Four Wolfpack Student-Athletes Earn ACC Postgraduate Recognition
2/28/2018 11:09:00 AM | Pack Athletics, Women's Volleyball
Soren Dahl, Kaitlyn Kearney, Erika Kemp, and Pete Renda honored by the ACC
February 28, 2018
ACC Release
GREENSBORO, N.C. - Four NC State student-athletes have been named Atlantic Coast Conference postgraduate award recipients, as announced by the conference office Wednesday morning. Soren Dahl, Kaitlyn Kearney, and Erika Kemp have been awarded the Weaver-James-Corrigan postgraduate scholarships, and Pete Renda has earned the Weaver-James-Corrigan Honorary Award.Â
The Weaver-James-Corrigan and Jim and Pat Thacker postgraduate scholarships are awarded to select student-athletes who intend to pursue a graduate degree following the completion of their undergraduate requirements. Each recipient will receive $6,000 toward his or her graduate education. Those honored have performed with distinction in both the classroom and their respective sport, while demonstrating exemplary conduct in the community.Â
Since the inception of the ACC postgraduate scholarship program, NC State has had more award winners than any other school in the league.
The student-athletes will be honored at the annual Cone Health ACC Postgraduate Scholarship Luncheon presented by ESPN on April 11. The luncheon will be hosted by the Nat Greene Kiwanis Club at the Sheraton Four Seasons Hotel Imperial Ballroom in Greensboro.Â
Soren Dahl • Swimming • Communications and Political Science • Copenhagen, DenmarkÂ
Dahl has put together a storied career as a part of the Wolfpack's swimming and diving program. He was an NCAA Champion in the 800 freestyle relay in 2017, the 400 freestyle relay in 2016, and he was also an Olympic Games qualifier in the 4x200 in 2016. Dahl earned All-America honors in 11 events over the course of his career and is an nine-time ACC Champion, with four of those titles coming during the 2017 season. Dahl has been named to the All-ACC Academic Team each year from 2015 through 2017 while also being honored as a CSCAA Scholar All-American during those same years.
Kaitlyn Kearney • Volleyball • Business Administration • Frisco, Texas
Kearney turned in a stellar senior season and career with NC State, headlined by breaking the program record for career blocks. The Frisco, Texas native ended the 2017 campaign with 556 career blocks, which was the most by an active player in the ACC and 10th nationally. Her 160 blocks during the 2017 campaign was the fourth most in the conference and ranked 21st in the NCAA. Offensively, Kearney surpassed 1,000 career kills in the Wolfpack's match against Miami to become the first player in program history with 1,000 or more career kills and at least 500 career blocks. She was also one of just eight active players in the NCAA to have accomplished the feat. Kearney was third on the team in kills last season with 259, averaging 2.06 kills per set. She tallied double-digit kills in seven matches as a senior and recorded a double-double with 13 kills and 10 blocks at Wake Forest. She graduated in December with a degree in business administration.Â
Erika Kemp • Cross Country/Track & Field • Psychology and Spanish • Mount Holly, New Jersey
Kemp is a five-time NCAA All-American cross country and track performer. Kemp has also been recognized as an All-Conference performer six times in her career. In 2017, she became a conference champion, taking home gold in the women's 3K at the ACC Indoor Championships. Kemp was named to the All-Southeast Region Cross Country team each season from 2014 to 2016 after finishing in the top 15 of the three regional meets, including a second-place finish in 2016. Boasting a 3.78 GPA, Kemp is a five-time All-ACC Academic Team honoree and five-time USTFCCCA All-Academic recipient.
Pete Renda • Wrestling • Economics • Topton, PennsylvaniaÂ
Renda has been ranked in the top-10 nationally this entire season at 184 pounds, as the NC State Wrestling team heads into postseason action at both the ACC and NCAA Championships in March. Renda was a 2016 All-American, placing third at the NCAA Championships after knocking off four top-10 seeds, and redshirted last season. This year, Renda is 19-2 overall, and a perfect 12-0 in bonus point matches. Renda already ranks in the top 10 in career wins at NC State, currently sitting at 92 entering this weekend's ACC Championship.Â
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