INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Division II has announced the 46 student-athletes who will each receive the 50th Anniversary Scholarship, worth over $1,000, and St. Thomas Aquinas men's cross country and track and field senior distance runner Kiernan Keenan and Molloy women's volleyball senior outside hitter Kiara Roth have been selected from the East Coast Conference.
Recipients have exemplified the division’s Life in the Balance philosophy through high-level athletics competition, academic achievement, campus involvement and community engagement. The recipients were recognized during the opening ceremonies at the Division II Festival on Monday in Orlando, Fla. Division II schools submitted 196 nominations for the commemorative scholarship. Conference offices reviewed their member schools’ nominations and selected up to four finalists for review by the Division II Management Council Identity Subcommittee. The subcommittee reviewed all finalist submissions and determined the recipients, awarding one male student-athlete and one female student-athlete from each of the 23 Division II conferences.
Keenan graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Science degree in business management with minors in finance and economics earlier this month. A member of the Delta Mu Delta Honor Society (2024) and Chi Alpha Sigma National Honor Society (2023), Keenan will remain at STAC to pursue the Master of Science in Teaching track, which will put him on pace to pursue his dreams of teaching and igniting a passion in students for serving a greater purpose.
From coordinating weekly practices for a local track club, to coaching the runners at his alma mater, as well as providing for those in need through helping community food banks and athletic programs for children with disabilities, Keenan’s mission has been people-driven with a focus on giving back to the communities that built him, and serving others is what he has come to value most. With his athletic background, he looks forward to the prospect of utilizing his final year of athletic eligibility for the Spartans, with whom he is a four-time point scorer on the ECC level.
Roth majors in Childhood Education K-6/Childhood Special Education Pre-12 with a concentration in history and plans to earn a master’s degree in adapted physical education and health. A 2023 American Volleyball Coaches Association All-Region Honorable Mention and back-to-back ECC All-Conference First Team selection, the Molloy women’s volleyball team captain also earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and D2 National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Academic Achievement recognition this fall.
Roth has been exemplary in the community with a heavy involvement in Team IMPACT, where she served as a team captain and team lead responsible for planning and scheduling times and events with Molloy women’s volleyball’s Team IMPACT match. She also participated in a pair of walks this past fall, raising money and awareness in the Autism Speaks Walk and Team IMPACT All-In 5k.
“Congratulations to these deserving student-athletes who exhibit the core values of Division II,” said Terri Steeb Gronau, vice president of Division II. “It was important while celebrating the history of Division II that we also recognize and celebrate our student-athlete leaders in a meaningful way.”
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