Academic Officer at a Big South member institution, and are limited to one male and one female at each school. To qualify for the Big South Conference Graduate Fellowship, applicants must have the following requirements:
- Have an overall undergraduate cumulative grade-point average of 3.500 or better based on a maximum 4.000, or the equivalent in other recognized grading systems;
- Have competed in intercollegiate athletics as a member of a varsity team at a Big South Conference member institution;
- Must be either a graduating senior during the academic year of the award, or be enrolled in a graduate program at a Big South Conference institution while completing the last year of eligibility;
- Intend to continue academic work beyond the baccalaureate degree and enroll into a graduate degree program at a properly accredited, non-profit educational institution or into a post-baccalaureate professional degree program at a professionally accredited law school, medical school or the equivalent, without restriction as to the national site of the institution;
- Have evidenced superior character and superior leadership;
- Have demonstrated that participation in athletics and community service has been a positive influence on the nominee's personal and intellectual development. Relative success in athletics is important, but not of overriding significance;
- Enroll in a graduate degree program the term subsequent to being awarded the fellowship or present a rationale for deferred matriculation.
Potojecki and the seven-player senior class of
Michael Catlin,
Andrew Corbitt,
Mac McCafferty,
Sammy Miller,
Justin Mitchell, Potojecki, and
Ryan Shull will be honored before the start of Saturday's game against Gardner-Webb. First pitch in the home finale is set for 3 p.m. Saturday at Buddy Bolding Stadium.
Bob McCloskey Insurance Big South Conference Graduate Fellowship
Recipients Since 2013
| Year |
Student-Athlete |
Sport |
School |
| 2018 |
Zach Potojecki |
BASE |
Longwood |
| 2018 |
Paige Romback |
WSOC |
High Point |
| 2017 |
Anne Cushman |
WSOC |
Winthrop |
| 2017 |
Hayden Ploeger |
MGLF |
Presbyterian |
| 2016 |
Olivia Colella |
WSOC |
Longwood |
| 2016 |
Steven Patrick |
MTEN |
Winthrop |
| 2015 |
Taylor Cave |
WSOC |
Longwood |
| 2015 |
Will Resnik |
BASE |
High Point |
| 2014 |
Becca Haraf |
VB |
Liberty |
| 2014 |
Cameron Griggs |
T&F |
Coastal Carolina |
| 2013 |
Stephen Shockley |
MBB |
Longwood |
| 2013 |
Amy Lewis |
FH |
Longwood |
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