One of the most prestigious honor societies at WC inducts a plethora of student athletes
By Isabella Sansanelli
Sports Editor
The WC Chapter of Phi Beta Kappa only picks the highest-ranking students to extend an invitation, and this year, this included eight student athletes.
Phi Beta Kappa is one of the most prestigious honor societies to date and is a well-established organization at Washington College. It was first chartered at WC on February 23, 2007 and has since inducted nearly 330 WC senior students.
Its goal is to recognize liberal arts excellence and induct only the highest achieving of each senior class. Students must be in their senior year to be considered and have a strong resume not only in terms of academic success but also involvement on campus, good disciplinary standing and overall experiences.
Of the eight inducted, this included two women’s lacrosse seniors: Lauren Brenner and Aubrey Robinson.
Brenner hails from Glenn Mills, Pa. and is a biology major. She has twice won Goose Nation TV Shorewomen Player of the Game and has been featured on the Centennial Conference Academic Honor roll for both 2018 and 2019.
In her 2019 season, she was honored as Centennial Conference Offensive player of the week, IWLCA All-Academic Team and All-Centennial Conference Second Team as well as Academic All-Centennial.
She has played an integral role on the team, seeing significant playing time all four years and leading the team in total points and goals scored in the brief 2020 season.
Robinson hails from Landenberg, Pa. and will graduate this spring with a degree in eonomics. She served as the team captain for the 2020 season and had a standout 2019 season.
Similar to Brenner, she was chosen to be a part of the 2019 IWLCA All-Academic Team, 2019 All-Centennial Conference second team and 2019 Academic All-Centennial. She was also nominated to the 2019 All-Metro Team.
She has been a four-year starter for the WC women’s lacrosse program and served as a leader for her team in her time as a Shorewoman.
“Getting inducted into Phi Beta Kappa is such an honor,” said Robinson. “It feels so good to see all of your hard work throughout college payoff by getting into such a prestigious honor society.”
For the men’s soccer team, sole inductee Sean Garin has served as a four-year starter, two-year captain and central player to the team in his four years. He will graduate with a bachelors in both biology and chemistry and a legacy that will remain with WC long after his departure.
He was voted the team MVP in the 2018 Sports Awards at WC and was nominated to the 2019 Centennial Conference All-Sportsmanship Team. He is a three-time Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll qualifier and was nominated to the Athey Cup All-Tournament Team in his last collegiate season.
“It was a lot of hard work and I’m glad everyone who was inducted got recognition before the end of on-campus learning,” said Garin. “With somewhat of an anticlimactic last semester this felt like a small victory before graduating.”
Two women’s field hockey players joined the mix, with midfielders Sophie Grabiec and Jessie Wiley both qualifying.
Grabiec is from Newport, Pa and served as a team captain during her last collegiate season. She is an English major and was awarded Team Most Improved Player during her freshman season in 2016.
Since then, she has qualified three times for the Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll and four times for the NFHCA National Academic Squad.
Willey also served as a team captain for her final season alongside Grabiec and will be graduating with a bachelor’s in biology. She is an Eastern Shore native hailing from Salisbury and has been the recipient of several student-athlete awards.
She is a four-time NFHCA Scholar of Distinction, four time NFHCA National Academic Squad, three time Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll and was the recipient of last year’s Elizabeth “Bo” Blanchard Award.
Ana Reyonoso-Zimmerer of the WC women’s swim team was also inducted. She is a sociology and hispanic studies double major and hails from San Diego, Ca.
She was a three time Centennial Conference Academic Honor Roll recipient and competed in both backstroke and freestyle events for the team during her senior year.
Sole women’s basketball inductee Sammy Howell is a physics major at WC and hails from Chevy Chase. She has been highly involved on campus, serving as the Secretary of Environmental Affairs for three years, Vice President of the Cater Society of Junior Fellows, and being a physics tutor.
She is also a three time Centennial Conference Academic Honor Role qualifier.
“It’s an honor to be a part of this amazing group of people,” said Howell. “It’s a great feeling to be a part of such a symbol of excellence with such a rich history. I’ll treasure the induction ceremony always, and I am looking forward to seeing all that the society has to offer.”
Lastly, rower Olivia Robb was the only crew team member to be inducted. She is a psychology and sociology double major.
During her time at WC she has been awarded four times Shorewoman of the Week, two-times MARC Crew of the Week, two times Academic All-Marc and two times All-American.
In 2017 she was awarded All-MARC Novice, while in 2018 she was awarded CRCA National Scholar-Athlete. In 2019 she was voted team MVP and All-MARC Varsity.
Robb served as a team captain and led her team to victory while serving as coxswain during NCAA Division III finals and the MARC Championship. She has played an integral role on the team in her last four years at WC and her legacy will remain potent in the years to come.