Youngstown State's Lipari, Hamilton Named Scholar-Athletes of the Month

INDIANAPOLIS— Youngstown State seniors Phil Lipari and Samantha Hamilton have been named Horizon League Scholar-Athletes of the Month of May.

Lipari held a grade point average of 3.81 at Youngstown State and graduated Summa Cum Laude in May with a bachelor’s degree in finance. He was voted Academic All-Horizon League for the third time in his career, becoming just the third Penguins baseball player to be named to the honor three times.

During the month of May, Lipari was named the Most Valuable Player at the Horizon League Baseball Championship as Youngstown State topped Wright State in the championship game. At the NCAA Bloomington Regional, he was named to the All-Tournament Team and the Penguins won its first NCAA Tournament game in program history. For the month, the left-handed batter hit .426 and had hit safely in 15 of 16 games.

Lipari was also named Horizon League Scholar-Athlete of the Month of March.

Hamilton, an exercise science major at Youngstown State, graduated Magna Cum Laude with a 3.74 grade point average. In total, she was named Academic All-Horizon League nine times and appeared on the Horizon League Honor Roll eight times.

In May, Hamilton was named the 2014 Horizon League Outdoor Track & Field Female Athlete of the Year. The Penguin women completed a sweep in 2013-14, winning championships in cross country, indoor track & field and outdoor track & field. At the Horizon League Outdoor Track & Field Championships, she won the 5,000-meter run (17:32.19) and the 10,000-meter run (35:30.60) and qualified the 2014 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field East Preliminaries in the 10,000-meter run.

Hamilton was a nominee for the Cecil N. Coleman Medal of Honor, the Horizon League’s highest individual honor.